Come meet local Waynesboro authors! Each writer will share about their work & answer questions, then participants and authors will have a casual conversation time together as we enjoy tea, cookies, & cakes. (We hope to make this a repeating event, with different local authors each time.)

Book signing to follow.

For author bios, please scroll down…

Registration Required! Sign up here.

More About the Authors

Molly Kendall:

Molly Kendall is quick-witted and quiet, and appreciates a dramatic story when she reads one, as well as crafting such tales of her own. She aims to inspire hope within her readers hearts as she shines light onto darker topics. When she doesn’t have her nose stuck in a book, you can find her at home with her husband and her pets, Kat, Kitty, and Bunny.

Kim Busick:

Kim resides in Waynesboro, PA where she has lived most her life. Her first book, Another Voice, was written to channel anxiety, and in the process she rediscovered her love of fantasy.

In her free time, she enjoys gaming, knitting, and being a momma to her two small dogs. She also loves ramen to an unhealthy degree. 

Maxine Beck:

Maxine Beck completed her undergraduate work at Allegheny College and West Virginia University, receiving her master’s in English from Shippensburg University.  She taught English at Waynesboro Area Senior High School for 17 years concentrating on working with student writers and advanced studies classes.  She has worked with school theatre productions, served as student class advisor and crisis team manager, and volunteered on the boards of the local YMCA, public library, Renfrew Institute, church consistory, and other organizations.  As a mother of three and grandmother of eight, Maxine Beck has been involved most of her adult life with the education and development of young people and volunteer service in various local civic organizations.  She resides in Waynesboro, Pennsylvania with her husband, Steve.

Beck has co-authored with sister-in-law Marie Lanser Beck three young adult historical novels in the series, The Royers of Renfrew and a fourth in that series on her own. These books follow the trials and tribulations of the real-life Royer family of 12 who built the stone house at Renfrew Museum and Park as seen through the eyes of 9-year-old Susan Royer from Spring 1812 to Spring 1838.

She assisted local Ed Miller in the writing of Breakfast with Ed, combining a tribute to the Edgar Nicodemus family who donated the land that is currently home to Renfrew Park with local nostalgia of the Waynesboro area in the early 1900s and a biography of local Stephen Graham who became director of the Baltimore and Detroit Zoos entitled Sunset at the Zoo.

Most recently she has written a short historical fiction The Hamilton’s of Waynesboro spotlighting the Alexander Hamilton family of Waynesboro during the Civil War era encompassing many of the historical occurrences of the time with a bit of fictional storytelling included. All sales of this book will be donated to Friends of The Alexander Memorial Free Library, Waynesboro, PA.

John Poniske:

I was raised in Springfield, Illinois (Lincoln’s hometown), so the Civil War has always held me in its thrall. A Marine veteran out of high school, I assisted in the evacuation of Saigon and Phnom Penh. I’ve been a feature reporter, freelance writer, bartender, actor, restaurant manager and landscaper. I hold a Bachelor’s and Master’s degree in history. It has long been my ambition to write Civil War fiction. just prior to the onset of Covid, I retired from teaching High School History and Journalism, I committed to writing the Snakebit Series. I am a determined writer, producing one or more chapters a week. Finished the first two novels in less than eight months. I expect the series to ultimately include 17-18 books. I love to travel, having visited all 50 states and 45 foreign countries. I am very married and have two adult children I consider my best friends. In my spare time I hike, garden, volunteer in the community and game. My avocation is the creation of historically based board games. I have 20 published games to my credit, several on the American Civil War.