Canada's Largest Library Learning & Networking Event
Irene Luxbacher is an illustrator and children’s book author. Her books have received numerous awards and accolades, including being nominated for a Governor General’s Award for illustration and chosen for USBBY’s Outstanding International Books List.Irene lives in Toronto.
Isabelle Groc is a writer, wildlife photographer, filmmaker, and speaker who focusses on environmental issues. Her stories and photographs have appeared in numerous publications, and her wildlife films have been shown in communities and festivals around the world. She lives in Vancouver.
Ishta Mercurio is an author and actor. Raised in Cincinnati, she has traveled to England, Scotland, Italy, France, and all over the United States. She now lives in Brampton, Ontario, where she films and photographs plants and wildlife, from the tall to the small, in her backyard. For more information visit www.ishtamercurio.com.
J.J. Johnson is a founding partner of Sinking Ship Entertainment. He has worked on dozens of TV series, including Dino Dana, Annedroids, and Odd Squad. He has won three Emmy Awards for directing and two for overall production, for his shows Dino Dan and Giver. For more information visit www.sinkingship.ca.
Janet Somerville taught literature for 20 years in Toronto. Since 2015, she has been wholly immersed in Martha Gellhorn’s life and words, privileged to have ongoing access to Gellhorn’s restricted papers in Boston, Massachusetts.
Janet Wilson is an award-winning author and fine artist. She is the author of various books about children’s activism, including three previous books in the Kid Activists series: Our Earth, Our Rights, and Our Heroes. Janet lives in Eden Mills, Ontario, a community with a strong environmental focus. For more information visit janetwilson.ca.
As a writer, editor, and translator, Heather Camlot has asked “what if?” countless times over her 20-year career. Heather lives in Toronto, Ontario, with her family. For more information visit heathercamlotauthor.wordpress.com.
Helaine Becker is an award-winning writer of over 70 books for children, including the bestselling picture book A Porcupine in a Pine Tree; popular non-fiction, including Zoobots, Worms for Breakfast, and Stress Less: Tips and Tools to Help You Chill. She lives in Toronto, Ontario. For more information visit www.helainebecker.com.
Jeff Ho is a Toronto-based theatre artist, originally from Hong Kong. As a playwright, his works include the critically-acclaimed Iphigenia and the Furies (On Taurian Land), Antigone: 方, and trace. He has held residencies with the Stratford Festival, the Banff Playwrights Lab, and multiple theatres.
Frieda Wishinsky has written over 70 books for children, including Oonga Boonga; You’re Mean, Lily Jean; the Marilyn Baillie Picture Book Award winner Please, Louise!; the middle-grade series Survival, and more! Frieda lives in Toronto, Ontario with her husband. For more information visit www.friedawishinsky.com.
In the cold mountains of the north lives a man of unlimited joy and mischief, known for his exceptionally loud, yet skillful storytelling. Uncle Ian Aurora is also the author of Clap and Stomp.
Hilary Davidson is the bestselling author of One Small Sacrifice, four other crime novels, and dozens of short stories. She has won two Anthony Awards as well as the Derringer, Spinetingler, and Crimespree awards. Her next novel, em>Don’t Look Down, will be published by Thomas & Mercer on February 11. For more information visit https://www.hilarydavidson.com.
Ian Hamilton is the author of 13 novels in the Ava Lee series and two in the Lost Decades of Uncle Chow Tung series. His books have been shortlisted for numerous prizes, including the Arthur Ellis Award, the Barry Award, and the Lambda Literary Prize, and are national bestsellers. For more information visit ianhamiltonbooks.com.
Harriet Zaidman Is an author and former teacher-librarian who writes for CM: Review of Materials and The Winnipeg Free Press. Harriet lives in Winnipeg.
Hilary Leung is a writer, designer, illustrator, ultimate Frisbee player, and dad. He is the co-creator of the Ninja Cowboy Bear books with David Bruins, the author of Stego-cumulus, illustrated by Niall Eccles, and the creator of a series of early concept board books including Will Bear Share?. For more information visit www.hilaryleung.com.
Hannah Mary McKinnon was born in the UK, grew up in Switzerland and moved to Canada in 2010. After a successful career in recruitment, she quit the corporate world in favour of writing. She now lives in Oakville, Ontario, with her husband and three sons, and is delighted by her 20-second commute. For more information …
This beautifully crafted coming-of-age story is Jean Mills’ second young adult novel with Red Deer, and in this, as in Skating Over Thin Ice, she reveals a deep understanding of young people, their strengths, and the hazards they face in dealing with each other and the world. For more information visit http://jeanmillswriter.com/.
Craig has worked as a journalist, coach, and camp counselor. He is the former editor of OWL magazine, the former owner of a pretty solid jump shot, and author of six books for middle-grade readers. Now an editor of stories big and small at Sportsnet.ca, Craig lives in Toronto with his wife and son.
Diane Terrana has worked as an actress, a belly dancer, and a high-school English and drama teacher. Currently she is the executive editor at The Rights Factory. Born in Alberta, she lives in Toronto with her husband and three children.
Dylan Glynn studied animation at Sheridan College in Oakville, Ontario, and La Poudriere in Valence, France. Dylan’s work has been recognized by and exhibited in Society of Illustrators, American Illustration, Somerset House, and the Canadian Screen Awards. He is based in Toronto. For more information visit www.dylanglynn.com.
Terry Fan and Eric Fan are brothers who made their debut with the acclaimed picture book The Night Gardener, which they wrote and illustrated together. For more information visit www.thefanbrothers.com.
Erin Ruddy is a writer, editor, and award-winning journalist. She is currently the executive editor at MediaEdge Communications. She lives in Toronto. For more information visit erinhruddy.com.
Derek Mascarenhas is a graduate of the University of Toronto School of Continuing Studies Creative Writing Program, a finalist and runner-up for the Penguin Random House of Canada Student Award for Fiction, and a nominee for the Marina Nemat Award. Coconut Dreams is his first book. For more information visit www.derekmascarenhas.ca.
Dorothy Ellen Palmer is a disabled senior writer, accessibility consultant, and retired high school drama teacher. While coaching for the Canadian Improv Games, she created and toured staff and student improv workshops to fight bullying, racism, sexism, sexual harassment, and homophobia.
An Ojibway from the Curve Lake First Nations, Drew Hayden Taylor is an award-winning playwright, journalist, short-story writer, novelist, and television scriptwriter, and has worked on over 17 documentaries exploring the Native experience. For more information visit www.drewhaydentaylor.com.
Eric Walters began writing as a way to get his fifth-grade students interested in reading and writing. A Member of the Order of Canada. He is a tireless presenter, speaking to over 100,000 students per year in schools across the country. He has now published 101 books which have been translated into 13 languages and …
Born in Tehran in 1953, Fereshteh Molavi lived and worked there until 1998 when she immigrated to Canada. She is the recipient of awards for novels and translations. Her first book in English, Stories from Tehran, was released in 2018; and her new novel, Thirty Shadow Birds, was published in 2019. For more information visit …
Danielle S. McLaughlin designed, developed, and delivered programs, as Director of Education for the Canadian Civil Liberties Association and Education Trust, that engage thousands of students in lively discussion about the conflicts of rights and freedoms that affect everyone.
Emma Pedersen is an artist who specializes in children’s illustration. She has a B.F.A. from the Ontario College of Art and Design in drawing and painting, and a degree in illustration from Sheridan College. Alfie, No! is her first picture book with Scholastic Canada. Emma lives in Toronto, Ontario. For more information visit www.epillustration.com.
E.L. Chen is an author and illustrator based in Ontario.
Eric Hogan and Tara Hungerford are a husband-and-wife team who run Create Media and are the creators of The Gumboot Kids. They live and create with their two children in Vancouver, BC. For more information visit gumbootkids.com.
Farida Zaman has a passion for art and design and in her 20 years as a freelance illustrator she has worked in Europe, North America, and the Middle East with clients across the world. Farida is married and lives in Toronto where she has her friends, family, and art studio. For more information visit https://www.faridazaman.com/.
Fred Groves has worked as a journalist for several periodicals in southwestern Ontario, including his hometown newspaper, the Essex Free Press. His passion for Canadian politics and history has driven his work on Elect Her for the past 3 years.
Born in South Africa, David Albertyn immigrated to Toronto in 1993. Writing stories since the age of six, a graduate of Queen’s University and the Humber School for Writers, David’s goal is to write visceral novels that are both thrilling and meaningful. He has coached tennis since 2005. For more information visit davidalbertyn.com.
Three names; three cosy mystery series. The new Castle Bookshop Mysteries are by Essie Lang; the Dinner Club Mysteries, by Linda Wiken; the Ashton Corners Book Club Mysteries, by Erika Chase. Linda is also a former mystery bookstore owner. Trouble on the Books is available now; book two is out in March. For more information …
Like Dale Hunter in his crime fiction novels, Del Chatterson is an engineer from UBC, an MBA from McGill, and he ran a computer business in Montreal in the 1980s. Some of the stories in the Dale Hunter series actually happened, most are fiction. For more information visit delvinchatterson.com.
Elizabeth MacLeod is the author of many Canadian non-fiction titles including the Canada Close Up series titles Canadian Government, Canada’s Trees, and Canadian Money in addition to the award-winning Scholastic Canada Biography series and Canada Year-By-Year. She has won many awards for her writing, including the Norma Fleck Award for Canadian Children’s Nonfiction, as well …
Brenden Carlson is a chemist and freelance writer. Night Call is his debut novel. He is currently completing a master’s degree in organic chemistry at Brock University. He lives in St. Catharines, Ontario.
Brent van Staalduinen is the author of the novel Saints, Unexpected. He is the winner of the Bristol Short Story Prize, Fiddlehead’s Best Short Fiction Award, and the Lush Triumphant Literary Award. Brent lives in Hamilton, Ontario. For more information visit www.brentvanstaalduinen.com.
Bryn Turnbull writes historical fiction. Equipped with a Master of Letters in Creative Writing from the University of St. Andrews and a B.A. in English Literature from McGill University, she lives in Toronto and focusses on finding stories of women found within the cracks of the historical record. For more information visit brynturnbull.com.
Christina Kilbourne is the author of Detached and the award-winning Dear Jo. Her writing has been translated into Spanish, Portuguese, Slovenian, and Ukrainian. She lives in Bracebridge, Ontario.
Chrissy Bozik is from Dorchester, Ontario. She is a teacher and the author of The Ghosts Go Spooking and If You’re Thankful and You Know It.
C.S. O’Cinneide runs the blog She Kills Lit and is the author of Petra’s Ghost, a literary thriller set on the Camino de Santiago. She lives in Guelph, Ontario. For more information visit www.shekillslit.com.
Caroline Fernandez is a kidlit author, parenting blogger, and social media enthusiast. She is the creator of www.parentclub.ca, a popular blog which shares information to make life easier for busy families. Caroline has been listed as one of Toronto’s Top Mom Bloggers. For more information visit https://parentclub.ca/.
Cate Carlyle began her career as a teacher and eventually transitioned to work in elementary school, academic, and public libraries. Currently a curriculum resource coordinator and librarian at a university in Nova Scotia, Cate also reviews children’s and young adult books for CM Magazine.
Cheryl Thompson is an Assistant Professor in the School of Creative Industries, Faculty of Communication and Design at Ryerson University. Dr. Thompson was born and raised in Toronto. For more information visit https://www.drcherylthompson.com/.
Claire Caldwell is a writer, a children’s book editor at Annick Press, and a kids’ writing workshop facilitator. Her debut poetry collection, Invasive Species (Wolsak and Wynn), was named one of The National Post’s top five poetry books of 2014. Claire lives in Toronto. For more information visit http://www.claire-caldwell.com/.
Carmen Mok is a studio-art graduate of the University of Waterloo, and a crafts and design graduate of Sheridan College. She recently illustrated Grandmother’s Visit by Betty Quan, which was selected for the OLA Best Bets List. Carmen lives in St. Catharines, Ontario. For more information visit www.carmenmokstudio.com.
Cary Fagan is an award-winning author of books for children and adults. He has won the Vicky Metcalf Award for Children’s Literature, the Jewish Book Award, the IODE Jean Throop Book Award, and the Marilyn Baillie Picture Book Award, among others, including an OLA Best Bet. For more information visit caryfagan.com.
Brenda Chapman is an Ottawa crime fiction author with over 20 published novels. In addition to short stories and standalones, she has written the lauded Stonechild and Rouleau police procedural series, the Anna Sweet mystery novellas, and the Jennifer Bannon mysteries for middle grade. For more information visit www.brendachapman.ca.