STEPHANIE MAZE, publisher and editorial director of Moonstone Press LLC, launched her company in 2001 as project editor of an early-childhood animal series of eight titles in English and Spanish titled Moments in the Wild/ Momentos en el reino animal. Over the past decade, this series has enjoyed critical acclaim by parents and educators alike and earned numerous non-fiction children’s book awards.

Prior to becoming a publisher, Stephanie produced the acclaimed I Want to Be... series about careers, for ages 8-14, published by Harcourt Children’s Books. In 1998, this series of eight titles earned a place on VOYA’s Nonfiction Honor list, and two of them, I Want To Be A Veterinarian and I Want To Be An Engineer were named ‘Outstanding Science Trade Books’ by the National Science Teachers Association and the Children’s Book Council. A third title, I Want To Be A Chef, received a starred review in the School Library Journal in 1999.

As a former photojournalist for more than 30 years, with assignments covering news, features, and sports all over the world, Stephanie’s personal work also won a number of awards in the prestigious National Press Photographers, California Press Photographers, and White House Press Photographers Associations. Her photographs appeared in exhibits and publications worldwide, including National Geographic (where she was a regular freelance photographer for 12 years), the San Francisco Chronicle (as a staff photographer for six years), GEO magazines, Time, Newsweek, People, The New York Times, and The Washington Post. She was also an AP/International Olympic Press Pool Photographer for the three Summer Olympic Games (Montreal, Moscow, and Los Angeles), and participated in ten Day in the Life book projects.

To contact Stephanie Maze, please email: mazeprod@erols.com


KARIN KINNEY, senior editor of With Ballet in My Soul/Adventures of a Globetrotting Impresario, Healthy Foods from A to Z/ Comida sana de la A a la Z, Keeping Fit from A to Z/Mantente en forma de la A a la Z, and Breastfeeding Around the World/ Amamantar alrededor del mundo and is an independent writer and editor with more than 30 years experience conceptualizing, researching, and editing books in the publishing industry. Karin began her career as a teacher in Dover, Delaware, and as a translator in Washington, D.C. She then became a freelance writer for The Washington Post, The Washington Star, News American, UPI, and other print media, and, for over 20 years, worked at Time Inc. of Alexandria, Virginia, where she held the positions of editor at Time-Life Books and editorial director of children’s books at Time-Life Education.

Karin’s projects at Time-Life Books ranged from the cookbook series, The Good Cook to other 20-volume series on history, geography, and astronomy. As editorial director at Time-Life Education, she was responsible for a number of titles of the children’s series Understanding Science and Nature, Student Library, and A Child’s First Library of Learning.

For the past ten years, Karin has been editing books for National Geographic on travel, religion, and world history as a freelance editor in Washington D.C. She is also a seasoned world traveler who, to date, has visited more than 60 countries on five continents, and speaks four languages.

To contact Karin Kinney, please email: karinkinney2002@aol.com


ALEXANDRA LITTLEHALES, Art Director for With Ballet in My Soul/Adventures of a Globetrotting Impresario, Healthy Foods from A to Z/ Comida sana de la A a la Z, Keeping Fit from A to Z/Mantente en forma de la A a la Z,Breastfeeding Around the World/ Amamantar alrededor del mundo and the Moments in the Wild series, has been a layout and design editor for more than 20 years, specializing in book and catalog design.

With a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Graphic Design from James Madison University, Alexandra began her career in book publishing as a designer for Thomasson-Grant, a small press in Charlottesville, Virginia. Pursuing her love for photography books, she went on to work as a freelance designer for National Geographic, where she completed 30 titles for its book and children’s divisions, including the Nature’s Library series, My First Pocket Guide series, Mayflower 1620, The National Geographic Photography Guide for Kids, National Geographic Photography Field Guide: Birds, and National Geographic Reference Atlas to the Birds of North America.

Among her many accomplishments, Alexandra also worked on Atlas of the Amazon for Smithsonian Books, and wrote and designed two interactive children’s books— The Hearthsong Young Naturalist’s Notebook, and The Hearthsong Young Photographer’s Notebook— in collaboration with her father, former National Geographic staff photographer Bates Littlehales.

In addition to designing books, Alexandra is also designer for Plow and Hearth’s Magic Cabin catalogue and has developed a number of Websites for small businesses.

Alexandra loves the country and lives with her family on a farm in Madison, Virginia, where she grows vegetables, cares for her chickens, and makes hay for her cows.

To contact Alexandra Littlehales, please email: alittlehales63@gmail.com


ALICIA FUENTES-GARGALLO, Spanish translator of Healthy Foods from A to Z/ Comida sana de la A a la Z, Keeping Fit from A to Z/Mantente en forma de la A a la Z, and Breastfeeding Around the World/ Amamantar alrededor del mundo has been a middle school Spanish Immersion teacher in Montgomery County, Maryland, since 2001, and a secondary school Spanish educator for the past 15 years. Born in Barcelona, Spain, she pursued her undergraduate studies in Spanish and Catalan language and literature at the University of Barcelona, and received a Masters degree in Child Development at the University of Maryland in College Park, Maryland.

Prior to teaching in Maryland, Alicia was an instructor of Spanish Language and Culture in Santa Teresa, Nicaragua, and at the Cervantes Institute of New York. She also spent several years working as a translator for the New Jersey Firefighters Department in Bridgeton, New Jersey, and the Children’s Law Center of Washington, D.C.

Alicia credits her daily teaching — as well as the creativity of her students — as the most important influences on her continuous quest for new perspectives of the Spanish language and culture. In addition to her time spent in the classroom, she considers working on children’s books her favorite activity. Alicia is married, has three children, who love to read, and lives in Bethesda, Maryland.

To contact Alicia Fuentes-Gargallo, please email: alicia.fuentes@gmail.com