On this page we provide you with important biographical information for our authors and artists.

Jan Atchley Bevan

Jan Bevan is a literary artist who writes children’s story picture books and chapter books. She is the Author in Residence at the Cummer Museum of Art & Gardens in Jacksonville, Florida, where she also is a staff member of the Education Department in Art Connections. In addition, Jan is a talented poet, composer, and musician.

Jan is a member of the Society for Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators, has served on the poetry reading board of Kalliope Magazine, A Journal of Women’s Art and Literature, and is on the Board of Directors of Ensemble EnCor, a chamber music performing trio from Berkeley, California.

She is an ambassador for VSA Arts of Florida (Very Special Arts). Founded by Jean Kennedy Smith, VSA Arts, an affiliate of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C., is an international organization that brings the art world to the disabled.

Jan Bevan, a mentor for writers with and without disabilities, has a Residency with VSA Arts of Florida to train others throughout the state.  

A former psychiatric social worker, Jan holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Psychology from Berry College in Rome, Georgia and a Masters Degree in Pastoral Studies and Practical Theology from Loyola University, New Orleans, LA.

Pete Davey

Pete Davey received a B.S. degree in biology and zoology from the University of Michigan in 1987. He started his marine mammal training career at Mystic Aquarium in Mystic, Connecticut. While there, he learned to train animals by working with California sea lions, harbor seals, northern fur seals, gray seals, and even an elephant seal.

In 1990, Davey joined the Shedd Aquarium, a new oceanarium in Chicago, Illinois, as part of the marine mammal department. In almost nine years with Shedd, he worked with beluga whales, Pacific white sided dolphins, and more seals, sea otters and penguins. He became the lead for beluga whales and a senior trainer.

In 1999 he went to Ocean Journey, a new aquarium in Denver, Colorado to build its training programs from scratch. As curator of training and husbandry, he designed and directed training programs using whale and dolphin training techniques with tigers, sea otters, and river otters (thus "whales with fur" was born). At the same time, he hired, developed and taught trainers to be a part of that training program.

In 2003, Davey was given the opportunity to rebuild the training programs at the world's first oceanarium, Marineland of Florida. As director of training, he designs all programs and spends much of his time teaching trainers how to work with the bottlenose dolphins.

Pete is working on a second book, "A Dolphin in Front of You," a guide to getting a job as a dolphin trainer, and lives in Florida with his wife, Jody, and his children, Kelsey, Kate, Ty, and Sam (and several of his own whales with fur).

Kay Day

Kay Day's third collection, A Poetry Break, features a full chapter of sonnets and an introduction by Ruth Daigon. Ms. Day has written articles and poetry for magazines like The Writer, Miller's Pond (print), and Pif. A book review is forthcoming in Foreword, the nation's top print and online review magazine.

She has received many awards for poetry and nonfiction, among them the ByLine Literary Award for Poetry, the Carrie Allen McCray Literary Award for Poetry, and second place for an Italian sonnet in national competition sponsored by Florida Freelance Writers Network.

Day presents at festivals like Amelia Island's Book Island Festival and Girlfriends' Weekend in Jefferson, Texas. She organized and founded a chapter of the Florida State Poetry Association for Jacksonville and serves as president of First Coast Poets Society. She is a member of American Pen Women, Florida Freelance Writers Network, and Florida Writers Association. As a freelance writer, she has created projects for the SC Department of Natural Resources, the Alston Wilkes Society, the SC Pharmacy Association, the SC Forestry Association, and corporate enterprises.

Victor DiGenti

Victor DiGenti spent thirty-five years working for WJCT Public Broadcasting in a variety of positions that included public affairs producer, head of corporate communications, and as producer of the acclaimed Jacksonville Jazz Festival for eight years.  During that time, he was also a freelance writer and for nearly nine years wrote a humor column for The Beaches Leader community newspaper. Vic graduated from the University of Florida with a degree in Broadcasting and Communications.

After his retirement from WJCT, he completed and published Windrusher, an adventure/fantasy novel that has been called, "Touching, mystical, completely engrossing."  For eighteen months, Vic was also executive director of an organization that worked for the welfare and protection of abandoned, feral and homeless cats and kittens.

Windrusher has been honored with both a Royal Palm Award (Florida Writer's Association) for Best Young Adult Novel of 2004, and a Muse Medallion (Cat Writer's Association) for Best Fiction of 2004. The sequel to Windrusher, Windrusher and the Cave of Tho-hoth, recently published by Ocean Publishing, has been called "Superbly written. touching and unforgettable."

Vic and his wife, Evanne, live in northeast Florida where they are closely scrutinized for aberrant behavior by their six rescued felines.

To visit Vic's website please click here

Dorothy K. Fletcher

Dorothy K. Fletcher has taught English for over thirty years in Jacksonville, Florida. Along with teaching, writing is her passion. Her poetry has appeared in over 80 literary magazines including Kalliope and Key West Review. More than 20 of her articles have appeared in The Florida Times Union, and she has also had essays and articles published in Coastal Traveling Magazine, Small Press Review, Florida English Journal, Folio Weekly, and Jacksonville Magazine.

Her children's book The Week of Dream Horses was published in 1984 and in October, 2004, she published her first novel, The Cruelest Months, a book about a first year teacher's trials and tribulations in an inner city school that was based upon her experiences in the classroom. The Cruelest Months has touched a chord with educators and all who care about kids.

To visit Dottie's website please click here

Dana Kleiman Garfinkel

Dana Garfinkel is a Visual Artist, Educator, and Illustrator.  As an illustrator of Children’s Literature Dana has combined her life-long passion for books and art.  Dana is a full member of the Society for Children’s Book Authors and Illustrators.

She earned her BA in Fine Arts from the University of Texas in Austin. Dana’s artistic style playfully brings out the fact that she is a native Texan and enjoyed bringing the characters of Dog Town USA to life

Dana is a Visual Arts teacher at the Lavilla School for the Arts in Jacksonville, Florida. She is a National Board Certified teacher and mentor, including Department Art Chairperson.

Dana Kleiman Garfinkel is an award- winning artist who approaches her art with technical skill, sensitivity, and a sense of humor that creates an enjoyable experience for her audience.  She likes to inspire her art students to do their best, and shares their passion for drawing and painting.

Frank Gromling

Frank Gromling found that owning his own businesses was a lot more rewarding and fun than being a corporate executive. Since 1980 he has owned and operated six companies, which he took from start-up to maturity. His professional and personal adventures have taken him to more than 30 countries.

Frank is founder and co-owner of The Gromling Group, Inc., a hands-on firm that conducts seminars, training, consulting, and coaching services for a variety of organizations. Also, he volunteers his time at a residential drug and alcohol rehabilitation program, where he speaks about the value of a job, and how to become successful. As a frequent speaker at teen centers and events, he has designed and presented “Excellence in Leadership” to help teens make positive life decisions.

Frank’s Whales is his first book about nature. His other writings have included magazine articles, such as “Life is a Balance,” and three texts for the U.S. Air Force: Air Navigation, Military Aerospace, and Leadership. Frank lives with his wife, Bibi, in Beverly Beach, Florida.

Frank is the Publisher at Ocean Publishing in Flagler Beach, Florida.

Grahl Barkoskie Neitz

Grahl Barkoskie Neitz still lives in the Florida she loves. She and her husband enjoy spending time with their children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Grahl loves to share stories about "her Florida" with audiences throughout the South.

Alfred Nicol - Editor

The Powow River Poets formed in 1991 in Newburyport, Massachusetts. Renowned poets Rhina Espaillat, Deborah Warren, Len Krisak, and others contributed their works to this collection. National award winning poets Timothy Steele, Lewis Turco and Bruce Bennett provide reviews on the back cover. Steele wrote the definitive work in the nation on formal poetry. Alfred Nicol, winner of the 2004 Richard Wilbur Award for Poetry, edited the collection.

Sandra Wallus Sammons

Sandra Wallus Sammons is an award-winning author of historical biographies, each of which has a Florida relationship. Her books about Henry Flagler, Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings, Jacqueline Cochran, and Marjory Stoneman Douglas provided her with the skills and experience to write her newest work, John and William Bartram: Travelers in Early America.

Caryn Suarez

Caryn Suarez is an award winning author and former President of the Florida Writers Association. She is the director of the Open Mic Jacksonville project, an anthology of poetry by some 50 poets from northeast Florida.