Celebrate International Women's Day this 2024 with our inspiring female authors and strong female characters.
BRIANNA FLORENCE
Brianna Florence earned a bachelor’s degree in biochemistry and enjoys sharing her love for science. She created the Chemistry Saves The Day book series to encourage children to think about chemistry in a fun way. Brianna hopes that her young readers discover the importance of science in everything we do.
DIANE PETROZZO
Diane Petrozzo is a retired Human Resources professional and teacher who has dedicated her life to rescuing dogs, in particular seniors. Her love for dogs began at the age of six, when a stray followed Diane’s brothers home and was immediately adopted by her family. Diane was a board member and co-foster coordinator at the Retriever Rescue of Colorado, where she continues to volunteer today. Her mission is to highlight the value of senior dogs and to promote their adoption. Diane is an outdoor enthusiast and can always be seen walking her rescue dog, Remy, to the local coffee shop for a pup cup.
NANCY HALLOWELL
Nancy Hallowell retired from a 35-year career in marketing and public relations working in non-profit trade association, financial services, technology, and healthcare. Today, she is a youth tennis coach, helping kids discover and cultivate their best selves. Nancy has raised and trained service dogs. As an Alliance of Therapy Dogs member, she is a pet therapy volunteer at UC Health in Aurora, CO.
AFSOON KELLY
Afsoon Kelly graduated from CU Boulder in Economics and International Affairs and has worked in finance, technology, and operations in New York, Boston, and now Denver. She loves water sports, playing tennis, hiking, biking, and spending time with family and friends. In her ideal world, every child has a home, healthy food, and can express their talents regardless of race, ethnicity, or finances.
HALLIE GUIDRY
Hallie Guidry is a writer, editor, artist, lawyer, and mother from Wyoming. Her work has been featured in numerous publications, and she illustrated the children’s book Off to Nana and Grandma’s Home. Evoking positive emotions, Hallie explores relationships and self-worth through color and representations of familial intimacy. Ezra’s Family in the Spooky House is her first book as the author and illustrator.
GAYATHRI R WARING
Gayathri R. Waring is first and foremost a mother, as well as a wife and a daughter. A healthcare consultant by trade, she finds ways to improve people’s lives behind the scenes. Gayathri loves spending time with her family and fur babies. She is an avid tennis player, enjoys finding new books and playgrounds with her son, watches movies, and values downtime.
ROBERTA C STONE
Roberta C. Stone is a retired History teacher with a Master’s in Education as well as a journalist for The New York Times, Connecticut Magazine, and The Connecticut Post. Entrepreneurial in nature, she has a jewelry business, a knitted headwear business, and a travel blog. Roberta is the mother of three daughters and grandmother of six.
PEGGY MAASS LABIUK
Peggy Maass Labiuk is a former US National Team Road and Track Racer, who excelled by being tough, smart, and psyched. She shares her cycling acumen as a World Championships medalist (Individual Pursuit), 2x National Champion (Criterium, Kilometer), and World Record Holder (24 Hour Endurance Record, 490.5 miles, human paced) in anecdotes and coaching notables. Her success in such a broad range of events (track, road, US Olympic and World Championships Teams) and having coached from club to elite levels (British National Women’s Endurance Squad) led to the practical execution of the sport psychology plan presented in Cycle Psyched. While Labiuk now rarely competes, she coaches, trains on the velodrome, and still scores some Strava segment QOMs.
KAREN HOOD DELRASO
Karen Hood DelRaso is an avid traveler who combines her love of adventure with her passion for volunteering and the outdoors. She spent more than two years working at a youth center in Zambia, climbed Mt. Rainer for a breast cancer fundraiser, and is involved with many local organizations, including PHW Coatesville, McKaig’s Nature Education Center, African Education Program, and Total Outdoors. Karen enjoys hiking, horseback riding, rowing, and exploring new locations with family and friends.
GINA MOORE
Gina Moore is a professional writer in medical communications and education. As an endurance athlete, she thrives in trail and road running, as well as mountain, gravel, and road biking, racing in more than ten events annually. Gina hopes to move the dial of female representation in outdoor sports by encouraging girls to be brave and adventurous. Her middle-grade novel Catching Air received the prestigious Mom’s Choice Award.
DANIELLE LYNCH NICHOLSON
Danielle Lynch Nicholson is an award-winning former newspaper reporter and editor who resides in Pennsylvania with her family. When Danielle finds an unfinished writing assignment from fourth grade in a keepsake box, she decides to complete the story and publishes Bump Under the Rug (2021). The book celebrates imagination and inspires young girls to face their fears. It received the prestigious Mom’s Choice Award and the Readers Favorite 5-Star.
SYLVIE FEGHALI SMITH
Sylvie Feghali Smith immigrated to the USA with her family in the eighties. While acclimating to the culture of her new country, she graduated magna cum laude from the University of South Carolina with a B.S. and M.E. in Electrical and Computer Engineering. Sylvie lives in South Carolina as a proud wife, mother, daughter, sister, aunt, cousin, friend, software engineer, patented inventor, hiker, traveler, yogi, and tennis player. In 2019, Sylvie succeeded in visiting all forty seven South Carolina state parks.
ZEINA HAMAD
Zeina Hamad earned her Master of Education from Marymount University and taught elementary school for over ten years in the United States, Spain, and Dubai. She has always enjoyed reading and learning, especially through travel experiences. Zeina loves the outdoors, dancing, and painting.
LAUREN ZURCHER
Lauren Zurcher was born in Boston, Massachusetts and moved to Denver, Colorado when she was a kindergartner. She attended a bilingual elementary school where classes were taught in both English and French. Lauren began her journey as a lifelong writer at the age of six when she wrote about family vacations across the world in her journal.
