Local Author Day (Hybrid)

PANELS

• 1:00pm Eastern: “Creating Powerful Personal Narratives ” with Geeta Gwalani, Carol Selick, and Diane Uniman (Princess Diane von Brainisfried)
• 1:50pm Eastern: “Writing for Children and Teens” with Rachelle Burk, Jennifer Salvato Doktorski, and Joe Rutch
• 2:40pm Eastern: “Embracing Local History and Folklore” with Angus Kress Gillespie, Mark Nonestied, Ethan Reiss, and Neal Stoffers
• 3:20pm Eastern: “Mastering the Art of the Story”  with Deborah S. Greenhut and Harry Marks

SCHEDULED TO APPEAR

STEPHANIE SENDAULA, PANELS HOST: A librarian and writer from New Jersey, Stephanie currently works in community engagement and outreach for LibraryLinkNJ.

RACHELLE BURK writes fiction and nonfiction books for children ages 2-13. She has visited schools in 17 states with her Author Visit presentations. Rachelle is also known locally as children's entertainer Tickles the Clown and Mother Goof Storyteller. Visit her websites: www.Rachelleburk.com and TicklesEntertainment.blogspot.com.

JENNIFER SALVATO DOKTORSKI is the author of four young adult novels. A proud Jersey girl, she lives with her family in Middlesex County and spends summers "down the shore," where everything is always all right. Visit her at www.jendoktorski.com or follow her on IG @authorjendoktorski and Facebook.

ANGUS KRESS GILLESPIE is a professor of American Studies at Rutgers University.  His many books about the cultural implications of civil engineering include Looking for America on the New Jersey Turnpike (1989), coauthored with Michael Aaron Rockland, recognized by the New Jersey State Library as one of the ten best books ever written about the state.

DEBORAH S. GREENHUT: Following a 35-year marriage to a hoarder, Deborah S. Greenhut completed this novel based on her own experiences. Deborah is a prize-winning poet and playwright who contributes travel writing and reviews on Medium.com. She is a graduate of Middlebury College and holds a PhD in English from Rutgers University where she directed the Cook/Douglass Writing Center. Website: deborahgreenhut.com.

GEETA GWALANI is the author of Aromas of Sindh - A 100 Recipes from the heart- her first cookbook published in 2020, which won her the Gold award from the Nonfiction Authors Association headquartered in the US. Through her first book she has been working towards socializing people about this unique cuisine of a community that saw mass exodus from its hometown in Sindh during the partition of India in 1947.

HARRY MARKS is the author of the thrillers THE PROPHET and THE LIBRARY AT THE CENTER OF THE EARTH. He is also an associate producer at Grim & Mild, where he writes for hit podcasts such as CABINET OF CURIOSITIES and LORE.

MARK NONESTIED has lived in East Brunswick for most of his life. In 1987 at the age of 15, he pedaled across town on his bicycle to the East Brunswick Museum to learn about the town’s history. He never left, having served for almost 35 years as a volunteer researching and writing about the town’s history.

ETHAN REISS is co-author of the upcoming new book, East Brunswick: Through the Years. Having lived in East Brunswick for most of his life, he has worked under Middlesex County's Division of Historic Sites and History Services at East Jersey Old Town Village, and currently serves on the Board of Trustees at the East Brunswick Museum. He is best known for sharing rare and historic East Brunswick photographs through his various Facebook groups and pages.

JOE RUTCH wrote his book as part of an adolescent literature class at Kean University.  The project tied in nicely with his belief in the power of reading as the foundation to a better and more successful life.  He now awaits his biggest fans (his grandkids) to become movie moguls and turn his book into a blockbuster to counter the drivel that is peddled to today's kids as entertainment.  Wow!!! He sounds just like grandpa in his book!

CAROL SELICK: Winner of the 2022 Firebird Book Award in Biographical Fiction and Women's Fiction, singer-songwriter Carol Selick traces her coming of age in a new autobiographical novel, "Beyond the Song." Each chapter begins with lyrics she wrote and still performs today. Carol is a graduate of Rutgers University and grew up in East Brunswick.

NEAL STOFFERS: Retired Newark Fire Captain Neal Stoffers earned a BA and MA in Asian Studies from Seton Hall University, writing about NJ's first Chinese community for his MA thesis. He has produced 11 books based on his oral history project of the Newark Fire Department, has given 3 book talks on his work, & has also written middle grade, young adult, & adult novels about the fire service, the Amer-Asian experience, Multiple Sclerosis, & the Chinese in 19th Century NJ.

DIANE UNIMAN aka blogger Princess Diane von Brainisfried® is a lawyer-turned Certified Positive Psychology Life Coach and Certified Laughter Yoga Leader. She gives corporate wellness seminars on happiness, optimism, positivity, and productivity. She’s also an award-winning writer who wrote Bonjour, Breast Cancer-I’m Still Smiling…Wit, Wisdom, and Optimism for Beating the Breast Cancer Blues.