Saturday, June 10, 1:00pm – 4:00 pm
Monken Activity Room, Second Floor (accessible by elevator and stairs)
Centralia Regional Library District’s Local Author Fair is back!
This year, 10 local authors will be exhibiting in the Monken Activity Room to discuss, sell, and sign their books. Admission is free and there will be raffle drawings!
Meet the authors in this year’s lineup:
Brian L. Alvis
Bootlegger618 on Facebook
Genre(s): Historical Fiction
Target Audience: Young Adult to Senior Citizens
Brian L. Alvis is an author based in Mount Vernon, Illinois, who writes historical fiction accompanied by pictures shot by Robbie Edwards. His upcoming book Cyclone will be released in 2024.
Books:
Shipwrecked (2017)
Shipwrecked is the tale of a sailor, Ronald, who has lost his way in a familiar place. He happens upon a beautiful sea creature, Briz, who seems to also be lost on North Foot Island. They discover each other and search for the reasons behind what both of them are doing there. On the surface it seems like a chance encounter of the romantic kind but below the calm there is deep, deep blue.
Bootlegger (2019)
The people I’m going to tell you about in this story are long gone. The winds of Time have blown miles of dirt over their graves. History left them behind, lore and legend never got it correct. This story needs to be told, I’m sure that I am the only one left alive that knows it. All that’s left are my memories and some old faded pictures. I don’t have much time left, so here is the true story of my family, the Little Rose Gang.
Bootlegger is the story of a fictional family of moonshiners set in the prohibition era of Southern Illinois.
Sara Bevis
www.facebook.com/sara.foster.90
Genre(s): YA Fiction
Target Audience: 12+
Sara Bevis grew up in Southern Illinois, where she still lives with her husband, son, and dog. She enjoys reading, doing 1,000 piece jigsaw puzzles, and spending time with her family. Aurora in the Dark is her first novel.
Books:
Aurora in the Dark (Book 1 of the Seasons of Aurora Series, 2023)
Aurora has the perfect life until her father reveals, on his deathbed, that her real father is a lowly guard. She has to run away from home to find him.
Cris Cawthon
Genre(s): Photography, Christian Devotion
Target Audience: Adult
Cris Cawthon is the author of four books. She graduated with a degree in Health Information Assistant. She currently works at her local library. Cris shares her passion for photography: “When I am behind the camera, my only focus is on my subject and that’s peace.” She also enjoys camping, fishing, and traveling. Despite her long list of tasks, she always finds time to help others and share encouragement.
Books:
Grace and Comfort: Surrounded by Beauty (2018)
Grace and Comfort is a photography book in memory of Andy Davenport. He fought cancer at a young age with grit. Andy did not let cancer stop him from being the light to his peers.
A Heart in Art: Mayo Clinic Heals Through Art (2019)
While visiting Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, the compassion Cris felt from the medical team was indescribable. She was also comforted by the artwork throughout each level of the Medical Buildings. As she walked alone through the hallways, the bright colors and glass sculptures brightened her day. All that she saw led her to create this book so that you can see the unique, beautiful artwork in Rochester, Minnesota and the surrounding area of Mayo Clinic.
Seeing Through Our Lens (2019)
In this book you will find black and white photos of the lives of Cris and co-writer Angie Wilkinson. The things they do, see, and love the most. They hope you enjoy the things they saw through their lens.
Be Encouraged (2021)
Be Encouraged was published on December 15, 2021 on the day that Cris’s grandmother passed away. “She was the epitome of grace and would always tell me at the end of our phone call, Be Encouraged,” Cris says. You will find many heartfelt short stories in this book that end with encouragement.
Luberta Lytle
www.lubertalytle.com
Genre(s): Inspirational Nonfiction
Target Audience: Over 40-year-old Women
Luberta Lytle is a Christian Certified Life Coach and the owner/proprietor of L.L. Life Coaching Coaching Company. She is also the founder and executive director of Dorothy Johnson My Biggest Fan, NFP. In addition to her career as a life coach, she recently retired from working with the Illinois State Government after 32 years. She is currently serving on the Board of Directors for the SAFE and CASA of Marion County Organization. She is also serving as an Ambassador for the Centralia Chamber of Commerce. Before anything else, Ms. Lytle is a mother of three, grandmother of eleven, and just recently became a great-grandmother. Luberta lives in Centralia, Illinois. She is an avid reader and enjoys taking walks in her spare time and her heart is fueled by a passion for inspiring and motivating women.
Books:
Millionaire M.O.M. (2016)
#BossMoms: Mompreneurship leaves no women behind. Read, engage, learn, and trust from these 10 testimonies. If you have a will, the courage, and the desire to see a better lives for yourself and your family, then you are already in the making of becoming a #BossMom.
Heal the Hurt (2016)
A young girl’s life changed forever in 1975. She lost her innocence and trust for men. This caused her to lose her self-worth and become promiscuous. During her adult years, she turned to alcohol thinking that this would help ease the pain. It only gave a temporary fix to a bigger problem. She finally sought and found comfort in her creator.
The She-Preneur Journey (2016)
This book was borne out of the authors’ impertinence and zest for changing the status quo. It discusses practical steps and workable formula that will equip each reader with everything they need to embark on their unique journey, as well as the working tools and techniques needed to succeed on that journey.
Celebrating My Biggest Fan: An Anthology of Love (2020)
Every wish you could send a letter to a loved-one who constantly cheered you on but is no longer here? Join Luberta Lytle and these amazing authors as they share a special letter to their biggest fan. Our biggest fans may be gone in the physical, but they are still living on in their hearts.
The Power of What Is Love? (2022)
In this anthology the Authors wanted to share their story of what love means, looks like, feels like from the perspective of a woman. This love is not just romantic, but it’s about motherly love, friendship love, the just all-around love. The Authors want you to know that you are not alone in this journey. This love thing has so many twists and turns, so many ways to heal, deal and learn while learning what it is. Please KNOW that love looks, feels, and is reciprocated in all kinds of ways. Your love may very well look much different than anyone else.
Brittani Miller
www.brittaniwritesbooks.com
Genre(s): General
Target Audience: Adult
Brittani Miller is a writer born and raised in Southern Illinois. She is an alumni of Kaskaskia College and University of Illinois Springfield, where she studied English. Her work has appeared in numerous magazines. When she isn’t writing her own stories, she is an editor for CentraLit Magazine (www.centralitmagazine.com). CentraLit Magazine is an ongoing local publication for works by Southern Illinoisan authors.
Books:
My Body, Like Tentacles (2022)
In her debut writing collection, Brittani Miller channels her experience as a chronically ill young adult to bring to life stories of illness, mental health, and coming of age. Featuring five short stories and four poems, this chapbook is a poignant look into young adulthood in the 21st century.
Jane Smudrick Peacock
Genre(s): Picture Books
Target Audience: Up to 3rd Grade
Jane Smudrick Peacock is a public school librarian who taught junior high students to write stories and poetry. During retirement, she has enjoyed travel, her hobbies, her family and friends, her organizations, and most of all–her church life.
Books:
Lucky (2011)
In her first book, Jane tells the true story of a squirrel she rescued.
A Home for Pokie (2018)
Watching a baby bird take its first very shaky flight is a joyous delight. Every year, a pair of mama and daddy eastern bluebirds would make their home in our backyard. This story relates the process of their selection of a homesite and then the building of their nest in which to raise the family. Also, it illustrates the dedication of mama and daddy bluebird in the caring and feeding of their babies and the supervising of their teaching them to fly. It was evident that these eastern bluebird parents were steadfast in their encouragement of these baby birds to become independent in their search for food as well as in their becoming mature, adult birds. Please enjoy the beautiful backyard where Pokie grew up, Jane’s second book about the wonderful wildlife found in nature.
Sarah W. Pieron
Genre(s): Nonfiction
Target Audience: Ages 2 to 92
Sarah Pieron (married now) has lived basically her entire life in Centralia and is a teacher and paralegal. She has 3 children and 7 grandchildren.
Books:
My New Friend by Buddy (2022)
A sweet children’s book that applies to all ages about a dog and a new friend who show kindness and gratitude (a true story).
Tony Thompson
www.facebook.com/tony.thompsonauthor.3
Genre(s): Horror, Fantasy
Target Audience: Middle Grade/Young Adult
A recently self-published author, Tony Thompson currently works as a Coordinator for Special Education at Belleville West High School in Belleville, Illinois.
Books:
Dryver’s Fields (2019)
The children of Okawville, IL are disappearing at an alarming rate. Three life-long friends are determined to find out who or what is behind the disappearances. They need to do so, quickly, before Okawville becomes a ghost town.
The Eighth Lion (Book 1, 2020) & Eschaton (Book 2, 2021)
Prince Landon is on a quest to save his sister from the clutches of a rogue dragon and to prevent the coming apocalypse. To do so, he must travel to the edges of the Known World and enter Mfiri, the gateway to the Underworld. Along the way, he might even find the answer to a question that has plagued humankind for centuries.
Midnight in Varosliget (2023)
What happens when a nostalgic vampire, a neurotic werewolf, and a mummy with a 200 IQ meet at midnight in Varosliget Park in Budapest, Hungary? Finland the Werewolf and Ahmose the Mummy must put aside their differences as they wait for the arrival of the friend Pentele Sandor, the world’s most powerful vampire, who is about to end a 10-year self-imposed fast.
—
For questions and concerns about the fair, please email program coordinator Charessa Sistek at csistek@centralia.lib.il.us or call 618.532.5222 extension 225.
If you are an Illinois author that would like a chance to exhibit at our next fair, let us know!