WINE DINE & TRAVEL MAGAZINE SPRING 2015

REGULAR CONTRIBUTORS
Alison DaRosa
Alison DaRosa is a six-time winner of the Lowell Thomas Gold Award for travel writing, the most prestigious prize in
travel journalism. She served 15 years as Travel Editor of the San Diego Union-Tribune. She was the award-winning
editor of the San Diego News Network Travel Page. She produces and edits the San Diego Essential Guide, a highly
rated and continually updated travel app for mobile devices. Alison is a regular freelance contributor to the travel
sections of U-T San Diego, the Los Angeles Times and USA Today.
Sharon Whitley Larsen
Sharon Whitley Larsen’s work has appeared in numerous publications, including Los Angeles Times Magazine, U-T
San Diego, Reader’s Digest (and 19 international editions), Creators Syndicate, and several “Chicken Soup for the
Soul” editions. Although she enjoys writing essays, op-ed, and people features, her favorite topic is travel (favorite
destination London). She’s been lucky to attend a private evening champagne reception in Buckingham Palace
to celebrate Queen Elizabeth II’s Diamond Jubilee, to dine with best-selling author Diana Gabaldon in the Scottish
Highlands, and hike with a barefoot Aborigine in the Australian Outback. Exploring sites from exotic travels in the
Arctic Circle to ritzy Rio, with passport in hand, she’s always ready for the next adventure!
Carl H. Larsen
Carl H. Larsen is a veteran journalist based in San Diego. He now focuses on travel writing, and is summoned to pull
out his notebook whenever there’s the plaintive cry of a steam locomotive nearby. In San Diego, he is a collegeextension
instructor who has led courses on the Titanic and the popular TV series “Downton Abbey.”
Maribeth Mellin
Maribeth Mellin is an award-winning journalist whose travel articles have appeared in Endless Vacation Magazine,
U-T San Diego and Dallas Morning News among others. She also travels and writes for several websites including
CNN Travel, Concierge.com and Zagat, and has authored travel books on Peru, Argentina, Costa Rica, Mexico,
Hawaii and California. Though known as a Mexico pro, Maribeth has written about every continent and was especially
thrilled by the ice, air and penguins in Antarctica.
Susan McBeth
Susan McBeth is the founder and owner of Adventures by the Book ( www.adventuresbythebook.com ) which
brings literature to life for readers through events and travels with authors. She is the founder of the SoCal
Author Academy, providing workshops and training to help authors better connect with readers. She is a current
member of the One Book One San Diego committee, and a former board member with the Southern California
Booksellers Association.
Priscilla Lister
Priscilla Lister is a longtime journalist in her native San Diego. She has covered a many subjects over the years,
but travel is her favorite. Her work, including photography, has appeared in the U-T San Diego, Los Angeles Times,
Alaska Airlines magazine and numerous other publications throughout the U.S. and Canada. She currently writes
a weekly hiking column for the U-T, photographing every trail and its many wonders. But when the distant road
beckons, she can’t wait to pack her bags.
Robert Whitley
Robert Whitley writes the syndicated “Wine Talk” column for Creators Syndicate and is publisher of the online wine
magazine, Wine Review Online. Whitley frequently serves as a judge at wine competitions around the world, including
Concours Mondial de Bruxelles, Sunset Magazine International and the Dallas Morning News TexSom wine
competitions. Robert also operates four major international wine competitions in San Diego: Critics Challenge,
Winemaker Challenge, Sommelier Challenge and the San Diego International.
Jody Jaffe & John Muncie
Jody and John are the co-authors of the novels, “Thief of Words,” and “Shenandoah Summer,” published by Warner
Books. John was feature editor of the San Diego Union-Tribune, arts editor of The Baltimore Sun and writer-editor-columnist
for the travel department of The Los Angeles Times. His travel articles have been published in many major newspapers;
he's a Lowell Thomas award-winner. Jody is the author of "Horse of a Different Killer,"'Chestnut Mare, Beware,"
and "In Colt Blood,” As a journalist at the Charlotte Observer, she was on a team that won the Pulitzer Prize. Her articles
have been published in many newspapers and magazines including The New York Times and The Los Angeles Times.
They live on a farm in Lexington, Va., with eleven horses, three cats and an explosion of stink bugs.
6 Wine Dine & Travel Winter 2015