D.C.-Local Author Panel at Awesome Con

This Sunday, at Awesome Con in Washington, D.C., I’ll be on a panel of local authors at 11 a.m. I thought a lot about how to get people as interested in coming as I am in participating, and I realized the best thing to do was provide the basis for why I’m excited to hang out with five other D.C.-local authors: they’re all intriguing writers and people that you should get to know, and I think if you know a little bit about them, you may decide to come hang out with us.

So, please humor me while I say some nice things about my friends.

Neil Cohen

Neil is the author of the Exit Zero series, and one of the most relentless and persistent authors I know. If there’s an event going on in the region, he’s there, usually at a table, selling his books and getting selfies with cosplayers. This guy is the embodiment of, “if opportunity doesn’t knock, build a door.” Neil is fun and funny and has a huge heart, and his work strikes me as the same. Neil made this event happen and brought us all together, and for that, he has my thanks.

James Crawford

I met James a few years back, and he was one of those guys with whom I felt I immediately connected. He is indescribably one of a kind. One of my favorite anecdotes about James is about the first convention we were at together. Neither of us were selling anything, but some other authors we knew were. And while I was hanging out, blabbering on with some other authors, James was stopping people in the aisle to pitch them other authors’ work. Nobody asked him to do that. The world both needs and doesn’t deserve people like James.

He is the author of the Blood Soaked series. Also, the dude makes knives.

Nick DeWolf

Nick is one of those authors whose imaginations run a million miles a minute, and simply by trying to keep up with him, you’re elevated to a new level. He also has an amazing clarity wherein, I may pitch him a story I’m working on that maybe I don’t know the ending to, and he’ll come up with five great possibilities on the spot. His writing is both entertaining and insightful, just like his company. He’s a strong advocate for women and strives to write intriguing, strong female characters. You should probably just go read Pulling Strings right now. Also, he makes some tasty beer.

Slade Grayson

If I had to describe Slade’s work, it’s something like you might get if William Faulkner wrote a Batman graphic novel. There’s just something legitimate and genuine about the way he writes genre fiction. If I had to describe Slade as a person, there’s just something legitimate and genuine about him. Slade’s the guy at the table who doesn’t talk a whole lot, but while everyone else is talking, he’s listening. And when it’s his turn to speak, he’s almost always right. I highly recommend you check out his Autumn Moon books. I wasn’t a werewolf fan, but Slade made me one.

Kindra Sowder

Kindra is the only author on this panel whom I’ve never met, but we run in the same circles. Here is what I know about Kindra: she is hard-working and dedicated. She started her own independent publishing company, Burning Willow Press, which is still going strong today, so I also know she is ambitious. She is the author of the Executioner Trilogy. She’s making the drive all the way from South Carolina, and I’m very much looking forward to meeting her.

And that’s the panel. I assume you know something about me since you’re on my site, but if not… hi, I write things and stuff. Uh… here, talk to Nick.

*vanishes