Author's Corner

Rusty Williams

Writer-historian Rusty Williams writes about history through the stories of the people who lived it. He is the author of five nonfiction books, four on Texas topics. His titles include: 

Deadly Dallas: A History of Unfortunate Incidents and Grisly Fatalities

My Old Confederate Home: A Respectable Place for Civil War Veterans, and Historic Photos of Dallas in the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s.

He regularly speaks to historical societies, book groups, and cultural gatherings and writes articles for historical magazines and journals!

Find the books here at the Little Elm Public Library!
Rusty Williams

Elizabeth Lyvers

Elizabeth Lyvers grew up in the hills of West Virginia but now lives happily in Little Elm with her husband, son, and a baby daughter on the way. In 2020, her mystery/suspense novel The Honest Lies was published by Darkstroke Books. Her writing has appeared in Fathom Magazine, Everyday Fiction, and Risen Motherhood, and posts regularly appear on her blog, Dear Life.

Find her book here at the Little Elm Public Library! 
Elizabeth Lyvers

Jennifer Daly

Jennifer Daly, MBA, is a mom on a mission to help empower other women. She is a certified life coach, three-time published author, and global speaker. As the founder of CheeringOnMoms.com, Jennifer uses her experience and education to help moms pursue their passions. Walking the talk, Jennifer has competed and won many pageant titles such as Mrs. Diamond Universe, Mrs. Texas International, and Mrs. USA. Jennifer and her firefighter husband Daniel have been married since 2007. Together they are raising their daughters, Zoey and Lexi, and their German shepherd, Duke, in Dallas, Texas.

Find her book here at the Little Elm Public Library!
Zoey the Zebra Meets Lexi the Lion: United by Uniqueness: Our Differences Make us Stronger 

Mary Brooke Casad

Mary Brooke Oliphint Casad has written a series of books about an armadillo named Bluebonnet, detailing Bluebonnet’s travels around Texas.

A native of Louisiana and graduate of University High School on the LSU campus, Casad received a bachelor’s degree in journalism from Southern Methodist University in Dallas, and also studied at Harlaxton College in Grantham, England. She spent her childhood summers in the Texas Hill Country at Camp Waldemar, where she was first introduced to armadillos!

Casad is the co-author of a discipleship study series, The Basics, published by Abingdon Press in 2016. The series includes three books–Citizens of Hope, The Road to Amazing, Get in the Game–written with her brother, Dr. Clayton Oliphint.

She is also the author of “Scepter of the Universe,” a biography of E. Stanley Jones for young readers, published by the E. Stanley Jones Foundation.

She now resides in Richardson, Texas with her husband and has two sons, a daughter-in-law, and three grandchildren.

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Bluebonnet Series

Alan E. Mesches

A Frisco resident since 2011, Mesches is from Gowanda, NY. He received a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from Grove City College and an Master of Science in Journalism from Ohio University. After graduation, Mesches served as 1st Lieutenant in the United States Air Force as a Public Affairs Officer.

Following his Air Force service, Mesches held a variety of sales, leadership, and marketing roles. During his 36-year business career, Mesches worked for Procter and Gamble, Johnson & Johnson, Dr Pepper/Seven (now Keurig Dr Pepper), Coca-Cola Amatil in Warsaw, Poland, and Naturally Fresh, Inc. He retired from Naturally Fresh in 2011 as Vice President of Distributor Sales and Marketing.

Since retiring, Mesches has been a community volunteer. His activities included the following: Teaching adults English as a Second Language in association with the Little Elm Public Library for seven years, graduate of Leadership Frisco, and member of the Leadership Frisco Advisory Council. In addition, he served on the Frisco Urban Forestry Board and currently serves as a member of the Frisco Veterans Advisory Council and the Frisco Park and Trail Committee. For seven years, Mesches has been a program manager with the Frisco Young Entrepreneurs Academy. Since 2020, he has written two books about senior military officers. Both were published by Casemate Publishers.

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Major General James A. Ulio
The Flying Grunt

Madison Symonne

Madison Symonne is a pen name that is a combination of two sisters' middle names Anaia Symonne and Aliyah Madison, a dynamic duo who writes children's and young adult books in Denton County, Texas.   Anaia is an energetic dancer, who loves music and fashion. Aliyah loves to skate and gymnastics with dreams of becoming a teacher. We hope our books encourage you to read more and use your imagination.

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Clean Up Day

Keka Novales

Keka Novales grew up in Guatemala City, Guatemala, located in Central America. Growing up, she had lofty dreams of becoming a doctor, vet, ballerina, an engineer, and a writer. Keka moved several times changing schools along the way, so she has plenty of experience being the 'new kid.' Her grandparents played a vital role in her life. Abuelo was always making jokes, and Abuelita helped everyone around her. Keka currently lives with her family in Denton, Texas.

Find the series at the Little Elm Public Library!
The ¡Hola, Lola! Series!

Normal Leston Sanders

Norman Leston Sanders is a Little Elm resident.

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Soft Sounds One

Contributions from around the North Texas region

In Many Paths, Many Feet, you will be awakened and inspired by the work of multi-dimensional authors who have come to share with you stories of triumph, perseverance and tenacity. Written by everyday women...

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Many Paths, Many Feet: An Anthology of Women's Stories

Julia Burke

Julia Burke writes and illustrates children's books with themes of positivity, exploration, fun, and friendship. A native of Texas, Julia received a Bachelor's degree in Psychology from Southern Methodist University in Dallas, and then studied Rehabilitation Counseling at The University of Texas Southwestern Medical School, where she underwent training in both group and individual therapy. Julia then worked for the state of Texas as a social worker. With her background in psychology and the parenting of three children (two of whom are now grown adults), Julia's goal in creating children's content is to remind them of all the good, magical things in the world and to positively expand their imaginations with vibrant, appealing art. 

Julia currently has three published titles including: What If?, a book which explores common childhood fears and suggests alternative scenarios; Five Little Black Cats, a new twist to the classic Five Little Pumpkins poem featuring five little black cats and their Halloween monster friends; and Starry Turtle, a tale about a magical sea turtle whose shell is surrounded by twinkling stars. Starry Turtle serves as an analogy of a child being born and coming into the world to enjoy new experiences, embrace life, and make new friends. Accompanying it is Julia's hand-drawn art which based on her youngest reviewers, appears to be a big hit!

Currently, Julia resides in Little Elm with her spouse and teenage son. She stays busy writing, illustrating, and completing art projects and upcoming children's books, including the next book in the Starry Turtle series.

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Five Little Black Cats
Starry Turtle

Michelle Wilson

Michelle Wilson is a twenty-year teacher veteran with a Master of Arts in Special Education who now advocates for students as a Section 504 coordinator. Michelle loves to read, even sometimes at the expense of sleep, and has always encouraged reading to children starting at a very young age. Since she helped a Partners PE class back in High School, Michelle's other passion has been to promote the inclusion of students with differing needs. Michelle grew up in the New Orleans area but now lives in north DFW with her illustrator husband, adult children and their spouses, and five amazing grandchildren who love books. Her first book, Beau the Boxer's First Day At School, is a rhyming picture book that focuses on kindness and inclusion in school.

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Beau the Boxer's First Day at School