Author’s Corner

Grand Master Stephen Oliver, MBA

Publisher · 10th Degree Black Belt

Grand Master Stephen Oliver is a 10th Degree Black Belt, the Founder and CEO of Mile High Karate and Martial Arts Wealth Mastery, CEO and Chairman of NAPMA and Publisher of Martial Arts Professional. A school owner since 1975 and a business coach since 1985, he writes on marketing systems, pricing, staff and the economics of the professional school.

Books

• Everything I Wish I Knew When I Was 22: Essential Skills for Martial Arts School Owners (2010)
• Direct Response Marketing for Martial Arts Schools (2011)
• The Way of the Mile High Maverick: The Ultimate High-Level Business, Management, and Marketing Manual (2013)
• Extraordinary Teaching, Volume 1: Transform Your Martial Arts School Into a Leadership Academy (with Jeff Smith)
• Extraordinary Teaching Workbook: Your Implementation Guide and Training Notebook (with Jeff Smith)
• Six Simple Steps to Add 100 New Students to Your School (with Jeff Smith, Bob Dunne and Greg Moody)

Profile in Martial Arts Professional · Amazon author page

Grand Master Jeff Smith

Chief of Instruction · 10th Degree Black Belt

Grand Master Jeff Smith won the first Professional Karate Association World Light-Heavyweight title in 1974 and served as Senior Vice President of the Jhoon Rhee Institute from 1970 to 1985, training and managing instructors across its Washington-area schools. He coached U.S. teams to ten consecutive WAKO world titles and is Chief of Instruction for Mile High Karate and Martial Arts Wealth Mastery.

Books

• Extraordinary Teaching, Volume 1: Transform Your Martial Arts School Into a Leadership Academy (with Stephen Oliver)
• Extraordinary Teaching Workbook (with Stephen Oliver)
• Six Simple Steps to Add 100 New Students to Your School (with Stephen Oliver, Bob Dunne and Greg Moody)

Profile in Martial Arts Professional · Amazon author page

Chief Master Greg Moody, Ph.D.

Columnist · 8th Degree Black Belt

Chief Master Greg Moody is an 8th Degree Black Belt and the founder of KarateBuilt Martial Arts, which he started in 1995. He holds a Ph.D. in Special Education from Arizona State University and is a licensed therapist, and his books on leadership skills, bullying and parenting draw on both careers. He has written more than twenty books, from parent guides and curriculum manuals to the six-volume Life Skills of Leaders special editions, and consults with Martial Arts Wealth Mastery.

Books

• Karate Built! How KarateBuilt Builds Success and Values
• Bullying: Truths, Myths, and What To Do!
• The Life Skills of Leaders
• The Life Skills of Leaders, Special Edition: Discipline
• The Life Skills of Leaders, Special Edition: Honesty
• The Life Skills of Leaders, Special Edition: Communication
• The Life Skills of Leaders, Special Edition: Self-Esteem
• The Life Skills of Leaders, Special Edition: Vision
• The Life Skills of Leaders, Special Edition: Respect
• Parent Action Plan: ADHD
• Parent Action Plan: Autism
• Parent Action Plan: Fear
• Parent Action Plan: Better Grades
• Stories of the Black Belts, Volume I
• Stories of the Black Belts, Volume II
• Master Club Curriculum (with Eric Thomas, Sr. Master Laura Sanborn, Joe McKersie and others)
• Basic Curriculum
• Deciding How To Decide (with Tracy Lee Thomas)
• The Business of Becoming An Author (with Tracy Lee Thomas)
• Six Simple Steps to Add 100 Students (by Stephen C. Oliver, MBA; contributor)
• The Devil Gets Fed Twice A Day: The Soul-Crushing Art of Being Someone’s Property (a humor book “dictated” by his cat)

Profile in Martial Arts Professional · Amazon author page · All books at MasterMoody.com

Hanshi Jessie Bowen

Columnist · Founder, American Martial Arts Alliance

Hanshi Jessie Bowen has taught martial arts in Durham, North Carolina, since opening his school in 1980. In 2005 he founded the American Martial Arts Alliance, which publishes Who’s Who in the Martial Arts and the annual AMAA Legacy Book, and he has compiled and published a long series of biographical directories of martial artists. He also writes and teaches on publishing, public speaking and publicity for martial artists, hosts the Become An Author Podcast, and joined Martial Arts Professional as a columnist in 2026.

Books

• AMAA Who’s Who in the Martial Arts Autobiography
• 2017 Who’s Who in the Martial Arts: Legends Edition (2017)
• AMAA Martial Arts Masters & Pioneers (2018)
• Martial Arts Masters & Pioneers: Who’s Really Who in the Martial Arts, Vol. 4 (2018)
• Martial Arts Masters & Pioneers: Who’s Really Who in the Martial Arts, Vol. 2 (2019)
• Public Speaking for Martial Artists: Winning the Public Speaking Game (2019)
• Publicity and Press Release Marketing for Profit: Get Your Message Out (2019)
• Action Martial Arts Magazine Hall of Honors World History Book (with Alan Goldberg) (2019)
• Martial Arts Masters & Pioneers: Tribute to Chuck Norris — Giving Back for a Lifetime (2020)
• Become an Author for Martial Artists: The Art of Getting a Book Published (2020)
• The Changing Lives Series (2021)
• AMAA Legacy Book Global Edition, Vol. II
• AMAA Legacy Book 10th Anniversary Edition: A Martial Arts Biography Anthology (2024)

Amazon author page · Website · Become An Author Podcast

Peyton Quinn

Contributor · Founder, RMCAT

Peyton Quinn founded RMCAT in Colorado and is a pioneer of adrenaline-stress, scenario-based self-defense training. His columns for this magazine examined the adrenal-stress response and how it changes what a student can actually do under pressure.

Books

• A Bouncer’s Guide to Barroom Brawling (1990)
• Real Fighting: Adrenaline Stress Conditioning Through Scenario-Based Training (1996)
• Freedom From Fear

Profile in Martial Arts Professional · Amazon author page

Keith Yates, M.A.

Contributor · Dallas karate and taekwondo pioneer

Keith Yates earned his first black belt in 1968 and served for several years on the physical education faculty at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, where in 1971 he introduced the first martial arts program for college credit at a southwestern university. He is a longtime leader of AKATO and the author of standard taekwondo references.

Books

• The Complete Book of Taekwon Do Forms (1988)
• Tae Kwon Do Basics (with H. Bryan Robbins) (1992)
• Warrior Secrets: A Handbook of the Martial Arts
• The Complete Guide to American Karate and Tae Kwon Do

Profile in Martial Arts Professional · Amazon author page

Rob Colasanti

Contributor · Former President of NAPMA

Rob Colasanti is a former president of NAPMA, a veteran black belt and former school operator, and a speaker on school operations. His books for school owners grew out of years of consulting with NAPMA members.

Books

• How to Build the Martial Arts School of Your Dreams
• What I’ve Learned (2004)

Profile in Martial Arts Professional

Chris Dewey

Contributor · Professor and judo coach

Chris Dewey is a university professor and martial artist with black belts in judo, jujitsu, taekwondo and hapkido. He ran the Starkville Martial Arts Academy and chaired the United States Judo Association’s Coaching Education Committee.

Books

• Coaching for Martial Artists: The Masterclass Text
• Moving and Breathing: Lessons from the Martial Way

Profile in Martial Arts Professional · Amazon author page

Fariborz Azhakh

Contributor · Team Karate Centers

Fariborz Azhakh is the owner and head instructor of Team Karate Centers in Woodland Hills, California, and the producer of martialinfo.com. His books cover school systems and the purpose behind them.

Books

• Open Hands
• Standard Operations Manual: Martial Art School
• Building a Martial Arts Legacy: The Art of Building Better Human Beings

Profile in Martial Arts Professional · Amazon author page

Douglas Adamson

Contributor · Shorei Kai karate

Douglas Adamson teaches Shorei Kai, an Americanized Okinawan karate system, along with Yamani Ryu classical Okinawan weapons and Pikiti Tirsha kali.

Books

• Beginning Karate

Profile in Martial Arts Professional

Tony Robbins

Invited expert · Black belt under Jhoon Rhee

Tony Robbins, the peak-performance strategist, earned his black belt under Grand Master Jhoon Rhee and received the NAPMA Martial Arts Professional Lifetime Achievement Award in 2003.

Books

• Unlimited Power (1986)
• Awaken the Giant Within (1991)
• MONEY Master the Game (2014)

Profile in Martial Arts Professional · Amazon author page

Brian Tracy

Invited expert · Sales and personal achievement

Brian Tracy is one of the best-known authors and speakers on sales, productivity and personal achievement, and received the NAPMA Martial Arts Professional Lifetime Achievement Award in 2010.

Books

• Maximum Achievement (1993)
• Eat That Frog! (2001)
• The Psychology of Selling (2004)

Profile in Martial Arts Professional

Lee Milteer

Invited expert · NAPMA Inner Circle success coach

Lee Milteer is a performance and success coach for entrepreneurs and a longtime coach to NAPMA’s Inner Circle members.

Books

• Success Is an Inside Job (1996)
• Spiritual Power Tools for Successful Selling (2005)
• Reclaim the Magic (2015)

Profile in Martial Arts Professional · Amazon author page

Jim Rohn

Invited expert · Business philosopher

Jim Rohn (1930–2009) was a business philosopher and mentor to a generation of personal-development teachers.

Books

• The Seasons of Life (1981)
• 7 Strategies for Wealth & Happiness (1985)
• The Five Major Pieces to the Life Puzzle (1991)

Profile in Martial Arts Professional

Denis Waitley

Invited expert · The Psychology of Winning

Denis Waitley is the author of The Psychology of Winning and a peak-performance adviser to athletes and executives.

Books

• The Psychology of Winning (1979)
• Seeds of Greatness (1983)
• Empires of the Mind (1995)

Profile in Martial Arts Professional

Harvey Mackay

Invited expert · Sales and business

Harvey Mackay is a bestselling business author, syndicated columnist and founder of MackayMitchell Envelope Company.

Books

• Swim with the Sharks Without Being Eaten Alive (1988)
• Dig Your Well Before You’re Thirsty (1997)
• The Mackay MBA of Selling in the Real World (2011)

Profile in Martial Arts Professional

Grand Master William “Bill” Clark

Founder, Karate America · 9th Degree Black Belt

Grand Master Bill Clark began training in 1968 in Omaha under Grand Master H.U. Lee and opened his first school in March 1971. Karate America, headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida, has grown to 17 Florida locations teaching Songahm taekwondo, Krav Maga and Kali. He was ATA Instructor of the Year in 1974 and PKA Fighter of the Year in 1976, sat on the ATA’s original Masters’ Council and Founders’ Council, and founded the Warrior Program in 2010.

Books

• Attitude: The Warrior Way (2024)

Karate America

Master Marty Callahan

Shotokan Karate Leadership School · 8th Degree Black Belt

Master Marty Callahan is an 8th Degree Black Belt in Shotokan karate and a graduate of the Japan Karate Association’s Instructor Training Program. He founded the Shotokan Karate Leadership School in Santa Rosa, California, in 1981 and has taught more than 15,000 students in some 40,000 classes. His Hero’s Journey books apply the arc of the hero’s journey to raising children.

Books

• The Hero’s Journey: Prepare Your Child To Impact The World
• The Hero’s Journey, Act III: The Return (2025)

Shihan Marc Pamfilis

Founder, Shihan Marc’s Karate Academy

Shihan Marc Pamfilis teaches traditional Japanese-style karate at Shihan Marc’s Karate Academy in Timonium, Maryland, and has spent more than fifty years helping children become confident, respectful young leaders. His books explain why physicians and educators recommend martial arts for children and set out the leadership system he uses in his own school.

Books

• Karate Cure: Why Doctors Recommend Martial Arts Training for Children (2025)
• LEADERSHIP: How To Build Happiness and Success! (2025)

Website

Master Colby Winkler

Owner, Lee’s Champion Tae Kwon Do Academy · 6th Degree

Master Colby Winkler is a 6th Degree Master Instructor who has run Lee’s Champion Tae Kwon Do Academy in Mankato, Minnesota, with his wife Melissa since 2001, the same year the school became a Partner in Education with Mankato’s schools. His first book draws on years of mentoring children to give parents practical strategies for discipline, focus and perseverance.

Books

• Unlocking Discipline: Parents’ Secrets To Building Strong, Happy, and Successful Kids (2025)

Website

Master Steven Seme

Co-owner, USA Karate, Rosemount, Minnesota

Master Steven Seme came to the dojo from a career in business and co-owns USA Karate in Rosemount, Minnesota. His book treats resilience as a skill parents can teach, covering self-awareness, self-control, independence, flexibility and optimism, and draws on his and his wife’s experience raising their own children.

Books

• Can’t Be Broken: Secrets for Raising Resilient Kids (2024)

Website

Grand Master Timothy S. Harrison

Founder, TM Martial Arts Academy

Grand Master Tim Harrison founded TM Martial Arts Academy in the Joliet–Plainfield area of Illinois in 2003. He holds an 8th Degree black belt in Tae Kwon Do and a 7th Degree in Combat Hapkido, with black belts in the Joe Lewis and Bill “Superfoot” Wallace systems. His book distills what he has learned from two decades of teaching children.

Books

• 7 Sure Ways to Build Strong and Successful Kids (2023)

Professor Travis Tooke

Founder, Team Tooke Mixed Martial Arts Academy

Professor Travis Tooke received his Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt from Carlos Gracie Jr. in December 2005, after training in Rio de Janeiro, and now holds the 5th degree. He founded Team Tooke Mixed Martial Arts Academy in 2005, with locations in Houston and Cypress, Texas, teaching jiu-jitsu, Muay Thai and MMA. Since 2015 he has run the Warrior Crucible, the endurance event that gives his book its name.

Books

• The Warrior Crucible: Your Journey Toward Black Belt Excellence! (2023)

Team Tooke · Website

Master Adam Theros

Owner, Northwest Indiana Martial Arts Academy · 4th Degree

Master Adam Theros began Tang Soo Do in 1993 and is a 4th Degree Master Instructor with the World Tang Soo Do Association. He has taught since 2002, founded the Valparaiso University club in 2006 and opened Northwest Indiana Martial Arts Academy in Schererville in 2013. His book argues that raising capable kids means expecting them to do hard things.

Books

• Make Your Kid Do Stuff! How Parents Build Excellence (2025)

Website

Melissa R. Bosstick

Co-owner, Family Success Martial Arts, Bloomington, Indiana

Melissa Bosstick began Songahm taekwondo in 2000 and co-owns Family Success Martial Arts in Bloomington, Indiana, with Shane Bosstick. Her first book blends humor and personal stories into practical tools for connection, confidence and discipline with young children.

Books

• Keys to Kids: How to Tame the Little Monsters (2025)

Website

Guru Tim Lucas

Owner and Head Instructor, Erie Krav Maga

Guru Tim Lucas has more than four decades in combat and reality-based martial arts and runs Erie Krav Maga in Erie, Pennsylvania, teaching Krav Maga, Silat, Tai Chi and wilderness survival. His book applies martial arts philosophy to self-sufficiency in health, finances and practical skills, built on what he calls “dirt time,” learning by doing.

Books

• Mastering the Art of Being Independent (2024)

Website

Chuck Vertolli, Samuel Llabres and Kyle Lee

Yi’s Karate of Vineland, New Jersey

Chief Master Chuck Vertolli, a 7th Degree black belt, founded Yi’s Karate of Vineland in 2008, where Master Samuel Llabres is head instructor and Kyle Lee, MSW, a 3rd Degree black belt, teaches. Their jointly written guide covers goal setting, self-control, discipline, self-esteem and mentorship, with practical exercises for each.

Books

• Transformation Through Training: A Master’s Guide to Achieving Anything You Want! (2024)

Website

Greg Silva

School owner, consultant, United Professionals

Greg Silva opened his first karate school in 1973, the year he graduated from the University of Connecticut School of Business, and ran five Connecticut schools by 1982. In 1994 he founded United Professionals, which provides tuition billing and consulting to martial arts schools. He was one of the nine members of Educational Funding Company’s first Board of Directors in 1987 and has coached school owners privately since 2010.

Books

• The Silva Solution: Building Black Belts from the Inside Out
• Martial Arts Teaches Kids A Lot
• Keep It System Simple
• David Kicks It Up A Notch
• Jett’s Quest: Exploring Cultures and Martial Arts

Amazon author page · Website

Dave Kovar

Founder, Kovar’s Satori Academy

Dave Kovar began training in 1973, opened his first school in 1978 and built Kovar’s Satori Academy into a multi-location organization in the Sacramento area. Through Kovar Systems he coaches school owners and instructors. He received the U.S. Martial Arts Association’s Instructor of the Year award in 1992 and the Martial Arts Industry Association Lifetime Achievement Award in 2010.

Books

• The Martial Arts Instructor’s Toolbox (2012)
• A Dad’s Toolbox for Better Parenting (2011)
• 15 Powerful Tools for Successful Parenting (2011)
• Brief Moments of Clarity

Amazon author page · Website

Grand Master Buzz Durkin

Headmaster, Uechiryu Butokukai

Buzz Durkin began Uechi-ryu training in 1966 and in 1971 was among the first Americans to travel to Okinawa to train in the style. He opened his school in 1974 and in 1984 founded the Uechiryu Butokukai, which he leads as headmaster. His organization credits him with the first junior black belt program in Uechi-ryu. Success Is Waiting is his guide for school owners.

Books

• Success Is Waiting: The Martial Arts School Owner’s Guide to Teaching, Business, and Life (2015)

Website

Keith Hafner

Keith Hafner’s Karate, Ann Arbor

Keith Hafner began taekwondo training in 1973 and built Keith Hafner’s Karate in Ann Arbor, Michigan, into one of the best-known professional schools in the Midwest. He was one of the nine members of Educational Funding Company’s first Board of Directors in 1987 and was promoted to ninth degree black belt in 2019. His books cover raising children and running a small business.

Books

• How to Build Rock Solid Kids (2001)
• Small Business Mastery (2019)

Website

Chuck Norris

Martial artist, actor, author (1940–2026)

Chuck Norris was a six-time undefeated Professional Middleweight World Champion who founded Chun Kuk Do in 1990 and held an 8th Dan in taekwondo. He learned American karate from J. Pat Burleson, starred in Walker, Texas Ranger, and in 1990 founded Kickstart Kids, which teaches character through karate in Texas schools. He died in March 2026 and was posthumously inducted into the Martial Arts Professional Lifetime Achievement Awards.

Books

• Winning Tournament Karate (1975)
• The Secret of Inner Strength: My Story (with Joe Hyams) (1987)
• The Secret Power Within: Zen Solutions to Real Problems (1996)
• Against All Odds: My Story (2004)

Profile in Martial Arts Professional · Amazon author page

John Graden

Founder, NAPMA and Martial Arts Professional

John Graden founded the National Association of Professional Martial Artists in 1994 and launched Martial Arts Professional in 1996. A black belt under Joe Lewis, he also created the American Council on Martial Arts instructor certification and later the Martial Arts Teachers’ Association.

Books

• Black Belt Management (1996)
• How to Open and Operate a Successful Martial Arts School
• The Truth About the Martial Arts Business (2003)
• The Impostor Syndrome (2008)
• The Art of Marketing Without Marketing (2011)

Profile in Martial Arts Professional · Amazon author page

Tracy Lee Thomas

Founder, Go2 Karate

Tracy Lee Thomas is the founder of Go2 Karate, a platform that connects families with martial arts schools, and publishes Go2 Karate Business Magazine for school owners. A veteran of Desert Shield and Desert Storm, he ran a small chain of martial arts schools and now works as a growth strategist for small-business owners.

Books

• Stacking The Success: Business Secrets (2021)
• Go2 Karate Business Magazine (book series) (2023–)

See his books on Amazon · Website

Ted Gambordella

Dallas martial artist and author

Ted Gambordella is a Dallas martial artist, fitness author and instructor with more than five decades in karate, jiu-jitsu and weapons. He has written more than forty books on self-defense, weapons, grappling, flexibility and motivation, including a biography of Jeff Smith, and developed the “Obsessive Mental Attitude” success philosophy.

Books

• The 100 Deadliest Karate Moves (1982)
• Complete Book of Karate Weapons (1991)
• The Complete Book of Jiu Jitsu
• The Great Texas Martial Artists
• Jeff Smith… Martial Arts and Business Champion

Amazon author page

Walter Anderson

Author and former Parade editor

Walter Anderson served as editor of Parade magazine from 1980 and as its chairman and CEO from 2000 to 2009. A Marine Corps veteran and member of the Horatio Alger Association, he writes on courage, confidence and taking risks.

Books

• Courage Is a Three-Letter Word (1986)
• The Greatest Risk of All (1988)
• The Confidence Course: Seven Steps to Self-Fulfillment (1997)
• Meant to Be (2003)

Amazon author page