Cotsakos and McCulloch are associated with Mutasian Entertainment, a children’s entertainment company Suzanne co-founded. They wrote and produced the award-winning children’s book series, Mutasia including: Land of Illogical and Utterly Impossible Critters, Figley’s New Favorite Food, The Nib Book, and Figley’s Search for The Perfect Pet, amongst others. 

Cotsakos is also an actor and has performed sketch and improv all over Los Angeles as well as performing bi-monthly in the long-form improv show, Bad Date. She holds a BA in Theater Arts from Pepperdine University and a BFA in Motion Pictures and Television from the Academy of Art University. 

McCullogh also is an award winning clay animator whose animations have screened at numerous film festivals and the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. as well as aired on HBO. He has produced an educational film for the partnership for a Drug Free America as well as environmental commercials in Northern California.

Sherri L. Smith is the author of seven award-winning young adult novels, including the 2009 California Book Award Gold Medalist for Flygirl, the 2017 SCIBA YA Award Winner, Pasadena, and the bestselling middle grade historical fantasy, The Toymaker’s Apprentice. Her books appear on multiple state reading lists and have been listed as Amelia Bloomer American Library Association Best Books for Young People and Junior Library Guild selections. Her latest book is Who Were the Tuskegee Airmen?, published as part of the popular bestselling Who Was? book series. Her next novel, The Blossom and the Firefly, due out in February 2020, explores the romance between two teens during World War II.

In her first two novels, The Garden of Small Beginnings (2017) and Other People’s Houses (2018), Abbi Waxman tackled widowhood, grief, and infidelity with wicked honesty and irrepressible humor. Both stories were filled with endearing characters that felt plucked from real life. While on a state book tour she met an incredible group of “California Girls”, young, female booksellers who were the inspiration for The Bookish Life of Nina Hill (2019). Following a smart, quirky millennial bookseller whose insular, carefully plotted life goes awry when she discovers a whole new extended family she never knew she had, this novel may feature her most lovable narrator yet. Abbi is a warm, wickedly funny writer who has been praised as “your new favorite wry writer” by the Daily Beast.

Eileen Rendahl is the national-bestselling and award-winning author of the popular paranormal Messenger series and Chick Lit novels (romantic suspense and cozy mysteries) under the nom de plumes:  Eileen Carr, Kristi Abbott, and Lillian Bell.  Although Rendahl started writing for the worst of reasons (she thought it would be easy!) she has spent years working on her craft. Rendahl’s first novel with a major New York publisher was a double finalist for the Romance Writers of America's prestigious Rita Award, as well as a finalist for the National Readers' Choice Award. Her work has won the Lories Award, the Beacon Award and the National Reader’s Choice Award. 

  Allison Hopelain is the owner and general manager of The Kebabery in Oakland.  Previously she was the co-owner of Camino with her husband-business partner-chef Russell Moore for over 10 years until it closed in December 2018. She made the transition into the restaurant world in 2006 at Zuni Café in San Francisco. There, Gilbert Pilgram and Judy Rodgers mentored her to the restaurant business from the inside out. Prior to that she co-owned a landscaping company that specialized in the design, installation and maintenance of organic residential gardens in the East Bay for seven years. 

Russell Moore is the owner and Culinary Director of The Kebabery in Oakland.  For 10 years he was the chef and co-owner of Camino with his wife Allison Hopelain. Camino was known for its daily changing all organic menu and its giant fireplace where most of the food was cooked. For the 20 years prior to Camino Russ cooked at Chez Panisse in Berkeley, for the last eleven years he was the chef and produce buyer for Chez Panisse Cafe.