Kristi Leonard brings a wealth of experience to her role as President of the Board of Directors. A seasoned leader, she has founded and led three nonprofits, managing their boards with dedication and skill. Her lifelong commitment to volunteerism is evident in her journey from high school Key Club president to organizing 250-person teams for Team in Training and overseeing the recruitment and training of therapy animal teams through her nonprofit, Therapy Animal Coalition.

Kristi is also a passionate writer, currently working on her second unpublished novel, and engages in several literary-related ventures. She runs a women-only writing retreat business—Writers in the Wild, narrates nonfiction audiobooks with ACX, and co-hosts the podcast Author Express. Residing in Florida with her husband, Kristi draws inspiration from her weekly "writer-hiker" walks and finds joy in the accomplishments of her young adult children. 

Catherine Matthews serves WFWA as the VP of Technology on the 2025 Board of Directors. In this role, she oversees the implementation of technology to support the organization and its members. Her team of volunteers serves in a variety of roles supporting all departments and members. 

Catherine has held a number of positions in education including teacher, high school principal, and Director of Assessment and Research. Over the course of more than three decades in school district leadership, she earned a Bachelor of Science in Biology from the University of Alaska Fairbanks, a Master of Education in Educational Leadership from Western Washington University, and a Doctorate in Educational Leadership from Washington State University. She has extensive experience in the implementation of technology to support large organizations, data analytics, and project management.  

Her debut novel Releasing the Reins was published in June of 2024. She lives in Washington State with her husband and their two Boxers, Buttercup and Delta. Delta often attends the WFWA Writing Dates with Catherine. Buttercup judges them both harshly for that.

Ginger Haggerty serves as the Vice President of Programs for WFWA in 2025. She oversees all programming for WFWA members, including workshops, the critique and mentorship programs, the Pitch Program, and Writing Dates—all supported by their own dedicated and savvy volunteers.

Ginger began her career in the non-profit sector in Boston, where she did policy advocacy and managed a learning network with over 100 non-profit members following receiving her graduate degree in public policy. Simultaneously, she ran an online retail site for customized equestrian apparel before moving on to pursue writing. 

Following nearly a decade in New England,she moved to Washington, DC with her wife where she now works at The Brookings Institution, a world-renowned research organization, planning private convenings and managing practitioner networks made up of individuals and organizations from all over the US. 

A member of WFWA since December 2022, Ginger is currently pre-published and writes fantasy and contemporary fiction. When she’s not organizing an event or writing, she can be found gardening, walking her dog, or watching her young daughter grow up way too fast.

Marie W. Watts serves on the 2025 WFWA Board as Vice President of Diversity & Inclusion.

Her life’s work has been to assure an equal playing field for all through her work as an employment discrimination investigator, human resource manager and director, mediator, and diversity trainer to thousands of individuals.

Her publications to date consist of three works of nonfiction (including her internationally selling, coauthored textbook Human Relations, 4th ed.) as well as five novels and a wealth of blogs and magazine and newspaper articles.

Her passion is maintenance, preservation, and promotion of a historic house in La Grange, with a rich African American past. She lives on a ranch in Central Texas with her husband.

Debbie Abbott serves WFWA as the VP of Events on the 2025 Board of Directors.

Brain tumor-survivor and angel believer, Debbie Abbott understands the importance of recognizing and pursuing dreams. Along her journey to become a novelist, writing has been a constant beacon guiding Abbott’s life: both in her career in PR & Marketing and her dream job as Managing Editor of a Scottsdale, AZ print magazine and companion TV show. 

Abbott has penned more than 100 articles printed in local and regional publications and worked as a freelance editor and writer for the same national publishing company for 15 years. Recently, Abbott’s first published poem was included in an all women’s anthology.

Passionate about helping other writers perfect their craft, Abbott has been a volunteer for WFWA since January 2023, creating and growing the association’s members-only platform.

Krista White serves WFWA as the VP of Membership on the 2025 Board of Directors.

Krista White began volunteering with WFWA only months after joining the organization in early 2022. She first served as Volunteer Coordinator, being promoted to Manager of Volunteer Recruitment and now serves as Membership Director, Volunteers. Her career choices have centred around effective communication, first as a figure skating coach, then direct sales professional, sales manager, executive recruiter and co-owner of a small recruitment firm. Krista began writing six years ago, and her first book, a novella, was published in 2021. She loves writing romantic tension, and funnily enough, miscommunication tropes. She lives in an idyllic Southern Ontario hamlet with her steadfast hubby, enigmatic sons, and her vegetable garden.

David “D.L.” Williams serves as Secretary on the 2025 Board of Directors.

David “D.L.” Williams is a retired thirty-year public safety officer with assignments having included Advanced Life Support ambulances, tactical medic, helicopter rescue, police patrol, mental health liaison, and violent crime investigations as a detective. Williams is the bestselling author of Fighting for Her Life: What to do When Someone You Know is Being Abused and Textbooks, Not Targets: How to Prevent School Shootings in Your Community, and he now teaches criminology at the University of Arkansas. He and his family have settled in the Arkansas River Valley where they offer a haven for rescued horses and donkeys.

Christine Wilcox serves WFWA as VP of Communications on the 2025 Board of Directors.

Stephanie Claypool serves WFWA as VP of Finance/Treasurer on the 2025 Board of Directors. She is responsible for managing all funds for the organization and assisting and advising others.

A native New Yorker, Stephanie graduated from the University at Albany with a BS in Accounting. After many years as a CPA working for a large accounting firm in New York, she moved to London and began working in the corporate world. Her career led her to San Diego where she spent many years and eventually ended her accounting career.

Stephanie now lives in Pittsburgh with her husband and a menagerie of pets. She devotes her time to writing and other pursuits. Her debut novel is expected in the fall of 2024.

Christine Orchanian Adler serves as the Past President of the Women’s Fiction Writers Association (WFWA) on the 2025 Board of Directors. In addition to advising the board, she volunteers on the Inside WFWA Newsletter editorial team and in the Mentorship Program. Previously she served as President of WFWA, as well as VP of Programs.

After nearly a decade in IT, Christine earned a master’s degree in Creative Writing. She’s a former editor of the literary journal Inkwell and the regional NY parenting magazines Westchester Parent and Rockland Parent. Her articles, essays, poems, and book reviews have appeared in various print and online publications throughout the US and Canada. Her poetry chapbook Undressing the Heart was published by Finishing Line Press in 2021.

She writes poetry and historical women’s fiction and lives in New York with her husband and son as well as a rescue dog who’s too smart for his own good.

Maggie Marr serves as Legal Counsel and is one of the founders of Women's Fiction Writers Association. She is the USA Today Best Selling author of over 20 books, including the wildly popular series, Hollywood Girls Club. She is a successful attorney, author, and producer.
 
As a former ICM motion picture literary agent, she worked on such projects as Meet the Parents, Meet the Fockers, Underworld, Last First Kiss, Bourne Identity, Bridget Jones's Diary, and Game of Thrones, as well as a host of books to film and TV projects. Her extensive background in entertainment and intellectual property law led her to found Maggie Marr Legal, a boutique intellectual property law practice dedicated to the needs of Hollywood's creatives.
 
Maggie Marr Legal provides comprehensive legal services to clients in the entertainment industry with a specialized focus in representing creators, financiers, publishers, producers, and production entities in publishing, film, television, gaming, and digital content. The firm provides experienced legal services to optimize its clients' financial, legal, and business position in the financing, production, and monetization of their content.
 
She is also the founder of Happily Ever After Inc., a media company specializing in books and mobile games. She's also the co-founder and managing partner of Tule Productions, a subsidiary of Tule Entertainment Group.

Nancy Johnson serves as the Guiding Scribe of the Women’s Fiction Writers Association (WFWA) on the 2025 Board of Directors. 

Nancy Johnson is the author of the highly acclaimed The Kindest Lie and her latest novel, People of Means, forthcoming from William Morrow/HarperCollins February 11, 2025. Her writing explores themes of race, class, and family that resonate deeply with many of us, and her success at writing women’s fiction makes her a great fit for this role. You may remember her as our keynote speaker at the 2022 conference. Nancy states "I was part of this organization near its inception and attended the first retreat in Albuquerque. I wouldn't be a successfully published author without the community I found at WFWA so it's my honor to give back." You can learn more about her work at nancyjohnson.net.