Keynote Speaker
Bill Schubart
Bill Schubart grew up in Vermont and attended Exeter, Kenyon, and UVM. He’s an active fiction author with nine books and an opinion writer for the investigative online newspaper VTDigger. Bill self-publishes, has published with a hybrid publisher, and with Simon & Schuster. Learn about him and his work at schubart.com.
Keri-Rae Barnum
Over nearly 20 years, Keri-Rae Barnum has helped hundreds of authors achieve their dream of successfully launching a career. As owner and CEO of New Shelves Books, one of the largest book sales and marketing content providers in the US, Keri works directly with authors on platform building, book launches, and creative marketing campaigns. She consults regularly with publishers on production, distribution, and placement in bookstores and libraries. Learn more at newshelves.com.
Stephanie Chandler
Stephanie Chandler is the author of several books, among them The Nonfiction Book Publishing Plan and The Nonfiction Book Marketing and Launch Plan, a workbook and planning guide. She is CEO of the Nonfiction Authors Association, a vibrant community for writers to connect and share ideas, and the Nonfiction Writers Conference, an annual event conducted entirely online since 2010. Learn more at NonfictionAuthorsAssociation.com.
Scott Channell
Scott Channell is a B2B sales and marketing specialist. He provides sales advisory and training services for teams and individuals. He’s the self-published author of five business books on sales and business growth topics. Scott is the current president of IPNE, bringing his expertise to the indie publishing community. Find him at ScottChannell.com.
Matt Cost
Matt Cost has published five books in the Mainely Mystery series, starting with Mainely Power, and five books in the Clay Wolfe Trap series, starting with Wolfe Trap. His most recent publication is City Gone Askew, the second book in the Brooklyn 8 Ballo historical PI series. Several standalone works of historical fiction round out his 15 published books. Find him at mattcost.net.
Leslie J. Cottrell
Leslie J. Cottrell is a two-time best-selling author, book coach, and certified creativity coach. She serves as chief operating officer at Victorious You Press. Leslie’s blend of writing and publishing coaching supports an author from idea to submission for publication. She delights in assisting new and almost-new authors on their writing journey, giving authors the freedom to dig deeper into their writing. Find her at lesliecottrell.com.
Paula Diaco
Paula Diaco is a book coach for business professionals and content experts who want to elevate their business through writing. She helps such professionals build their personal brand and a business around writing, leveraging what writing can provide them in the way of visibility, credibility, market share, and thought leadership. Find her at writestoriesnow.com.
Brittany Dowdle
Brittany Dowdle is a freelance editor with over 13 years’ experience in publishing. She has edited the work of best-selling traditionally published authors and award-winning indie authors. As a founding member of the Editorial Freelancers Association’s Diversity Initiative, Brittany helped design the Welcome Program, which she codirected with Linda in 2019 and 2020. Find her at wordcat-editorial.
Shelley Fairweather-Vega
Shelley Fairweather-Vega is the administrator of the Literary Division of the American Translators Association (ATA) and a cofounder of the Northwest Literary Translators, part of the Northwest Translators and Interpreters Society, an ATA chapter, in Seattle, Washington. Shelley teaches translation workshops, runs training and networking events for translators, and is herself a professional translator of Russian and Uzbek, specializing in poetry, fiction, and scholarly publications, with a focus on new literature from Central Asia. Find her on LinkedIn.
Bethany Gano
With her decades of experience in the commercial arts, Bethany Gano has seen firsthand the key role that design plays across industries in elevating content. Begun as a Kickstarter project, her debut picture book as an author/illustrator (and to launch her indie press, Bunny Books) has received starred reviews and several notable awards. Find her at bethanygano.com.
Mary Catherine Jones
Mary Catherine Jones is the owner and executive producer at The Audiobook Experience at Voice Over Vermont Studios. She delights in working with authors to bring their stories into the world, either using their own voices or finding the perfect narrator for their audiobooks! Learn more at voiceoververmont.com.
Oleh Kotsyuba
Oleh Kotsyuba is the director of print and digital publications at Harvard University’s Ukrainian Research Institute, where he oversees six book series and the journal Harvard Ukrainian Studies. In August 2021, he launched a new series of translated Ukrainian fiction, nonfiction, and poetry—the Harvard Library of Ukrainian Literature. He holds a PhD in Slavic Languages and Literatures from Harvard University. Find him on LinkedIn.
Jared Kuritz
Jared Kuritz is a publishing and marketing innovator with more than two decades of experience working with traditional, hybrid, and indie publishers and authors all over the world. Jared is the president and CEO of STRATEGIES Public Relations and the CSO and CMO of Zoundy, a cutting-edge audiobook marketing platform. Learn more at strategiespr.com.
Christopher Locke
As the IBPA Director of Membership & Member Services, Christopher Locke assists the 3,600 members as they travel along their publishing journeys. Major projects include managing the member benefits to curate the most advantageous services for independent and author publishers; managing the Innovative Voices Program that supports publishers from marginalized communities; and hosting the IBPA podcast, “Inside Independent Publishing (with IBPA).” Learn more at ibpa-online.org.
Deon McAdoo
Key account sales manager Deon McAdoo has a passion for working with indie authors and publishers, teaching them how best to use IngramSpark’s Publish on Demand®, whether to bring new books to market or to breathe new life into out-of-print titles. His in-depth knowledge of IngramSpark’s capabilities, insider view of the shifting landscape of publishing, and interdisciplinary degree in economics make for a comprehensive market perspective. Find him on LinkedIn.
BJ Magnani
BJ Magnani’s fascination with toxicology led her to a career in pathology and laboratory medicine. She is Professor of Anatomic and Clinical Pathology Emerita at Tufts University School of Medicine and the author of the Dr. Lily Robinson thriller series (The Queen of All Poisons, The Power of Poison, A Message in Poison, We’ll Always Have Poison) about a Boston physician recruited by the US government as a covert assassin. Learn more about Dr. Magnani, her work, and her poison blog at bjmagnani.com.
S. Lee Manning
A retired attorney, S. Lee Manning is the author of the Kolya Petrov series: Trojan Horse, Nerve Attack, and Bloody Soil. Bloody Soil won best in genre fiction from the Independent Publishers of New England, and all three were finalists for Silver Falchions. Her standalone thriller, Deadly Choice, features a mother out for revenge. She lives in Vermont with her writer husband, J. B. Manning, and their two very talky cats, Xiao and Dmitri. Find her at sleemanning.com.
Monica Meehan
Following her tenure as rights director at Hay House Publishers for 11 years, Monica Meehan brings her rights expertise to DropCap as Rights Director and VP of Business Development. She has lived and worked in Toronto, London, and New York City. With a broad range of global experience and contacts, Monica has handled publishing clients and authors big and small and is eager to share her 25 years of foreign rights knowledge with independent publishers and authors. Find her on LinkedIn.
Alexa Nazzaro
Alexa Nazzaro founded the Aaxel Author Group in 2015, providing turnkey publishing support and services, helping authors across all genres take control of—and enjoy!—their publishing journey. Alexa has a BA in creative writing and nearly 20 years of marketing and publishing experience. She is also the head of an emerging imprint, Two Pigeons Press. Learn more at aaxelauthorgroup.com.
Alyssa Ohnmacht
Alyssa Ohnmacht is a publishing coach with over a decade of experience guiding authors through the self-publishing process. With a background in design and printing, she brings a wealth of knowledge to the independent publishing process, creating professional, beautiful books with her authors. Alyssa has developed an Empowered Publishing Program that helps authors confidently navigate their publishing journey. Find her on LinkedIn.
Ryan & Aura Paige
Ryan and Aura Paige are professional voice actors with experience in audiobooks, K–12 learning, commercials, animation, and documentary narration. They collectively own and operate Paige Vox, a production studio focused on high-quality voiceover and audio engineering. Having studied both theater and education in college, they have 15 years’ experience in script writing and theatrical production, skills now put to use in the audio world. Learn more at paigevox.com.
Darcy Piedmonte
Darcy Piedmonte is the senior sales manager at NetGalley, a platform that provides publishers and authors a streamlined means of promoting digital review copies and audiobooks to book advocates and industry professionals. She works closely with publishers and authors, helping them take advantage of best practices and create data-driven strategies that provide results. She also brings NetGalley to potential new subscribers, extending its reach. Find her on LinkedIn.
Lisa Poisso
Book coach and editor Lisa Poisso draws on an early career in the ballet studio to help writers meld craft mastery with creative expression. With more than 30 years of writing and editing experience, she helps authors hone their skills in story development and narrative technique and unlock their artistic potential. Find her at lisapoisso.com.
Joan T. Randall
Joan T. Randall is president of Joan T. Randall Enterprise LLC, founder of Victorious You Press, and creator of Book 2 Business & Beyond®. She is a highly accomplished, award-winning independent publisher, internationally recognized speaker, and award-winning multi-best-selling author. Joan empowers entrepreneurs and mission-driven leaders to transform their stories into compelling tools for impact and influence. Learn more at victoriousyoupress.com.
Kirsten “Kiki” Ringer
Kirsten “Kiki” Ringer penned her first book in kindergarten and now writes children’s picture books featuring George the Doberman. She serves as the Tampa/St. Pete chapter ambassador for the Authors Guild, working to build a strong writing community. With 30 years of industry experience, Kiki brings her expert guidance to KLR Literary Management, creating a space where all you do is write, while she handles the “ruff” stuff. Learn more at klrliterary.com.
Heather Roberts
Heather Roberts is the owner and founder of 1852 Media, a marketing and management firm out of Charlotte, Vermont. While in law school, she learned to filter and analyze large amounts of data, a skill that enables her to bring an optimistic (for a recovering attorney), but always realistic, view to the table. And to devise clever strategies for helping author clients stand out in a crowded marketplace. Learn more at 1852media.com.
John Rodzvilla
John Rodzvilla is an assistant professor of digital publishing at Emerson College. He teaches classes for writers of popular fiction on the design and production of ebooks, the essentials of digital publishing, and metadata and the publishing process. His new book, Project Management for Book Publishers, provides a solid understanding of the processes of content creation, product development, marketing, publicity, and distribution for physical and digital products. Find him on LinkedIn.
Linda Ruggeri
Linda Ruggeri is a bilingual (EN/SP) nonfiction editor and writer based out of Los Angeles. She specializes in developmental editing, copyediting, line editing, Spanish translations and reviews, and publication project management. She is the former mentor liaison for the Professional Editors Network and the former director of the Editorial Freelancers Association Welcome Program. Her new book, Networking for Writers, was published May 2024. Find her at theinsightfuleditor.com.
Adrienne Ross Scanlan
Adrienne Ross Scanlan is an award-winning author who’s spent the last three years learning the joys and logistics of bringing her book directly to readers. Learn more about her as author, book reviewer, and freelance developmental editor at adrienne-ross-scanlan.com.
Jeniffer Thompson
Jeniffer Thompson is an author-branding expert, book marketing strategist, publishing consultant, and host of The Premise podcast. She is a cofounder of The San Diego Writers Festival and the founder and principal at Monkey C Media, an award-winning design firm specializing in book packaging, author websites, and digital marketing strategies. Jennifer is passionate about helping authors navigate their publishing choices and establishing highly visible brands that sell books. Find her at jenifferthompson.com.