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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Photo of Donte Woods-Spikes

Donte Woods-Spikes

Donte Woods-Spikes began working with youth in the Near Eastside of Columbus Ohio in 2011. His first youth project, A Talk With Our Sons consisted of youtube video interviews with young Black male youth and life experiences within the city. As the project gained recognition, Woods-Spikes was selected to give a TEDxColumbus Talk titled Young Black Men Not Left Out Again.…Read More

Donte Woods-Spikes began working with youth in the Near Eastside of Columbus Ohio in 2011.

His first youth project, A Talk With Our Sons consisted of youtube video interviews with young

Black male youth and life experiences within the city. As the project gained recognition,

Woods-Spikes was selected to give a TEDxColumbus Talk titled Young Black Men Not Left Out

Again.

Woods-Spikes also mentors young children. He created a documentary titled Donte &

Day’Mariah, which highlighted his journey mentoring a young Black girl and the dynamics and

benefits of cross gendered mentorship.

Woods-Spikes worked at a community center then transitioned into the columbus city schools

as a teachers aid for 3 years. 1 of those years taking place during the COVID-19 pandemic

which inspired him to write his book So. Long. Unfinished Good-byes with the Children of

COVID-19. His time is now devoted to professional development and contract work with schools

to create diverse inclusive environments for all children.

Jacqueline Woodson

Jacqueline Woodson is the winner of the Margaret A. Edwards Award for lifetime achievement in writing for young adults, the recipient of three Newberry Honors for After Tupac and D Foster, Feathers, and Show Way, and a National Book Award winner for Brown Girl Dreaming.…Read More

Jacqueline Woodson is the winner of the Margaret A. Edwards Award for lifetime achievement in writing for young adults, the recipient of three Newberry Honors for After Tupac and D Foster, Feathers, and Show Way, and a National Book Award winner for Brown Girl Dreaming. Other awards include the Coretta Scott King Award and Los Angeles Times Book Prize for Miracle’s Boys. She lives with her family in Brooklyn, New York.

Photo of Jennifer Wortman

Jennifer Wortman

Jennifer Wortman is the author of the story collection This. This. This. Is. Love. Love. Love (Split Lip Press, 2019). Her fiction, essays, and poetry appear in TriQuarterly, Copper Nickel, Glimmer Train, Electric Literature, Brevity, Hobart, North American Review, Juked, and elsewhere. A native of Gambier, Ohio, she currently lives with her family in Colorado, where she serves as associate fiction editor for Colorado Review and teaches at Lighthouse Writers Workshop.Read More

Jennifer Wortman is the author of the story collection This. This. This. Is. Love. Love. Love (Split Lip Press, 2019). Her fiction, essays, and poetry appear in TriQuarterly, Copper Nickel, Glimmer Train, Electric Literature, Brevity, Hobart, North American Review, Juked, and elsewhere. A native of Gambier, Ohio, she currently lives with her family in Colorado, where she serves as associate fiction editor for Colorado Review and teaches at Lighthouse Writers Workshop.

Photo of Donna Wyland

Donna Wyland

Donna Wyland is an award-winning author, editor, and coach whose personal essays and poetry have appeared in numerous collections and magazines. She is the author of picture books, ‘Twas the Night Before Jesus, Your Home in Heaven and If I Could Ask Jesus; gift book, Surrender; and a novel, Autumn’s Harmony.…Read More

Donna Wyland is an award-winning author, editor, and coach whose personal essays and poetry have appeared in numerous collections and magazines. She is the author of picture books, ‘Twas the Night Before Jesus, Your Home in Heaven and If I Could Ask Jesus; gift book, Surrender; and a novel, Autumn’s Harmony. Through her written work, Donna seeks to entertain and encourage readers to draw near to God to experience freedom, forgiveness, peace, love, and the hope of eternal life in heaven.