Horror

Stillbrook, Mariah

Pseudonym
Mariah Stillbrook
Birth Year (-Died Year)
1980
Birth City
Mt. Pleasant
Birth State
IA
Current Location
Colorado
Occupation(s)
SAHM and FT writer
Biography

Mariah Stillbrook, originally from Iowa, lives in Colorado with her white German shepherd, husband, and little girl. She graduated from the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs (UCCS). She spends most of her days writing, reading, and enjoying the occasional hike. In her late twenties she realized that her writing was missing something, magic. She now focuses her writing on horror and urban fantasy in both adult and young adult genres.

Awards/Honors
Reader's Choice Award
Education/Training
BA in English, UCCS
Local Authors Genres
Organizations
I am a member of a local book group.
Speaker Availability
Yes
Speaker Topics
My writing process, querying, being with a small press, and social media.

Herbert, Amber

Herbert, Amber
Birth Year (-Died Year)
1993
Birth City
Anaheim
Birth State
CA
Current Location
Colorado Springs, CO
Occupation(s)
Writer - editor
Biography

Amber Herbert is a published author/poet living in Colorado Springs with her husband and two sons. She has a BA in English Literature and has worked as a freelance editor since 2018. She writes high fantasy, horror, science fiction, and YA and New Adult fiction. Lipstick Covered Magnet is her first novel.

Education/Training
BA in English Literature - developmental and copy editor since 2018 - judge for Colorado Book Awards and the Colorado Gold contest
Published Works Book Jackets
Image
Book cover for Lipstick Covered Magnet by Amber Herbert
Organizations
Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers
Speaker Availability
Yes
Speaker Topics
I am more than happy to speak about writing, editing, or critiquing fiction.

Bergling, Christina

Author Christina Bergling
Birth City
Colorado Springs
Birth State
CO
Current Location
Colorado Springs, CO
Occupation(s)
Author, Solutions Architect, Engagement Manager
Biography

Christina Bergling has been writing since childhood. She has written a variety of styles. A blog from Iraq, software user guides for software, articles for a numismatist magazine. More than anything, she is a horror author. In college at University of Colorado at Colorado Springs, she pursued a professional writing degree and started publishing small scale.

It all began with “How to Kill Yourself Slowly.” Crystal Lake released her latest novel, Followers. Limitless Publishing published her novel The Rest Will Come. HellBound Books published her two novellas, Savages and The Waning. She co-wrote Screechers with Kevin J. Kennedy. She is also featured in numerous anthologies, including Collected Christmas Horror Shorts, Demonic Wildlife, Colorado’s Emerging Authors, and Graveyard Girls. Bergling was born and raised in Colorado Springs. She lives with her family in Colorado and spends her non-writing time working in IT, hiking mountains, dancing, and sucking all the marrow out of life.

Education/Training
BA in English with an emphasis in Professional Writing from UCCS, 2005
Local Authors Genres
Published Works Book Jackets
Image
Followers
Speaker Availability
Yes
Speaker Topics
Anything though I have previously focused on the writing/publishing process and the horror genre

Converse, Brian

Converse, Brian
Birth City
Jackson
Birth State
MI
Current Location
Monument, Colorado
Occupation(s)
Proposal Manager
Biography

Brian S. Converse is a writer of science fiction, fantasy, horror, and poetry. He lives with his wife, four kids, and two animals in the Front Range area of Colorado. Brian assists with the Teen Writing program at the Monument library every month. Brian is a US Army Veteran and grew up in Michigan.

Education/Training
BA, English, University of San Diego
Published Works Book Jackets
Speaker Availability
Yes
Speaker Topics
Writing - Self-publishing - Publishing

Lawrence, Shannon

Author Shannon Lawrence
Current Location
Colorado Springs, CO
Biography

I'm a writer, reader, blogger, podcaster, hiker, amateur photographer, wife, mom, fan of frights and flights of fantasy, and more.

My guilty pleasures include cheesy horror comedies, Garden of the Gods, true crime podcasts, anything clown related, unsolved mysteries, sarcasm, the Wild West, and chocolate. Lots of chocolate. Specifically frozen chocolate in ice cream form, but I'm not picky.

Published Works Book Jackets
Image
Cover image of Blue Sludge Blues & Other Abominations: A Collection of Short Stories by Shannon Lawrence
Image
Cover image of Bruised Souls & Other Torments: Short Stories by Shannon Lawrence
Image
Cover image of The Business of Short Stories: Writing, Submitting, Publishing, Marketing by Shannon Lawrence
Image
Cover image of Happy Ghoulidays: Holiday Horror Short Stories by Shannon Lawrence
Organizations
Horror Writers Association, Colorado Authors League, Pikes Peak Writers, and Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers
Speaker Availability
Yes
Speaker Topics
I do workshops on short stories, business tips for writers, the building blocks of horror, critique groups, building suspense, self-publishing, and using the senses in writing.

Casale, Nicholas

Nicholas Casale
Birth Year (-Died Year)
1985
Birth City
Vendenbergh Air Force Bace
Birth State
CA
Current Location
Colorado Springs, CO
Occupation(s)
Paralegal
Biography

Nicholas S. Casale grew up in Palmer Lake, which is a small town in Colorado. Shortly thereafter, he received a Bachelor of Arts degree in history from the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs and began working as a paralegal.

From a young age he was attracted to history, myth, religion, and spent several years searching for the religion that best matched his personal beliefs; he is now a practicing Messianic Jew and is happily married to the woman who taught him Hebrew.

He first started writing stories when he was 6 years old. He invented a simple character named "Mousey," who was a mouse and a wizard. While his stories have grown more sophisticated since then, he has always had a love for the themes of that original story; the idea that the weak may overcome the strong through cleverness and imagination.

Education/Training
Bachelor of Arts Degree in History, University of Colorado, Colorado Springs
Speaker Availability
Yes
Speaker Topics
The Novels - History - Mythology - Religion

Bryan, John

Bryan, John
Birth Year (-Died Year)
1956
Birth City
Chickasha
Birth State
OK
Current Location
Colorado Springs, CO
Occupation(s)
Entertainer and author
Biography

John Bryan is a writer, composer, musician, actor and illusionist. He has lived in Colorado Springs, CO since 1984 with his wife Michèle and is the proud father of two sons, Erik and Alex. He is the author of the novel Dark Brother and the short story collection entitled Side Streets and Dark Alleys.

Published Works Book Jackets
Organizations
International Brotherhood of Magicians
Speaker Availability
Yes
Speaker Topics
Making fiction real
Where ideas come from

Ikenberry, Kevin

Ikenberry, Kevin
Biography

Kevin Ikenberry still wants to be an astronaut. As an adult, he’s managed the U.S. Space Camp program and operated two Challenger Learning Centers, and is a retired Army space operations officer. His science fiction Sleeper Protocol, which Publisher’s Weekly called “an emotionally powerful debut,” was released in January 2016 and is the first of a series. Kevin writes mainly science fiction with a strong military bent, but he also writes horror and romance. He makes his home in Colorado with his family.

Published Works Book Jackets
Speaker Availability
Yes

Evans, J. T.

Current Location
Colorado Springs, CO
Occupation(s)
Software engineer
Biography

J. T. moved to Colorado Springs in 1998 with his beautiful wife. J. T. is originally from west Texas, and his wife is from northwest Montana. They found Colorado Springs to be a perfect place to live and it landed them halfway between their two home towns.

Education/Training
Master of Science in Information Assurance, Regis University
Bachelor of Science in Computer Information Systems, Regis University
Local Authors Genres
Published Works Book Jackets
Organizations
Past President, Pikes Peak Writers - Past President, Colorado Springs Fiction Writers Group
Speaker Availability
Yes
Speaker Topics
Computer security - Hero's Journey - Pitching, query letters, loglines