Christopher Newport University

Leona Baker

Leona Baker is a writer, editor, creative, communications professional, food fanatic, adventure seeker and nature lover. A Virginia native and graduate of James Madison University and Virginia Commonwealth University, Leona is currently Editor-in-Chief of Coastal Virginia Magazine, a publishing brand dedicated to celebrating the lifestyle of Coastal Virginia as well as travel around the Commonwealth, and its associated print and digital media. Leona previously served as senior copywriter for Spark 451, an agency specializing in higher education marketing; Director of Marketing & Communications at Virginia Wesleyan University; and Senior Editor of Port Folio Weekly, a weekly paper covering news, lifestyle, arts and culture and based in Norfolk. Visit her website for more information.

Mary Batten

Mary Batten is an award-winning writer for television, film and publishing. Her many writing projects have taken her into tropical rainforests, astronomical observatories, scientific laboratories, and medical research centers. She scripted some 50 television documentaries, was nominated for an Emmy, and is the author of many magazine articles for Cosmopolitan and others, and more than 15 nature/science books for adults and children, including Sexual Strategies: How Females Choose Their Mates and Aliens from Earth – 2006 Isaak Walton Conservation Book of the Year Award. Her most recent book is Life in a Frozen World: Wildlife of Antarctica. See more on her website.

Tina Carey

As the author of two acclaimed chapbooks, "Wounds to Words" and "Unmasked," Tina's expertise in transforming trauma into poetic expression is unparalleled. Her work not only resonates with a wide audience but also serves as a guiding light for those embarking on their own journeys of self-discovery.

At the heart of Tina's practice lies her "From Wounds to Words" poetry workshop, a transformative experience that empowers participants to navigate their emotional landscapes through writing. Her compassionate facilitation style encourages students to explore the depths of their experiences, turning pain into empowerment and fostering a community of support and understanding.

Tina's dedication to her craft and her students is evident in the safe and nurturing space she creates, allowing for vulnerability and healing. As a beacon in the field of therapeutic poetry, Tina Carey continues to inspire and guide individuals towards finding their voice and reclaiming their narrative.

Jason Carney

Jason Carney, Ph.D., is a Senior Lecturer in Popular Literature and Creative Writing at Christopher Newport University. He is the author of the academic book, Weird Tales of Modernity (McFarland), and the fantasy anthology, Rakefire and Other Stories (Pulp Hero Press). He recently edited Savage Scrolls: Thrilling Tales of Sword and Sorcery for Pulp Hero Press and is an editor at The Dark Man: Journal of Robert E. Howard and Pulp Studies and Whetstone: Amateur Magazine of Sword and Sorcery.

Kerry D’Agostino

Kerry D’Agostino is a literary agent at Curtis Brown, Ltd. She represents literary and upmarket fiction, and her authors include novelists Erin Adams, Andrea Bobotis, Leesa Cross-Smith, Nancy Wayson Dinan, Micah Dean Hicks, Talia Lakshmi Kolluri, Leslie Pietrzyk and Liza Wieland. Kerry also represents select nonfiction and YA. She is particularly drawn to character-driven work, unconventional plot structures, unreliable narrators, complicated family relationships, and speculative elements that challenge our ways of thinking about the world. Kerry is a graduate of Bowdoin College, Harvard Graduate School of Education and the Columbia Publishing Course. She currently serves as Co-Vice President on the Board of Directors for the Association of American Literary Agents, where she is also a member of the organization’s Programming Committee. Kerry is also a member of Curtis Brown’s Inclusion & Accountability Committee. She lives in Saratoga Springs, NY with her husband, daughter and two cats.

John Hartness

John G. Hartness is a teller of tales, a righter of wrong, defender of ladies’ virtues, and some people call him Maurice, for he speaks of the pompatus of love. He is also the award-winning author of the urban fantasy series The Black Knight Chronicles, the Bubba the Monster Hunter comedic horror series, the Quincy Harker, Demon Hunter dark fantasy series, and many other projects. In 2016, John teamed up with several other publishing industry professionals to create Falstaff Books, a small press dedicated to publishing the best of genre fiction’s “misfit toys.” Falstaff Books has since published over 300 titles with authors ranging from first-timers to NY Times bestsellers, with no signs of slowing down any time soon. He is also the founder of the SAGA Genre Fiction Writers’ Conference, where students hone their business and craft skills to write better books and make more money. In his copious free time John enjoys long walks on the beach, rescuing kittens from trees and playing Magic: the Gathering. John’s pronouns are he/him. Visit his website.

Sylvia Liu

Sylvia Liu grew up with books and daydreams in Caracas, Venezuela. Once an environmental attorney protecting the oceans, she now spins stories inspired by high-tech, cool science, and the intricacies of family and friendship. She’s the author of the middle-grade books Hana Hsu and the Ghost Crab Nation (Razorbill 2022), Near and Deer (Scholastic 2024), and Manatee’s Best Friend (Scholastic 2021) and the award-winning picture book A Morning with Grandpa, illustrated by Christina Forshay (Lee & Low Books 2016). Sylvia lives in Virginia with her family and a very fluffy cat.

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Lydia Netzer

Lydia Netzer is the author of Shine Shine Shine, a New York Times Notable Book, a Target Book Club Pick, and a finalist for the LA Times Book Prize, and How to Tell Toledo from the Night Sky, a finalist in the Library of Virginia People's Choice Award. She has taught fiction writing to all ages, from elementary kids to university students, and loves to mix gaming and writing.

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Leslye Penelope

Leslye Penelope’s debut novel Song of Blood & Stone was chosen as one of TIME Magazine’s 100 Best Fantasy Books of All Time. The novel also won the inaugural award for Best Self-Published Fiction from the Black Caucus of the American Library Association before it was picked up for publication by St. Martin’s Press. Her The Monsters We Defy won the 2023 Audie Award for Best Fantasy Audiobook.

Equally left and right-brained, she graduated from Howard University, where she studied film production and computer science and sometimes dreams in HTML. Leslye is also an alumna of VONA/Voices and Hurston/Wright Writers Workshop. She has spoken, taught, and given keynotes at conferences and festivals around the country, including the National Book Festival, PEN/Faulkner Foundation, Writers Digest Annual & Novel Writing Conferences, and the Historical Novel Society to name a few.

She hosts the My Imaginary Friends podcast, co-hosts the Ink & Magic podcast, and lives in Maryland with her feline dependents.

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Kevin Shortsleeve

Dr. Kevin K. Shortsleeve is Associate Professor of English at Christopher Newport University where he teaches courses on children’s literature and creative writing. He has published academic studies on Dr. Seuss, Edward Gorey, Walt Disney, Literary Nonsense and other subjects. He is also the author of several books for children, including Thirteen Monsters Who Should Be Avoided. The opening chapters of his fantasy manuscript, Under the Irish Sea, took First Place in the fiction category at the 40th Annual CNU Writer’s Conference. He received a D.Phil. from the University of Oxford, MA from the University of Florida and a BFA in Film from Emerson College.

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Diane Zinna

Diane Zinna is the author of the novel The All-Night Sun (Random House, 2020) and Letting Grief Speak: Writing Portals for Life After Loss, a craft book on the art of telling our hardest stories. Since 2020, she has led a free Zoom class called Grief Writing Sundays.

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