The following judges will select the winners and honorees for the 2026 Midland Authors Awards (honoring books published in 2025). To learn more about the competition, visit our page on how to submit a book for consideration.
Adult Fiction Award
Patricia Skalka turned to fiction after a successful career as a Reader’s Digest Staff Writer and nationally published nonfiction writer. She is the author of the seven-book Dave Cubiak Door County mystery series and winner of both the Midwest Book Award for Best Thriller/Mystery from the Midwest Independent Publishing Association and the Edna Ferber Fiction Book Award from the Council for Wisconsin Writers. A former president of Sisters in Crime Chicagoland, Patricia was recently designated a Notable Wisconsin Author by the Wisconsin Library Association. She serves on the Board of the Society of Midland Authors.
Kathie Giorgio is the critically acclaimed author of a total of 16 traditionally published books: eight novels, two short story collections, an essay collection, and five poetry collections. She’s been nominated for the Pushcart Prize in fiction and poetry and awarded the Outstanding Achievement Award from the Wisconsin Library Association and the Eric Hoffer Award In Fiction, among many more. She is the director and founder of AllWriters’ Workplace & Workshop LLC, an international creative writing studio located in Waukesha, Wisconsin.
Barbara Shoup is the author of nine novels for adults and young adults and three books about the creative process. Her young adult novels have been honored by the PEN Phyllis Reynolds Naylor Working Writer Fellowship, the American Library Association, and the International Reading Association. She is the writer-in-residence at the Indiana Writers Center and a faculty member at Art Workshop International, and hosts the Substack newsletter Book Pilgrim.
Richard Frisbie Award for Adult Nonfiction
Gerry Plecki recently completed his fourth and final term as SMA’s president. He received his Ph.D. in 1979 at the University of Illinois in Champaign, and he has written several adult nonfiction books. He is once again serving as chair judge of that SMA category in this year’s competition.
Christopher Lynch is the author of three books on Chicago history, and is a cohost, with Patrick McBriarty, of the Windy City Historians Podcast (www.windycityhistorians.com)
Susan Croce Kelly is the award-winning nonfiction author of two biographies and a classic history of U.S. Route 66. Along the way, she has worked as a newspaper reporter, public relations executive, speechwriter, and magazine publisher. Presently she lives in the Missouri Ozarks with her husband, Joel Kirkpatrick, and just retired as editor of Ozarks Watch, a magazine of Ozarks history and culture published by Missouri State University.
History Award
Joseph Gustaitis is a Chicago-based writer and editor and the author of four books on Chicago history, the most recent being Jazz Age Chicago: Crucible of Modern America. He has also written more than 60 magazine articles on historical subjects. He received his A.B. from Dartmouth College and his M.A. and Ph.D. in history from Columbia University. After working as an editor at Collier’s Year Book, he became the humanities editor for Collier’s Encyclopedia. He has also worked in television and won an Emmy Award.
Greg Borzo is an award-winning journalist, having worked at the Field Museum, American Medical Assn. and University of Chicago. He’s written several books about Chicago, including Chicago’s Fabulous Fountains, The Chicago ‘L’ and Lost Restaurants of Chicago. He’s currently researching a book about the history of the South Loop, but for the past several years has been teaching pickleball at several health clubs around the city. “Try it; you’ll like it!”
David Witter is a writer and journalist who has published six books including Oldest Chicago, Chicago Magic, and Distilled in Chicago, A History. His historical articles and music features have appeared in The Washington Post, New City, Living Blues, the Chicago Reader, the Bay Area Music Magazine, and the Copley News Syndicate. He currently serves as SMA’s vice president.
Poetry Award
Westley Heine is the author of two poetry collections, twice the featured performer at the original poetry slam at the Green Mill in Chicago, host of the poetry open mic at the Gallery Cabaret in Chicago, Pushcart nominated, featured at both Underground Lit Fest and The Vagabond Poetry Tour, and was the poet chosen to represent Illinois at the Route 66 Poetry and Arts Festival 2025. Beat Poet Neeli Cherkovski said of his book Street Corner Spirits: “Westley Heine has been around the track with his original voice. Trust his truth.”
Ae Hee Lee, born in South Korea and raised in Peru, currently lives in Wisconsin. She is the author of ASTERISM, which was an SMA Award winner and was selected for the Dorset Prize, and the poetry chapbooks Bedtime // Riverbed, Dear bear, and Connotary. She has received scholarships and honors from the Academy of American Poets, AWP, Bread Loaf, and Sewanee Writers’ Conference, among others.
John Kropf is the author of three books. His most recent is A Midwestern Heart: Poems (Bottom Dog Press, 2024). Color Capital of the World: Growing Up With the Legacy of a Crayon Factory (University of Akron Press, 2022) was winner of Bowling Green State University’s 2023 prize for Local History. Kropf’s first book, Unknown Sands: Travels in the World’s Most Isolated Country (Dusty Spark, 2006), was praised as a fascinating narrative bound to hook adventurers. His writing has appeared in The Baltimore Sun, Florida Sun-Sentinel, The Washington Post, Middle West Review, Great Lakes Review, and elsewhere. Born and raised in Erie County, Ohio, he now lives in the Washington, D.C., area.
Bernard Brommel Award for Biography and Memoir
Bob Remer, president emeritus of the Edgewater Historical Society and Museum. Founded and published Chicago Books In Review; and past acting commissioner and deputy commissioner of the Chicago Public Library. Former treasurer and board member of Society of Midland Authors. He has served as a judge in the biography and memoir competition for at least a score of years.
Marlene Targ Brill, an SMA board member, is an award-winning author of more than 70 books for readers of all ages, the most recent being Jane Addams: The Most Dangerous Woman in America. She’s worked on the competition for many years as coordinator and then judge. She loves reading all the books by talented authors. For more see marlenetargbrill.com.
Jean Iversen is a Chicago-based author, developmental editor, and former acquisitions editor. Her works include articles in The Guardian, Next Avenue, and Writer’s Digest and books such as Local Flavor: Restaurants That Shaped Chicago’s Neighborhoods. For more about Jean, please visit www.jeaniversen.com.
Children’s Fiction Award
Sandra Renner has been a longtime fan and patron of children’s literature. She has served as a judge in past competitions, and this year once again chaired the SMA Children’s Fiction Committee. While Sandra has coauthored a series of international business books, her real love is children’s literature in all its forms.
Laura Hirshfield is a retired reader’s services librarian at the Evanston Public Library, where she worked for over 30 years, and a visual artist working in cloisonne enamel and collage. She is also keeping her little gray cells active by brushing up on her French language skills. This is her fifth year as a judge for children’s fiction.
Rick Telander is a sports columnist at Fox32Chicago.com. Previously a senior writer for Sports Illustrated, ESPN, the Magazine and a longtime columnist at the Chicago Sun-Times, he is the author of 10 books, including String Music, a novel for young readers, and Sweet Dreams: Poems and Paintings for the Child Abed. He is a member of the National Sportswriters Hall of Fame in Durham, North Carolina.
Children’s Reading Round Table Award for Children’s Nonfiction
Judith Schein Cohen holds a Ph.D in education (literacy) from University of Illinois Chicago, where she taught, developed, and supervised programs for undergraduates needing to improve literacy and study strategies for college success. She has also taught high school English and reading, alternative preschool and primary, and adult education, organized and run tutoring programs, and written educational materials for adults and children.
Patricia K. Kummer has written 67 nonfiction books for children and young adults, with some winning awards from Chicago Women in Publishing and Illinois Women’s Press Association. In the process of writing those books, she’s had many unexpected and rewarding experiences. She has served as a judge in four previous SMA competitions.
Michelle Houts is a collector of many things, including words and found objects. She writes from a restored one-room schoolhouse in the rural Midwest. She writes contemplative picture books, thoughtful biographies, a STEM-based chapter book series, and adventurous middle-grade novels. Find Michelle and her books at www.michellehouts.com.