Author Sessions

Clayton Anderson, a retired astronaut, once spent 152 days aboard the International Space Station. He is now the President and CEO of the Strategic Air Command and Aerospace Museum in his hometown of Ashland, Nebraska. A sought-after public speaker and award-winning author of The Ordinary Spaceman, It’s a Question of Space, A is for Astronaut, and Letters from Space, he now lives in Omaha. 

Clayton‘s appearance supported by Sleeping Bear Press.

Cliff Lewis is the author of We the Future, a fast-paced, time-bending caper that makes an inspiring playbook for young climate activists. He’s a professional writer, a hometown story-slam winner, and a keynote speaker living with his family in Pennsylvania.

Cliff’s appearance supported by NorthStar Editions.

James Ponti is the New York Times Bestselling author of three Middle Grade book series: City Spies, about an unlikely squad of five kids from around the world who form an elite MI6 Spy Team; The Edgar Award-winning Framed! series, about a pair of tweens who solve mysteries in Washington, D.C.; and the Dead City trilogy, about a secret society that polices the undead living beneath Manhattan. He lives with his family in Orlando, Florida. 

Edd Tello is a bilingual writer of children’s literature and current Spanish literature teacher of the year. He is the author of Only Pieces and No Place for Fairy Tales. Edd holds a master’s degree in creative writing from the University of Seville and a business certificate from the University of Washington. He’s currently a high school teacher in Mexico. When he isn’t reading or writing, you can find him drinking coffee or making his friends laugh with his anecdotes and jokes. You can find him online at eddtello.com and @eddstello on socials. 

Edd’s appearance supported by Rosen Publishing.

Cicely Lewis is a writer and librarian living in Georgia. She is the founder of the #ReadWoke movement and was recognized by School Library Journal as the 2020 School Librarian of the Year.  She started Read Woke™ Books in partnership with Lerner Publishing Group in response to the shootings of young unarmed black people, the repeal of DACA, and the lack of diversity in young adult literature. Readwoke.com 

Cicely’s appearance supported by Lerner Publishing Group.

Lisa Yee has taken a private-investigator course, and it’s slightly possible that she’s a secret undercover operative. She’s also a Newbery Honoree and a National Book Award finalist for Maizy Chen’s Last Chance. Some of her other twenty-one novels are the groundbreaking Millicent Min, Girl Genius; Stanford Wong Flunks Big-Time; and the DC Super Hero Girls series. A frequent contributor to NPR’s Books We Love, she divides her time between Western Massachusetts and Los Angeles. 

Lisa’s appearance supported byPenguin Random House.

Mae Respicio writes novels full of hope and heart. Her debut, The House That Lou Built, received the Asian/Pacific American Library Association Honor Award in Children’s Literature and was an NPR Best Book of the Year. She’s also the author of the acclaimed Any Day With You and How to Win a Slime War. 

Mae’s appearance supported byPenguin Random House.

With over 25 years of teaching experience, Dr. Cindy S. Ticknor is a professor of mathematics education who has combined her research interests and love of games to create a graphic novel that teaches fractions.  In addition to authoring The Mysterious I.D. Vide in Newton’s, she has won over $3 million in grants to promote STEM and STEAM education. 

Cindy‘s appearance supported by Math Comic Hero.

Award-winning author Sophia Gholz loves visual storytelling and focuses on books with heart. She writes inspiring picture book biographies, rhyming rhythms for fun read-alouds, and fascinating nonfiction like her upcoming free verse to introduce young readers to the wind. Her debut, The Boy Who Grew a Forest, was Florida State Book Award gold medalist and Green Earth Honor book. Her recent release, Bug on the Rug, is a current Sunshine State Young Reader Jr nominee. 

Sophia‘s appearance supported by Sleeping Bear Press.

McCall Hoyle is an award-winning author and teacher librarian. When she grows up, she’d also like to be a professional dog trainer. She writes heartfelt books for kids of all ages and believes one of the best ways to spread hope and share her heart is by writing about the special bond between dogs and their humans. When McCall isn’t writing or teaching, you can find her with one of her four-legged friends training for agility, obedience, or dock diving—or perhaps chasing make-believe bunnies with them at a lure coursing event in the foothills of the North Georgia Mountains she calls home.

McCall’s appearance supported by Shadow Mountain Publishing.

Kerry O’Malley Cerra is an award-winning author of middle grade books. Her first novel, Just a Drop of Water, landed on five state reading lists, won the Crystal Kite Award, a Florida Book Award, and was named to VOYA’s Top Shelf Fiction list for 2014. Her second novel, Hear Me, is out now. Stay tuned for her forthcoming books, Make a Little Wave, (Aug. 6, 2024 from Carolrhoda Books, Lerner Publishing Group) and the tentatively titled nonfiction picture book The Gallaudet Eleven: The Story of NASA’s Unheard of Bioastronauts (March 2026 from Little Brown BFYR). Kerry’s work has received praise from The New York Times, Kirkus, School Library Journal, Booklist, VOYA, and the Horn Book Guide calling her stories moving, perceptive, well-developed, and woven with an expert hand. Kerry lives in South Florida with her family and two poorly behaved rescue dogs. 

Kerry’s appearance supported by Lerner Publishing Group.

Matthew Swanson and Robbi Behr are the husband/wife, author/illustrator team behind The Cookie Chronicles, The Real McCoys, Babies Ruin Everything and Everywhere, Wonder. These days, they spend most of their time making books and raising four kids. They spend the rest of their time speaking, teaching, and leading workshops on collaboration and creative entrepreneurship-and in the summer, running a commercial salmon fishing operation on the Alaskan tundra. 

Matthew and Robbi’s appearance supported by Penguin Random House.

Sydney Dunlap is a former teacher who has worked with at-risk youth in numerous settings. She is a published poet and has also written for a newspaper. Her novel, It Happened on Saturday, appears on School Library Journal’s mock Newbery list and is featured in Kirkus as promoting children’s mental health. 

Sydney’s appearance supported by Northstar Editions.

Maria Jose Fitzgerald grew up snorkeling and hiking in Honduras, where her stories of conservation and friendship are usually set. Her novel, Turtles of the Midnight Moon, was a Winter 2023 Indie’s Introduces and Indie’s Next pick. Maria lives in New Jersey with her husband, two children, and three noisy canines. 

Maria’s appearance supported by Penguin Random House.

Heather Murphy Capps writes upper middle grade books about history, social justice, science, and magic. As a biracial author, Heather is passionate about creating diversity in publishing. Her debut novel, Indigo and Ida, has been called “moving and inspiring” and received two starred reviews. 

Heather’s appearance supported by Lerner Publishing Group.