BERTHE AMOSS – New Orleans author and illustrator of children’s books…NICHOLE ARGYRES – Associate editor at St. Martin’s Press… JOHN BARRY - prize-winning and New York Times best-selling author of five books…JASON BERRY – a New Orleans native and author of several books featuring culture and politics…BRIGIT BINNS - written or co-authored thirteen cookbooks…ROY BLOUNT, JR - author of nineteen books…PAT BRADY - social and cultural historian who was formerly director of publications at the Historic New Orleans Collection …SONNY BREWER - the author of two novels, The Poet of Tolstoy Park, and A Sound Like Thunder set to follow from Ballantine next Spring…DR. DOUG BRINKLEY - Distinguished Professor at Tulane University and the author of countless non-fiction, political publications…LEAH CHASE - owner and chef extraordinaire of the popular Dooky Chase Restaurant in New Orleans, which has been open since 1941…SEAN DESMOND - senior editor for Thomas Dunne Books, an imprint of St. Martin 's Press…LINDA ELLERBEE - outspoken journalist, award-winning television producer, best-selling author, one of the most sought-after speakers in America, a breast cancer survivor and a mom. KATHERINE FAUSSET - literary agent at the Watkins/Loomis Agency in New York and co-author of The Cooking Club Cookbook and its sequel, The Cooking Club Party Cookbook…MICHAEL FLAMINI - an Executive Editor in the trade division of St. Martin's Press… ELENI GAGE – a travel memoir author and beauty editor of People magazine…CAROL GELDERMAN – distinguished professor at the University of New Orleans and the author of nine books…TED GIDEONSE - agent at the Ann Rittenberg Literary Agency… RYAN HARBAGE - editor at Simon Spotlight Entertainment, a new division of Simon & Schuster…BRIAN HILL – co-owns his own company and is also the co-author of several books about the business of writing …DARA HYDE - Rights Manager and an Assistant Editor at Grove / Atlantic, Inc… CHRIS JACKSON - senior editor at the Crown Publishing Group/Random House, Inc… FARRIN JACOBS - editor at Red Dress Ink, an imprint of Harlequin…MARY HELEN LAGASSE - native New Orleanian and author of The Fifth Sun, which has won two literary awards… CARL LENNERTZ - has been in the bookselling and publishing world for almost 30 years and is the author of Cursed by a Happy Childhood…MIMI LOFTUS – author of four screenplays, one of which is set in New Orleans…AYESHA PANDE – launched her own literary agency and is now actively putting together an outstanding list of clients…TOM PIAZZA - author of seven books, including the award-winning novel My Cold War, which was named a San Francisco Chronicle Best Book of the Year…ALICE POPE - editor of Children's Writer's & Illustrator's Market and Managing Editor of Writer's Digest Books Market Books department…DEE POWER – co-owns her own company and is also the co-author of several books about the business of writing… RICHARD GID POWERS – author of several books, a number focusing on the FBI…HILARY REDMON - editor at Viking and very interested in history, ancient through modern…JULIA REED - senior writer at Vogue Magazine, contributing editor at Newsweek and The New York Times, and author of a collection of essays about the South…TOM REISS – author of The Orientalist and contributing writer for The New Yorker, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal…AMY RENNERT - literary agent and founder of The Amy Rennert Agency, Inc… LAURA JOH ROWLAND - bestselling author of a mystery series set in Japan and her work has been published in 13 foreign countries…BEN SANDMEL - New Orleans writer, folklorist, author of Zydeco and author of liner notes for over 100 albums…MICHAEL SARTISKY -executive director of the Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities. ANJALI SINGH - editor at Vintage and Pantheon Books and author of several novels…BURT SOLOMON - author of two books: a history of baseball and a history of the nation’s capital… JULIA SMITH is a former reporter for the San Francisco Chronicle and an author of nine books…JUDE THERIOT… author of six Cajun cookbooks, which explain the essentials of South Louisiana cooking…JEREMIAH TOWER - acclaimed authority on food and restaurant hospitality and author of several cookbook …PAT WALSH - founding editor of MacAdam/Cage Publishing and author of 78 Reasons Why Your Book May Never Be Published…JUDY WALKER – food editor for the Times Picayune and author and co-author of five Southwestern cookbooks…KEN WELLS - author of three Cajun bayou novels, one non-fiction narrative, and also manages to play the blues and jazz guitar…JENNIFER WELTZ – a partner at The Jean V. Naggar Literary Agency, Inc. and represents award winning children's book authors…KIT WOHL - a writer and artist whose passion for the culinary arts led her to compile Arnaud’s Restaurant Cookbook… KAREN SPEARS ZACHARIAS - author of Hero Mama, and a journalist, whose commentary has appeared in the New York Times and on NPR's All Things Considered.