Author Profiles – Ohioana Library

Ohio Author Profiles

Ohio has a rich literary heritage as well as some wonderful contemporary authors. Learn more about them here! You can sort by various categories and see who has participated in our annual book festival by using the category search on the left, or search by keyword (including partial author names) by using the search field on the right.

If you would like to know which Ohio authors and illustrators are available for school and library visits or workshops, visit our School & Library Visits page here.

We continue to add authors, so check back soon!

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David Kimmel

David Kimmel is a descendant of one of the suspects in the Secaur murder. He is an award-winning professor of English at Heidelberg University in Tiffin, Ohio, where he investigates the boundary between historical writing and historical fiction. Outrage in Ohio is his debut work.Read More

Daniel Kirk

Daniel Kirk is the author and/or illustrator of over thirty picture books for young readers, as well as the “Elf Realm” series for tweens. His Library Mouse was a Booklist Editor’s Choice book, an Education.com Essential gift, a Parenting Magazine Best Mom-Tested Book of the Year, a Kansas Reading Association Award Nominee, a Book Sense pick, and the winner of a NAPPA Gold Award. Booklist gave Library Mouse a starred review. Library Mouse is a Choose to Read Ohio 2013-2014 title. Kirk’s next book in the series, Library Mouse: A Museum Adventure, received the 2012 Parents Choice Award, and Library Mouse: Home Sweet Home published in 2013. Daniel Kirk grew up on the east side of Columbus, and spent his early years as a bookworm with a penchant for drawing. It wasn’t until he was an adult with children of his own, however, that he began writing and illustrating picture books. Kirk graduated from the Ohio State University and taught art and photography, then moved to New York in the 1980’s to become a professional artist and illustrator. His early work appeared on the covers of Newsweek, Business Week, Sports Illustrated, New York Magazine, and many other publications, and won awards from the American Institute of Graphic Arts and the Society of Illustrators. Kirk lives in New Jersey with his wife author-illustrator and professor at Parsons, the New School for Design, Julia Gorton. Daniel’s books and blog may be found through http://www.danielkirk.com/.

Joy M. Kiser

Joy M. Kiser was born in Akron and grew up in Norton, Ohio. She began her professional career as the librarian for the Cleveland Museum of Natural History in 1995. In 2001, she moved to the Washington, DC, area to become the librarian for National Endowment for the Arts (NEA). She is currently employed as a writer/editor for the U.S.…

Matt Kish

Matt Kish has spent his whole life in the Midwest, moving often and taking on a variety of jobs. He has mowed lawns at hospitals, washed dishes at a pizza place, cooked in a college cafeteria, taught high school English, worked retail at a bookstore, and served as a hospital registrar. Finally, after earning a graduate degree in library science, he became a librarian. In 2011 Kish added illustrator to his list of accomplishments with the publication of Moby Dick in Pictures: One Picture for Every Page (Tin House Books). His take on Melville’s classic novel—Kish’s favorite since he was a child—won him wide acclaim with organizations from The Huffington Post to PBS. His illustrations have also appeared in The Desert Places (Curbside Splendor Publishing, 2013) and The Graphic Canon, Vol. 2 (Seven Stories Press, 2012). Visit him at http://www.spudd64.com/.

Lisa Klein

Lisa Klein, a former English professor, is the author of historical novels for young adults. She has two grown sons and lives in Columbus with her husband when she’s not time-traveling. Find more of Lisa at her website, http://www.authorlisaklein.com/.

Sophia R. Klein

Sophia Klein wrote her first book, turtle tide, as a gift for her younger brother, Caleb at age 14. She was motivated by her love of marine see life and the hope for a better future for both humans and see life. Her fascination began at the age of seven when she watched the “dolphin tale “movies and learned the inspirational stories of the dolphins, winter and help. She has since journeyed each summer to Clearwater Marine Aquarium in Florida to attend camps to learn about marine life and aspires to make working On the preservation of marine life partOf her future. Her love of art started is lifelong and she began studying art at four years of age. She has been studying art through community courses at Columbus College of Art and design since age 8 and continues now at age 14. This book is a culmination of her passions for marine life, preservation,storytelling, art and a love for family that she hopes all children will love and be inspired by.

Sophia R. Klein

Brian A. Klems

Brian A. Klems is a writer, husband, perennial fantasy sports underachiever and father of three lovely little girls (who, thankfully, look like their mother). He’s also the online editor of Writer’s Digest magazine and proud graduate of the journalism school at Ohio University. His parenting humor book Oh Boy, You’re Having a Girl: A Dad’s Survival Guide to Raising Daughters was called a “laugh-out-loud book” by the Chicago Tribune.…Read More

Artie Knapp

Ohio writer Artie Knapp is the author of over 40 published children's literature works that includes books, videos, stories and poems. His children’s stories have been featured in several course books by HarperCollins, Orient BlackSwan, Oxford University Press, Pearson Education, and The Chart Institute in Japan, among others. Additionally, Artie’s work has been published in various magazines and newspapers, as well as online publications.…Read More

Ohio writer Artie Knapp is the author of over 40 published children’s literature works that includes books, videos, stories and poems. His children’s stories have been featured in several course books by HarperCollins, Orient BlackSwan, Oxford University Press, Pearson Education, and The Chart Institute in Japan, among others. Additionally, Artie’s work has been published in various magazines and newspapers, as well as online publications. Among his writing credits are the children’s books Stuttering Stan Takes a Stand and Living Green: A Turtle’s Quest for a Cleaner Planet, a shortlist finalist for the Green Earth Book Award. He is a member of The Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators, and graduated from Ohio University. Artie lives in Cincinnati, Ohio, with his wife and daughter. To learn more about Artie and his work, visit him online at http://www.artieknapp.com.

Mary Knight

Born and raised in Cincinnati, Mary has always enjoyed the power of a good story, whether it’s been as a children’s librarian, a freelance writer or a writer-in-residence teaching kids how to write. Several years ago, she decided to go back to school to learn how to write a novel. After graduating in 2013 from Spalding University’s MFA program in Writing, Mary completed her middle grade novel, SAVING WONDER, found the agent and editor of her dreams, and is now a published author with Scholastic.
Of all the things she appreciates in life, she especially values loving kindness, a good laugh, the wisdom of young people, and the ability to see the world through another person’s eyes. She believes this last quality, empathy, is the key to not only being a good friend and an awesome person, but being a good writer as well. “I must first step into the minds and hearts of my characters to discover their viewpoints,” she says. “Only then can I find the words to create their world.”
Mary and her husband now live in Lexington, Kentucky with their two cats.

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