Presenter Line-up 2026

Jessica Lee Anderson

Jessica Lee Anderson is an award-winning author of over fifty books for children and teens to include titles such as TRUDY, UNCERTAIN SUMMER, and NAOMI NASH: SAVING SNAKES, THE MYSTERY OF THE BALL PYTHON, THE DRAMA NOODLE, and PROBLEMS AT THE POND. She lives in Pflugerville, TX with her husband, daughter, and toothless rat terrier. 

Fans are welcome to follow Jessica at www.jessicaleeanderson.com

Alicia Andrew

Alicia Andrew worked in the game industry at small studios for 10 years as a game artist, art director, and studio director. Six years ago She founded and started a company that teaches students game development. 

Fans are welcome to follow Alicia at https://doombunny.carbonmade.com/ 

David Bowles is a Mexican American author and translator from south Texas. Among his forty award-winning books are the Prince & the Coyote and My Two Border Towns, as well as the series Garza Twins, 13th Street, Tales of the Feathered Serpent, and Clockwork Curandera. His work been published in multiple anthologies, newspapers, and journals. He presently serves as the president of the Texas Institute of Letters 

Fans are welcome to follow David Bowles at www.davidbowles.us 

Jan Bozarth

Jan Bozarth is a 30 year veteran of the Children's Media, Games and music world. She has 2 books series published- The Fairy Godmother Academy (6) and Coded for Greatness (2) Jan is known for writing and designing positive media for kids and families.  Her former clients are: Mettel. Disney Imagineers, Simon and Schuster Interactive, Girl Games,  Random House and more. Her music has graced some of the most successful girl games in history and are housed in the Strong Museum of Play.

Fans are welcome to follow Jan Bozarth at www.Janbozarth.com

Childs' Play Comics

Childs' Play Comics is an independent comic publisher based in New Braunfels, TX. It is the brainchild of husband and wife team, Joe Soliz & Sarah Childs. Joe & Sarah have been retailers, YouTubers, and now comic creators! They publish All-Ages & Teen titles as well as carry titles from other independent creators. Their titles include Malia Mayhem, How to Hunt a Hero, and the upcoming Teenstrike.

Fans are welcome to follow Childs' Play Comics at http://www.childsplaycomics.com/

Tanya Churchill

Tavarita is an artist, writer, and tattooer based in Austin, Texas. Her work is inspired by shounen anime and traditional Japanese and American tattoo styles. She has been a full-time convention artist since 2021, and has previously tabled at artist alleys such as C2E2, Otakon, Anime Expo, and San Japan.

Samantha M. Clark

Samantha M Clark is the author of middle-grade novels THE BOY, THE BOAT, AND THE BEAST; ARROW (both published by Paula Wiseman Books/Simon & Schuster); and AMERICAN HORSE TALES: HOLLYWOOD (Penguin Workshop/Penguin Random House), as well as the GEMSTONE DRAGONS chapter book series (Bloomsbury). She lives with her husband and two funny dogs in Austin, Texas, and helps other writers through her Your Writing Mentor newsletter on Substack. 

Sign up for news and giveaways at www.SamanthaMClark.com. Follow her on BlueSky @samanthamclark, Twitter @samclarkwrites, Instagram @samanthamclarkbooks, Facebook at SamanthaMClarkAuthor, and Pinterest at SamClarkWrites. 

Fans are welcome to follow Samantha M Clark at www.SamanthaMClark.com

Bryan & Selah Douglas

Bryan Douglas is the creator of the all-ages superhero comic book, The Dimensionals. His wife, Selah, colors the comics and contributes to the creative process at several stages of each issue, and together they formed Pathway Comics to publish their work. They live in Austin with their two kids. 

Fans are welcome to follow Bryan and Selah at http://www.pathway-comics.com.

Drew Edwards 

Comic book writer, horror film historian, music journalist , rock promoter, and showman extraordinaire; these are all guises of the creative force known as Drew Edwards. Edwards is best known as the writer and creator of the long-running underground comic, Halloween Man. Chronicle's 2018 Best of Austin Comic Creator winner. 

Fans are welcome to follow Drew at https://drewedwardswriter.blogspot.com/

Kat Fajardo

Kat Fajardo (she/they) is an award-winning author and illustrator based in Austin, Texas. Inspired by her heritage and whimsical children’s books, her colorful work explores themes of self-acceptance, identity, and Latine culture through zines, digital illustration, and graphic novels. 

Kat is the creator of Miss Quinces and Miss Camper, both published by Scholastic Graphix, and are both National Indie Bestsellers. Miss Quinces was the first Graphix title to be simultaneously published in English and Spanish (as Srta. Quinces). In 2023, Srta. Quinces received a Pura Belpré Honor for Illustration and has featured in Entertainment Weekly, Publishers Weekly, The Horn Book, and the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. It was also added to the The Spirit of Texas (SPOT) Reading Program by the Texas Library Association. 

She is also the illustrator of the chapter book series The Kids in Mrs. Z’s Class (Hachette Book Group) and has created numerous middle-grade book covers for major publishers including Penguin Random House, Disney, and HarperCollins.

Her work has been exhibited in nationally recognized spaces, including the Centro de Artes (San Antonio), Mexic-Arte Museum (Austin), The Museum of Latin American Art (Los Angeles), and The Living Gallery (Brooklyn).

When she isn’t making comics, you can find Kat collecting bugs, scrapbooking, listening to spooky podcasts, or chasing after her sock-stealing pup, Roni. She is definitely not two dogs in a trench coat! 

Fans can follow Kat Fajardo at www.katfajardo.com

Lane R. Fobbs

A professional writer since 2011, Lane Fobbs has written creative comics and covered college football across the country. He has a passion for all writing and can't wait to show you how YOU can be a great creator as well!

Kevin Garcia

Kevin Garcia is a certified educator and professional writer whose work has appeared in the Associated Press and Marvel Comics. He gives a variety of workshops, moderates panels, and teaches journalism and graphic design at the Liberal Arts and Science Academy in Austin. 

Fans are welcome to follow Kevin Garcia at www.KevinGarcia.com or www.Monomythic.com. 

Monica Gallagher

Monica Gallagher is a comic book writer/illustrator of Assassin Roommate, The Matron, The Black Ghost, Part-Time Princesses, and Bonnie N. Collide. Most of her comics involve romance, assassins, and cryptids with a dash of ghosts. She resides in Austin with her husband, her familiars Gomez and Punkin, 3 step-daughters, and so many Jeeps.

Fans are welcome to follow Monica Gallagher at http://eatyourlipstick.com

Malcolm Harris, born on May 2, 1970, in Dallas, Texas, is a multi-talented creative force renowned for his work as an award-winning writer, game designer, artist, and movie producer. Often hailed as “the most creative man alive,” Harris has captivated audiences worldwide with his imaginative creations, developing hundreds of characters and dozens of fantastical worlds.

Best known for the comic series Witch Girls Adventures, Harris has significantly influenced the realms of comics and tabletop role-playing games. As the mastermind behind Nemesis: A Perfect World, he became the first African American role-playing game designer/writer to lead a complete RPG world, introducing the term “Superpunk” to the genre.

Fans are welcome to follow Malcolm at https://www.imdb.com/name/nm8348236/ 

P.J. Hoover

P. J. (Tricia) Hoover wanted to be a Jedi, but when that didn’t work out, she became an electrical engineer instead. After a fifteen year bout designing computer chips for a living, P. J. started creating worlds of her own. She’s the award-winning author of Tut: The Story of My Immortal Life, featuring a fourteen-year-old King Tut who’s stuck in middle school, and Solstice, a super-hot twist on the Hades/Persephone myth. When not writing, P. J. spends time practicing kung fu, solving Rubik’s cubes, and fixing stuff around the house.  

For more information about P. J. (Tricia) Hoover, please visit her website www.pjhoover.com. 

Chloe Janowski

Chloe Janowski is an Austin-based independent fantasy artist, art teacher for kids and teens, and aspiring manga creator currently working on her first graphic novel.  She is inspired by elves, nature, magic, ancient mythology, and mental health advocacy.

Fans are welcome to follow Chloe at https://www.chloejanowski.com 

Alejandro Juvera

Alejandro Juvera is an independent writer and illustrator and has been self publishing comic books since 2016. Diversity and representation have been core to creating Alejandro's comics and beliefs. 

Fans are welcome to follow Alejandro at https://www.facebook.com/afjart

Christopher Juarez

Christopher Juarez is a freelance comic book artist and animator from Austin, TX. He was enrolled in classes for 2D animation at Austin Community College and has publishes his own comic online and has done animation commissions for local and small companies. He also has a YouTube channel where you can see a few of his animations and Let's Plays. 

Fans are welcome to follow Chris at https://www.facebook.com/chrisxlv70/

Len Nguyen

I have been cosplaying for 10 years and have been attending CTX Teen and Kids' Comic Con since I was an RRISD student myself. I started cosplaying in middle school, and throughout the years I've picked up a great deal of tricks and tips to bring your favorite characters to life! Cosplay can be a scary thing to tackle, but by taking it apart into smaller, more digestible pieces, it can become an art form that anyone of any age and experience level can accomplish wonderfully.

Gregg Schigiel

Gregg Schigiel (Schigiel rhymes with beagle) fell in love with superheroes, animated cartoons, and comic books at an early age. He loved to draw, create characters, and make up stories.

Now, Gregg is the creator, author and illustrator of the ZOOPERHERO UNIVERSE hybrid chapter book/graphic novels, and the Kids’ Comics Award–winning PIX graphic novel series.

In addition, he’s drawn for Marvel Comics, DC Comics, Disney, and Nickelodeon, and wrote and drew many stories for SPONGEBOB COMICS.

Gregg has baked prizewinning cookies, enjoys comedy, and makes sure he drinks plenty of water. 

Fans are welcome to follow Gregg at greggschigiel.com

Gene Selassie

Gene Selassie is an Eisner Award-winning and Ringo Award-nominated writer, sports journalist and screenwriter. His credits include Avengers for Dummies, And How They Rumbled, Puerto Rico Strong, and The Ghoul Agency.

Fans are welcome to follow Gene on BlueSky Social @geneselassie.bsky.social

Hana Sperschneider

Hana Sperschneider from Hare and Hide Guild is a former Texas middle school teacher, an illustrator, a designer, and a rabbit. She specializes in product design for her business, creating lines of aesthetic, vibrant, edgy, cute merchandise and accessories based on her love for video games, stories, nature, and animals. For traditional media and fine arts, she prefers oil paints, watercolors, and charcoals.

Fans can follow Hana Sperschneider at https://hareandhideguild.carrd.co/

Daphne Tatum

Daphne Tatum grew up in the wild forests of her imagination, befriending mythical creatures and riding dragons.  As an adult, she hoped to become a library troll and live among the stacks of books, but the position was already filled. Instead, Daphne spends her days homeschooling her kids, writing books about magical places, and pretending that cooking and taxes don't exist.  

She lives in Texas with her husband, too many cats, and the perfect number of kids. Her debut novel, These Tangled Roots, released in September of 2025. Daphne hopes her books will create portals for a new generation of dreamers to get lost in. 

Fans can follow Daphne Tatum at https://daphnetatum.com/

Jeff Webb

Jeffrey Webb is a husband, father, educator, game master, IT professional and RRHS Class of 1993 alumnus living in Round Rock. His thesis, "Shall We Play a Game?" covered games as professional instructional tools and how the discipline of gaming has had an effect on human history. He has been an avid tabletop roleplayer since 1986. He is currently the Regimental Sergeant Major (Game Master/Instructor) of The Royal Dragoon Guards, a tabletop gaming club founded in 1995 with a focus on roleplaying and spreading the hobby.. 

Fans are welcome to follow the Dragoons out at https://www.facebook.com/RDGATX/