2024 Planning Committee

The Planning Committee for the Kentucky Christian Writers Conference is composed of writers, editors, teachers, and other industry professionals. It is their high privilege to pray, plan, and work together to offer a conference that inspires writers for God’s glory.

Executive Board

Gregg Bridgeman

Coordinator

Gregg Bridgeman was born at a very young age. For most of his childhood, he was poor, unemployed, and ignorant. He didn’t even have a high school education. After accepting his pity diploma, he discovered he wasn’t suited to be a tailor. The muffler factory was exhausting. He couldn’t cut it as a barber and didn’t have the patience to be a doctor. He wasn’t a good fit at the shoe factory. He just didn’t put his soul into it. The paper company folded. Pool maintenance was too draining. He got fired from the canon factory. He just couldn’t see a future as a historian.

After matriculating at numerous institutions of higher learning—some of them even accredited—one gave him a bachelors so he would leave and stop eating all the hot-pockets. After serving with the strawberry berets—and having grown accustomed to thankless work—Gregg settled on a career field that was wide open because absolutely no one else wanted to do it. He became an editor. He knows that one day, no matter how he dies, his final words will be, “But, I’m still hungry!”

Carlton Hughes

Executive Board

Carlton Hughes, represented by Cyle Young of Hartline Literary, wears many hats. By day, he is a professor of communication. On Wednesday evenings and Sunday mornings, he serves as a children’s pastor. In his “spare time,” he is a freelance writer. Carlton is an empty-nesting dad and devoted husband who likes long walks on the beach, old sitcoms, and chocolate—all the chocolate. His work has been featured in Chicken Soup for the Soul: The Dating GameThe Wonders of Nature, Let the Earth Rejoice, Just Breathe, So God Made a Dog, and Everyday Grace for Men. His latest book is Adventures in Fatherhood, co-authored with Holland Webb and released by the Ellie Claire imprint of Worthy/Hachette.

Lea Ann Johnson

Executive Board

Lea Ann is an ordained deacon in full connection of the Kentucky Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church. She retired after thirty years of serving in the military and as a counselor in an extension ministry position at Fort Knox, KY in May 2013. In July of 2022, she was given the privilege of being appointed as the new pastor at Sulphur Well UMC in Metcalfe County. She now writes weekly sermons and monthly articles for the church newsletter. Lea Ann has served on the Planning Committee of Kentucky Christian Writers Conference in various positions, including coordinator in 2015-16, since 2009. She has published several articles and devotions in newsletters and online at Christiandevotions.com. She currently lives in Tompkinsville, KY, with her pastor husband, Calvin.

Kristy Horine

Executive Board

Other Committee Members

Sara Turnquist

Deputy Coordinator

Multi-published author Sara R. Turnquist is a sought after speaker at conferences, meetings, book clubs, and other gatherings. She is available to talk about her books, her publishing journey, do book readings, and teach about the craft of writing.

She writes clean Historical Romance and has experience publishing with a traditional small publisher as well as indie publishing.

Becky Antkowiak

Faculty Co-Chair

Becky Antkowiak (ant-KO-vee-ack) is a writer, speaker, editor, Compassion International advocate, and enthusiastic Grammar Floozy. A lifelong serial extrovert, Becky believes every stranger is a friend she hasn’t met. Fair warning: if you make eye contact, you may be friends for life. She’s the Chief Encouragement Officer of 540 Writers Community—a free group for writers focused on studying craft, sharpening skills, and sharing encouragement for the writing journey. When she’s not writing or finding ways to connect people, you can find her demolishing, rebuilding, and creating alongside Patrick, her best friend and husband of 20 years. In her spare moments, she binge-listens to audiobooks while eating salted caramel anything.

Hallee Bridgeman

Social Media and Marketing

With nearly a million sales, Hallee Bridgeman is a best-selling Christian author who writes action-packed romantic suspense focusing on realistic characters who face real-world problems. Her work has been described as everything from refreshing to heart-stopping exciting and edgy. An accomplished speaker, Hallee has taught and inspired writers around the globe. She loves coffee, campy action movies, and regular date nights with her husband. Above all else, she loves God with all of her heart, soul, mind, and strength; has been redeemed by the blood of Christ; and relies on the presence of the Holy Spirit to guide her. Visit her website (and blog) at https://www.halleebridgeman.com/.

Janet Grimes

Hospitality

Janet Morris Grimes may not have realized she was a writer at the time, but her earliest childhood memories were spent creating fairy-tale stories of the father she never knew. That desire to connect with the mysterious man in a treasured photograph gave her a deep love for the endless possibilities of a healing and everlasting story. 

Janet is now a writer/music reviewer for Nashville Arts & Entertainment and Crossroad Magazines. She is also a devotional contributor to Christian Woman, Power for Today, Inspire a Fire, and The Christian Pulse. Janet has featured stories in several anthologies, including The Spirit of Christmas and Sweet Tea for the Soul: Real-Life Stories for Grieving Hearts. 

A wife of one, mother of three, and Tootsie to four, Janet currently writes from her quiet two-acre corner of the world near Elizabethtown, KY. She has spent the last few years preparing to introduce her novels and children’s stories to the world. 

Inspiring stories that stretch your heartstrings. An unforgettable combination. Visit Janet’s website at: http://janetmorrisgrimes.com/

Cathy Robinson

Treasurer

Cynthia Smith

Co-Faculty Chair

CHERMAINE STEIN

Registrar

Greg Turnquist

Technology Chair

Greg has read scifi since he was a kid including Asimov, Herbert, Saberhagen, and Del Rey. Years ago, the idea of a futuristic world reduced to a medieval existence began to bounce around in his head. 

He also loves slinging code as a software geek, and has written several non-fiction books. He lives in middle Tennessee with his wife and family.

Pam Walker

Historian

Pam Walker has been writing since her junior high school days. She participated on high school and college publications and earned her bachelor’s degree In journalism from Ball State University. After college she put her writing skills to use as a technical writer, learned about technology, and worked as a Technical Editor for numerous books for Sams Publishing. Her dream of combining writing with ministry was realized in 2004 where she began working at Answers in Genesis as a staff writer and later became the National Editor of Answers magazine which now has over 100,000 subscribers. She served in that role until 2009 and continues to write magazine articles as a freelance writer. She also serves as Vice President of the Boone County, KY Chapter of Word Weavers International. Pam has written for local and national publications, including Today’s Christian Living, Your Church, and One Christian Voice. She and her husband live in the Cincinnati area where they enjoy spending time with their four adult children and three grandchildren, and enjoy spending weekends at the family farm in Elizabethtown, KY.