Join local authors for our next Author Expo on Saturday, Decmeber 13, 12pm-2pm!

These expos are free events for authors and attendees where local authors meet the community and offer signings for a 2-hour period.

Each author is provided a table which will be their space to converse, market, and sign their works during the expo.

Featured Authors:

Asher Boyan

Patrick Jones

Kelsey Mills

Mara Van Nacht

Paige Shipley

Elise Tegegne

Asher Boyan

Asher has been wandering the realms of fantasy for over three decades – sometimes reading, sometimes writing, and occasionally (often) forgetting to come back to reality. He is the architect of Halbrun, a sprawling continent destined to serve as the backdrop for his planned nine-book Stone Warden series.

The first book, Shifter, was published in September 2025.

When Asher isn’t plotting epic quests or wrangling wayward characters, he typically immerses himself in worldbuilding in his ‘spot’ on the couch in Indianapolis. A former business owner, web developer, and non-profit founder, he spends his free time playing “the world’s most popular role-playing game” (alongside some of his characters), visiting with friends (usually talking about his books, much to his wife’s chagrin), or – weather permitting – floating lazily in circles around the pool while pondering the mysteries of life (in every world

Shifter

An epic fantasy adventure of lost magic, dangerous journeys, and a half-elf forced to choose between light and darkness. 
Arracnoth has known struggles all his life. Orphaned after his adoptive mother’s death, the half-elven wanderer longs for a quiet future with his closest friend, Avanstel. But when three mysterious strangers arrive, everything changes – Avanstel may be the missing heir to an elven kingdom. 
Their search for the truth becomes a perilous quest through forgotten lands, where ancient magic stirs, treachery hides in plain sight, and a shadowy enemy pursues them at every turn. In the duplicitous elven society, Arracnoth will uncover arcane secrets, face betrayal, and discover a hidden ancestry that could alter the fate of the entire realm. 
But every choice has a cost. 
Friendship will be tested. Secrets will be revealed. And destiny will demand its price. 
Shifter by Asher H. Boyan is perfect for fans of epic fantasy novels, “chosen one” adventures, and richly woven magical worlds. If you enjoy the intricate worldbuilding of Brandon Sanderson, the political intrigue of Robin Hobb, and the heart of Tolkien’s friendships, this journey will keep you turning pages late into the night. 

Patrick Jones

Dr. Patrick H. Jones II is an education leader and equity strategist who serves as Managing Director at the Charter School Growth Fund, where he supports charter CEOs through leadership development and strategic advising. He began his career in Los Angeles and spent over a decade at Tindley Accelerated Schools in Indianapolis as a teacher, principal, and director of secondary schools. At The Mind Trust, he led initiatives in school incubation, talent strategy, and equity. Dr. Jones is also the founder of Exponentia Prime, a math equity nonprofit that delivers joyful, rigorous, and culturally affirming math experiences for Black and Brown youth through story-based learning, math competitions, and a Sports Analytics Fellowship. He holds degrees from Fisk University (B.S.), CSU Dominguez Hills (M.A.), and Marian University (Ed.D.). He lives in Indianapolis with his wife, Camike’ and their two children.

Exponentia Prime: Geometry Generation

When Prime and Factor get pulled into the Land of Geometry, math becomes an action-packed adventure! From battling Rhombus Beasts with triangle cannons to rebuilding a crumbling city using the strongest shapes, they discover how geometry powers the world—bridges, towers, honeycombs, and more. Packed with fast-paced fun, real math concepts, and the joy of problem-solving, Geometry Generation shows kids that shapes aren’t just in a textbook—they’re the building blocks of imagination, creativity, and a stronger future.

Exponentia Prime: The Great Unknown

Exponentia Prime is a book about adventure and math problem solving. The story is centered around a main character, Prime, and her quest to save the Land of Algebra.

The Quantum Slugger

Introducing a super cool story about two baseball players named Robinson and Clemente. They play in the amazing Quantum League! Robinson and Clemente are also really smart at science and making things. They work together to create a super special baseball bat named Heru that can hit awesome home runs. 

Kelsey Mills

Kelsey Mills is an Indianapolis poet who can be found with a cup of coffee in hand whilst romanticizing whatever moment she’s standing in. eat me, drink me is her first published poetry collection and she hopes you walk away with something you can keep!

Eat Me, Drink Me

eat me, drink me is a collection of confessional poems on the many forms of metaphorical consumption of a person. this compilation of poems are a tangible map of what navigating through the grooves of your brain can look like. the hope is that these words provide a comfort while you sit in spaces, that it will promote curiosity to explore the rooms and compartments inside of yourself, and that it will propel you into believing that you can make it to the other side of a moment. these poems weave together grief, love, healing, and what it’s like to try and put words to seemingly indescribable feelings.

Mara Van Nacht

Mara van Nacht spends her days dreaming up stories of dragons, secrets, and magical worlds, and her nights insisting that coffee and wine are food groups in their own right. An avid traveler at heart, Mara prefers to be in motion whenever possible, and has likely drafted more words on airplanes than in any office or café. When she isn’t writing, she can usually be found with her husband and two cats, caught up in a board game at a local trivia night, or yelling at the TV during a sporting event—anything competitive tends to win over her heart. Auras of the Fallen Stars is her debut novel and book one in her fantasy series entitled Descendants of the Stars. Book two in the series, Truths of the Allied Guild, is expected to release in late Spring 2026

Auras of the Fallen Stars

August Monroe never wanted war—only to cross the river and train under a world-renowned chef. Then a Sovereign’s unchecked rage cleaved the world in two and stole the only person who ever truly knew her. She should’ve drowned in grief. Instead, she sharpened her knives. When her mentor rises at the head of a growing resistance, August refuses to stand aside. But war offers no clean lines, and patience runs thin. Desperate for answers, she infiltrates the palace of a powerful sovereign, stepping straight into the shadows of the magic that destroyed her world. But something ancient stirs in her blood—something the Fallen Stars would kill to possess.

In a realm unraveling with secrets, magic, and betrayal, August will stop at nothing to find the people she loves—even if it takes everything she has, and even if everyone else gives up. Betrayal. Found family. Feminine rage. And a girl who refuses to break. This is August’s story—and she’ll walk through fire to make it her own. Auras of the Fallen Stars is for lovers of epic and romantic fantasy, found family, vast worlds, unique magic, political divide, relatable main characters and feminine rage.

Paige Shipley

Paige Darling lives and writes in Indianapolis, Indiana, with a boisterous daughter, a very patient husband, a neurotic terrier (Plum), most of a cat (Madeline) and entirely too many plants. 
She has a BA in English Literature with an emphasis on Gothic Literature from Purdue University, and an MPA in Environmental Policy Analysis from Indiana University, which is such a Gemini thing to do. She started writing short stories (and terrible poetry, which she thankfully abandoned) as a teenager before discovering the world of Fan Fiction in college. She will never, ever reveal her FanFic pseudonym. 
Lemon & Thyme is her first novel. 
When she’s not writing novels, she does legal research for environmental cases, experiments in the kitchen, travels as often as possible, and plays with yarn and fabric. She can often be found with her backside up in the air, muttering to herself while weeding the garden. 

Lemon & Thyme

Marigold Avonlea leads a charming life with Declan, her very human boyfriend in a little cottage on the outskirts of town, where her gifts for all things growing and little moments of magic generally go unnoticed. As a creature who has worn and discarded various identities for over a hundred years, she is delighted by the normalcy she’s found in her Midwestern human and fairy community. All is perfect, until a new creature comes to town. 
Marigold’s world is abruptly upended following a malevolent organization’s blunder, and she is forced to revisit darker chapters of her life’s story to save the man and the life that she loves. With the support of a community of fairies, witches, the occasional werewolf, and a whole lot of magic, she embarks on a journey that will forever change her life, and make her question how far she is willing to go for the people – and creatures – who matter. 

Elise Tegegne

Living alone and young as a high school French teacher in Ethiopia, I found a world that beautifully upended mine. I found God with skin and bones. And I found the one my soul loves.

After giving birth to my son, I left my teaching career to pursue the delights of motherhood and writing. Since then I’ve been listening for God’s voice in the rhythms of everyday life, keeping my eyes open for abundant graces—and seeking to capture what I find in words.

My work appears in Plough, Ekstasis, The Windhover, Dappled Things’ blog, Rock & Sling, Eclectica (Spotlight Runner-up), Fathom, Fare Forward, Risen Motherhood, (in)courage, The Indianapolis Star, Indianapolis Monthly, and Ginosko Literary Journal, among others. One of my stories also appears in Yet We Still Have Hope: Stories of Courage from Women Serving Around the World published by Velvet Ashes.

My first book In Praise of Houseflies: Meditations on the Gifts in Everyday Quandaries (Calla Press) is now available wherever books are sold.

I received a BA in Creative Writing and French from Indiana University and hold an MFA from Seattle Pacific University.

In Praise of Houseflies: Meditations on the Gifts in Everyday Quandaries

Through the lens of personal experience, Elise Tegegne reflects on the redemptive glimmers in ordinary challenges ranging from canceled flights to insomnia. In Praise of Houseflies gives readers an opportunity to listen for what their own everyday quandaries can teach and to delight in the abundant graces blossoming within them. It is an essential message of hope, joy, and redemption imparted through deep, nourishing reflection.

This event is Pay-What-You-Can. Here’s what your suggested donation can do for the Indy Reads community:

FREE – This ticket is for attendees that would like to attend this event and are unable to purchase a ticket. Indy Reads values our community and facilitators. We are proud to provide programming to all. Thank you for being a part of our community!

$10 – This donation covers the cost of one attendee to this event. Indy Reads strives to bring the very best programming to Fountain Square and all Hoosiers. Thank you for helping us to keep our quality programs accessible for all!

$20 – This donation covers the cost of two attendees to this event. If you are attending as an individual, your ticket at this level makes it possible for another who cannot afford a ticket to attend. It is only through the generosity of our community that we are able to support programs that enrich the lives of all Hoosiers. Thank you for your support!

Other – “Pay-What-You-Can” really does mean pay what you can. Indy Reads appreciates that every one of our community members is able to support our vision of 100% literacy for all in different ways. Whether you can pay $5 or $50, we are so excited to see you – and thank you for your support!

Interested in being an Featured Author in future Expo?

Those interested in participating in an Author Expo must be willing to have their books sold on consignment through Indy Reads. If you are interested in being a featured author during an Author Expo, please visit www.indyreads.org/submit-an-event to learn more.