MASTERMIND

Jo is the national and international bestselling author of The Sicilian Inheritance, We Are Not Like Them, You Were Always Mine, Charlotte Walsh Likes to Win, The Knockoff and How to Be Married. Her work has been published in ten languages in twelve countries and four of her books have been optioned for film and television.  Jo's podcasts have garnered more than twenty-five million downloads and regularly top podcast charts. An editor, columnist and travel writer, her work has also appeared in the Wall Street Journal, the New York Times, New York magazine, Marie Claire, Glamour and many other publications. Her next book, Everyone is Lying to You, comes out in July, 2025. She lives in Philly with her husband, feral children.

HOSTESS WITH THE MOSTEST

Hi there, I’m Casey Scieszka, a born and raised Brooklyn girl who turns out to have a soft spot for the country. I’ve lived in places as far flung as Beijing, San Francisco, Fez, and quite literally Timbuktu (which I wrote a book about in 2010 with my now-husband Steven Weinberg).

I opened the Spruceton Inn: a Catskills Bed & Bar in 2014 and have been running the show there ever since. I love chatting up guests at the itty-bitty bar and hosting our annual Artist Residency.

I’ve got a novel called THE FOUNTAIN forthcoming with Harper in Spring 2026.

ART DIRECTOR

Steven Weinberg is a writer, illustrator, and painter in the Catskill Mountains of New York. His work has appeared everywhere from books to beer cans to the Smithsonian.

His children’s books have been called “brilliant” by Dave Pilkey, "thrillingly shameless" by the New York Times, "guaranteed to fuel read aloud energy" by Publisher's Weekly and have won awards and distinctions such as the Virginia Reader’s Choice Award (YOU MUST BE THIS TALL), YALSA Reader’s Choice (TO TIMBUKTU), the Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection (ASTRONUTS: MISSION ONE and THE MIDDLE KID), The Today Show’s Holiday Pick (BIG JOB SERIES), and Parents Magazine Best Children’s Book 2021 (WASHER & DRYER’S BIG JOB).

OPERATIONS DIRECTOR

Nick Aster is a leading sustainability executive, editor, publisher, speaker, event chair and marketing professional with a focus on climate change and global sustainability. For the past twenty years Nick has focused on the subjects of climate change, systems thinking, clean energy, corporate social responsibility, economic justice, and navigating complex future challenges. Specifically he has led efforts to help companies and organizations communicate across these issues, drive growth in the marketplace and organize conferences and events. His most recent position is director of marketing for North America at South Pole, the world's leading provider of sustainability consulting and carbon offset projects.

A NICE TITLE

Sarah is the Founder and Artistic Director of Catskill Mountain Shakespeare Company. She is originally from Montreal, Canada, developed her craft in the UK, and ultimately made her way to New York where she now splits her time between the Catskills and Brooklyn. Sarah ran the largest Shakespeare company at Queen’s University for two years. As Artistic Director she doubled their audience numbers and grew the annual budget 50%. She was a Teaching Assistant for Dramaturgy & Drama 101 as well as a performer/educator in theatrical tours for young audiences at The Thousand Island Playhouse.