Discover the Next Generation of Christian Storytellers…
Featuring Valari Westeren
Valari Westeren earned a BA in Creative Writing and capped her university studies with a 96-page honors thesis analyzing six well-known female fantasy characters across literature and film, and her thesis is still being downloaded over 200 times a month. She writes science fiction and fantasy grounded in real-life moral complexity that still points toward hope.
Having lived on three different continents growing up, she uses her diverse life experiences as inspiration for her worldbuilding. When not writing, she indulges her totally-not-random interests in theology, cats, obscure board games, and movies in every genre imaginable.
About Her Short Story
Savage plants have gained sentience and waged war against humans. To defeat them, world governments will destroy them with nuclear bombs after humans have disappeared into underground bunkers to wait out the holocaust. Addison has five hours until the bunkers seal themselves. And her little brother is missing.
To find her brother Damien, Addison must brave The Forest, a labyrinth of all remaining plant life, without the help of her traumatized mother or the father who abandoned them. But finding Damien won’t be as easy as bringing him safely home, and confronting the plants won’t be as easy as confronting the lie Addison believes about what really fractured her family.
Her Accomplishments
- Has written four novels, five novellas, two stageplays, a screenplay, and multiple short stories
- Attended three writers’ conferences, including Realm Makers and Write to Publish
- Had a short story, The Price of Heroism, published by Kingdom Pen
- Grew her author email list from zero to 110 email subscribers in under three months and has an average open rate above 60%
- Launched a proofreading and copy editing business that is still going strong, working on a contract basis for five nonfiction publishers and a marketing company
- As Group Coordinator for The Young Writer’s Workshop, engages regularly with leaders of 17 critique groups and 22 accountability groups of young writers, learning how to increase engagement and foster camaraderie among writers’ social groups
Meet the 8 other authors in the anthology!
Olivia G.
Booms
Jenny
Chasteen
Rachel
Elizabeth
Hope
Jian
Cara
Peregrino
Madigan
Thompson
Abi lyn
Voss
Amie
Woleslagle
Support the next generation of writers
100% of the proceeds from this anthology go toward helping up-and-coming writers attend writing conferences where they can pitch their work to agents and publishers.
About the Author Conservatory
Conservatory, noun: “A school specializing in one of the fine arts.”
The Author Conservatory is an online apprenticeship-modeled program that teaches students the writing & business skills they need to get published and support themselves financially. The Voices of the Future anthology features short stories from nine of our 2024 graduates.
