Monday, July 1, 2019

Sponsors (2019)





Joanna Barker


Joanna Barker was born and raised in northern California. She discovered her love for historical fiction after visiting England as an eleven-year-old, and subsequently read every Jane Austen book she could get her hands on. After graduating Brigham Young University with a degree in English, she worked as an acquisitions editor before devoting herself full-time to writing. She enjoys music, eating, and reading everything from romance to science fiction. She lives in Utah and is just a little crazy about her husband and two wild-but-loveable boys.



Pepper Basham 




Pepper Basham is an award-winning author who writes romance peppered with grace and humor. She currently resides in the lovely mountains of Asheville, NC where she is the mom of 5 great kids, speech-pathologist to about fifty more, lover of chocolate, jazz, and Jesus. Her debut historical novel, The Thorn Bearer, released in May 2015 and has garnered awards such as Reader’s Favorites Award, finalist in the Grace Awards, shortlisted for the Inspy Awards, and most recently a finalist in the ACFW Carol Awards. Her second historical novel, The Thorn Keeper, released in Feb 2016 and her first contemporary romance, A Twist of Faith, released in April 2016 with a 4 star review from Romantic Times. The third book in the Penned in Time series, The Thorn Healer, released on December 6 with a 4 ½ star review from Romantic Times!! Her first contemporary novella released in March and her first romantic comedy, Just the Way You Are, came out in April 2017. Stay tuned for more books in the future – and make sure to connect with Pepper over at her group blog, The Writer’s Alley


Brandy Bruce



Brandy Bruce is a mom, a wife, a book editor, an author, and someone who really loves dessert. She’s the author of the award-winning novel The Last SummerLooks Like Love, and The Romano Family Collection. Brandy, her husband, and their children make their home in Colorado.



Barbara Brutt


Barbara Brutt, a born and raised Pittsburgher, spent her growing-up years with her nose in a book. After claiming her bachelor's degree in English, she plunked down hard into a smattering of jobs from shop girl to communications director with a healthy dose of nanny and house-cleaner. Flying to new adventures is her favorite, especially on an airplane or aerial silk. Barbara adores ice cream and only buys purses that provide room for a book or two.

Barbara talks books, aerial silks, faith, and travel on her website and blog at barbarabrutt.com.  






Sara Cardon


Sara Cardon craves happily ever afters. She has four kids, a dog, and a true-blue husband. He laughs at her hero crush on George Washington. She and her family live near Dallas where there's plenty of wide-open sky, cattle, and sunshine.  




Angie Dicken


Angie Dicken credits her love of story to reading British literature during life as a military kid in England. Now living in the U.S. heartland, she's a member of ACFW, sharing about author life with her fellow Alley Cats on The Writer's Alley blog and Facebook page. Besides writing, she is a busy mom of four and works in Adult Ministry. Angie enjoys eclectic new restaurants, authentic conversation with friends, and date nights with her Texas Aggie husband. 



Janet Ferguson


Janet W. Ferguson grew up in Mississippi and received a degree in Banking and Finance from the University of Mississippi. She has served as a children’s minister and a church youth volunteer. An avid reader, she worked as a librarian at a large public high school. She writes humorous inspirational fiction for people with real lives and real problems. Janet and her husband have two grown children, one really smart dog, and a few cats that allow them to share the space. 



Candee Fick


Candee Fick is a multipublished, award-winning author. She is also the wife of a high school football coach and the mother of three children, including a daughter with a rare genetic syndrome. When not busy writing, editing, or coaching other authors, she can be found cheering on the home team at sporting events, exploring the great Colorado outdoors, indulging in dark chocolate, and savoring happily-ever-after endings through a good book.



Rachel Fordham


Rachel Fordham author of The Hope of Azure Springs and Yours Truly, Thomas started writing when her children began begging her for stories at night. She'd pull a book from the shelf, but they'd insist she make one up. Finally, she combined her love of good stories with her love of writing, and she hasn't stopped since. She lives with her husband and children on an island in the state of Washington. 




Kelly Goshorn


Kelly Goshorn weaves her affinity for history and her passion for God into uplifting stories of love, faith, and family set in nineteenth century America. Her debut novel, A Love Restored, won the Director’s Choice Award for Adult/YA fiction at the Blue Ridge Mountain Christian Writers Conference in 2019 and earned recognition as a Selah Award finalist in the historical romance category. When she is not writing, Kelly enjoys spending time with her young adult children, binge-watching BBC period dramas, board gaming with her husband, and spoiling her Welsh corgi, Levi.



Marguerite Gray


Marguerite Martin Gray is the author of Hold Me Close, Surround Me, and Bring Me Near-- Revolutionary Faith Books One, Two and Three. Besides researching her historical novels, she enjoys studying history and writing fiction. An avid traveler and reader, she teaches French and has degrees in French, Spanish, and Journalism from Trinity University in San Antonio, Texas, and a MA in English from Hardin-Simmons University in Abilene, Texas. Marguerite is a member of American Christian Fiction Writers, Abilene Writers Guild, Daughters of the American Revolution, South Carolina Historical Society, and Preservation Society of Charleston. She currently lives in North Louisiana with her husband. Her two adult children keep her up to date and young.



Aspen Hadley


Aspen Hadley loves nothing more than a great story.  She has devoted herself to story-telling for the majority of her life, writing her first novel at her kitchen table in the 8th grade.  Aspen writes what she wants to read:  clean, sassy, romantic comedy novels that give you a break from real life and leave you feeling happy.
Outside of writing, Aspen's number one hobby is reading.  Number two is sneaking chocolate into and out of her private stash without being caught.  Other favorite things include:  playing the piano, listening to classic rock, telling jokes around the dinner table, eating ice cream, traveling, a good case of the giggles, and riding on ATVs over the mountains and deserts of Utah.  Given the choice, she would road trip her life away, singing along to the radio and sleeping in every morning.
Aspen shares her life with a patient husband, 4 hilarious children, and 1 grumpy dog in a quiet suburb in the foothills of her beloved mountains. 



Ashley Hansen



Ashley I. Hansen grew up in a small Northern Utah town surrounded by mountains. She's always had a wild imagination, a passion for history, and a love for a good story. When she isn't writing you can usually find her curled up with a good book, exploring the beautiful mountains of Utah, or eating chocolate.



Arlem Hawks


Arlem Hawks began making up stories before she could write. Living all over the Western United States and traveling around the world gave her a love of cultures and people, and the stories they have to tell. She graduated from Brigham Young University with a degree in communications and emphasis in print journalism, and now lives in Arizona with her husband and two children.



Jessica Kate


Australian author Jessica Kate is obsessed with sassy romances.
She packs her novels with love, hate, and everything in between—and then nerds out over her favorite books, movies and TV in the StoryNerds podcast. When she’s not writing or discussing fiction, she’s hunting the world for the greatest pasta in existence.
Her debut novel Love and Other Mistakes releases July 2019, while A Girl’s Guide to the Outback hits shelves in January 2020.
Receive her sassy short The Kiss Dare FREE when you sign up for her newsletter at jessicakatewriting.com.

STORYNERD PODCAST (also available on Spotify and Apple Podcast)


Tracey J. Lyons


An Amazon bestselling historical and Christian romance author of the Adirondack Pinkertons and the Women of Surprise series, Tracey sold her first book on 9/9/99, the day everyone thought all the computers would crash.  Thankfully that never happened and Tracey’s books have gone on to final in the National Excellence in Romance Fiction Award, The Greater Detroit Booksellers best contest and OKRWA’s Reader’s choice awards. Tracey is a member of Novelist Inc. and Romance Writers of America, where she serves on the board of the Faith Hope and Love chapter.  A true upstate New Yorker, Tracey believes you should write what you know.  She considers herself a small town gal who writes sweet and inspirational small town romances. Her books have been translated into several languages and are available in print, digital and audio formats on Amazon.com. Pop on over to her website www.traceyjlyons.com where you can stay in touch with all of her latest news and sign up for Tracey’s newsletter.




Debra E. Marvin


Debra E. Marvin is a member of ACFW and Sisters in Crime, is a Grace Awards Judge, and serves on the board of Bridges Ministry in Seneca Falls, NY. She hosts passionate reviewers at Inkwell Inspirations Blog, and is published with Barbour Publishing, WhiteFire Publishing, Forget Me Not Romances, and Journey Publishing.  Debra works as a program assistant at Cornell University in upstate NY, enjoys laughing with her family and grandchildren, obsessively buying fabric, watching British programming and traveling with her childhood friends. 



Sarah McConkie


From writing an award-wining tale of a dragon falling from the stars in the 3rd grade to regency romance written at thirty, Sarah McConkie has always had a passion for creating intriguing stories. After years of singledom looking for romance (and teaching Junior High Choir to fill up real life), Sarah began a Master’s degree in Literacy. When love finally found her, she married and became a wife and eventually a mother. After tucking in her own little princess one January evening she determined to attempt her life-long dream to write and publish a novel. Using her many years of experience in the single realm, a robust knowledge of regency classics, and a love of all things old fashioned and proper, Sarah wrote Love and Secrets at Cassfield Manor. She now lives with her own Mr. Right and her two daughters, and believes providing stimulating and moral stories promotes literacy in a world which needs more readers. This is her first novel.



Stephenia H. McGee


Winner of the RONE Best Inspirational Book of the year and best-selling author of seven Christian historical novels, Stephenia H. McGee writes stories of faith, hope, and healing set in the Deep South. After earning a degree in Animal and Dairy Sciences, she discovered her heart truly lies with the art of story. She put pen to page and never looked back. Stephenia makes her home in Mississippi where she sips sweet tea on the front porch with her husband and two little boys and dreams up tales of days gone by. 



Sarah Monzon


Sarah Monzon is a Navy chaplain's wife and a stay at home mom to the two cutest littles in the world. Playing pretend all day with them isn't enough, she spends the evenings after their heads hit the pillow to create her own imaginary characters.



Jessilyn Peaslee



Jessilyn Stewart Peaslee was born into a family of avid readers, music lovers, and movie quoters. She graduated from Brigham Young University with a BA in English. Her debut novel, Ella, was awarded the Silver Quill by the League of Utah Writers. Jessilyn grew up in the beautiful high desert of Southern California and now resides in the shadow of the Rocky Mountains with her handsome husband and five incredible sons. As you read this, she is probably folding laundry . . . or should be. 



Beth Steury


Beth immerses herself in the YA world via substitute teaching, connecting with the teenage staff at the fast-joint where she claims the back booth as her office, and reading YA fiction.
She’s a cheerleader for saving sex for marriage. Her “Waiting Matters … Because YOU Matter” blog helps people of all ages navigate the choppy waters of saving sex for marriage and “renewed waiting.”

Beth is also a genetic genealogy enthusiast who used DNA to find her birth parents. Her journey to find and connect with her biological family is chronicled in “A Doorstep Baby’s Search for Answers.” Her “Slices of Real Life” posts find GOD in the day-to-day moments of real life.

All of Beth’s writing endeavors can be found on her website. Connect with her on FacebookGoodreadsPinterest, Instagram, andTwitter. Check out her books available on Amazon in both print and ebooks.



Carrie Turansky


Carrie Turansky is an award-winning author of inspirational romance novels set in Edwardian England and the US. Her latest is No Ocean Too Wide, which combines the enduring spirit of Anne of Green Gables with the charm of Downton Abbey. She loves weaving heartwarming tales about family, faith, and lasting love. Her novels have been translated into several foreign languages and enjoyed by readers around the world. Carrie loves connecting with reading friends on social media and through her website and blog.



Karen Witemeyer


For those who love to smile as they read, bestselling author Karen Witemeyer offers warmhearted historical romance with a flair for humor, feisty heroines, and swoon-worthy Texas heroes. Recently voted #1 Readers' Favorite Christian Romance Author by Family Fiction Magazine, Karen is a two-time winner of the ACFW Carol Award and three-time RITA® finalist. Karen is a firm believer in the power of happy endings. . . and ice cream. She is an avid cross-stitcher, and makes her home in Abilene, TX with her husband and three children. 








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