CAL Board

Jack Maher: President

Jack Maher is a fifth generation Coloradoan and a still wet-behind-the-ears book writer.

“Poppy: A Novel About A Colorful Colorado Life” is his fact-based story of a Denver Art Museum pioneer who championed Native American artists while developing innovative techniques to showcase their work. The pioneer was his grandfather.

Jack spent 34 years as a Multimedia Journalist and News Executive for Denver’s KUSA-TV (9NEWS) where his work earned four Emmy awards from the local chapter of the National Academy of Arts & Sciences as well as multiple honors from the Colorado Broadcasters Association and Associated Press.

Jessi Scoletti: VP/Promotions Director

Jessi Scoletti, writing as J. Claire "Poet of the Wild", holds a master’s degree in public policy and law and bachelor’s degrees in education and psychology.

She is the author of the award-winning book Revelry, and her writing lives at the intersection of poetry, place, and social reflection, shaped by her background in education, advocacy, and human-centered systems.

Rooted in the natural world and attentive to lived experience, her work explores belonging, resilience, and the wild inner landscapes we carry. She is passionate about cultivating creative community, amplifying diverse voices, and uplifting fellow Colorado authors whose work invites connection, presence, and transformation.

Anthony Mick: Membership Director

Anthony Mick is Colorado born and raised. His life-long passion for language and writing culminated in his first published novel, The Heir of Atlas.

Anthony has a B.A. in International Relations and has studied over seven languages, including Latin, Greek, Hebrew, French, German, Gaelic, and Hieroglyphics.

He currently serves as the Faculty Affairs Manager for the Department of Surgery at CU Anschutz. Adept at administrating, his mentorship and onboarding programs, tailored to academic medicine, have received local and national recognition.

In his off time, he enjoys backpacking and rock climbing and draws on his love of Colorado’s natural treasures as inspiration for his writing, intertwining his imagination with its mountains, skies, and plains.

René Vecka: Treasurer

René is a retired Municipal Bond Analyst, formerly with OppenheimerFunds (now Invesco). He remains a CFA charterholder. Immediately upon gaining control of his calendar, he set out to become a writer.

Two and a half years later, he published his first novel, In Search of Justice, an epic fantasy and the first book (of 5) in his Mid Dreki Realm series, which is a post-Ragnarök imagining. He's currently working on his second series, Madcap Adventures, which is a continuation of the first, but now each novel is a standalone fantasy mystery with a touch of humor.

His other hobbies include chess, reading, and hiking with his wife and two dogs. He lives in Larkspur with his wife, Debbie. Occasionally, his three kids (Adam, Akasha, and Aaron) and two grandkids (Elliott and Evelynn) drop by to visit. The turkeys, rabbits, deer, bobcats, and bears stroll through, too.

Kendra Merritt: Secretary

"Kendra Merritt is the author of the Mark of the Least series and the Mishap's Heroes series. Books have been Kendra's escape for as long as she can remember. She used to hide fantasy novels behind her government textbook in high school, and she wrote most of her first novel during a semester of college algebra.

Older and wiser now (but just as nerdy) she writes fantasy and science fiction with main characters who have disabilities. If she's not writing, she's reading, and if she's not reading, she's playing video games.

She lives in Denver with her very tall partner, their book-loving progeny, and a lazy black monster masquerading as a service dog."

Jodi Bowersox: Web Master / Social Media Director / Book Racks Coordinator

Jodi's lifetime of writing got its start in 4-H news reporting, but she moved on to essays, skits, plays, children's picture books, and award-winning novels. Under the big umbrella of clean romance she writes in multiple genres from faith fiction to suspense to time travel to sci fi.

As an award-winning watercolor artist, Jodi specializes in pet portraits, and as a seamstress, she creates many wonderful things. 

She lives in the heart of Colorado Springs with her husband and too many cats where the mountain views are spectacular!

Awards Director: Ellen Busch

Ellen is a trauma survivor, life coach, and author of (dis)Empowered, a memoir chronicling her journey from rock bottom to personal transformation.

After escaping an abusive marriage and confronting the deep wounds of trauma and dyslexia, Ellen began a healing journey that included working with therapists, coaches, and training alongside U.S. Navy SEALs.

Through this process, she reclaimed her voice and her worth. Today, she helps others do the same—guiding clients from surviving to thriving with compassion, grit, and purpose.

Andrea Spoor: Event Director

Andrea is a ICF accredited certified professional coach, award winning inspirational writer, speaker, and leader of empowerment programs for teenage girls. Andrea has dedicated her career to helping girls manage the confusion, challenges, and chaos of the teenage years so they can positively define and own who they are and who they want to become. 

Andrea's book, That's So Diva, provides girls with powerful tools to help them find their voice, gain confidence, build self-esteem, and understand the power behind their choices so they can live their most Diva AMAZING life!

Todd Fahnestock: At Large

Todd Fahnestock is a fantasy/sci-fi author of the bestselling Tower of the Four, Threadweavers and The Whisper Prince series.

He was a winner of the New York Public Library’s Books for the Teen Age, a finalist for the Colorado Book Award in 2021 for Tower of the Four: The Champions Academy, and a finalist in the Colorado Authors League Writing Awards for the past two years, for Charlie Fiction and The Undying Man.

His passions are fantasy and his quirky, fun-loving family. When he’s not writing, he teaches taekwondo, swaps middle grade humor with his son, plays Ticket to Ride with his wife, scribes modern slang from his daughter and goes on morning walks with Galahad the Weimaraner.

Robert G. Williscroft: At Large

Robert G. Williscroft is a retired submarine officer, deep-sea and saturation diver, scientist, author, and lifelong adventurer.

He holds degrees in marine physics and meteorology, and a doctorate for developing a system to protect SCUBA divers in contaminated water.

An author of nonfiction, Cold War thrillers and hard science fiction, he lives in Centennial, Colorado.