Meet Our Authors
Thalia Press was founded in 2010 as a way for traditionally-published authors to pool their resources, support each other's work, and collaborate on group writing projects. Since then, the cooperative model has expanded. Thalia Press now publishes reprints of books by our authors, sponsors anthologies that feature multiple writers in the same genre, and issues new titles throughout the year on independent platforms. If you are a proven crime, romance, or contemporary fiction author who interested in becoming part of Thalia Press, please email us with details on your books and fan base.
Lise McClendon, Thalia Press Founder
Lise McClendon is the author of numerous novels, short stories, and articles, including the Bennett Sisters mysteries, Rory Tate thrillers, Dorie Lennox mysteries, and the Alix Thorssen mysteries. She also wrote and directed the short film, The Hoodoo Artist, featured at the Telluride Indiefest.
Lise has served on the national boards of directors for Mystery Writers of America and International Association of Crime Writers/North America. She is also on the faculty of the Jackson Hole Writers Conference and co-presents a novel workshop for writers. Learn more at lisemcclendon.com or her Amazon author page.
Katy Munger, Thalia Press Founder
Katy Munger is a North Carolina-based mystery author who is the author of the Dead Detective series; the Casey Jones crime fiction series; and the Hubbert & Lil cozy mystery series. She has written under the pen names Gallagher Gray and Chaz McGee and has also contrbuted to a number of short story collections, including Tar Heel Dead.
Katy was a founding member of Tart Noir and is a proud participant in North Carolina's Noir at the Bar reading series. She has also been a book reviewer for The Washington Post and served as North Carolina’s 2016 Piedmont Laureate. Learn more at katymunger.com or her Amazon author page.
Original Co-Op Authors
In 2011, Thalia Press debuted one of the industry's first multi-author blogs called Views From the Muse. (You can view an archived copy of the blog here.) Views From the Muse featured writing-related columns by Thalia's founders as well as the five well-established mystery writers shown below. Later the group would go on to write Thalia's first group novel, Beat, Slay, Love, under the pseudonym Thalia Filbert.
Taffy Cannon
Taffy Cannon is the author of fourteen series or standalone mysteries, an Academy Award-nominated short film, and Convictions: A Novel of the Sixties. Her Booked for Travel mystery series is written under the pseudonym Emily Toll. In recent years, she has published several award-winning non-fiction books to aid family caregivers. View all of books on Amazon.
Kate Flora
Kate Flora is the author of 19 books and over 20 short stories, including the Thea Kozak mystery series and the Joe Burgess mystery series. Her most recent book isCareful What You Wish For, a collection of crime stories. Her nonfiction work includes true crime novels that focus on aspects of the experiences that public safety officers go through. View all of her books on Amazon.
Gary Phillips
Gary Phillips is the author of numerous novels, comics, and short stories. He is also the editor of several anthologies, including Orange County Noir and The Obama Inheritance: Fifteen Stories of Conspiracy Noir. His most recent novel, One-Shot Harry, was published in 2022 to widespread critical acclaim and commercial success. View all of his work on Amazon.
Sarah Shaber
Sarah Shaber is the author of the 6-book Louise Pearlie historical mystery series, which features a young widow who works for the Office of Strategic Services in Washington, DC during World War II. She is also the author of the Professor Simon Shaw cozy mystery series and edited the short story anthology Tar Heel Dead. View her books on Amazon.com.
What Our Authors Share
All Thalia Press authors have a proven track record of writing the highest quality crime and contemporary fiction. In addition to being traditionally published by Big Four publishers, many also enjoy a successul hybrid independent career.
J.D. Rhoades
J.D. Rhoades is a North Carolina-based attorney and newspaper columnist who is also the author of the Jack Keller series — which includes The Devil’s Right Hand, Good Day in Hell, Safe and Sound, and Devils And Dust — as well as the stand-alone novels Breaking Cover and Broken Shield. Follow J.D. Rhoades on Twitter and Facebook.