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.
- You are searching within category(ies): 2023
Jen Devon
Jen Devon writes cinematic contemporary romances about complicated, imperfect people finding their perfect match.A former biology academic and lecturer, she currently works in the tech industry and dreams of writing full-time. She’s an avid gardener, photographer, and boardgamer, a thrift store enthusiast and unapologetic nerd. She’s a mom of five (three kids, two rescue mutts) and lives in central Ohio with her engineer husband. https://jendevon.com/
Srirupa Dhar
Srirupa Dhar is Indian by birth and has been living in the United States since 1998. She completed her M.A. and M.Phil. from University of Calcutta, India. She has a third Master’s degree in English with Technical Writing Certification from University of Alabama in Huntsville, U.S.A. Srirupa taught as a young college lecturer in Calcutta, West Bengal and as a junior high school teacher in Columbus, Ohio. She has also worked as an interpreter in Columbus. She is a voracious reader and takes an avid delight in many forms of art. Currently, she is a writer, primarily of fiction. Her debut novel called “For A Drop Of Rice-Water” has recently been published by a traditional publishing house. Some of her short stories have been published in “The Bangalore Review”, “The Seattle Star”, “The Statesman” and “Café Dissensus.” One of her short stories has been published in “Muffled Moans Unleashed”, an anthology on child abuse and sexual violence. Some of her nonfictional works have appeared in collections of essays. One of her distinguished nonfictional articles called “Self-realization of Women through Binaries in Chokher Bali and Ghare Baire” has been published in “Reading Rabindranath: The Myriad Shades of a Genius.” Occasionally, Srirupa acts in plays in Columbus. She is part of an amateur dramatic society.
Meredith Doench
Meredith Doench is the author of the Luce Hansen thriller series and Whereabouts Unknown. Her writing has also appeared in many literary journals. She is a board member of Mystery Writers of America, Midwest Chapter, and is a senior lecturer of creative writing, literature, and composition at the University of Dayton in Ohio. For more information about this author and to view book purchase information, visit http://www.meredithdoench.com
Joyce Dyer
Joyce Dyer is a nonfiction writer who was raised in Akron. Her books include In a Tangled Wood: An Alzheimer’s Journey, Gum Dipped: A Daughter Remembers Rubber Town, and Goosetown: Reconstructing an Akron Neighborhood. Her essays have appeared in publications such as the North American Review and the New York Times, as well as anthologies. She has taught English and writing at Western Reserve Academy and Hiram College—where she directed the Lindsay-Crane Center for Writing and Literature. She’s received prizes such as the Appalachian Book of the Year Award, the David B. Saunders Award in Creative Nonfiction, and Ohio Arts Council Individual Excellence Awards. Pursuing John Brown: On the Trail of a Radical Abolitionist (2022), her new book, is a mix of memoir, biography, history, and travel writing and begins in Hudson, where John Brown grew up—and where the author now lives. To understand her ambivalence toward this controversial American figure, she sets out on a ten-year journey to John Brown sites across the country. The process forces her to confront hard questions about America—and herself.
Jeffrey Ebbeler
Jeffrey Ebbeler has worked as an art director, book designer, and illustrator. He is a graduate of the Art Academy of Cincinnati. After college he worked for a puppet theater sculpting marionettes and performing. He has since become a full-time freelance illustrator and has illustrated over 40 children’s books, including One Is a Feast for Mouse, Cinco de Mouse O!, Haunted House, Haunted Mouse, and Snow Day for Mouse, all by Judy Cox. He has also written and illustrated A Giant Mess and Kraken Me Up, which was named a Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection.
Kathy S. Elasky
Kathy S. Elasky is a retired teacher/counselor from Southeast Ohio. She lives on a small farm with her husband, two dogs, several squirrels and the occasional raccoon or possum. Writing children’s books has been her goal from the time her children were little. She started by creating books for her grandchildren. Now she is able to share Pudgy with many others. Besides writing, Kathy loves her family, church activities, nature, reading, and crafting of all sorts. Interacting with people at speaking engagements and book events is one of her newest passions.
Alex Erickson
Alex Erickson is the author of both the Bookstore Café and the Furever Pets mysteries. When he’s not writing, he enjoys spending his time gaming or playing music. He lives in Ohio with his wife, son, and their three crazy cats. He can be found online at alexericksonbooks.com/
Erin Flanagan
Erin Flanagan is the author of two short-story collections and three novels including Deer Season, winner of the 2022 Edgar for Best First Novel, and the most recent Come with Me. She is an English professor at Wright State University and a regular book reviewer for Publishers Weekly. For more information about her and her writing, please visit http://www.erinflanagan.net or say hello on Twitter and Instagram at @erinlflanagan.
Patti Flinn
Patti Flinn is an author of contemporary fiction, romance, and historical fiction from Columbus, Ohio. Flinn’s varied titles reflect her love of all fiction and include: The List (suspense), The Diva of Peddler’s Creek (romantic comedy), Glorious Sunset (edgy inspirational romance), Alaya and Her Sparkling River (children’s), the Ivyhurst series (romantic comedy), and the Véronique Clair series (historical fiction). Flinn delved into biographical fiction with The Last Favorite’s Page series. This immersion into the French Revolution is a trilogy of critically acclaimed novels—The Greatest Thing (2023), The Devil’s Berries (2024), and The Truest Son of France (Spring 2025)—inspired by historical figure Louis-Benoit Zamor (1762-1820). Flinn has been nominated for the Romance Slam Jam’s Emma Debut Author Award, and was a finalist for the More than Magic Contest for Romantic Comedy, and the Harlem Book Fair’s Phillis Wheatley Award for Fiction. Flinn won the Romance Writers Ink Award for romantic comedy. Most recently, she was honored with the 2023 Independent Book Publishing Association’s IPPY Award for fiction, and as a Notable Indie for the 2023 Shelf Unbound Award. A believer in the importance of literature, communication, the arts, and community service, Patti Flinn strives to encourage everyone to fulfill their dreams and find the extraordinary individual within. https://gildedorangebooks.com
Amanda Flower
Amanda Flower is a USA Today bestselling and two-time Agatha Award-winning author of over fifty mystery novels. Her novels have received starred reviews from Library Journal, Publishers Weekly, and Romantic Times, and she had been featured in USA Today, First for Women, and Woman’s World. Her first Emily Dickinson Mystery, Because I Could Not Stop for Death, was an Agatha Award winner and Mary Higgins Clark Nominee. She currently writes for Penguin-Random House (Berkley), Kensington, and Sourcebooks. A former librarian, Flower and her husband own a farm and recording studio, and they live in Northeast Ohio with their adorable cats. http://www.amandaflower.com/.