Retreat Faculty

Ronald L. Smith is an award-winning author of several middle grade novels including Hoodoo, Where the Black Flowers Bloom, Gloomtown, The Owls Have Come to Take Us Away, Project Mercury, and Black Panther: The Young Prince Trilogy. Ronald grew up on Air Force bases and has lived in Japan, Maine, Alabama, Michigan, South Carolina, and a bunch of other places he doesn’t remember. As a boy, he loved to read, especially fantasy and science fiction, and this inspired his lifelong passion of the fantastical. Before becoming a full-time writer, Ronald worked in advertising and wrote television commercials for big corporations, helping to sell everything from cheeseburgers to automobiles to airlines. Without a doubt, he’s much happier writing for kids. These days, you can find Ronald writing in coffee shops because sitting in a quiet room gives him the creeps.

Editor at Henry Holt Books for Young Readers.

After much experience as a librarian and writer, Leslie Zampetti became a literary agent. Her client books include TWO THOUSAND MILES TO HAPPY (Shapiro, Muddy Boots), A FEW BEAUTIFUL MINUTES (Fox, LBYR), THEN THERE WAS ONE (Cross, Penguin UK) and HART & SOULS (Schmid, Andrews McMeel, 2024). Leslie represents picture books through young adult, fiction & nonfiction. Stories by underrepresented voices are a priority, especially disabled writers. You can find Leslie on social media @literarylesliez

Sasha Illingworth is currently an Associate Creative Director at Little Brown Books for Young Readers where she oversees a diverse list of formats including chapter books, middle grade and teen novels, along with select picture books and graphic novels. After earning her BFA in illustration at the Rhode Island School of Design, she moved to New York where she started her career in publishing and illustrated over 30 book covers. Sasha has art directed and designed a diverse list of bestselling and award winning books such as; Thank You Omu (Oge Mora), Saturday (Oge Mora), Malala’s Magic Pencil(Malala Yousafzai/Kerascoet), Hello, Tree (Ana Crespo/Dow Phumiruk), Parks and Recreation: Leslie For Class President (Robb Pearlman/Melanie Demmer), Strong Mama (Robin Arzon/Addy Rivera Sonda), and many more.

Kelly Dyksterhouse is a literary agent with the Tobias Literary Agency. She has a MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults and specializes in representing authors and illustrators who write for children. Her clients work on a broad range of projects from board books and picture books to middle grade and young adult novels, graphic novels, and fascinating nonfiction in the youth market.