Authors

Kim Vandervort began writing at the age of eleven as an outlet for her overactive imagination. Her first short story, “The Librarian of Talimbourne,” appeared in the anthology Ruins Metropolis in 2008. Since then, she has published a Renaissance Faire fantasy novella entitled “Faire Aria” and the first two novels in an ongoing fantasy series: The Song and the Sorceress and The Northern Queen. Her third novel, Outcast, is a Young Adult fantasy adventure set in the same world.
In addition to writing, Kim has dabbled in the world of publishing as both an acquiring editor for Hadley Rille Books and as a freelance editor for a variety of fantastic authors. She was a regular contributing editor on the Heroines of Fantasy blog and has written a smattering of guest posts across the internet. Her secret alter ego teaches English at Fullerton College and, on any given day, may be spotted in the wild, surfing the aisles of Target.

Gary Kloster is a writer, a stay-at-home father, a librarian, and a martial artist. Sometimes all in the same day, seldom all at the same time.

He is the author of the Pathfinder Tales novel Firesoul, as well as short stories in such publications as Clarkesworld, Fantasy,
Apex, Intergalactic Medicine Show, and Writers of the Future 25.

Heather McDougal is a writer, educator, and designer who lives in Northern California.  She has a BA in Conceptual Design and an MFA in Sculpture, all of which inform her writing.  Heather is an alum of Viable Paradise and Writers of the Future.  She has published short stories in such venues as Apex, Pseudopod, and several Hadley Rille anthologies, as well as her reknown essay-blog, Cabinet of Wonders (www.cabinet-of-wonders.blogspot.com), which was a three-year meditation on history, science, and wonder.  Her clockpunk fantasy novel, Songs for a Machine Age, was first published in 2012.  

For her day jobs, Heather teaches media literacy at a small rural elementary school and continues to be thrilled to be Art Director for Strange Horizons magazine. 

Julia Dvorin is a woman of many hats and little sleep, who combines writing with parenting two teenage boys and directing an ongoing art project called “Fly Your Freak Flag High” (FYFFH). Julia holds an MA in Sociology from University of California, Santa Barbara, and has been a college lecturer in Sociology and Women’s Studies. She has also worked in consumer products licensing and sales, and spent four years learning the ups and downs of entrepreneurship by running a web solutions business with her husband. In 2010, Julia’s novelette “Cupid For a Day” was published in the Renaissance Festival Tales anthology from Hadley Rille Books. Her debut fantasy novel Ice Will Reveal was published by Hadley Rille Books in November 2012. Find out more about Julia on her website: www.parentheticals.com.