History

Carter Close, Alli

Carter Close, Alli
Birth City
Johnson City
Birth State
NY
Current Location
El Paso County, CO
Occupation(s)
Freelance journalist and author
Biography

Alli Carter Close is a freelance journalist who lives in the shadow of Pikes Peak. She lives with her husband, two children and four dogs.

Awards/Honors
2021 Silver award for Western historical fiction from the Historical Fiction Company
Published Works Book Jackets
Image
Struggling Towards Hope: A Novel
Speaker Availability
Yes
Speaker Topics
The history of the Ute in Colorado

Britton, Tanja

Book cover of Places & People of the Pikes Peak Region
Birth City
Worms, Rheinland-Pfalz, Germany
Current Location
Colorado Springs, CO
Occupation(s)
Writer
Biography

After growing up in Germany, Tanja Britton came to Colorado Springs thanks to her husband Mike, whose family, like many, was transplanted to the Pikes Peak region because of their affiliation with the military. Her interest in medicine led her to explore the fascinating history of tuberculosis in the area, which catalyzed wider historical studies. Increasingly fond of nature, photography, and writing, she was inspired to combine her interests by starting a blog in 2016 and by writing her first book.

Education/Training
Johannes Gutenberg University, Mainz, Germany
Published Works Book Jackets
Image
Places and People of the Pikes Peak Region
Speaker Availability
Yes
Speaker Topics
Colorado Springs parks - Colorado Springs history - Colorado's avifauna

Teale, Tamara

Birth City
San Diego
Birth State
CA
Current Location
Pueblo, CO
Occupation(s)
Scholar and Writer
Biography

Long time resident of Colorado Springs until 2018. Graduate William J. Palmer High School. Numerous instructor positions teaching English Rhetoric and Composition at CU-Colorado Springs, Pikes Peak Community College, and CSU-Pueblo. Have taught British Literature 18th- to 20th-century, American literatures including Latino/Latina, Chicano/Chicana, Native American, and African American, and Introduction to Humanities.

Awards/Honors
Frank Waters Foundation, writing/research residency, Arroyo Seco, New Mexico, August 2004.
Helene Wurlitzer Foundation writing/research residency, Taos, New Mexico, July-August 2003.
Education/Training
Ph.D., “Comparative Literature,” Department of Comparative Studies, State University of New York at Stony Brook; full residency. Dissertation: “The Liberty-Genocide Paradox: American Indians in European and American Travel Writing, 1795-1991.” Degree awarded: 1996. -- M.A., “The Sociology of Literature,” Department of Literature, University of Essex, Colchester, England; full residency. Thesis: “The Concrete Human Subject,” on Georg Lukács’s concept of world history and heroism in American novels. Degree awarded: 1991. -- B.A., “English,” The University of Colorado, Colorado Springs; full residency. Includes Junior Year Abroad at the University of East Anglia, Norwich, England. Degree awarded: 1988.
Organizations
The Rocky Mountain chapter of the Modern Language Association (meets in various locations from Albuquerque, NM, to Boulder, Colorado).
Speaker Availability
Yes
Speaker Topics
The Reverend Charles Kingsley (1819-1875), Canon of Westminster Abbey, visited Colorado Springs in the summer of 1874 with his daughter, Rose Georgina Kingsley. He was a Broad Church Anglican who promoted medical science, trade's unions, and individual improvement. He knew Palmer's English business partner, William A. Bell, when Bell was a student, and Kingsley gave history lectures at Cambridge University (1860 to 1869).

Rose Kingsley was the first to write about the infant town, Colorado Springs, in her book "South by West" (1874).

William A. Bell and William Henry Blackmore were General Palmer's English financial advisors. Bell was a graduate of Trinity Hall, Cambridge University; in contrast, Blackmore was the talented son of a highly successful tradesman from Salisbury, England.

Washington, Durthy A.

Pseudonym
JoRayma C
Birth City
Nuernberg, Germany
Current Location
Colorado Springs, CO
Occupation(s)
Writer - Journalist - English professor - Seminar leader
Biography

A writer, seminar leader, and former English professor, Durthy A. Washington has taught graduate, undergraduate, and adult education courses at several colleges and universities including The Colorado College, UCCS, and the US Air Force Academy. Durthy is the founder of LitUnlocked, which offers workshops and seminars dedicated to the art of mindful, culturally responsive reading. Each workshop centers on the LIST Paradigm, an innovative approach to critical reading that helps readers unlock the power of literature with four keys to culture: Language, Identity, Space, and Time.

Awards/Honors
English Language Specialist, St. Petersburg University, Russia (Feb.-Apr. 2015)
Cadet Escort, Olmsted Cultural Immersion Trip, Ghana, West Africa (2010)
Fulbright-Hays Seminars Abroad Program, Senegal, West Africa (2009)
NYU Faculty Research Network Seminars (2003, 2005, 2006, 2008)
Hurston-Wright Fouundation Writer's Workshop, Howard University, Washington, D.C. (July 2004)
U.S. Air Force Academy Outstanding Academy Educator Award (May 2001)
Keynote Speaker, U.S. Air Force Academy African American Heritage Luncheon (Feb. 2001)
U.S. Air Force Academy Literary Research Award (May 2000)
Pikes Peak Library District Board of Trustees (1997-1999)
Education/Training
MA English, San Jose State University - MS Education, University of Southern California, Los Angeles - BA English, San Diego State University
Organizations
The Toni Morrison Society - PILLAR Institute for Lifelong Learning - Pikes Peak Library District Adult Reading Program (Facilitator) - Friends of the Pikes Peak Library - Educating Children of Color Conference - African American Youth Leadership Conference
Speaker Availability
Yes
Speaker Topics
Culturally Responsive Reading - Culturally Responsive Teaching - African American Literature - Approaches to Teaching Literature - Writing Memoir and Autobiography

Laslie, Brian

Laslie, Brian
Birth City
Kennesaw
Birth State
GA
Current Location
Colorado Springs, CO
Occupation(s)
Local Historian
Biography

Dr. Brian D. Laslie is Deputy Command Historian, North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) and United States Northern Command (USNORTHCOM) at Peterson AFB in Colorado Springs. A historian of air power and space studies, Dr. Laslie received his Bachelor’s degree in history from The Citadel: The Military College of South Carolina in 2001, his Master’s from Auburn University Montgomery in 2006 and his Doctorate in history from Kansas State University in 2013.

Published Works Book Jackets
Organizations
Rocky Mountain Military Affairs Society
Speaker Availability
Yes
Speaker Topics
Local military history including Ent Air Force Base, history of NORAD, and Cheyenne Mountain Air Force Station

Kingston, A.R.

Kingston, A.R.
Current Location
Colorado Springs, CO
Occupation(s)
Author
Biography

A.R Kingston was born in Moscow, Russia. She immigrated to the United States in her childhood settling in a quaint town in Massachusetts. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Psychology and has spent time working with the mentally ill before turning to writing. Kingston is both an avid gamer and seasoned traveler. Her passion is combining the legends and lore from around the world with the fantasy of games, creating a magical world similar to our own. She prefers to write stories which blend the genres of Fantasy, Horror, and Romance into a neat little package. She currently resides in the Colorado Springs area of Colorado with her family, including two pot belly pigs.

Published Works Book Jackets
Speaker Availability
Yes
Speaker Topics
Please contact author via author website for a list of speaker topics.

Kimbrell, Judith

Kimbrell, Judith
Birth City
Princeton
Birth State
NJ
Current Location
Colorado Springs, CO
Occupation(s)
Photographer - Author
Biography

Judith has specialized in capturing breathtaking scenic and nature images for over 20 years. She shares her vast knowledge through private and group photo tours of Garden of the Gods as well as other Colorado locations. You can also join her for photographic seminars and workshops. Visit her website to view portfolio images, fine art prints and see free instructional videos at www.mothernaturephotography.com. Judith says, "Showing up at a location and photographing nature by literally recording the moment is different from capturing nature as an artist feels it should be viewed; using light, weather, equipment, and an artistic interpretation to show Mother Nature’s beauty and power. Both methods are useful in photography, but each has a distinct time and place. My goal is always to make each image intentional, represent my artistic vision, and create a piece of art that will be loved for a lifetime. I have spent the majority of my life in Colorado Springs, moving here as a child. I remember my joy while climbing on the rocks of Garden of the Gods early in my life. Though I moved to Michigan for ten years, Colorado always echoed in my heart. Now that I have returned to “The Springs,” I often frequent Garden of the Gods, spending much time hiking and photographing this breathtaking open space with my loving husband and children."

Education/Training
Bachelor of Arts in Fine Art, Hillsdale College - Addition studies in photography at Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, MI - Staff Photographer for R.J. Michael's, Inc. (an advertising agency in Jackson, MI) - Studio Manager and Second Shooter for Don Jones Photography (a commercial photography studio in Colorado Springs, CO) - Twelve years as both an art and photography faculty member and head of the Professional Photography department at Pikes Peak Community College.
Published Works Book Jackets
Speaker Availability
Yes
Speaker Topics
General landscape and nature photography tips and techniques - Best practices to learn and study photography, and start a photography business - Local landmarks and parks including: photography site favorite locations around the city and tips to make amazing photos in each place; the history of Garden of the Gods; issues pertaining to the preservation of the land and wildlife.

Bissett, Carina

Carina Bissett
Birth City
Lincoln
Birth State
NE
Current Location
Colorado Springs, CO
Occupation(s)
Educator and author
Biography

Carina Bissett is a writer, poet, and educator working primarily in the fields of dark fiction and fabulism. Her short fiction and poetry have been published in multiple journals and anthologies including Upon a Twice Time, Bitter Distillations: An Anthology of Poisonous TalesArterial BloomGorgon: Stories of EmergenceWeird Dream SocietyHath No Fury, and the HWA Poetry Showcase Vol. V, VI, and VIII. She has also written stories set in shared worlds for RPGs at Green Ronin Publishing and Onyx Path Publishing. In addition to writing, she has edited several projects; the most recent is in the role as co-editor for Shadow Atlas: Dark Landscapes of the Americas.

As an educator, Carina has taught at Pikes Peak Community College, Glendale Community College, and Arizona State University. She also participated in the Colorado Writing Project and works with educators to develop writing instruction in college and secondary school classrooms. She currently offers workshops focused on story generation at The Storied Imaginarium. Her fiction has been nominated for the Sundress Publications Best of the Net Award and was a finalist for the Ron L. Hubbard Writers of the Future Awards. Her poetry has been nominated for the Pushcart Prize and the Sundress Publications Best of the Net Award. In her editorial capacity, she’s received recognition as the Winner at the Colorado Book Awards 2022 (Anthology) and as a Finalist in the Fiction: Anthologies category of the 2022 International Book Award.

Awards/Honors
Winner, ANTHOLOGY, Colorado Book Awards: Shadow Atlas: Dark Landscapes of the Americas (edited by Carina Bissett, Hillary Dodge, and Joshua Viola; Nov. 2021).
Finalist, ANTHOLOGY, International Book Awards: Shadow Atlas: Dark Landscapes of the Americas (edited by Carina Bissett, Hillary Dodge, and Joshua Viola; Nov. 2021).
Nominated for Best of the Net Award: “Fairy Tale Prohibition” (NonBinary Review #25 Prohibition, Zoetic, Sep. 2021).
Nominated for Best of the Net Award: “Radiant” (NonBinary Review Issue 24: Industrial Revolution, Zoetic, June 2021).
Silver Hammer Award (Horror Writers Association, 2021).
Finalist, ANTHOLOGY, Colorado Book Awards. “An Authentic Experience” (WILD: Uncivilized Tales from Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers, RMFW, Aug. 2020).
Finalist, Superior Achievement in an Anthology, Stoker Awards: “Rotten” (Arterial Bloom, Crystal Lake Pub., Mar. 2020).
Honorable Mention, NESFA Short Story Contest (2020).
Winner, Fiction: ANTHOLOGY, The 2020 Best Book Awards: “Gaze with Undimmed Eyes and the World Drops Dead,” (Terror at 5280’, Denver Horror Collective, Nov. 2019).
Finalist, Writers of the Future (1st quarter, 2019).
Silver Honorable Mention, Writers of the Future (4th quarter, 2018).
Nominated for Best of the Net Award: “C8 : A Tessellation of Faces, Wings, and other Obscure Things ”(NonBinary Review Issue 17: A Wrinkle in Time, Zoetic Press, July 2018).
Nominated for the Pushcart Prize: “The Sweet Sleep of Roses or, After the Fall” (NonBinary Review Issue 15: We Have Always Lived in the Castle, Zoetic Press, Jan. 2018).
Honorable Mention, Writers of the Future (4th quarter, 2017).
Honorable Mention, Writers of the Future (2nd quarter, 2017).
Horror Writers Association, HWA Scholarship (2016).
Honorable mention in Best Horror of the Year, Vol. 9 (ed. Ellen Datlow): “Swimming with the Shark Boys” (Mythic Delirium, May 2016).
Nominated for Sundress Best of the Net: “The Yellow Press of an Ancient Power” (NonBinary Review Issue 5: The King in Yellow, Zoetic Press, June 2015).
Nominated for Sundress Publications Best of the Net Award and the Pushcart Prize: “Wild Girl” (NonBinary Review Issue 1: Grimms’ Fairy Tales, Zoetic Press, June 2014.)
Education/Training
MFA in Creative Writing (University of Maine, 2018) - M.A. in Curriculum and Instruction (University of Colorado, Colorado Springs, 2011) - B.A. in Integrative Studies (Arizona State University, 1999) - A.A. in Humanities (Glendale Community College, 1998) - A.G.S. in General Studies (Glendale Community College, 1997)
Organizations
Horror Writers Association - Science Fiction Poetry Association - Colorado Poets Center - Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America
Speaker Availability
Yes
Speaker Topics
Speculative fiction - Creative non-fiction - Speculative poetry - Memoir - Other creative pursuits

Thomas, Roger

Thomas, Roger
Birth City
Oak Park
Birth State
IL
Current Location
Colorado Springs, CO
Occupation(s)
Freelance Writer
Biography

Roger moved out to Colorado Springs from the Washington, DC, area, in 1994, and has been here ever since. The whole family grew up here and still live in the area. After a 30-year career in information technology, Roger decided to follow another passion- writing. After writing user manuals, training materials, and other writing assignments as a part of his regular IT duties, he launched his own career as a writer. He has six books published- two on bowling and four historical mysteries set in Laramie, Wyoming, in the 1880s.

Education/Training
BS in Political Science and History - MBA Project Management
Local Authors Genres
Speaker Availability
Yes
Speaker Topics
Any topic related to writing: the process, my experiences, freelance, indie, etc..

Pilch, Fran

Birth City
West Point
Birth State
NY
Current Location
Colorado Springs, CO
Occupation(s)
Professor of Political Science
Biography

Dr. Pilch was awarded her MA and PhD from Yale University in the field of International Relations. She joined the United States Air Force Academy faculty in 1998 and became Professor Emeritus in 2015. She participated in a Fulbright Hays to South Africa and a Fulbright to Mongolia in 2012 and in 2011 was named the Case Carnegie Colorado Professor of the Year. Her expertise is in human rights, international law, and genocide.

Awards/Honors
Fulbright Scholar
Case Carnegie Professor of the Year (Colorado), 2011
Professor Emeritus, United States Air Force Academy
Education/Training
MA & PhD, Yale University, International Relations - BA, University of Connecticut
Published Works Book Jackets
Organizations
Zonta International World Affairs Council
Speaker Availability
Yes
Speaker Topics
Cambodian Genocide - Genocide - Women in Conflict - International Relations - US Foreign Policy