Kathy Aspden is a novelist, screenwriter, lifelong resident of Cape Cod, public speaker, host for the cable television show Books and the World, reviewer for LitLovers.com, and Vice President of the Cape Cod Writers Center. Her first novel, Baklava, Biscotti, and an Irishman, was a finalist for the Multicultural Fiction category of International Book Awards. The sequel, An Irishman’s Son, was published in May 2020. The MALA BEADS ~ A Novel of Hope and Discovery in a Time of Chaos was published in March 2024. (A mysterious mala bead necklace connects the lives of 36 people throughout the United States and Canada—each needing a miracle) Her 2015 short film, The Solomons’ Dog, was a finalist in the 15-Minutes of Fame Film Festival in Orlando, Florida.  Her short, BLAISE MADDOCH is currently a finalist in the UK Film Festival. Aspden has several feature screenplays and shorts available which can be previewed at www.kathyaspden.com. Interested in everything from the next great invention to the easiest way to tile a bathroom, Kathy is a gleeful research junkie and an enthusiastic participant in the human experience. She is currently working on The Magnificent Quarantinos, a half-hour television sitcom about a cover band singer (Nick Silver) whose goal is to regroup during the pandemic, launch himself as a jazz musician, and finally upgrade his family to upper-middle class. The only obstacle to his beautiful plan is himself!