Born: 1942 Ohio connection: Birth Bellaire Educator and poet, Ronald Earl McFarland, the son of Earl A. and Maxine (Stullenberger) McFarland, was born in Bellaire, Ohio, and grew up in Ohio and Florida. His education includes Brevard Junior College, A.A., 1962; Florida State University, B.A., 1963 M.A., 1965; University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Ph.D., 1970. McFarland has …
Read More Ronald McFarlandFostoria Born: 1946 Ohio connection: Birth Sandra Markle was born in 1946 in Fostoria, Ohio, the daughter of Robert and Dorothy (Sauler) Haldeman. She received a B.A. degree from Bowling Green University in 1968. That same year, she married William Markle, with whom she had two children, Scott and Holly. Sandra Markle went on to do graduate …
Read More Sandra MarkleWest Salem Born: 1949 Ohio connection: Resident Dandi Daley Mackall, originally from Missouri, has published about 400 books for children and adults, with sales of 4 million in 22 countries. Her works have been published by numerous publishers that included, Simon & Schuster, Penguin, and Harper Collins. She’s a frequent guest on radio talk shows, has hosted over …
Read More Dandi Daley MackallBorn: October 23, 1918Died: July 14, 2011 Ohio connection: Resident Columbus Author, writer, photographer, and illustrator James P. Barry was born in Alton, Illinois. At the age of eight, he took his first ride on a Great Lakes freighter and, soon after, learned to sail a Mackinaw boat. He graduated from University High School in Normal, Illinois, …
Read More James P. BarryBorn: July 28, 1932Died: October 31, 2016 Ohio connection: Birth Dayton Born Natalie Zane Moore on July 28, 1932 in Dayton, Ohio, esteemed writer and illustrator Natalie Zane Babbitt was inspired by Sir John Tenniel’s illustrations in Alice in Wonderland to work with pen and ink, which became her specialty. She graduated from the Laurel School, a private academy for …
Read More Natalie Zane Moore BabbittBorn: 1954 Ohio connection: Resident Granville David Baker was born in Bangor, Maine, and grew up in Central Missouri where he earned a B.S.E. in 1976 and an M.A. in 1977. After earning a Ph.D. from the University of Utah in 1983, Baker made his way to Ohio to teach English as an assistant professor at …
Read More David Anthony BakerBorn: 1954 Ohio connection: Birth Cleveland Heights Sarah Willis, daughter of actor/director Kirk Willis, was born in 1954 in Cleveland Heights, Ohio. Her father died when she was twelve, and she began writing poetry partly as a way of dealing with his death. She dropped out of high school at age sixteen, and later attended the …
Read More Willis, SarahBorn: 1961 Ohio connection: Birth Bryan Mark Winegardner, chosen by Random House from among three dozen candidates to continue the Godfather saga created by Mario Puzo, was born and raised in Bryan, Ohio. Named one of the “100 Best Small Towns in America” by author Norman Crampton, Bryan, situated in Ohio’s northwestern corner near the Indiana …
Read More Winegardner, MarkBorn: 1947 Ohio connection: Birth Columbus Katherine Ayres was born in Columbus to Ray and Betty Kent. Ayres has been a lover of books since early childhood, when she began inventing stories before she could write them. Ayres completed her undergraduate studies at the College of Wooster and earned an M.A. from Tufts University. Her childhood home state …
Read More Katherine AyresBorn: October 25, 1972 Died: February 15, 2019 Ohio Connection: Resident Columbus Born Elizabeth Atwood on October 25, 1972, Ellis Avery was raised in Columbus, Ohio. She attended the Columbus School for Girls until the age of eleven, when her family moved to Princeton, New Jersey. She legally changed her name to Ellis Avery when …
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