@writingtablepc

Janie Paul is a painter, curator, and writer. She is the senior curator and co-founder, with her late husband Buzz Alexander, of the Exhibitions of Artists in Michigan Prisons, a project of the Prison Creative Arts Project (PCAP). She is Arthur F. Thurnau professor

emerita at the Stamps School of Art & Design at the University of Michigan where she has won many awards for her art and social justice work with incarcerated people and children experiencing poverty. She lives in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Making Art in Prison reveals—through the eyes of the artists who have lived through it—what mass incarceration looks and feels like in the United States. It reveals the ways in which they keep their humanity intact; it invites us to reflect on our own humanity and the problem of living in a country that incarcerates more of its population than any other nation in the world. It also invites us to look closely at the images and appreciate the richness of life and luminosity emerging from the darkest corner of our country.

For more information visit janiepaul.com
The Prison Creative Arts Project: 
Twitter / X: @umichPCAP

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Sierra Godfrey is the author of A Very Typical Family and The Second Chance Hotel (Sourcebooks). She was born in Santa Cruz, California and has lived many places, including Santorini, Greece. She loves hiking, watching soothing British farmland shows, and thinking of stories about messy families. She lives in the San Francisco Bay Area with her family, which includes a dog, two cats, and a turtle, all of which seemed like a good idea at the time.

Email: sierra@sierragodfrey.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/sierragodfrey
Instagram: https://instagram.com/sierragodfrey
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Sierragodfrey/
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/sierragodfrey

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Carol Dunbar has been writing books since kindergarten and worked freelance as a ghostwriter on her path to becoming a novelist. In 2018 she won the Hal Prize for fiction and her stories have appeared in The New York Times, The South Carolina Review, Midwest Review, and others. Her essays about living off the grid can be heard on Wisconsin Public Radio; one essay, involving her encounter with a mother bear, was televised as an animated short. Before devoting herself to writing, Carol earned her BFA in theatre and worked as a professional actor based out of Minneapolis. The daughter of a naval officer, Carol was born on the island of Guam and bounced around to different schools across the globe growing up. She moved to the Midwest for love, married a Minnesota boy, and never left. She writes from a solar-powered office on the second floor of a water tower in the woods of northern Wisconsin where she lives with her husband, two kids, and a giant Alaskan malamute.
Her debut novel, The Net Beneath Us, recently released in paperback, and A Winter's Rime comes out this fall. 

Learn more at https://www.Caroldunbar.com 

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Lindsay Cameron worked as a corporate lawyer for many years in Vancouver and New York City before leaving the law behind to write books. Her debut, Biglaw, was optioned for film by Paramount and named a best book of the year by Good Housekeeping, Redbook, and Harper's Bazaar, among others. Her suspense debut, Just One Look, was published in 2021 and the New York Times called it "delicious and marvelously controlled...a wild ride of a novel" and "one of the most viscerally accurate renderings of cooperate law in recent fiction." Her latest thriller, No One Needs to Know, hit the shelves on May 9,2023. 

Lindsay lives in New York City where she is currently at work on her next book. 

Connect with Lindsay: 
www.lindsayjcameron.com 
Twitter: @lindsayjcameron 
FB: /lindsayjcameron 
IG: @lindsaycameronauthor 

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Kelly J. Ford is the author of the crime novels, Real Bad Things and Cottonmouths, which has “impressive depths of character and setting,” according to the Los Angeles Review, which named it one of its Best Books of 2017. An Arkansas native, Kelly writes crime fiction set in the Ozarks and Arkansas River Valley. She currently lives on Cape Cod.

Learn more about Kelly here: 

Website: https://kellyjford.com/

Instagram: @kellyjfordauthor                    

Twitter: @Kelly_J_Ford

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USA Today bestselling author Annie Rains lives in a small, coastal North Carolina town, full of lovable folks, scenic downtown areas, and breathtaking nature—similar to the towns she writes about in her books. Annie’s love of reading and writing grabbed hold of her at a young age and never let go. Her first book was published in 2015, and she’s been writing heartfelt, page-turning stories ever since. When Annie isn’t writing, she’s reading from her never-ending TBR stack on her bedside table, taking long walks while plotting her characters’ happy endings, and living out her own happily ever after with her husband, three children, feisty rescue cat, and mischievous dog.

You can find Annie online at www.annierains.com or on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram at @annierainsbooks

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Namrata Patel is an Indian-American author who lives in Boston. Her writing examines diaspora, dual-cultural identity among Indian-Americans and explores this dynamic while also touching on both—the family’s we’re born with and those we choose. Namrata has lived in India, Spokane, London, and New York City. Namrata has been writing for most of her adult life and loves creating characters who are relatable and aspirational. Her heroines range from quiet to kick-ass and her heroes are swoon-worthy, if a little flawed. Her novel The Candid Life of Meena Dave is currently long listed for Best First Novel Prize by The Center for Fiction. Her second novel isThe Scent of a Garden .

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Hannah Dolby’s first job was in the circus and she has aimed to keep life as interesting since. She trained as a journalist in Hastings and has worked in PR for many years, promoting museums, galleries, palaces, gardens and even Dolly the sheep.
 
 She completed the Curtis Brown selective three-month novel writing course, and she won runner-up in the Comedy Women in Print Awards for this novel with the prize of a place on an MA in Comedy Writing at the University of Falmouth.
 
 She lives in London and her debut novel is No Life for a Lady. 

Learn more by following Hannah here:
Twitter: @LadyDolby
Instagram: Dolby_Hannah

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ADRIAN TCHAIKOVSKY was born in Lincolnshire and studied zoology and psychology at Reading, before practising law in Leeds. He is a keen live role-player and occasional amateur actor and is trained in stage-fighting. His literary influences include Gene Wolfe, Mervyn Peake, China Miéville, Mary Gently, Steven Erikson, Naomi Novak, Scott Lynch and Alan Campbell.

Learn more at: adriantchaikovsky.com

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Cecilia “CeCe” Lyra is a literary agent at P.S. Literary Agency representing adult fiction and non-fiction. She is drawn to books with strong hooks and smooth writing, told with originality, nuance, and authenticity. A long-term strategic thinker, CeCe prioritizes the creative reach and sustainable longevity of her authors’ careers, and she is especially looking for clients with whom she can build fruitful, lasting relationships. Both a storyteller and a storyseller, CeCe believes that stories are empathy-generating machines capable of healing, connecting, and enacting true change. As a mixed race Latinx immigrant, CeCe understands the power of seeing oneself reflected in books, hence her passion for championing under or misrepresented voices and narratives that contribute to a larger cultural conversation. The popular podcast The Shit No One Tells You About Writing, for which CeCe is a co-host, has over one million downloads. CeCe is also a recovering lawyer but asks that you do not hold that against her. When she isn’t living inside a story, CeCe can be found drinking wine, munching on chocolate, and snuggling with her adorable English Bulldog.

Learn more: cecilialyra.com or psliterary.com.
The Shit No One Tells You About Writing podcast
Twitter: @TSNOTYAW @BiancaM_author @carlywatters @ceciliaclyra

Facebook: @tsnotyaw

Websites: www.theshitaboutwriting.com, www.biancamarais.com, www.carlywatters.com, and www.cecilialyra.com

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Brett Crozier grew up in California, graduated from the United States Naval Academy, and embarked on a thirty-year career in the Navy, flying dozens of combat missions over Iraq and leading at the highest levels of operational command. He served as the commanding officer of a combat F/A-18 strike fighter squadron, the world’s largest and most advanced communications ship, and ultimately the USS Theodore Roosevelt before retiring from the Navy in 2022. Surf When You Can is his first book. Please visit: https://surfwhenyoucan.com/

2019 Navy feature on Brett Crosier:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=87EEPZ5mf1A&authuser=1

Brett's Retirement Ceremony: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R0-xkk-ooxk&t=7s&authuser=1

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Ashley Winstead’s 2021 breakout thriller, In My Dreams I Hold a Knife, was an Amazon Editor’s Best Thriller, an Apple Books Best Book of August, as well as a Library Journal, New York Times, CrimeReads, Parade, and Goodreads best or most anticipated thriller of the year. 

Her 2022 thriller, The Last Housewife, was a Library Reads pick, a Loan Star pick, an Amazon Editor’s Best Thriller, as well as a Cosmopolitan, Good Morning America, Good Housekeeping, Seattle Times, and Southern Review of Fiction best or most anticipated thriller of the year. Her 2022 romance debut, Fool Me Once, was an Amazon Editor’s Best Romance as well as a USA Today, PopSugar, New York Post, and Goodreads best or most anticipated romance of the year. 

Her work has been translated into a dozen languages and optioned for film/television. Ashley holds a Ph.D. in contemporary American literature and lives in Houston, TX.

Learn more at: ashleywinstead.com

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Meredith Ireland is a Korean American attorney and writer, born in Seoul. She is a Rollins College and University of Miami School of Law alumna. She writes young adult and children’s books and is proudly represented by Lauren Spieller of Folio Literary Agency. Her debut novel, THE JASMINE PROJECT, was a Junior Library Guild Gold Standard selection, a Best Book of 2021 according to Boston Public Library, and received a starred review from Booklist. Her follow up, EVERYONE HATES KELSIE MILLER, also from Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, was named a best book of 2022 by both Forbes and Seventeen Magazine. Her short story was featured in YOU ARE HERE, a middle grade anthology and the inaugural title from Allida/Clarion, which received six starred reviews. She will also have a short story in WHEN WE BECAME OURS, a YA anthology coming October 2023, edited by Nicole Chung. EMMA & THE LOVE SPELL, her debut middle grade fantasy will be out in January 2024 from Bloomsbury Children’s Publishing.

Meredith resides in New York with her two children and a county fair goldfish who will probably outlive them all.

Learn more at here. 
Twitter: @MeredithIreland
https://meredithireland.wordpress.com/

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Rebecca Keller is a writer, an internationally exhibited artist, a college professor, a Fulbright Scholar, and recipient of awards from the National Endowment for the Arts. But once upon a time she was a house-cleaner, shuttle driver, waitress, and nursing home cook. She got a graduate degree to improve her lot, and ended up working in museums, where she wrote about art and gave tours, making her own work at night. She had children. She began teaching at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. She was awarded a Fulbright. She did a TEDx talk.

And she began writing fiction. Her stories have been nominated for a Pushcart prize, and her debut novel "You Should Have Known" will be released from Crooked Lane Books in 2023. She is now working on stories about art and another novel.

 Learn more at rebeccakeller.com
Instagram: @rebeccakeller947
Twitter: @keller_reb

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Born in California and raised in South Florida, Harper Kincaid has moved around like a nomad with a bounty on her head ever since.  She has earned a master’s degree in Gender History and another in Clinical/Macro Social Work. She has published with Samhain, Entangled, Crooked Lane Press, Throat Punch Media, and Medium. 

Her latest book is the acclaimed sequel mystery, A Midsummer Night’s Scheme, part of the Book Binder mystery series lauded by Kirkus Review, Publisher’s Weekly, Fresh Fiction, Booklist, and Cozy Mystery Book Review. When not writing, Harper adores watching documentaries, painting & drawing, listening to lo-fi on vinyl, and reading while it’s raining. This is where she’d like to talk/brag about her family, but has been forbidden to do so-under the threat of a court order (as if) and prolonged dirty looks only her grown daughters could deliver. Her husband is staying out of it. The dogs just want to chew on our underwear.

Learn more at harperkincaid.com
Follow Harper on Instagram @harperkincaid

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Ciera Horton McElroy was raised in Orlando, Florida. She holds a BA from Wheaton College and an MFA from the University of Central Florida. Her work has appeared in AGNI, Bridge Eight, Iron Horse Literary Review, The Crab Orchard Review, and Saw Palm, among others. She currently lives in St. Louis with her husband and son. 

Learn more at cieramcelroy.com 

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Alisa Lynn Valdés is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author with more than 1 million books in print in 11 languages. She started her writing career as an award-winning staff writer for The Boston Globe and The Los Angeles Times.

 Alisa holds a bachelor's degree in music from Berklee College of Music in Boston, where she majored in jazz performance on the tenor saxophone. Her master's in journalism comes from Columbia University in New York City.

For twenty years, Alisa was a fitness professional, an educator for the Aerobics and Fitness Association of America. After 15 years away from her native New Mexico, Alisa returned, to write novels. When she's not writing, Alisa enjoys hiking, camping, fly fishing, kayaking and photography. A deeply spiritual person, Alisa was raised as an atheist but changed her view after a profound near-death experience in which she crossed over for a while.

Alisa once owned her own boutique scone bakery and is now working on her keto and paleo baking skills. She's a volunteer with New Mexico Volunteers for the Outdoors. If she got to start over again, she'd choose to be a game warden instead of a writer. So now she's doing the next best thing, and writing novels about Jodi Luna, a fictional New Mexico game warden. HOLLOW BEASTS is out now!

Learn more at: https://www.alisa-valdes-rodriguez.com/

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Lexie Elliott has been writing for as long as she can remember, but she began to focus on it more seriously after she lost her banking job in 2009 due to the Global Financial Crisis. After some success in short story competitions, she began planning a novel. With two kids and a (new) job, it took some time for that novel to move from her head to the page, but the result was The French Girl, which was published by Berkley in February 2018 - available on Amazon now! This was followed by The Missing Years in 2019 and How To Kill Your Best Friend in 2021. She is now working on her fourth novel.

When she's not writing, Lexie can be found running, swimming or cycling whilst thinking about writing. In 2007 she swam the English Channel solo. She won't be doing that again. In 2015 she ran 100km, raising money for Alzheimer Scotland. She won't be doing that again either. But the odd triathlon or marathon isn't out of the question. Lexie's latest novel is Bright and Deadly Things.

Learn more at: www.lexieelliott.com
www.facebook.com/lexieelliottwrites

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Allison Winn Scotch is the bestselling author of nine novels (tenth on its way), including BETWEEN ME AND YOU, IN TWENTY YEARS, TIME OF MY LIFE, which is currently in development at Sony Pictures, and THE REWIND.  Allison graduated cum laude from the University of Pennsylvania with a BA in Honors History and Concentration in Marketing from the Wharton School of Business.

When she’s not planted in front of the computer, she’s hiking, running, doing yoga, reading, listening to music, negotiating with her teenagers, or hanging out in Los Angeles with her family and their pooches, Hugo and Mr. Peanut.

Learn more at www.allisonwinn.com  

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Elizabeth Shick is an award-winning novelist whose creativity is influenced by her many years living abroad, including six years in Myanmar. Originally from Newton, Massachusetts, she grew up dreaming of other worlds, both real and imagined.

As an Africana Studies major at Vassar College, Liz spent a transformative year at the University of Dar es Salaam in Tanzania studying Literature and Revolution, Imperialism and Liberation, and African Wood Carving. She went on to obtain a Master of International Affairs in Economic and Political Development and a Certificate of African Studies from Columbia University.

Liz has since worked for a variety of international development organizations and humanitarian agencies in Angola, Italy, Malawi, Mozambique, Myanmar, Tanzania, and The Gambia. Along the way, she met and married her Italian-Australian husband and raised two wonderful and worldly daughters and three well-traveled cats.

An avid reader of literature from around the world, Liz started writing fiction in 2005 and has been scribbling away ever since. In 2019, she received her MFA in Creative Writing from Lesley University. Her debut novel, The Golden Land, is the winner of the 2021 AWP Prize for the Novel.

Liz and her husband now live in Dhaka, Bangladesh, returning to West Tisbury, Massachusetts as often as possible.

Learn more at elizabethshick.com

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