Each year, Colorado authors participate in the Conference, hosting a Local Teen Author Panel.
Amy Kathleen Ryan earned an MA in English Literature at the University of Vermont, and an MFA in Creative Writing from the New School Creative Writing for Children Program in New York City. In addition to Glow, which has been nominated for YALSA's 2011 Best Fiction for Young Adults, she is the author of two widely acclaimed young adult novels, Zen and Xander Undone and Vibes.
Brenna Yovanoff was raised in a barn, a tent, and a tepee, and was homeschooled until high school. She spent her formative years in Arkansas, in a town heavily populated by snakes, where sometimes they would drop turkeys out of the sky. When she was five, she moved to Colorado where it snows on a regular basis, but never snows turkeys. She holds an MFA in Fiction from Colorado State University and is the author of two young adult novels, The Space Between, and the New York Times Bestseller The Replacement. She currently lives in Denver with her husband.
Denise Vega is the award-winning author of six books for kids, from toddler to teen, including her “blog” books: Click Here (to find out how i survived seventh grade) – a Colorado Book Award winner – and Access Denied (and other eighth grade error messages). Her other YA novels are the award-winning Fact of Life #31 and the brand new Rock On: A story of guitars, gigs, girls, and a brother (not necessarily in that order). Denise is a Co-Regional Advisor of the Rocky Mountain Chapter of SCBWI and lives in Denver with her family where she loves to hike, walk, swim, read and eat French fries. Find out more about Denise, her books, and her idiosyncrasies on her website at www.denisevega.com or check out her fan page on Facebook: search “author Denise Vega”
Robert Spiller is the author of the Bonnie Pinkwater mystery series (The Witch of Agnesi, A Calculated Demise, Irrational Numbers). Bonnie is a math teacher in a small Colorado town who uses her math knowledge of historic female mathematicians to solve murders. Robert, who just retired from teaching after 35 years, lives in Colorado Springs with his wife Barbara. His 3 daughters and 4 grandchildren all live within shouting distance. He is currently at work on a historical ( late sixties) YA series set in Philadelphia.
Terri Clark feels blessed to demonstrate her passion for young adult fiction as both a teen librarian and author. For as long as she can remember she’s been fascinated with the paranormal, so it’s little wonder her stories dabble in the dark and different. Her next book, Hollyweird, will be released May 8, 2012 with Flux Books and you can currently read her in the Hunger Games related anthology The Girl Who Was On Fire from Pop Smart books. You can visit Terri online at www.TerriClarkBooks.com and at www.facebook.com/terriclarkbooks
