Three local authors -- Constance Lombardo (Mr. Puffball: Escape from Castaway Island), Geneva B (Allie & Gator) & Hope Larson (All Summer Long) -- share their experiences at the crossroads of creative writing and illustration for young readers. Hosted in collaboration with the Buncombe Partnership for Children and Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library. This panel will be moderated by local middle-grade author Doug Gibson (Tales of a Fifth-Grade Knight).

Constance Lombardo began drawing when she was 10 years old, inspired in part by the Illustrators Annuals her dad brought home from the advertising agency where he worked, and in part by the fact that her sister did a drawing and got lots of attention. She is the proud author/illustrator of the middle grade Mr. Puffball series and is currently working on her first picture book, Everybody Says Meow (HarperCollins, 2019). She lives in Asheville, NC where she's sometimes seen swimming near waterfalls and avoiding snakes.
www.constancelombardo.com

Geneva B is a self-taught illustrator from North Carolina. She loves working with colors, drawing big hair, and adding whimsy with a touch of realism and happiness. Her first children's book Allie & Gator was successfully funded on Kickstarter in the Spring of 2018.
www.genevab.com

Hope Larson is the New York Times bestselling author of nine graphic novels, including All Summer Long, released this year, and her Eisner award-winning adaption of A Wrinkle in Time. She is the co-creator of all-ages girl-detective series Goldie Vance, and she spent two years writing Batgirl for DC Comics. She lives in Asheville, NC.
www.twitter.com/hopelarson

Doug Gibson is a freelance writer who has written a score of articles on local authors for the Mountain Xpress. His debut middle grade fantasy novel, Tales of a Fifth Grade Knight, is available from Capstone Young Readers.
www.douglasgibsonwrites.com