Author Expo Showcases Local Writers, New Books

WARWICK, RI —  The 12th annual RI Author Expo at Crowne Plaza Warwick Saturday drew a  hearty crowd of readers browsing the works of more than 120 local authors including Jon Land and Bram Stoker Award-winning Christa Carmen.

Writers of all genres packed the halls and banquet room at the hotel for the event, hosted by the Association of Rhode Island Authors (ARIA). The free-admission event included writing panels, speakers, pictures with Santa, and raffles. The Expo’s list of exhibiting authors boasts great writers from every genre, including Best-selling thriller novelist and Rhode Islander Jon Land, Christa Carmen, author of Bram Stoker Award-winning “The Daughters of Block Island”, and Steve Porter, owner of Stillwater Books and author of Manisses.

Authors were excited and pleased with the turnout, reporting steady sales and varying personal assessments of the numbers of people attending.

At the center of the main hall during the expo, marquee authors were at the center of the action, including RI thriller writer Jon Land, showcasing his new book with Joe Moore, “White robes and broken badges : infiltrating the KKK and exposing the evil among us.” Land said it was likely one of the most important of his works.

Land took a moment to opine on the event and the passion of his fellow authors. “It looks a lot busier than last year,” Land said. He pointed out the many tables within sight piled with books, posters and artwork showcasing each writer’s works. “It’s just the effort that people put in,” he said, to support their small businesses and sell to interested readers.

In the outer hall, authors greeted readers from behind piles of their works, including Al Kholi, showing off his new novel, the scifi thriller, “Blue Light”. Visiting Kholi was Lisa Bell, author of, mental health self-help tome, “Get off the Hot Mess Express.” Bell, who just learned of the expo and didn’t have a table of her own, was nonetheless impressed with the event.

“This is a great place to meet other people,” involved in writing and publishing, she said.

One table over,  Christy Nichols, author of travel books, historical fiction and fantasy novels, had her prolific collection of titles across the genres.

“I have genre ADHD,” Nichols joked.

Nearby, Jeremy Harrison explained his novel, “The Island of Forever,” a young adult novel about a boy washed ashore on a Peter-Pan-like island and his efforts to make it home.

Mark Binder had his pseudonymous Izzy Abrahmson novel “The Council of Wise Women,” about, “An ordinary woman, her extraordinary daughter, and a secret society.”

According to the novel’s synopsis, “When Rachel Cohen is born, her parents’ marriage begins to crack. As she grows, and her village teeters on the brink, it is up to her and The Council of Wise Women to cook up a plan and step in.”

“And it’s fun,” Binder said.