Today I am with Dana Hawkins from Minnesota. She is a contemporary romance author of sparkly stories. When not searching the country for the perfect cup of piping hot Americano, she spends her time chasing her kids and rewatching ’90s movies. After living for twenty years in Seattle, she recently trekked back to her hometown. She is a huge romance-genre book nerd and borderline obsessed with happy-ever-afters.

Today I am with Eric Diekhans from Illinois. His fiction has appeared in Etched Onyx and Jelly Bucket magazines, and the collection Unforgettable (Walkabout Publishing), His screenplays won the Chicago Screenwriters Network and Illinois/Chicago Screenplay competitions, and he is the recipient of an Illinois Arts Council Fellowship in Screenwriting. Diekhans received a BA in Comparative Literature from Indiana University and an MA in Film from Northwestern.

Today I am with Earl Carrender from Indiana. He is a poet and writer who earned his BA in English at Marian University and his MFA at Butler University. His fiction and poetry have appeared in The Kurt Vonnegut Memorial Library Journal, Punchnel’s, Clever, Scissors and Spackle and BullshitLit among others.

Today, I am with Shaelynn Long from Michigan. As well as being a current small-town English instructor, she has previously published Fury’s Fate, Ache, Blur, Work In Progress, and Dirt Road Kid, as well as appearing in a previous Wild Ink anthology: The Carnation Collection. Shaelynn can usually be found with her nose in a book and covered in Corgi fur.

Today, I am with Amanda Hayden from Ohio. She is the current Poet Laureate for Sinclair College and award-winning Professor of Humanities, Philosophy, and World Religions. She lives on a windy little farm with her partner, daughters, and many furry rescue babies including two goats, seven pigs, and an incredibly special, blind, three-legged “angel in a dog suit” Vinny Valentine.  

Today, I am with Erica Duarte from Tennessee. In 2001, Erica graduated from the University of Denver with a degree in Psychology. After working numerous jobs, she joined the Peace Corps where she taught English and traveled for a time. Erica is married with two rambunctious girls. At home, she loves having lots of pets, reading lots of books, and writing lots of stories, especially those that embrace shades of gray. 

Today I am with Rebecca Linam from Alabama. She has also studied in Germany. Over 50 of her short stories for children, teens, and young adults have been published in magazines and literary journals.

Today, I am with Amy Nielsen from Florida. She spent twenty years as a youth librarian sharing her love of books with young readers. Daily immersion in story took root and she penned her YA debut, WORTH IT, behind her circulation desk. Amy is the proud parent to four humans, one pup, and has more grand pups than she can count. When she’s not reading or writing, Amy, her family, and at least two canine co-captains in mermaid life vests can be found boating the waters of Tampa Bay.