from Waynesboro, Virginia

Duane Hahn is a native of Waynesboro, Virginia. He received his B.A. in English, Speech and Theater from Morehead State University in Kentucky. He was a teacher in the Waynesboro school system for more than 30 years. In 2000 he was awarded Virginia Secondary Communication Teacher of the Year. An accomplished artist, his work is in a number of Virginia galleries and was selected for a public collection in Manteo, North Carolina. He has many years of experience in theater and film and is currently on the board of the Waynesboro Players.

Since retiring from teaching, Duane has focused more of his energy on writing. He authored a script for a historical musical Shenandoah Moon (based on his novel) that will eventually be used to bolster tourism in the Waynesboro area. He directs a series of educational plays aimed at reinforcing the Virginia Standards of Learning for elementary students. He is also the co-author of a soon to be published collection of children’s plays addressing social situations and personal growth. Shenandoah Moon is his first novel. His next play, Tuesday Mourning – about a group of boys from Bedford, Virginia and D-Day, will be presented in Waynesboro in November 2009. He continues to live in Waynesboro with Teddy, his long-haired Jack Russell Terrier. For more information on Duane and his work check out his website: www.Hahn-arts.com.

                      from Lynchburg, Virginia

Martha Hamlett lives in Lynchburg, Virginia with her husband, Phillip, and two sons, Noah and Christian.  She grew up in a small farming community called Red House.  She uses her childhood experiences as the basis for many of her stories.

She has been writing since her early teenage years.  Her greatest joy is writing poems and stories for children.  Over the years, she has used her stories in activities with classes to spark the imagination of the students.  She would encourage them to take an “imagination journey” as she read and describe what they saw in their mind as they heard the story. 

In November 2008, her first published book, “Bats in the Air, Bats in My Hair,” was released.  The story is based on an event from her own childhood when she and her cousins stayed overnight with their Grandmother.  The girls were awakened in the night only to see a bat tangled in their sleeping Cousin Deb’s hair.  They screamed and ran to the boys’ room and jumped on their bed.  The slats fell out from under the bed and everyone tumbled to the floor.  Their Grandmother was not very amused.

She is already working on her second book.

                     from Mt. Sidney, Virginia

                       from Clinton, Maryland

Tawana Jackson, a native of Washington DC, attended George Washington University where she received certification in Emergency Medical Technology. She is also a Certified Life Coach, has an Associates Degree in Biblical Studies, and a Bachelors Degree in Theology at the Trinity Bible Institute. Tawana is the writer of two books, “Stretched but not Broken” and the soon to be released, “Saved but not Delivered.”

Currently, Tawana is a member of the National Association of Realtors, a board member of Win One, Inc., and Christian Women of Faith Ministries. Both groups focus on aiding inner city women in crisis. She is a nominee of the “Black Books Rocks Awards,” has been featured on Heaven 1580 radio show and multiple Blog-Talk Radio shows.

                   from Newport News, Virginia

Best selling author, Denise Jeffries has been writing since 1993. Having journaled life events since she was a child, on the prompting of a friend she decided to put those thoughts and dreams into books.  She has twelve published books to her credit.  She is known for bringing the characters alive in her stories while adding a touch of wit, mystery and intrigue.  Denise, a registered nurse, resides with her husband, Leon in the Tidewater area of Virginia.  When she is not writing, thinking about writing or providing workshops on writing she works as a clinical care coordinator in the medical care management department of a local hospital.  She loves traveling, reading and killing off people in her books and she does each one with flare and pizzazz.

                from Raleigh, North Carolina

                          from Palmyra, Virginia

Elizabeth McDavid Jones (“Liz”) writes children’s historical mysteries. Her latest books are the Felicity mysteries from American Girl: Peril at King’s Creek, and Traitor in Williamsburg. A new Felicity mystery will be out soon.

Liz also wrote five books from the acclaimed American Girl History Mystery series: The Night Flyers (winner of an Edgar Award), Secrets on 26^th Street, Watcher in the Piney Woods, Mystery on Skull Island, and Ghost Light on Graveyard Shoal (finalist for an Agatha Award) AND two newspaper serial stories: Menace on Horse Creek Trail, and The Secret Life. Liz’ s stories and plays have appeared in American Girl Magazine and in the minibooks American Girl Today, as well as Highlights, Cricket, and Turtle Magazines.