Authors from Fountain Hills, Rio Verde, take part in Arizona Author Book Festival

By Cyrus Guccione
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Supporting SEEDs for Autism, a Phoenix-based autism awareness nonprofit learning center, the 2025 Arizona Author Book Festival will feature more than 30 authors, two of whom are from Fountain Hills and Rio Verde.

Set Sunday, April 27, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the SEEDs for Autism campus in Central Phoenix, the free festival will feature a Q&A with local authors, a storytime for children from members of Scottsdale’s Medieval Times Royal Court and a live demonstration of weaving, woodworking and blacksmithing from SEEDs participants.

The festival will offer the first 1,500 kids (17 years and younger) a free book and the first 500 attendees will get a stamp card for a free raffle ticket.

Every adult will receive a free tote bag from Half Price Books which is donating 20% of its festival book sales to SEEDS for Autism.

The festival will also feature food trucks, live music, gifts, writing-themed souvenirs and of course, books for sale.

100 percent of the sponsorship funds, vendor fees and author application fees will support SEEDs programming.

The authors

Fountain Hills resident Rose Gonsoulin is the author of “When the Grass Is Rising: A Portrait of Young Sam Houston.”

Her novel, which is available online and at the River of Time Museum, covers the early years of Sam Houston, the former president of the Republic of Texas, his time living with Cherokee Indians and the dynamic of being a settler in the south fighting against the confederacy.

“I spent a lot of time making sure my book was historically accurate,” Gonsoulin said. “Sam Houston thought that all people were equal…it’s really important that we have historical figures who show us that not everything from our past was bad.”

For the book festival, Gonsoulin will donate copies of her book and also moderate a live discussion with two authors: New York Times best-selling novelist Michael Stackpole and USA TODAY best-selling romance author Ginger Scott.

Rio Verde author KM Waldvogel is a featured author of the book festival and a former teacher who writes children’s books, including a middle-grade book, “Spies, Soldiers, Couriers, and Saboteurs: Women of the American Revolution” and picture book, “Whoo, Whoo, Who’s Out There?”

Waldvogel will also donate copies of her books. Her picture book will be read during the festival’s storytime period by members of the Medieval Times Royal Court.

Gonsoulin and Waldvogel are members of the Fountain Hills Critique Group which has been meeting monthly since 2008 where members share writing, receive constructive feedback and offer support to improve their writing skills.

The festival will feature food trucks, live music, gifts, writing-themed souvenirs, books for sale, free tote bags from Half Price Books and more. (Photo courtesy of Arizona Author Book Festival)

What is SEEDs for Autism?

Creating a space for young adults on the autism spectrum to find a sense of purpose, SEEDs for Autism teaches social and workplace skills, offering students hands-on learning and skills to become more independent and self-assured to enter the workforce.

Local author Jessica McCann is the founder and volunteer coordinator of the Arizona Author Book Festival whose son Jake found success through the SEEDs program.

Taking advantage of classes like woodworking, culinary arts, writing, video producing and more, Jake, 27, landed a job with the Arizona Diamondbacks Foundation.

“My son has been part of SEEDs for about eight years and it’s really been an amazing thing for him,” McCann said. “For this festival, we wanted to spread the word about all the great things that SEEDs does and feature authors from a variety of genres and interests to bring in the community and hopefully raise a lot of money for the program.”

McCann is the author of “Peculiar Savage Beauty,” a historical fiction set in the American Dust Bowl that focuses on the people who remained in the Midwest. One of the main characters is an autistic man.

Gonsoulin says the festival’s mission of fostering autism acceptance is important to her because everyone needs a sense of community. She invites everyone to attend the event to support local authors and championing literacy in a family-fun environment.

“Just like writers who join writer’s groups, children and adults with autism and their families need a place where they can be supported and find their community,” she said.

The Arizona Author Book Festival will be held on the SEEDs for Autism campus, 3420 S. Seventh St. in Phoenix. For more information, visit azauthorbookfestival.com.

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