K9 Veterans Memorial

Today is an especially fitting day to share photos of the K9 Veterans Memorial. Because today is K9 Veterans Day.

Views of the K9 Veterans Memorial in Fort Atkinson, WI. Mark Dziewior sculpted the bronze dog. The Kennel Club of Fort Atkinson conceived of the project, conducted the fundraising drive, and installed the memorial. Photos are from Facebook.

Established on March 13, it's the anniversary of the 1942 founding of the United States Army K9 Corps. If you've followed my blog for long, you know I've recognized K9 Veterans Day several times.

An honor guard from the Kennel Club of Fort Atkinson WI attends a ceremony at the K9 Veterans Memorial on March 9, 2020. (Photo from Facebook).

Some background on the K9 Veterans Memorial

A couple of deputies pose by the K9 Veterans Memorial with their K9s on March 12, 2019. The men are identified as ED and KC. Their dogs are Friday and Nox. (Photo from Facebook).

The K9 Veterans Memorial's centerpiece is the sculpture Unbreakable Bond. Wisconsin animal sculptor Mark Dziewior created a touching vision in bronze.

It's in McCoy Park in Fort Atkinson, WI. The local Kennel Club of Fort Atkinson (KCFA) takes their K9 veterans very seriously.

They not only sponsored the creation of the K9 Veterans Memorial in McCoy Park (dedicated June 25, 2017). A couple of years earlier, they spearheaded an effort to get K9 Veterans Day officially recognized in the State of Wisconsin, in 2015.

The Kennel Club of Fort Atkinson and a lot of law enforcement handlers and K9s appeared at the Wisconsin Capitol in 2015 to gain state recognition of K9 Veterans Day. (Photo from the Kennel Club of Fort Atkinson).

A day dedicated to Military Working Dogs

Don't confuse K9 Veterans Day with National Police K9 Day. That's celebrated on September 1, according to one of my favorite K9 charities, Vested Interest in K9s.

Military Working Dogs face specific challenges and dangers that police K9s don't. Just like human veterans, some of them retire to pursue law enforcement careers. So it's easy for a layperson to think they're basically the same.

And, like law enforcement K9s, today's Military Working Dogs or MWDs are usually one of a few main breeds. It's another reason laypersons may confuse them.

Here's another look at the K9 handlers in the Wisconsin Capitol to urge recognition of K9 Veterans Day. (Photo from the Kennel Club of Fort Atkinson)

Typical breeds for MWDs

The brilliant SEAL Team 6 dog Cairo was a Belgian Malinois. Malinois mixes also make up a percentage of MWDs. They're not show dogs. The armed forces don't care about breed standards. So they sometimes create crossbreeds for specific purposes.

This Susan Orlean Quote comes from GetintoPC.

People know less about Dutch Shepherds, but everyone knows the versatile, ever-popular German Shepherds.

The Armed Services still classify them as "equipment." But since the year 2000 they're no longer abandoned on the battlefield or euthanized. When they're too old or traumatized or wounded to serve anymore we bring them home.

Civilian and handler outrage made a difference. Most MWDs are now adopted by a former handler. As I noted above, some have second careers in law enforcement.

But all too many MWDs, like all too many human soldiers, go home wounded and traumatized.

This is where organizations like Mission K9 Rescue and specialized programs from groups such as American Humane can forge lifesaving links. If you're considering donation options, why not make a donation to them?

IMAGE CREDITS:

A whole lot of these photos are from Facebook. I thank the National K9 Veterans Day Facebook page for the to photos of the sculpture, the wider shot from the ceremony, and the Deputies and their dogs. 

Many thanks also to the Kennel Club of Fort Atkinson for the photos from the Capitol event. Finally, I must thank GetintoPC for the cool quote-image from Susan Orlean.

Who gets represented

The Artdog Quotes of the Week

Who gets represented? In my opinion, that's one of the most important questions any writer, visual artist, actor, or other creative individual can ask. 

So who gets represented in your creative work?

Who wins the final battles? Which character earns their true love's heart in the end? And how does that true love look? Who plays the villain's role? Which characters die horribly and get cast into the outer darkness? 

The stories we tell and the pictures we create matter. Because who gets represented is a vital question for all of us.

Amandla Stenberg quote-image courtesy of the Huffington Post.

Art is essential to our understanding 

There's an essential reason why art matters, in whatever of its many forms and media. It matters because the stories and the visuals that surround us help us define ourselves and our world.

I have blogged before about art creating bridges of understanding between cultures, but it's broader and deeper and far, far more important than simply reaching out between cultures, important as that is.

Sonia Manzano quote-image courtesy of The Huffington Post.

Representation is important

Representation helps people answer the question, "where do I fit in?" This is especially important for children. They understand the world in the way they see it explained to them, both verbally and visually. They respond to the representations they see.

As Lupita Nyong'o has said, when a child sees a representation of him-or herself in a work of art, "We plant the seed of possibility," which may not have existed before. It can unlock doors to complete new realms of potential.

But it really is a question for all of us throughout our lives. Just look at the assorted reactions to the recent "OK Boomer" fad. If people hadn't cared how they were being represented, would they have reacted the same way?

Lupita Nyong'o quote-image courtesy of The Huffington Post.

Who gets represented signals power

Now we're getting to the base-level reason why representation is important. Why the question "Who gets represented?" is so urgent. Representation signals and is an outcome of power.

The power dynamics of representation are too big and important a topic to address in the final paragraphs of this blog post, so look for more on this topic in blog posts to come!

IMAGE CREDITS: Many thanks to The Huffington Post, which published two features that provided all of these posts. They are "18 Times Black Actors Nailed Why We Need Representation in Film," and its sidebar slide show (scroll to the bottom), "16 Times Latinos Were Brutally Honest about Hollywood's Lack of Diversity." 

Story-stuff-gathering

Emergency Room visits are a place for story-stuff gathering. Well, urgent other things too, many of them far less fun and diverting, such as the small but painful emergency in my family tonight.

But there's definitely all kinds of story material just lying around there (or walking through, or yelling from another room). It's all ripe for the capturing. So many writing prompts! So little time!

It's a violation of privacy to go see what's really happening, but nobody's violating any HIPAA rules if they take that simple input, and make up a story from that and imagination alone.

A crowded corridor at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston looks a lot like the place where I spent a chunk of the evening. (Photo by Boston Globe/File Photo 2017).

Writing prompts, such as . . . ?

What's the kid wailing about, three rooms down? You'd think they were exacting 93-and-a-half minutes of torture. How did s/he end up here?  Did somebody say something about an X-ray?

Who's the woman who keeps patiently telling someone, "No, you can't get out of bed. No, you can't stand up"? To whom is she talking? What's that person's problem? Why does she remain so patient and kind with them? What kind of person is she, and what is their relationship?

Why were those three police officers standing huddled to one side, talking intently in low tones? Who's in the room nearby? What brought them there?

For whom did the black priest in the clerical collar arrive? Why is the family in matching sports jerseys crying and hugging in the waiting room? And what's with Balloon-Woman?

Story-stuff-gathering in practice

Life happens. Writers make stories out of it. 

Yes, I spent more time in the ER tonight than anybody ever wants to (unless they work there). The outcome was positive, and the problems are being dealt with. Thank God for the Emergency Room!

But the story-stuff was thick on the ground, and the story-stuff-gathering was awesome. I don't know when or how or if these elements will show up in a future story, but they helped me deal with tonight, and I'm praying for all of the real people mentioned above (certainly including Balloon Woman).

Whenever life gets tough, I start story-stuff-gathering, and I know I'm not the only one. Because, at their heart, stories are about the tough times, the devastating events, the challenging obstacles that we don't know how we'll surmount--and surmounting them.

The role of Story

(Title Wave for Books on Facebook)

When our protagonists find a way, they blaze a trail, sometimes. They represent. They offer hope. That's story-making at its most archetypal, doing its work in the world.

So thank you, God, for story-stuff-gathering opportunities, even when they test and dismay us. And here's to the hope that we story-makers may be empowered do well by our role the world.

IMAGE CREDITS: Many thanks to the Boston Globe, for the photo of the Emergency Room at Brigham and Women's Hospital, with an ER corridor that looks a lot like the one where I spent most of this evening, and to Donna Tartt and TitleWave for Books on Facebook for the quote-image that has become my motto. 

Creating S.W.A.G.

Capricon 40 kicked off my "con season" for 2020 on a high note. Time to get the rest of the reservations, plans, and itineraries in place. And time for creating S.W.A.G.

What is S.W.A.G., you may ask? It is Stuff We All Get (also abbreviated SWAG, without the periods, or spelled with lower-case letters). It's the "freebies," the samples, the advertising novelties that are handed out to people at conferences, conventions, and similar events. The stuff designed to help people remember our products and services later, after the event is over.

S.W.A.G. makes a presence at every science fiction convention. And lately I've been handing out a lot of it.

I offered all manner of S.W.A.G. during my autographing at Capricon 40. (Photo by Tyrell E. Gephardt)

SF conventions and sales

It's hard to measure whether freebies actually sell books. I've handed out what feels like bushels of bookmarks and barrels of badge ribbons, often to enthusiastic recipients--so there's at least the initial impression that's positive.

Does that sell books? Maybe. I think both convention-going in general and S.W.A.G. in particular is a brand-building effort, more than a retail opportunity. I did notice a small up-tick in my book sales after Capricon (thank you!!), but even if you count in my art show sales, the cons don't pay for themselves by the end of the weekend.

That's okay by me, because I go to conventions for a lot of reasons besides selling books and art. Idea-gathering, networking, seeing old friends, finding material to blog about, discovering new artists and writers, and more fill out my list of reasons.

Best of all, for me, are the panel discussions, readings, and chances to interact with fans and readers.

I like to participate in panel discussions at sf cons. “Detectives in the Wild” panelists at Capricon 40, L-R: Jan S. Gephardt (Moderator), Deirdre Murphy, Mark H. Huston, and Clifford Royal Johns. (photo by a kindly audience member who didn’t share his name).

Creating S.W.A.G.

If I'm honest, creating S.W.A.G. is fun. I undoubtedly have too many different badge ribbons, but I'll keep giving them out (I have lots).

Coming up with the slogans to put on them is a creative exercise. My sister discovered that this winter while we were creating S.W.A.G. for her.

I generally like to create three kinds of S.W.A.G.: Postcards, bookmarks, and badge ribbons. Each fulfills a slightly different function.

Postcards 

This is my blank postcard before adding the label with specific info about my reading, autographing, and the dealer who carries the books at that convention. (Design by Jan S. Gephardt; What's Bred in the Bone cover art © 2019 by Jody A. Lee). 

I have a generic postcard that's been professionally printed, which I customize for each convention. Every year, each convention schedules me for different things at different times. There's a place designed on the postcard for a label that's printed with that convention's specifics.

My postcards generally list when and where my reading is scheduled, when and where I'll be signing autographs, and (if I can work out a consignment deal ahead of time) what dealer is carrying my books at that convention.

I hand out postcards everywhere I can, especially in the early part of the convention, because if I can convince interested readers to come to those events and places, I have a better chance to sell them books!

Bookmarks

Both sides of both current bookmarks: Left for What's Bred in the Bone,  by Jan S. Gephardt, and right is Deep Ellum Pawn, a novelette by G. S. Norwood. (Design by Jan S. Gephardt; What's Bred in the Bone cover art © 2019 by Jody A. Lee; Deep Ellum Pawn art © 2019 by Chaz Kemp.)

Bookmarks are probably my best overall S.W.A.G. sales tool. And if I do say so myself, my bookmarks are beautiful.

Yes, I know the vast majority of books I sell are ebooks. But people do still buy the "dead trees" versions, and when you're reading a physical book you need a bookmark.

For a writer, artist, or other creative professional, a bookmark functions much the same way as a business card, but in a number of ways it's harder to lose and more practical.

Maybe I'm weird, but I keep a large collection of bookmarks that also are a little memory trove. Some date back decades--but the ones I tend to keep, use, and enjoy the most are ones I especially like to look at.

Bookmarks aren't just for sf conventions, either. Lately I've had a slew of annual checkups, etc. At most of them I've found someone who likes science fiction and happily takes my bookmarks. All literate people can use bookmarks. I'm happy to supply them!

Badge ribbons

Here is this year's crop of What's Bred in the Bone-inspired badge ribbons. (preview images courtesy of P C Nametags).

As I said above, I undoubtedly give out too many badge ribbons. They're not exactly cheap, and not all of the designs clearly remind people what book they're promoting. But I get a kick out of creating them, and many people get a kick out of wearing them at conventions.

Too many badge ribbons on a badge can be impractical--but people adapt. Pro tip: Duct tape on the back can keep a long string from breaking apart. Come prepared!

Even though they're impractical, they're quixotic. The silky texture and varied colors are pretty. They add a touch of whimsy. Many are funny, some are cryptic, and they're altogether fun.

Seriously! What more excuse do you need?

Here are the badge ribbons my sister and I brainstormed, based on her story Deep Ellum Pawn. (preview images courtesy of P C Nametags).

See you at the convention?

As you see, there are lots of reasons for creating S.W.A.G., and it can be fun to use. If you come to one of the conventions I attend, look for my postcards on the freebie tables and my Art Show display.

Then come to my reading and/or autographing session, where I'll have ALL the S.W.A.G.!

And if you're a creative professional, perhaps you should consider creating S.W.A.G. of your own.

Here's another view of my Capricon 40 autograph table display. (Photo by Tyrell E. Gephardt)

IMAGE CREDITS: 

The photos of me with my S.W.A.G. offerings and books at my Capricon 40 autographing, and the detail-photo of the S.W.A.G. and books display, are both courtesy of Tyrell E. Gephardt. Please acknowledge him as photographer and provide a link back to this site if you re-post or reuse it. Thanks!
The photo of the "Detectives in the Wild" panel at Capricon 40 was taken by a kind audience member who did not give me his name--but whom I thank anyway! Please feel free to re-post or re-use it, too, but with an acknowledgement and link back to this post, if possible, please!
The cover art for What's Bred in the Bone is © 2019 by Jody A. Lee. 
The cover art for Deep Ellum Pawn is © 2019 by Chaz Kemp. 
The images of the badge ribbon designs are previews generated by the P C Nametags Custom Badge Ribbons webpage. Many thanks to all!

Authors everywhere

There seemed to be authors everywhere at Capricon 40. I've already introduced several of them in the "Capricon Project" posts "Detectives in the Wild" and "Indie Author Speed-Dating." But there were yet more!

(image courtesy of Capricon 40 website)

Personal experiences

These Capricon Project posts focus only on authors I met and interacted with personally at the con. My apologies to all the other authors who were there. If I didn't encounter you in a meaningful way at the con, I didn't include you.

I did also video-record a series of short interviews with Indie authors with tables in the Capricon 40 Dealers' Room. I'm still working on those. I need to learn how to use Premiere Pro to edit them. I hope to produce them for posting during the spring months.

Yes, there were authors everywhere at Capricon 40. Let me mention a few more here.

Jonathan P. Brazee

Jonathan P. Brazee at the Indie Author Speed-Dating event at Capricon 40 (Photo by Jan S. Gephardt)

I've had the pleasure of being friends with Jonathan Brazee since we met in Puerto Rico in 2017. He is a prolific, successful Nebula Award-nominated, Dragon Award-winning author who mostly writes military science fiction. I included a short profile of him in one of my post-Capricon articles last year, but he's expanded several of his series since then.

He wrote his 2020 novel Gemini Twins in honor of his own twin daughters. Other recently-completed series include Ghost Marines and The Navy of Humankind-Wasp Squadron.

Books by Jonathan P. Brazee from right to left: the Navy of Humankind-Wasp Squadron series, Gemini Twins, and the Ghost Marines series. (Book cover images courtesy of Amazon).

Dorothy Winsor

I shared a reading time-slot with Dorothy Winsor at Capricon 40. She read a wonderful short story. I believe she said it's unpublished to date, but it deserves to be seen and read! She writes mostly middle-grade and Young Adult fantasy.

The book she promoted most at Capricon was The Wind Reader. It's a story about a young boy who tells fortunes on the street to earn a living. Then he tells a fortune for prince that later actually comes true(!) Next he's compelled to come to the castle to be the royal fortune teller--a role for which he's not prepared.

At right is Dorothy Winsor, just before her reading at Capricon 40. At left, her current novel, The Wind Reader. (photo by Jan S. Gephardt. Book covers are courtesy of Amazon).

Lance Erlick

I stayed for the readings that followed mine and Dorothy's. This gave me the opportunity to hear an excerpt from Lance Erlick's book Reborn. It's the first of his Android Chronicles books. Interesting and well written, it probably ought to come with trigger warnings.

Erlick's android protagonist "Synthia Cross is a state-of-the-art masterwork of synthetic human design—and a fantasy come true for her creator." She shows enough alarming signs of emergent behavior, however, that her creator wipes her memory each day to keep her in control. He has his nefarious reasons, but she's already learning how to leave herself clues so she can reconstruct her past--and reveal her creator's true intentions.

Lance Erlick listens to Kristine Smith's reading at Capricon 40, before it's his turn. At right are three books of the Android Chronicles. (photo by Jan S. Gephardt. Book covers are courtesy of Amazon).

Kristine Smith

Kristine shared the reading time-slot with Lance. A winner of the John W. Campbell Award, she's been writing the Jani Kilian Chronicles for several years. Its multiple volumes tell the story of a struggle for understanding and peace between humans and an exo-terrestraial species called the idomeni.

The title character is a former captain with powerful enemies and a body that's been expensively repaired after traumatic injuries that allowed her death to be faked. Kilian subsequently forms a friendship with the idomeni ambassador. Smith's reading selection this time was an excerpt from the most recent Jani Kilian book. She also writes the Lauren Reardon series, under the name of Alex Gordon.

Kristine Smith reads from part of the Jani Kilian series at Capricon 40. (photo by Jan S. Gephardt. Book covers courtesy of Amazon).

Donna J. W. Munro

I shared an autographing table with Donna J. W. Munro, who primarily writes dark fantasy horror, YA fiction, and science fiction. She is a prolific writer of short fiction, including two stories, "Death's Day Off," and "My Forever Love," in the anthology Beautiful Lies, Painful Truths, Vol. II.

According to her blog, the first of a series about zombies, called the Poppet Series ("about tamed zombies and the girl who wants to save them"), will be available in May 2020.

Donna J. W. Munro and one of the anthologies in which her short fiction is published. (photo by Tyrell E. Gephardt; book cover image courtesy of Amazon.)

W. A. Thomasson

W. A. (Bill) Thomasson
(photo: Tyrell E. Gephardt)

Like Jonathan Brazee, I met Bill Thomasson in Puerto Rico in 2017, and we've bumped into each other at conventions ever since. Bill has been working on a sword and sorcery novel for some time. He'd hoped that The Whip of Abadur would be available in time for Capricon 40, but it's still in production (indeed, there's no cover yet!).

He describes the story this way: "In an ancient Fertile Land that is not quite the one we know, the cat burglar Teema is hired to retrieve a demon-god’s stolen symbol of power and return it to its proper temple. But she quickly learns that meddling in the affairs of gods and demons is more dangerous than she had thought."

As you can see, Capricon 40 featured authors everywhere! I hope you've enjoyed one more small tour through some of the exotic and interesting worlds they've created, in this final episode of the Capricon Project.

IMAGE CREDITS:

The photos of Jonathan Brazee, Dorothy Winsor, Lance Erlick, and Kristine Smith all were taken at Capricon 40 by Jan S. Gephardt with the subjects' knowledge and consent. If you wish to re-use or reblog any of these photos, please credit Jan as the photographer and if possible include a link back to this post. 

The photos of Donna J. W. Munro and W. A. (Bill) Thomasson were taken by Tyrell E. Gephardt, also at Capricon 40, and also with the subjects' knowledge and consent. Please observe the same courtesy of including an attribution and link back, if you use these photos.

The Capricon 40 header is courtesy of Capricon 40's website. All of the book cover images are courtesy of Amazon (see captions for individual links).

Indie Author Speed-Dating

The Capricon Project continues

On Friday of Capricon 40 I participated in the Indie Author Speed-Dating event. The idea was that we'd bring handouts and freebies, have books on hand to sell or show, and be prepared to deliver our "elevator speech" to tell people what our books are all about. The next morning I followed a similar process when I made myself available for autographing (more on that later).

Here's Jan at her autographing table, with books and SWAG from Weird Sisters Publishing. (Photo by Ty Gephardt.)

Timed during the dinner hour, the Indie Author Speed-Dating event didn't enjoy the best of turnouts. Some folks came in, and some of us actually sold books. A few of us circulated to "speed-date" other authors so we could get to know each other better. It would have been more fun if we'd had more people in the "audience," but it was a nice opportunity for those who did come to talk one-on-one with authors.

There were some interesting books and authors at this event. I thought perhaps you'd like a "Virtual Indie Author Speed-Dating" glimpse! Where possible, I've used authors' online statements and/or book descriptions in lieu of their "elevator speeches."

Rook Creek Books

Blake Hausladen and Deanna Sjolander are the authors of Rook Creek Books. Deanna moderated the event. She and Blake did a lot of circulating at the beginning, to kind of get things going.

Eighteen Books by Blake Hausladen. Montage courtesy of Rook Creek Books.

Blake's Vesteal Series is 15 books long. "The completed series has been published into three omnibus collection, The Ghosts in the Yew, Native Silver, and The Vastness." NOTE: Rock Creek Books also presented a showing of their stop-motion movie production of Beyond the Edge at Capricon 40.

Deanna's latest published editing project is Eileen Flaherty's The Perilous Step. Her own first novel, Sophie and the G-Man, is set to publish later this month (Feb. 2020).

Rebecca Ciardullo, a.k.a. R. L. Frencl

Rebecca brought the three books of her fantasy Star Circle Trilogy, which was published last year. Here's a brief description from the trilogy's page on Amazon:

"The Darkness that lives behind the stars rises, spinning plots and lies to entrap humanity and bring down the civilizations of mankind. The Star Bearers are called by the Lights to represent the best of mankind and drive the Darkness back behind the stars.

"Aerin and Robyn have been down this road before. Both have stood at a point of the Circle, giving all to the fight. They were two of the few who walked away from the last convergence. The Stars align once more, calling them to represent a world that doesn't know it's in danger."

The Star Circle Trilogy by R. L Frencl includes The Shattered Prism, Walking with Shadows, and Dark Rainbow's End. (photo courtesy of Amazon.)

She is the author of at least one other series, including some books available in the UK, as well as in the USA. I didn't get a chance to talk much with Rebecca, but she and author Jen Haeger let me take their picture.

Rebecca Ciardullo/R. L. Frencl and Jen Haeger chat at the Indie Author Speed-Dating event at Capricon 40 (Photo by Jan S. Gephardt)

Jen Haeger

As I mentioned in an earlier post on this blog, Jen and I collaborated long-distance on a blog post back in 2017. Neither of us was able to come to Capricon 37. Without meaning to, we "orphaned" the panel Writing about Forensics, so we tried to make up for it by blogging the panel discussion.

At that time she'd only just published her first novel, a paranormal romance titled Moonlight Medicine: Onset. According to her website, however, "My werewolf paranormal romance trilogy, Moonlight Medicine: Onset, Moonlight Medicine: Epidemic, and Moonlight Medicine: Inoculation, previously published by Crowded Quarantine Publications, is not currently available except at the Barnes and Noble in Brighton, MI."

The WHISPS Series-to-date consists of Whispers of a Killer, Whispers of Terror, and Whispers of Conspiracy. (Image courtesy of Amazon.)

Meanwhile she's been busy with the WHISPS Series (currently up to three books), and a novel titled Miles from Manistique. 

Chris Gerrib

Chris goes to a lot of the same sf conventions I do. I featured him in a post last year about three authors I'd encountered at Capricon 39. His series about Martian pirates continues to be the extent of his science fiction explorations. He tells me he's been writing mysteries more recently.

Chris Gerrib's Martian Pirates Trilogy consists of The Mars Run, Pirates of Mars, and The Night Watch. (Image courtesy of Amazon.)

Chris shared a table with me at the Indie Author Speed Dating event. He and L.A. Kirchheimer posed for a photo beside my and Chris's displays.

Chris Gerrib and L. A. Kirchheimer show me their books at Capricon 40's Indie Author Speed-Dating event. (Photo by Jan S. Gephardt)

L. A. Kirchheimer

L. A. Kirchheimer seems like an interesting person, though I barely got to talk with her. To date she's written two books, Secrets in Mystic Woods, and Journey Through Darkness.

Both center around the paranormal adventures of thirteen-year-old Charity Graves, who starts the first book seeking to learn more about a teacher with whom she's come into conflict, but whose concerns quickly escalate to much larger and more terrifying threats.

L. A. Kirchheimer's books, Secrets in Mystic Woods and Journey Through Darkness recount the adventures of 13-year-old Charity Graves. At right, Kirchheimer participates in a panel at Capricon 40. (Cover images courtesy of Amazon. Kirchheimer at Capricon 40 courtesy of her Facebook Author Page). 

We've only gotten partway through the list of authors at the Indie Author Speed-Dating event. In the next post we'll meet some more. I hope you learned about someone new whose books you'd like to explore! Please leave a comment if you did!

IMAGE CREDITS:
The photo of Jan S. Gephardt with books from Weird Sisters Publishing is by Tyrell Gephardt, and is used with his permission.
Many thanks to Rook Creek Books for the Vesteal Series composite (and description), featuring books by Blake Hausladen with covers by Elizabeth Leggett. 
Many thanks to Amazon for the photo of R. L. Frencl's The Star Circle Trilogy, Jen Haeger's WHISPS Series, Chris Gerrib's Martian Pirates Trilogy, and the cover art for L. A. Kirchheimer's two books. The photo of Kirchheimer at the Capricon 40 panel is courtesy of the author's Facebook Page.
The photos of Jen Haeger with Rebecca Ciardullo (R. L. Frencl),  and of Chris Gerrib with L. A. Kirchheimer, are both by Jan S. Gephardt, taken with their consent at the Indie Author Speed-Dating event at Capricon 40. Re-post or reblog if you wish, but please include an attribution to Jan as the photographer and a link back to this post, if possible.