Short Stories

Riley, Gina

Riley, Gina
Birth City
Detroit
Birth State
MI
Current Location
Colorado Springs, CO
Occupation(s)
Former librarian and teacher - Cherokee Two-Spirit Shaman
Biography

I was still living as a man when I moved to in the year 2000. Having been outed as transgender, and fired at the Prep-School where I had been working, I was recruited at the National Librarians' Conference to be the Coordinator of Information and Technology at Mitchell High School, where I was again outed and fired. In 2007, after being outed and fired at CollegeAmerica, I transitioned to living full time as a woman. My storytelling-performances in The Story Project in Colorado Springs and for The Secret Society of Twisted Storytellers are viewable on YouTube. I also sing karaoke and do an occasional standup open-mike.

Awards/Honors
First Place - Bowling This Month, Amateur Bowling Writers Contest
First Place - Best Creative Non-Fiction 2013, Loyola Maryland University Literary EZine
Education/Training
Master's Degree in Library Science - Bachelor's Degree in English, Wayne State University, Michigan
Published Works Book Jackets
Speaker Availability
Yes
Speaker Topics
Storytelling - Transgender - Theory of Mind - Education

Firebird, Bradley

Author Bradley Firebird
Pseudonym
Bradley Firebird (Bradley Thunderbird Phoenix)
Birth City
New York City
Birth State
NY
Current Location
Southern Colorado
Occupation(s)
Customer service and office clerk
Biography

Born in Brooklyn, Long Island, New York, I have been a resident of southern Colorado since November 2011. I have written over 100 original stories (short stories, poems, indie screenplays, stage plays, and audiobook short stories (radio) plays & skits) of several genres: Twilight Zone-type stories, science fiction, horror, comedy, satire, and drama. I am currently working on a sci-fi novel that is a cross between Star Wars and Lord of the Rings.  I am a former homeless veteran (U.S. Army).

Awards/Honors
2017 - APPR Writing Center Contest, dramatic reading of my short audio play, "The Holocausts of Our Lives."
2016 - APPR Writing Center Contest, dramatic reading of my short audio play "The Day the Music Lived"
Education/Training
A.A. degree in General Studies, Suffolk Community College, Long Island, NY, 1977 - Army Admin School, Fort Jackson, 1980 - Cal Simmons Travel Agent School, Alexandria, VA, 1985. Attended Pikes Peak State College in Southern Colorado.
Organizations
Pikes Peak Community College Radio Theater Club - Pikes Peak Community College Entrepreneurs Club
Speaker Availability
Yes
Speaker Topics
Radio Theater - How to Start a Radio Theater Club - How to Write a Radio Play or Script

Torreano, Mike

Torreano, Mike
Birth City
Flint
Birth State
MI
Current Location
Colorado Springs, CO
Occupation(s)
Writer
Biography

Mike Torreano has lived in Colorado Springs since 1977. A retired Colonel, USAF, he is also a retired financial advisor with Northwestern Mutual of 35 years.

Education/Training
MA, Mass Communications, University of Denver - BA, International Affairs, United States Air Force Academy
Local Authors Genres
Published Works Book Jackets
Organizations
Western Writers of America - The Historical Novel Society - Western Fictioneers
Speaker Availability
Yes
Speaker Topics
The Old West - The Civil War

Nelson, Steven LeRoy

Nelson, Steven LeRoy
Birth Year (-Died Year)
1953
Birth City
McPherson
Birth State
KS
Current Location
Colorado Springs, CO
Occupation(s)
Writer
Biography

Steven LeRoy Nelson is an award-winning humorist whose short fiction has appeared in Alfred Hitchcock and Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, The Leviathan, Fire And Ice, and other publications. He has published six novels in the Axel Hatchett series set in the Colorado Springs area.

Awards/Honors
Colorado College Award in Literature
Adelaide Bender Raville Fiction Award, Department of First Stories in Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine
Education/Training
Bachelor of Arts degree, Colorado College, Colorado Springs
Organizations
Mystery Writers of America
Speaker Availability
Yes
Speaker Topics
Mystery writing - The Old West - Weaponry of the Old West

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
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Cover image of Blue Sludge Blues & Other Abominations: A Collection of Short Stories by Shannon Lawrence
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Cover image of Bruised Souls & Other Torments: Short Stories by Shannon Lawrence
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Cover image of The Business of Short Stories: Writing, Submitting, Publishing, Marketing by Shannon Lawrence
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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.

Coleman, Patricia

Coleman, Patricia
Pseudonym
P.R. Morris
Biography

Patricia Coleman, aka P. R. Morris, is a critically acclaimed author of historical, amateur sleuth, and alternative history short stories and novels. She has received two Reviewers' Choice awards and spoken at national writers conferences. One critic wrote "Ms. Coleman writes with elegance and pizzaz." (Romantic Times). Her latest historical romantic mystery, Tea and Treachery is now on sale. Pat lives in Colorado where she works with Special Needs teenagers and volunteers at the local zoo.

Local Authors Genres
Published Works Book Jackets
Speaker Availability
Yes

Dawid, Annie

Author Annie Dawid
Birth City
Lake Success
Birth State
NY
Current Location
Silver Cliff, CO
Occupation(s)
Professor, Artist
Biography

Twenty years I have lived in this part of the world, including 2014-2018 in Monument, when my son went to Lewis-Palmer High School. I also have been playing tennis in Colorado Springs every year for the last 10 years.

Awards/Honors
2022 Grand Prize, Cinematic Book Award, Screencraft for Paradise Undone: A Novel of Jonestown
2023 First Prize, Chipping Norton International Short Story Award (UK)
2023, Third Prize, Short Story, The Letter Award, for The Coroner's Version (Australia)
Education/Training
Bachelor of Arts, Journalism, San Francisco State University, 1982
Master of Arts, Creative Writing, San Francisco State University, 1986
Ph.D., English, University of Denver, 1989
Published Works Book Jackets
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Book cover for And Darkness Was Under His Feet: Stories of a Family by Annie Dawid
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Book cover for Lily in the Desert: Stories by Annie Dawid
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Book cover for Put Off My Sackcloth: Essays by Annie Dawid
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Book cover for York Ferry: A Novel by Annie Dawid
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Book cover for Paradise Undone: A Novel of Jonestown by Annie Dawid
Organizations
Associated Writing Programs, University College Creative Writing Program, University of Denver
Speaker Availability
Yes
Speaker Topics
Jonestown, cults, writing historical fiction

Dorchak, F.P.

Dorchak, F.P.
Birth Year (-Died Year)
1960
Birth City
Yonkers
Birth State
NY
Current Location
Colorado Springs, CO
Occupation(s)
Writer
Biography

I grew up between Key West, Florida and Whitefield, New Hampshire, but spent most of my formative years in New York State’s Adirondack mountains. I attended Northern Arizona University, in Flagstaff, Arizona. Upon graduation, I entered the U.S. Air Force as an officer and served in missile warning and satellite operations. I was stationed at Cavalier AFS, North Dakota, then Falcon AFS/Schriever AFB, CO (moved to Colorado in 1985). I've been writing about the paranormal, supernatural and the "weird" since childhood, and have belonged to several Pikes Peak and Denver area writers groups. I have been associated with the PPWC writer's conference since it's beginning (1992). I have been interviewed on local and Internet radio and presented to local writer's groups. Also see: https://fpdorchak.wordpress.com/about/.

Awards/Honors
2017 - Best Book Awards Fiction: Short Story for Do The Dead Dream?
Education/Training
Bachelor of Science in Physics (astronomy emphasis), Northern Arizona University
Organizations
Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers - Pikes Peak Writers
Speaker Availability
Yes
Speaker Topics
Indie publishing - Indie publishing panels (I have a series of blogs titled, "Going Indie -- What I've Learned (So Far), parts 1-8 - Any topic that might touch upon my fiction titles, e.g. the metaphysical and paranormal