This lively and informative conversation will provide insights to first-time and independent authors to help them address the challenges writers face in finding publishers and promoting their books.
The panel includes: Holly Smith, editor-in-chief of the Washington Independent Review of Books; Laura Strachan, literary agent/principal at the Strachan Literary Agency; local authors J. Michael McNealy KSG ’14 (Skeleton Horse), John Wasowicz MPA ’88 (Daingerfield Island); and local editor/poet/writer Richard Peabody (Mondo Barbie, A Different Beat: Writings by Women of the Beat Generation).
Organized by John Wazowicz, this event is free and open to the public.
Colonel (Retired) J. Michael McNealy KSG '14 is a career military intelligence officer who has served in command and staff positions from the Platoon Level to the Army Staff and Joint Agencies. He is the author of “Skeleton Horses,” written during his second deployment to Iraq and published in 2017.
Richard Peabody is a DC resident and the founder and remaining editor of Gargoyle Magazine and editor (or co-editor) of 25 anthologies including Mondo Barbie and A Different Beat: Writings by Women of the Beat Generation. The author of a novella, three short story collections, and seven poetry books, Peabody taught fiction writing at Johns Hopkins University for 15 years. His most recent book is The Richard Peabody Reader (Alan Squire Publishers, 2015). His new book of poems, “Guinness on the Quay,” is forthcoming from Salmon Poetry in 2019.
Holly Smith is editor-in-chief of the nonprofit Washington Independent Review of Books, a university lecturer, and a longtime freelance writer. Her work has appeared in the Washington Post, Baltimore Style, CNBC.com, More Mirth of a Nation, Brain, Child, and other publications. She also co-authored Seafood Lover's Chesapeake Bay, a travel guide that keeps getting shelved with the cookbooks.
Laura Strachan has been representing authors for 20 years. She established the Strachan Literary Agency in 1998, focusing on literary fiction and narrative nonfiction. She has a background in English Literature as well as a law degree, which is useful when advising clients in all aspects of their work and the business of publishing.
John Adam Wasowicz MPA '88 is an Alexandria, VA, attorney and author of “Daingerfield Island,” published in 2017 by Baltimore’s BrickHouse Books. He has conducted book signings at 36 indie bookstores from Vermont to South Carolina.