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Denise Peters

 

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First name
Denise
Last name
Peters
CONTACT NAME
Denise Peters
 

Personal information (200 word limit for Bio, please)

Pen Name
Denise LaJuan Peters
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Please describe yourself
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Bio
Denise LaJuan Peters called northern Virginia home back when a bike ride took her to Mr. Russells's farm and the adventure-filled woods next to it. She attended college in Virginia's picturesque mountains and seminary in frigid upstate New York. But she settled in the quiet Virginia piedmont two decades ago. Dragons steal their way into her writing. But her love of Ivanhoe and Jane Eyre keeps the tropes at bay.
 

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Chapter Information

VWC Chapter (if any)
Hanover Writers
 

Speakers' Bureau

 

Poems, Novels, Plays, or other Works

Work 1 - Title
Fire Flight and Other Tanninim Tales
Work 1 - Genre
(Fiction & Literature) Science Fiction & Fantasy
Work 1 - Genre (Other)
Short Story Collection. Historical and Contemporary Fantasy. And dragon shifters.
Work 1 - Cover
Work 1 - Description
Five short stories. The first three are set in contemporary America and form a loose trilogy. A fireman without protective gear enters a burning home. A woman's thoughts see lurking danger. A student tutors without speaking.

The fourth is the first chapter "Winter" of what became the novella Oracles of the Vinedresser whose pruning advises a prince.

Last is the short story "Leah" that developed into the novella Nguni's Trade.
Work 1 - Publication Year
2022
Work 2 - Title
Oracles of the Vinedresser: A Tanninim Tale
Work 2 - Genre
(Fiction & Literature) Science Fiction & Fantasy
Work 2 - Genre (Other)
A novella. Literary fiction with fantasy elements. And dragon shifters.
Work 2 - Cover
Work 2 - Description
For 400 years, Aelia has tended the king's vineyard in servitude, a dragon hidden in human form. When Prince Deron discovers her secret, he doesn't see a servant—he sees the woman who's been guiding his kingdom from the shadows. As war with the Saxons looms, their connection deepens. But freedom comes with a cost neither of them anticipated. A sweeping fantasy romance about love that transcends time.
Work 2 - Publication Year
2023
Work 3 - Title
Nguni's Trade
Work 3 - Genre
(Fiction & Literature) Science Fiction & Fantasy
Work 3 - Genre (Other)
A novella. Literary fiction with fantasy elements. And dragon shifters.
Work 3 - Cover
Work 3 - Description
Dragons don't breathe fire—they build empires. At least, that's what Nguni believes. For two centuries, he's lived in the shadow of his brother, An-Mbire, the Anah of the tanninim. An-Mbire is patient, faithful, and beloved. Nguni is restless, ambitious, and resentful. So when the chance arises to prove himself, Nguni takes it. He convinces young dragons to open trade routes. He brokers deals with human chiefs. He dreams of wealth, power, and a return to the coastal paradise of his youth. But ambition has a cost. Nguni's Trade is an epic fantasy about the cost of ambition, the weight of legacy, and the fine line between vision and destruction. If you love complex characters, richly imagined worlds, and stories that challenge you to think, you'll love this book.
Work 3 - Publication Year
2024
Work 4 - Title
Benjamin's Choice
Work 4 - Genre
(Fiction & Literature) Science Fiction & Fantasy
Work 4 - Genre (Other)
A novella. Literary fiction with fantasy elements. And dragon shifters.
Work 4 - Cover
Work 4 - Description
1. Benjamin has spent years teaching the children of Great Zimbabwe—language, trade, diplomacy. It's a quiet life in a city that lost its dragons centuries ago. But when a dying messenger collapses outside the city walls, everything changes. The letter he carries is from the dragon king. And the girl who found him? She's not just Benjamin's student. She's the dragon heir the city has been waiting for. Now Benjamin must help her navigate jealousy, ambition, and her own self-doubt—before a ruthless rival destroys them both. A story of faith, courage, and the choices that define us.
Work 4 - Publication Year
2025
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