Rappahannock Writers Conference

Save the date!

When: Saturday, November 8, 2025
8:45 AM-4:30 PM

Where: Germanna Community College Fredericksburg Area Campus, Workforce and Technology Center

Thank you to Platinum Sponsor Germanna Community College for supporting the 2024 Rappahannock Writers’ Conference.

Other Sponsors:

2024 Conference Speaker Bios & Contact Information

Laura Di Franco is the CEO of Brave Healer Productions, an award-winning publisher for holistic health and wellness professionals.

She spent thirty years in holistic physical therapy, is a third-degree black belt, and has authored thirteen books.

Her company has published over seventy-five Amazon-bestselling books with a global community of over two thousand authors who are waking the world up to what’s possible for healing, one brave word at a time.

Website: lauradifranco.com
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/laura-di-franco-1b037a5

John Gilstrap is the Thriller Award-winning, New York Times bestselling author of over two dozen thrillers.

Prior to the beginning of his writing career, John served fifteen years in the fire and rescue service. Four of John’s books have been purchased or optioned for the Big Screen. In addition, he has written four screenplays for Hollywood, adapting the works of Nelson DeMille, Norman McLean, and Thomas Harris.

A frequent speaker at literary events, John also teaches seminars on suspense writing techniques at a wide variety of venues, from local libraries to the Smithsonian Institution. Outside of his writing life, John is a renowned safety expert with extensive knowledge of explosives, weapons systems, hazardous materials, and fire behavior.

John lives in Shepherdstown, WV.

Website: johngilstrap.com
YouTube: youtube.com/channel/UC51IaU8gG8fqH9zewW4cFKA
Facebook: facebook.com/johngilstrapauthor
X: x.com/JohnGilstrap201

Traci Hunter Abramson

Traci Hunter Abramson was born in Arizona, where she lived until moving to Venezuela for a study abroad program.

After graduating from Brigham Young University, she worked for the Central Intelligence Agency, eventually resigning to raise her family. She has written more than forty best-selling novels and is a seven-time Whitney Award winner.

Bill Blume

Bill Blume's love for the written word started back in high school with an addiction to comic books that was hijacked by novels such as Frankenstein and Dragonflight.

The first book in his young adult, vampire hunter series, Gidion's Hunt, was published back in 2013. His adult fantasy debut, West of Apocalypse, was nominated for an Indieverse Award.

Alex R. Crawford

Alex R. Crawford is a novelist, time traveler, and wrangler of cats and dogs.

Her historical time travel adventure series, The Time Writer, is a fun twist of historical fiction with a GenX time traveler thrown into the mix.

Paige Edwards

Paige Edwards is an award-winning author. Her books are often set in the UK, and she hops the pond whenever she gets the chance.

She enjoys hiking, consumes too much Diet Dr. Pepper, and is currently converting a Sprinter van into a camper. Paige loves to connect with readers at the links below.

J.S. Furlong

J.S. Furlong is the author of The Unimaginables series (Hidden City, Tattooed Angel), & Antagonists, for Vampire: The Masquerade’s Mind’s Eye Theatre.

She co-authored a modern circus, Circus of Night with Neil Gaiman (pending production), and once played a small but pivotal role on the TV series Buffy: The Vampire Slayer.

She's a graduate of Duke Ellington School of the Arts and the University of Mary Washington.

X: x.com/jenfurlong6

TikTok: tiktok.com/@jenwritesvampirebooks

William LJ Galaini

Traci Hunter Abramson

Bill Blume

Alex R. Crawford

Paige Edwards

J.S. Furlong

William LJ Galaini

Steve Giegerich

Chandra Gore

Jeffrey James Higgins

Jeffrey James Higgins is a retired supervisory special agent who writes thrillers and short stories.

He has wrestled a suicide bomber, fought the Taliban in combat, and chased terrorists across five continents. Jeffrey is a #1 Amazon bestselling author and won the PenCraft Award for Best Fiction Book of 2021.

David Keener

Wendy Latella

Mike Maggio

Mike Maggio's publication credits include fiction, poetry, travel, and reviews in many local, national, and international publications.

His fiction publications include The Wizard and the White House, The Appointment, and Letters from Inside. His latest poetry collection, Let’s Call It Paradise, won the International Book Award for Contemporary Poetry in 2024.

Website: mikemaggio.net

Steve Giegerich

Chandra Gore

Jeffrey James Higgins

David Keener

Wendy Latella

Mike Maggio

S.C. Megale

S.C. Megale is an award-winning author first traditionally published at the age of twenty-three by St. Martin's Press.

Writing across multiple genres -- science fiction, fantasy, and young adult chief among them -- Megale specializes in creating high-emotion stories set in unforgettable worlds.

Megale is a IPPY Award gold medalist and is agented by Jessica Sinsheimer.

Books at the library
Website: scmegale.com

Tom Milani

James Noll

James Noll has worked as a sandwich maker, a yogurt dispenser, a daycare provider, a video store clerk, a summer camp counselor, a waiter, a prep cook, a line cook, a security guard, a bartender, a librarian, and a teacher.

Somewhere in there he played drums in punk rock bands, recorded several albums, and wrote dozens of short stories and a handful of novels.

Rick Pullen

Thriller novelist Rick Pullen's first novel, Naked Ambition, was an Amazon bestseller, followed by its sequel, Naked Truth (Silver Falchion Award runner up) and a standalone, The Apprentice.

He writes a monthly column for CrimeReads.com and is a contributing writer to The Big Thrill magazine. He is a retired magazine editor and former investigative reporter. His newsletter, Idol Talk, includes inside dope on your favorite mystery/thriller/crime authors.

Elizabeth Spencer Spragins

Elizabeth Spencer Spragins has written for more than a hundred journals and anthologies in eleven countries.

She is the author of three original poetry collections: “Waltzing with Water” and “With No Bridle for the Breeze” (Shanti Arts Publishing) and “The Language of Bones” (Kelsay Books).

S.C. Megale

Tom Milani

James Noll

Rick Pullen

Elizabeth Spencer Spragins

Meredith R. Stoddard

Meredith R. Stoddard writes folklore-inspired fiction. She studied literature and folklore at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill before working as a corporate trainer and instructional designer.

Her love of storytelling is inspired by years spent listening to stories at her grandmother’s kitchen table. She is also a freelance editor and proofreader. Her latest novel, Tar Heel Pie, will be released in September.

Ksenya Swinton

Tara Taffera

Tracy Wainwright

Sarah Warburton

Sarah Warburton lives in Southwest Virginia. Her work has appeared in the Southern Arts Journal, Embark Literary Magazine, and Oyster River Pages.

Her books include You Can Never Tell and Once Two Sister -- a Publishers Weekly pick of the week, a Crimereads recommended debut, and a PopSugar featured title.

Steve Watkins

Steve Watkins' fifteen published books have sold more than two million copies.

He has won a Golden Kite Award for Young Adult Fiction from the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators, a Pushcart Prize, the Virginia College Stores Book Award, and numerous other honors.

He is a retired college professor, a recovering yoga teacher, and co-editor of the free, monthly, online Pie & Chai Magazine.

Books at the library
Author Website: stevewatkinsbooks.com
Pie & Chai Website: pieandchaimagazine.com

Meredith Stoddard

Ksenya Swinton

Tara Taffera

Tracy Wainwright

Sarah Warburton

Steve Watkins

Linda J. White

Linda J. White, a former assistant editorial page editor of The Free Lance-Star, is the author of twelve mystery/suspense novels.

Her late husband was a video producer at the FBI Academy. Linda is both traditionally published and an indie author. She currently lives in Yorktown, near three of her five grandchildren.

Ellie Whitney

Martin Wilsey

Martin Wilsey's first novel, Still Falling, was published during his career as a research scientist for a government-funded think tank.

Now a full-time science fiction author, Wilsey still uses his research and whiteboard skills to keep the books flowing. He likes to put the science back into science fiction. Wilsey is also the founder and CEO of Tannhäuser Press, a small press and collaborative environment that was explicitly created by writers for writers.

Website: martinwilsey.com
Blog: wilseymc.blogspot.com
Square: martin-wilsey.square.site
LinkTree: linktr.ee/wilsey

Stacy Woodson

Stacy Woodson is a U.S. Army veteran, and memories of her time in the military are often a source of inspiration for her stories. She made her crime fiction debut in Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine's “Department of First Stories” and won the 2018 Readers Award (only the second time in the award’s history that a debut took first place).

Since her debut, she has placed stories in several publications, with two winning the Derringer Award (she’s a four-time nominee). Her short fiction has also been nominated for a Thriller Award and a Macavity Award, selected for The Best Mystery Stories of the Year, and adapted for animation.

When she's not writing, she teaches classes on short fiction at Outliers Writing University and works as background talent for television and film. Past projects include Showtime’s Homeland, Amazon’s Jack Ryan, AMC’s The Walking Dead: World Beyond, and Wonder Woman 1984.