Craig Cornwell
Kentucky Educational Television Executive Producer

"I've used Michael Kelsay on several projects and have always been pleased with the end result. He has a real passion for research and his interview questions are always both thought-provoking and insightful. Besides a true dedication to the subject matter, he has what I consider to be most important in a writer and researcher—a sense of humor."

Phone: 859.258.7275
Email: CCornwell@ket.org

Art Jester
Editor of the Lexington Herald-Leader's Sunday "Books" section

"Michael Kelsay was one of my best book reviewers during the more than nine years I served as book editor. I came to trust him implicitly, and I cannot recall a single time when he failed to meet a deadline. Moreover, he brought to his work not only a great deal of formal knowledge but a generous sense of humor that made working with him all the more enjoyable."

Phone: 859.231.3489
Email: ajester@herald-leader.com

Ed McClanahan
Author of Natural Man, Famous People I Have Known, and A Congress of Wonders

"Mike's writing in many genres is impressive: his fiction; his numerous book reviews for the Lexington Herald-Leader; the text he produced for Great Balls of Fire, Kentucky Educational Television's five-hour history of basketball in Kentucky; and his text for the Kentucky Music Hall of Fame project are all absolutely first rate. Finally, Michael Kelsay is meticulous, responsible, thoroughly reliable, personable, congenial, keenly intelligent, and personally attractive in every way."

Phone: 859.231.8322
Email: ed@edmcclanahan.com

Dr. Johnny Payne
Chair, Department of Creative Writing, University of Texas, El-Paso

"During his stint as visiting writer at Florida Atlantic University, Mike Kelsay brought the right balance of humor and sincerity to the classroom. Thoroughly prepared, he used wit to disarm the students and prepare them for serious work. This is the approach of a veteran, who is relaxed enough to know what needs to be done, and how to get there."

Phone: 915.747.5713
Email: jpayne@utep.edu

Robert Olen Butler
Pulitzer Prize-Winning Novelist and Short Story Writer

Phone: 850-644-0238
Email: rbutler@fsu.edu