Valerie J. Lewis Coleman serves experts and professional speakers to magnify and monetize their message by publishing quality books. She co-founded the region's premier book event: Dayton Book Expo. Since its inception, the expo has hosted over 500 authors and thousands of book lovers. As a best-selling author and award-winning publisher, Valerie has guided aspiring authors through the mysterious labyrinth of self-publishing. With over fifteen years of experience in the book business, this expert divulges industry secrets on avoiding the top five mistakes made by new authors, pricing your book to sell and identifying dishonest publishers. Her dynamic presentation and knowledge of the business takes writers from pen to paper to published as they master self-publishing to make money!

Darnyelle loves growing businesses. Period. For the last twenty years, she has helped thousands of companies. Her clients have grown their businesses from 50-600% in 12 months or less by working with her and her team. She is a leading business optimization speaker and strategist who teaches business growth by mastering brand messaging, marketing, sales operations and talent development.

Prior to launching her company—Incredible One Enterprises—Darnyelle was vice president at a Fortune 500 Financial Services company, a pink Cadillac independent executive sales director with Mary Kay Cosmetics, and executive director of Delaware’s Women’s Business Center. Darnyelle‘s work has been featured in Essence, Success, Black Enterprise and O magazines. She is the best-selling author of seven books including Burn the Box: 7 Fire-Starter Strategies Leaders Can Leverage and Market Like a R.O.C.K. Star. In 2012, she was named Coach of the Year by Stiletto Woman Media. A year later, she was recognized as a Small Business Champion by Small Business Trends.

Darnyelle has an undergraduate degree from the University of Delaware and an MBA from Goldey Beacom College. She is certified as a Kolbe specialist and executive coach. IncredibleOneEnterprises.com

Dr. Rhonda Smith is committed to educating and empowering women to achieve optimum health and wellness. As a doctor of naturopathy and board-certified adult nurse practitioner, Rhonda fulfilled a life-long dream as the medical director of Rhonda Smith-Bass N.P., Inc. She is the owner of Renewed Health Care Services, Inc. where she specializes in bio-identical hormone replacement therapy. Rhonda’s next business venture is a holistic health care center. The family-oriented businesswoman enjoys workouts with her personal trainer, reading and traveling. She is an active member of Phillips Temple Church. Rhonda loves giving back to her community and working with girls and young women. She has served as a mentor to teen mothers through the Dayton Chapter of Big Brothers, Big Sisters. RenewedHealthCare.com

Bryant Louis Bentley has traveled across the country performing regional theater. His theater credits include Willie in Master Harold and the Boys (Clarence Brown Theater); Jackie Robinson in Most Valuable Player (Indiana Repertory Theater); Walter Lee in A Raisin in the Sun (Wright State University); Ceasar Wilkers in August Wilson’s Gem of the Ocean (Human Race Theater); and Booth in Topdog/Underdog (Phoenix Theater). He has also appeared in productions like Jitney, Two Trains Running, The Exonerated, Five Guys Named Moe, Greater Tuna, Cinderella, Blues for an Alabama Sky, Plenty of Time and many more.

Bryant has received numerous awards including the Central Ohio Theater’s Critics 14th Annual Poll for Seasonal Achievement Best Actor Award for his portrayal of Boy Willie in August Wilson’s The Piano Lesson (CATCO Theater). Bryant completed his third reprisal role of Boy Willie at the Portland Playhouse Theater. The production was recognized as number one in the Top Ten Best Theater in Portland.

Carenda Deonne Pittman—lovingly referred to as Lady C—is a vibrant, charismatic minister and speaker. Carenda is president and founder of Far Above Rubies Enterprises which was established in 2012. In addition to Far Above Rubies (FAR) Magazine and an annual women’s conference, this healing ministry serves women to know their worth and pursue their purpose. Licensed to preach in August 2007, Carenda is a member of Tabernacle of Praise Church in Baltimore, MD. Her first book, Soul of a Poet, was published in 2007. Perfect Patty Messed Up, a devotional to help women toward healing, releases April 2017. Carenda received her BA in business marketing from the Fashion Institute of Technology in Manhattan, NY. FAREnterprises.biz | 888.473.2221

Tanisha Richmond is a podiatrist who practices in Dayton, Ohio. As an advocate for happy feet, Dr. Richmond is a board qualified podiatrist with the American Board of Podiatric Primary Care and Orthopedics. She provides health education outreach and mentoring for local and regional organizations to promote holistic health and wellness. She obtained a BS degree in biology from Talladega College and a doctoral degree in podiatric medicine from the Ohio College of Podiatric Medicine. Her three-year surgical and primary care residency occurred at the Dayton’s Veterans Administration Medical Center.

Dr. Richmond enjoys reading, floral design and line dancing. She is a member at Revival Center Ministries and active volunteer in the Dayton community. RichFeet.org

After receiving a master’s in guidance and counseling, and certification in lifestyle and weight management coaching, Linda J. Hawkins embarked upon her public speaking career. She has authored several books in the Yes, Real Women Series which focus on her passion: women’s health and wellness. With emphases on healthy eating, healthy lifestyle, weight loss and menopause, she connects with her audience as the first beneficiary of her own advice.

The CEO and founder of Savvy Health Coaching offers life-balance training for companies that desire to build a healthy, happy workforce. Using the top-down strategy to change behaviors and culture, she provides cooking demos, healthy workplace practices, techniques to relieve stress and tools to maximize health insurance and employer incentives. SavvyHealthCoaching.com

Authors worldwide write better thanks to editorial guru and author, Tenita C. Johnson. Perfecting manuscripts for hundreds of best-selling authors, she’s on a mission to end the prominent everyday abuse of the English language and rectify punctuation pet peeves. As the founder and CEO of So It Is Written, LLC, Tenita collaborates with industry professionals to take manuscripts to the marketplace, positioning authors for success in the literary world. Well known by many as a human spell check, noun nerd and grammar police, she proudly wears the badge of honor to correct and serve.

Dubbed the editor’s editor, Tenita hosts the annual Red Ink Conference to empower aspiring authors to write from the editor’s point of view to save time and money in the self-publishing process. She positions writers as experts in the industry serving them to create their own writing/editorial business and multiple streams of income. SoItIsWritten.net

Juanita-Michelle Darden-Jones is the owner of Third Perk Coffeehouse & Wine Bar and Third Perk Express. She is a dreamer who works hard at transforming her passions into reality.

Juanita-Michelle is a social-preneur who assists small business owners in Dayton, Ohio. She founded The Dreamer’s Gala to raise capital for entrepreneurs to start and grow businesses. She advocates on behalf of small businesses to ensure their unique struggles are not ignored. She’s a change agent who gives a voice to engage community support to help small businesses survive and thrive.

In addition to being an assistant professor of developmental mathematics at Sinclair Community College, Juanita-Michelle is wife, mother and grandmother. ThirdPerkExpress.com

Before stepping into the realm of entrepreneurship, LeKeisha Nicole Grant served the American Red Cross as an AmeriCorps member. In 2012, she released the first issue of Ambition Magazine, an urban lifestyle magazine focused on supporting small businesses, entrepreneurs and community leaders. While developing the all-encompassing magazine, LeKeisha wrote Be Ambitious using her experiences as a guide for aspiring entrepreneurs. She is co-owner of Transformers Fitness which was created to share her love for helping others with the need for physical fitness. Wake Up & Be Ambitious is LeKeisha’s personal account of her journey to build both businesses as she strives for success in every facet of her life. LeKeisha obtained her bachelor’s degree from Ohio University. LeKeishaNicole.com | AmbitionMag.com

HIS inspiration (HISpiration) is a term coined by author, speaker and entrepreneur, Rosalind Renae Pollard, to describe the passion and desire of her commitment to live as an offering to God. Renae started her ministry for women over thirty years ago. She shares the love of Christ—and all the rewards of a personal relationship with Him—through her experiences, inspirational writings and personalized gifts.

As a contributor in the Women of Color Devotional Bible, she takes every opportunity to leave an indelible mark on the hearts of everyone she encounters. Renae’s equipping ministry, I’m Protecting a Cherished Treasure (I.M.P.A.C.T.), empowers young ladies to value their hearts, minds and bodies while encouraging them to practice abstinence.

After thirty years of service to the United States Federal Government, Renae retires in the fall of 2017. She will graduate with a bachelor’s degree in business a few months later. Renae and her husband, Charles, a retired Air Force Veteran, will partner in full-time ministry, along with their daughters, Cierra and Chaunice. RenaePollard.com

Lamarr E. Lewis has been in the human services field for more than fifteen years. Combining his first love, hip-hop, with his passion for working with at-hope (he dislikes the term at-risk) youth, he engages young people to find creative ways to express anger and frustration. Under the moniker L-Marr the Star, he has written and released several independent projects to critical acclaim.

Lamarr is compiling The Broken: Reclaiming Our Power to Heal Black America for release in 2017. This anthology addresses current issues in Black America and how they relate to the African diaspora. This book highlights how societal factors like politics, education and culture have systematically “broken” black people, and offer solutions that lead to healing.

An alumnus of Wittenberg University, Lamarr will receive his master’s degree in clinical mental health counseling from Argosy University in 2017. He is researching doctoral programs to further his education while spending his limited free time writing and enjoying fatherhood. L-Marr.com

Camela Douglass is a robust, vivacious professional whose primary goal is to motivate individuals to maximize their greatness. Owner of Mo Better Me Lifestyle and professor at Central State University, Camela’s expertise is in education, personal training and life coaching. She is a trailblazer in the lifestyle change movement, developing fitness videos, original music and wellness programs for schools, corporations and organizations.

To best serve her clients, Camela invested in her own development by training with Beto, the creator of Zumba; Shaun T, the creator of Hip Hop Abs and Insanity; and international choreographer, the late Madonna Grimes. She has worked with Professional Football Hall of Famer Jim Brown, Heavyweight Champion Buster Douglas and The Ohio State University basketball team. Her fitness expertise has expanded beyond the U.S. to Canada, Bahamas and England.

Camela is working toward a doctoral degree in education with an emphasis on instructional design from Franklin University. She received her master’s degree in education from University of Dayton. She obtained her bachelor’s degree in communications from Bowling Green State University. MoBetterMe.Me | YouTube.com/MoBetterMe

As a licensed attorney in two states, one of Deena C. M. Wingard’s passions is working on behalf of the nation’s veterans. With education as a driving force, she earned a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice from Bowling Green State University, a juris doctorate degree from Ohio State University, and is working toward a master’s in divinity at McAfee School of Theology at Mercer University.

She aspires to write several books and movie scripts. As an ordained elder, she seeks God’s plans to utilize her education and experience to serve His Kingdom. She is available for teaching and preaching upon request. YourReasonableService.net

As the phoenix rises from the ashes, LisaBeth Willis—a multi-talented author and speaker—uses her personal journey to restoration and wholeness to help others. She created The BounceBack Movement as a platform to encourage and motivate women who need to find themselves after loss. Her interactive workshop provides a space of support, self-work and most of all, self-love.

Holding the love of music close to her heart, LisaBeth has worked behind the scenes in the industry for Unohoo Entertainment. She ventured into film and television as an extra on shows like The Sopranos and movies like Hoodlum and The Negotiator.

LisaBeth holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Miami University (Ohio). She resides in Ohio with her family. LisaBethWillis.com