Meet the Authors
Stay tuned as we announce our 2026 author line-up!
Romantasy & Dark Romance
O’Junea Brown
O'Junea Brown is an emerging author of Romantasy. A Fate of Onyx and Ivory is her first published novel with many more to come. She was born and raised in the suburbs of Chicago, Illinois.
She loves her books, comics, video games, sports (go Cubs!), and anything fitness related. O'Junea has a bit too much dark humor and somewhat of a sailor's mouth, but her husband loves her the way that she is and that's all that matters.
Her baby boy Phoenix and dog Khloe are her only babies.
Follow her on Instagram and TikTok at @ojunea.brown
Queer Stories
Chris Cole
Born and raised in Southeast Idaho, Chris has always had a love of stories: whether reading them, watching them, or telling them. Throughout school, xe always found time to write and be creative in multiple endeavors. From yearbook to choir to English assignments, Chris always found joy in creating.
First published in 2020, Chris has multiple books on the market, with many more in the works. These include three planned series in addition to the science-fiction series Fragments already published, several plays and screenplays, and sequels to books already and yet-to-be-published.
In May 2023, Chris graduated with a master's degree in counseling. Currently working as a full-time licensed professional counselor, ze continues to write in whatever spare time comes along. Chris also enjoys advocacy and outreach in the LGBTQ+ population, as well as participating in local theater.
Dark Romance
Mz Rylan
Adria Fedorov doesn’t kneel—she commands. And so does her creator.
Mz Rylan is an award-winning author of dark, emotionally intense romance where fierce women take control—and keep it. Her debut novel, Bound by Her, won the Bronze Medal in the 2025 IPPY Awards for Romance E-Book, marking her arrival as a bold new voice in independent publishing.
Mz writes stories where power and vulnerability collide, and where strong, unapologetic heroines dismantle the systems built to contain them. Her characters don’t wait to be saved—they take what they want, even when it costs them everything.
Follow Mz Rylan and step into a world where women don’t just survive—they rule.
Romance
Jordana Blake
Jordana is a textbook Millennial. She has a Master’s Degree in Social Work, which she’ll be paying off in the nursing home. She has a history of changing careers, an obsession with 90s nostalgia, and cannot talk before coffee. She’s survived being the eldest daughter, a caring professional, and gifted-kid burnout before unmasking her ADHD and coming out as bisexual. These experiences, combined with a lifelong love of storytelling, led her back to writing. Her books are “romantic traum-com” and support the idea of healing through laughs and love stories.
Short + Spicy Romance
Chelsea Jean
Chelsea Jean writes short + spicy romance, that gets straight to the point.
She has now published three novels and two novelettes, with more on the way. Chelsea also hosts bookish events and runs a mobile bookstore featuring books and goodies from Midwest indie authors and vendors.
Queer Fantasy
Emeric Rowene
Em is a storyteller and an artist based in the Twin Cities. They are the author of FRACTURED MAGIC, a sprawling epic fantasy about political accountability, and THE CASE FILES OF SHERIDAN BELL, a fantasy homage to the golden era of detective fiction. While most of their work sits squarely at the crossroads between old school fantasy and creeping gothic horror, they can also be found picking up a magnifying glass or exploring new planets. In their works, they carry on the storied queer tradition of exploring the haunting and the monstrous.
Beyond their books, Em is an attorney with extensive knowledge of fanworks and copyright. They have a B.A. in English Composition and have several years' experience as an SFF developmental editor. When not writing, they can be found reading or gaming, likely trapped under one of their five cats.
Contemporary Fantasy
Trae Dorn
Trae Dorn (they/them) is a human being who makes things.
They are the author of the Mia Graves Saga, a series of queer contemporary fantasy novels. They also currently write the webcomic Peregrine Lake (with the talented Ethan Flanagan providing the art), and previously wrote and drew the popular webcomic UnCONventional, a comic based off of their decades staffing conventions.
Outside of writing, Trae is also the producer and host of a number of podcasts under the Nerd & Tie Podcast Network brand. They can be heard on multiple shows including The Nerd & Tie Podcast, BS-Free Witchcraft, On This Day With Trae, and Stormwood & Associates.
Trae currently lives in Eau Claire, WI with their wife, and is very, very tired.
Fantasy
Jayde Seraphine/ Kurai Akuma
Jayde Seraphine, who also publishes under Kurai Akume, is a Wisconsin native that fell I'm love with reading at a young age. She enjoys her days, reading, crocheting, snuggling with her cats, gardening, and of course writing. Her love of big worlds and story telling shine through in her published works and those that haven't quite hit the shelves.
(Dark) Romance Comedies with Spice
Sara Furlong Burr
Sara Furlong Burr is an award-winning author of romcoms filled with angst, heartbreak, and a sprinkle of laughs. She was born and raised in Michigan and currently still lives there with her husband, two daughters, a lively corgi that closely resembles a sack of potatoes, three judgmental cats, and a hedgehog named Juniper who's almost as antisocial as she is. When she's not writing, Sara enjoys reading, traveling, spending time with her family, using her treadmill as a clothes hanger, and mindlessly scrolling through TikTok and Instagram. She's also an advocate for melanoma awareness, having been diagnosed with stage 1b melanoma in 2017.
Fantasy & Romance
Katelyn Young
Katelyn Young is an author from Wisconsin. She has self-published six books including The Vult, The Vociety, Omeo & Jewel, The Four, Wretched Woods, and I Know What You’re Thinking. When she isn’t writing or editing, she can be found glued to the television or spending her time obsessing over all things vampires.
Mystery & Romance
T.K. Ambers
T.K. grew up in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, and found her passion for writing at a young age. Her seventh/eighth grade English teacher was a huge fan of her stories and encouraged her to publish.
During her early years, she devoted her time to writing poetry and short stories. Now she writes everything from blog entries and articles to full-length murder mysteries and romance.
Outside of writing, T.K. loves photography, travel, dancing, and off-roading. She enjoys spending free time with her family and friends, camping, listening to music, and playing games.
Romance & Romantic Parody
Irene Bahrd
Irene Bahrd is a feisty Capricorn and one of the most avid readers you will ever meet. Her favorite genres to read or write include romantic comedies, political romance, romantasy, and the occasional contemporary or dark romance.
She started her writing journey as a dare from a friend, after recounting dating stories from her early twenties. They inspired her to write spicy romantic comedies and parodies that feature a variety of book boyfriends—though most are cinnamon roll golden retrievers. Many of her stories contain LGBTQIA+, disabled, and neurodivergent characters.
Irene can be found on Instagram and TikTok under @irenebahrdauthor
Romance Author, Interracial, Contemporary
Khushi T. Saha
Bringing you interracial romances with tons of heat, passion, and a healthy infusion of love ... unapologetically Aunty unapproved and HEA an ALWAYS!
I'm a notorious daydreamer. Ask anyone close to me and they’ll tell you I'm a positive mushy person, too. Enter in ‘writing romance novels’: what began as self-care to overcome personal trauma, ended up evolving into something much more fulfilling. Bringing stories of angst, personal growth, and passion (the steamier the better!) with some snarky humor to romantics all around has become a hunger I can’t seem to satiate. In fact, once I'm done with a story, there’s already another one brewing. I'm also first-generation Bangladeshi—born and raised in the US—so my connection to the motherland is fierce, with sprinklings of a sense of loss in there. I include South Asian nuances/representation in my writing because I want experiences like my own to be seen (that of straddling two very strong cultures and finding one's identity).
When I'm not writing, I manage my local craft business and teach, garden in the spring and summer months, run around with my boys and puppy, and spend time with my hubby and family. I'm also obsessed with murder mystery shows and podcasts.
Contemporary Romance
Britton Ashley
Britton Ashley has dreamed of being an author since she learned how to read. She has lived many lives, from Oklahoma to Colorado to Minnesota, where she currently resides under a pile of blankets in the winter and a Dr. Pepper with her wherever she goes. She loves to read queer books, fat books, romance books, fantasy books--books in general are good. Britton enjoys embroidery, burritos and afternoon naps.
Fiction
Ann Schreiber
Ann Schreiber is a freelance copywriter, blogger, and lifelong book lover who turned her passion for words into a thriving business and a growing collection of published work. She’s the founder of Copywriting For You and the author of three books: Perseverance. Reinvention. (2024), a raw and honest memoir; The Top 10 Mistakes I Made My First Year as a Copywriter (2025), a practical guide for new writers; and Emily’s Next Chapter (May 2025), her heartwarming fiction debut about love, family, and second chances. Whether she’s crafting copy for clients or diving into character development, Ann brings curiosity, empathy, and a deep respect for storytelling to everything she writes.
Multi-Genre
K.M. Woods
K.M. Woods is the author of the debut novel "Song of Shadow and Light," the first installment in the 'Orchestra of Divinity' series. Before turning to writing, K.M. worked in the medical field throughout the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond. As a proud member of the LGBTQ+ community and an advocate for mental health and disability awareness, K.M. brings their own experiences to both life and fiction. They are committed to representing diversity and equality in every story they tell. Self-published and proud, K.M. Woods hopes you’ll find as much joy in their books as they do in writing them.
Queer Romance
Cozy DuBois
Based in Minneapolis, Cozy Dubois (they/them) is a queer, trans, and neurodivergent author of queer adult romance, full of sweet and spicy happily-ever-afters for everyone under the LGBTQIA+ umbrella. They hope to bring more books into the world that represent the complex and entangled relationships between friends, lovers, and chosen family found in the queer community they love.
Sapphic Historical Romance
Abigail Aaronson
In 2025 Abigail Aaronson debuted her first novel, Lavender & Gin: A Sapphic Historical Romance. She has been writing for a lifetime and her work reflects her passion for queerneess, queer love, and the queer community itself.
As a research nerd, Abigail loves a good information rabbit-hole. Lavender & Gin weaves multiple histories, including the "pansy craze," Detroit's gangland underground, and America's notorious Prohibition era.
When she's not writing romance or researching whatever's caught her attention, Abigail cooks with her recipe club, grows plants that thrive on benign neglect, paints badly, hangs out with her two cats Bo and Xena, or visits her wonderful family who live in the heart of the South.
Spirituality and Mindfulness
Julianne Lepp
Julianne Lepp has a background in finance, game design, and massage therapy. She lives with rheumatoid arthritis and supports those living with chronic illness in many capacities. She has served as the solo parish minister of the Unitarian Universalist Congregation in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, since 2010 and trained with Meadville Lombard Theological School to become a spiritual director.
Spicy Romance
Ruan Willow, R.U. Ann, Ruin Willow
Ruan Willow is a spicy HEA multi pen name author who also writes Romantasy, romcom, and other spicy romance subgenres, including hotwife and under one taboo pen name. Her writing ranges across various levels of heat--but don't pen her in a box because she even writes some sweeter romance (shhhh! it's a secret!). Writing about love and relationships, especially open door, are her jam! She writes about empowered women and their sexy partners, whose top desire and priority is to pleasure her. And not only just meet the FMC needs, but exceed them, which also satiates them. Her characters love to explore their sexuality and pleasure in unrestricted consensual ways. She's also a podcaster at Oh F*ck Yeah with Ruan Willow where the topics are sexual wellness & sexuality with interviews of experts, personalities, doctors, therapists, authors and more on Fridays, plus spicy fiction narration and stories on Tuesdays. She's also an audiobook narrator, for her own books and other authors as well. She also occasionally writes on her blog ruanwillowauthor.com.
Romance
Adrianna Schuh
Adrianna Schuh is a Mexican American author who writes romance of all kinds. Adrianna is a former librarian and stay-at-home mom. She lives in Wisconsin with her husband, son, and their seven pets. In her free time, Adrianna enjoys completing 2,000 piece puzzles and binging true crime podcasts.
Queer Romantasy
Anthony Scott
Scott's writing endeavors to illuminate universal themes of connection, love, yearning, and sacrifice. Simultaneously, his work aims to provide solace and representation to individuals by exploring unique identities and experiences through the lens of crafted characters and narratives. As a proud member of the queer community, Scott actively advocates for increased visibility and representation of queer stories. Scott believes that sharing these stories is essential for fostering understanding, empathy, and a more inclusive society.
Paranormal Mystery
Brenda Lyne
Jennifer DeVries is a Minnesota-based indie author of six paranormal mystery novels, written under the pseudonym Brenda Lyne: Ripple Effect, Charlie's Mirror, Sister Lost, and the Raegan O'Rourke Mysteries series: The Thirteenth Cabin, Angel Baby, and Fool's Gold. Brenda was an Anoka County Library Featured Author in 2022 and 2023, she is a Teaching Artist at the Loft Literary Center in Minneapolis, and five of her novels are Readers' Favorite Five-Star Review recipients. Learn more at brendalyne.com.
Dark Fantasy Romance
Sarah Zimm
Sarah Zimm is a dark fantasy romance author from Wisconsin. Her debut, EVERY DARK SHADOW, is a Readers Favorite International Book Award winner, afire with romance, magic and morally grey anti-heroes. When not writing, Sarah is ever consumed with a good book, reheating tea, watching her husband jump around with his guitar on stage, and scrutinizing the shadows that lurk in the woods.
dark why choose romance
Sage RelleAnne
Sage RelleAnne is an author who resides in the Florida Panhandle. She writes both dark and diet dark why choose romance. While all of her books are saturated in suspense, a happily ever after is always guaranteed. She will be signing her books, including special edition copies, so come by and say hi!
Fantasy + horror
Stephanie Olson
Stephanie Olson (she/her) is a writer, horror movie enthusiast (especially the bad ones), and Halloween-all-year person. The first story she ever wrote was the gripping tale of a haunted bog. It was created in an attempt to scare her bunkmates at summer camp, and the result was so successful she was banned from writing any more stories that week. She’s been chasing that high ever since. While horror is her first love, she also enjoys writing fantasy and mysteries. Stephanie has a short story published in Spontaneous Combustion Volume II, by Sic Semper Serpent, and has written numerous episodes for the horror anthology podcast, Ghost Wax. Her debut novel, Still Chosen: Another Unwanted Adventure, was published in 2025. She lives in Minnesota with her equally talented husband and not-at-all talented dog.
Urban fantasy/queer historical romance
E.H. Lupton
E. H. Lupton (she/they) lives in Madison, WI with their family. They're the author of the Wisconsin Gothic series, the first book of which (Dionysus in Wisconsin, 2023) was shortlisted for a Lambda Literary Award. Their poems have been published in various journals, including Asimov's Science Fiction, Utopia Science Fiction, Paranoid Tree, and House of Zolo’s Journal of Speculative Literature. They are one half of the duo behind the hit podcast Ask a Medievalist. In their free time, they enjoy running long distances and painting.
Poetry
Haley Valenta
Haley Valenta is a poet from Wisconsin. She has been writing for most of her life and has long dreamed of being an author. In her poetry, she covers subjects such as mental illness, self-discovery, and relationships. Her poetry has been described as both lyrical and conversational.
teen love stories
Ronni Davis
Ronni Davis grew up in Cleveland, Ohio. After graduating from The Ohio State University with a BA in Psychology, she worked in insurance, taught yoga, and became a cat mom.
Now, she lives in Chicago with her son Aidan. By day she edits everything from TV commercials to billboards, and by night she writes contemporary teen love stories. When she’s not writing, you can catch her playing the Sims, Stardew Valley, or Animal Crossing, eating too much candy, dreaming about Paris, or planning her next trip to Disney World. She has an MFA in Creative Writing for Children and Young Adults from Hamline University.
Her debut novel, WHEN THE STARS LEAD TO YOU, was released by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers in November 2019, and the anthology YOU TOO?, in which she is a contributor, is available now. Her latest book, THIS NIGHT IS OURS, was published in 2024 from Little, Brown Books for Young Readers.
She is represented by Eric Smith of Neighborhood Literary.
Spicy Romcoms
Erin Marie Bassett
Erin Marie Bassett writes spicy romcoms for the people who need them. Her stories overflow with heart, heat, and humor and her MMCs fall first and hard. You can meet your next book boyfriend by taking the quiz at https://erinmariebassett.com/mmc-quiz
Paranormal + Contemporary Romance
Amelia Lewis
Amelia Lewis hails from the vibrant heart of Arizona. A tapestry of talents weaves through her being, as she gracefully juggles the realms of writing and entrepreneurship.
From her earliest days, Amelia has danced with words, immersing herself in the worlds of reading and writing. Beginning her journey with screenplay crafting at the tender age of eleven, she transitioned into the enchanting realm of novel writing.
Once a fanfic writer, she now relishes the joy of sharing her imaginative tales, whisking readers away to fantastical realms.
Amelia Lewis embodies the spirit of a spicy Latina, with the INFJ-T personality type, a 2w3 enneagram, and a Capricorn sun. She stands as a beacon for mental health and chronic pain awareness, all while delighting in dad jokes and dark humor.
A self-declared java enthusiast and lover of margaritas, she embraces the duality of being an anxious yet playful spirit, radiating a blend of wit and kindness.
contemporary romance
Ashley Mack
Ashley is a local Eau Claire author who writes romance with dark plots but sweet romances, and couples who would do anything to save the people they care about.
Tension-Filled Romance
Stephanie C.
Stéphanie C. is a passionate author of angsty contemporary love stories with assertive female leads, who go toe to toe with alpha heroes. Her love for romance stems from her teenage years, when she used to secretly read her grandmother’s harlequin books under the covers, coupled with spending every weeknight avidly watching telenovelas with her mother. She has been writing romance books since she was a teenager, in french, her first language. Fast forward to a few years ago, she finally found the courage to pick her pen back up and write romance stories in English. She grew up in the Caribbean and currently lives in Illinois. Her favorite pastime is spending time with her cat, a romance book in hand.
Contemporary romance
Endria Nuaros
Chocolate loving- espresso addicted, Endria Nuaros is an author of steamy romance novels with happily ever afters. She feels life can be hard enough at times and everyone deserves an HEA, especially in an imaginary world.
As her boys grew and needed her less, Endria found herself thinking more and more about the stories in her head she’d never put down on paper, until she finally did one fall day in 2020.
When she isn’t writing, you’ll find her attending her sons’ activities, reading, traveling, painting, and spending time with her family and friends. She lives in the Midwest with her husband, three sons, two dogs, and two cats who keep her very busy. She credits her big fat Greek and Lebanese family for her love of delicious food and fun, as well as her passionate enthusiasm and temperament.
paranormal + contemporary romance
Lindsey Rockey
Lindsey Rockey is a former accountant studying psychology to be a therapist, much like the life she’s been writing for her characters. To escape the day to day monotony of finance, she found creative expression in writing. Her characters experience life passionately and in spite of the challenges life always throws at them, there’s usually a happy ending to make it all worth while. Lindsey identifies as gender non-conforming and a member of the LGBTQIA+ and Neurodivergent communities.