Gennifer Albin is a recovering academic who realized she could write books of her own and discovered, delightfully, that people would read them. She lives in Kansas with her family and writes full-time. Her debut novel, Crewel, the first in a trilogy, will be published in October 2012 by FSG/Macmillan. it began life as a NaNoWriMo novel in 2010 and attracted multiple agents after a WriteOnCon live event in April 2011.
You can follow her on Twitter and Facebook. She also blogs infrequently at genniferalbin.com and weekly at The League of Extraordinary Writers.
Lenore Appelhans moved frequently growing up due to her dad’s US Air Force career. To date, she’s lived in six countries and visited nearly sixty. She currently resides in Frankfurt, Germany, with her illustrator husband Daniel Jennewein. Level 2, coming from Simon & Schuster BFYR on January 15, 2013, is her first novel. Visit her at PresentingLenore.blogspot.com, where she has been blogging about YA lit since 2008.
Mindee Arnett is the author of two forthcoming young adult series. The first book in her contemporary fantasy series, The Nightmare Affair, will be available March 2013 from Tor Teen (Macmillan). Her YA sci-fi thriller, Finding Eden, will debut Winter 2014 from Balzer + Bray (HarperCollins). She lives on a horse farm in Ohio with her husband, two kids, a couple of dogs, and an inappropriate number of cats. She’s addicted to jumping horses and telling tales of magic, the macabre, and outer space. Find her online at www.mindeearnett.com.
Leigh Bardugo is the author of the New York Times Best Seller, Shadow and Bone (Holt Children’s/ Macmillan). She was born in Jerusalem, grew up in Los Angeles, and graduated from Yale University. These days, she hides out in Hollywood, where she indulges her fondness for glamour and ghouls in her other life as makeup artist L.B. Benson.
Frank Cole has lived in such exotic places as the Philippines and Kentucky, and currently lives with his wife and three children out west. While he strived for years to earn his publishing credits, Frank considers sharing his message of “Exercising Your Imagination” to over 40,000 kids across the country as his greatest accomplishment. The Guardians of Elijah’s Fire is Frank’s 5th published book. You can learn more about his writing at franklewiscole.blogspot.com.
Kimberley Griffiths-Little is a native California girl, but a current resident on a dirt road along the Rio Grande. She’s also the author of The Healing Spell and Circle of Secrets with two new titles forthcoming in 2013 (When the Butterflies Came, Scholastic, and Forbidden, Harpercollins). She has received the Southwest Book Award, the Whitney Award for Best Youth Novel of 2010, Bank Street College Best Books of 2011, Crystal Kite Finalist, and New Mexico Book Award.
Kimberley is the co-founder of SPELLBINDERS, an online newsletter for Educators/Librarians/Parents and helped found the popular Middle-Grade blog, From the Mixed-Up Files. Kimberley makes way too many cookies when she’s revising and the best MG book trailers in the universe – for reals! Check them out here: www.kimberleygriffithslittle.com. Find her on Facebook or Twitter.
Denise Jaden is, or has been, everything from a professional Polynesian dancer and fitness competitor to a mushroom farmer and church secretary. Most of her time now is spent homeschooling or playing with her young son or in front of her computer writing.
The first draft of Denise’s first novel for teens, LOSING FAITH, was written in twenty-one days during NaNoWriMo 2007. Her second novel from Simon Pulse/Simon & Schuster, NEVER ENOUGH, was just released in July 2012. Her first non-fiction work, WRITING WITH A HEAVY HEART: USING GRIEF AND LOSS TO STRETCH YOUR FICTION, will be out in fall 2012.
She lives just outside Vancouver, Canada with her husband and son.
Claire Legrand is a Texan living in New York City. She used to be a musician until she realized she couldn’t stop thinking about the stories in her head. Now a full-time writer, Claire can often be found typing with purpose on her keyboard or spontaneously embarking upon adventures to lands unknown. The Cavendish Home for Boys and Girls is her first novel, due out August 28 from Simon & Schuster Books For Young Readers. Her second novel, The Year of Shadows, a ghost story for middle grade readers, comes out August 2013. Her third novel, Winterspell, a young adult re-telling of The Nutcracker, comes out Fall 2014.
Jessica Martinez is the author of contemporary young adult novels VIRTUOSITY (Simon Pulse, 2011) and THE SPACE BETWEEN US (Simon Pulse, 2012), as well as two more novels to be published in 2013 and 2014 with Simon Pulse. She was born and raised in Calgary, Canada. As a child she played the violin, read books and climbed trees incessantly. She went on to study English and music at Brigham Young University, and since then has been a high school English teacher, symphony violinist, elementary school teacher, violin teacher, and mother. She currently lives in Orlando, Florida with her husband and two children.
Marissa Meyer is the New York Times-bestselling author of CINDER: Book One of the Lunar Chronicles. She’s a fan of most things geeky (Sailor Moon, Firefly, any occasion that encourages costumes), and has been in love with fairy tales since she was a kid. She may or may not be a cyborg.
Visit her web site & blog at http://www.marissameyer.com.
Megan Miranda was a scientist and high-school teacher before writing her very successful YA debut novel FRACTURE (Walker, 2012), which received a PW starred review and came out of her fascination with scientific mysteries – especially those associated with the brain.
Megan has a BS in biology from MIT and spent her post-college years either rocking a lab coat or reading books.
She lives near Charlotte, North Carolina, where she volunteers as an MIT Educational Counselor. Her second novel, HYSTERIA, publishes in Winter 2013 and will be followed in 2014 by VENGEANCE, a follow-up story to FRACTURE but told from a different perspective.
Shelley Moore Thomas is the author of ten books for children, including the much heralded GOOD KNIGHT series (Penguin) and the forthcoming fantasy middle-grade novel, THE SEVEN TALES OF TRINKET (FSG Macmillan). In addition, she is an elementary school teacher and a storyteller known as the Story Queen. With a collection of rather rambunctious puppets, she performs at libraries, book fairs, and other special events. She also runs writing workshops for children when she can. Currently, she is working on a new picturebook, and a new novel as well. Shelley is married and has three daughters, two dogs and one cat. She lives in Oceanside, California, but don’t let the name fool you. She is not that close to the ocean, really.
You can visit her at www.storyqueenscastle.blogspot.com.
Jennifer A. Nielsen was born and raised in northern Utah, where she still lives today with her husband, three children, and a dog that won’t play fetch. She is the author of The Ascendance trilogy, beginning with THE FALSE PRINCE; of The Underworld Chronicles, beginning with ELLIOT AND THE GOBLIN WAR; and will write the sixth book of the Infinity Ring series. She loves chocolate, old books, and lazy days in the mountains.
Phoebe North lives in New York State with her husband and a very spoiled tabby cat. Her first novel, STARGLASS, an epic sci-fi story of rebellion and revenge, will be published by Simon & Schuster BFYR in Summer of 2013. Visit her review blog at www.intergalatic-academy.net, and her website at www.phoebenorth.com.
Joy Preble is the author of the DREAMING ANASTASIA series (Sourcebooks), which blends paranormal romance with historical fiction. The second book, HAUNTED, is out now, and ANASTASIA FOREVER is coming in August 2012. Another paranormal – about a sixteen-year-old stoner who returns from a fatal car accident as his sister’s guardian angel – THE SWEET DEAD LIFE – is set in Houston and slated for May 2013, from Soho Press. Joy grew up in Chicago, where she dreamed of being a back up singer but settled for becoming a writer so she could get paid for making up stuff. She now lives with her family and a crazy half-basset/half- boxer in Texas, where she frequently gets into wild rumpuses and other mischief. When she’s not writing, you can find her eating guacamole, fighting her Bravo Channel addiction and insisting that she really is the missing Roecker sister.
Photo by Paul Gregory Photography
Lissa Price’s debut novel STARTERS is a YA futuristic thriller published in over thirty countries. An international bestseller, Dean Koontz called STARTERS “a smart, swift, inventive, altogether gripping story.” The LA Times said it is “Dystopian sci-fi at its best,” and “Readers who have been waiting for a worthy successor to ‘The Hunger Games’ will find it here.” Nominated for a YALSA award, STARTERS was a Barnes & Noble pick of the month and is one of ten books on the Best of the Year for Teen lists from Amazon and Chapters/Indigo.
Lissa loves meeting fans in person or over Twitter. You can email her at www.LissaPrice.com.
Corey Rosen Schwartz is the author of HOP! PLOP! (Walker, 2006), THE THREE NINJA PIGS (Putnam, 2012) GOLDI ROCKS AND THE THREE BEARS (Putnam, forthcoming) and NINJA RED (Putnam, forthcoming). Corey has no formal ninja training, but she sure can kick butt in Scrabble. She lives with three Knuckleheads in Warren, NJ.
Tiffany Strelitz Haber is the author of two rhyming picture books: THE MONSTER WHO LOST HIS MEAN (Henry Holt Book for Young Readers, 2012) and OLLIE AND CLAIRE (Philomel, 2013). She will eat any food she is served, be it fried witchetty grubs on a stick or calf’s brain ravioli, and loves to be high in the air or deep in the sea. Tiffany lives in NJ with her two little monsters, Jack Dalton and Travis Hawk.
Emma Walton Hamilton is a best-selling children’s author, editor, arts educator and arts and literacy advocate. She has co-authored over twenty children’s books with her mother, Julie Andrews, six of which have been on the New York Times best-seller list, including the The Very Fairy Princess and The Very Fairy Princess Takes the Stage (#1 NY Times Bestsellers), Julie Andrews’ Collection Of Poems, Songs And Lullabies (illustrated by James McMullan); the Dumpy The Dump Truck series of picture books, board books and Early Readers (illustrated by Tony Walton); Simeon’s Gift; The Great American Mousical and THANKS TO YOU – Wisdom From Mother And Child (#1 New York Times Bestseller).
Emma’s own book for parents and caregivers, Raising Bookworms: Getting Kids Reading for Pleasure and Empowerment, premiered as a #1 best-seller on Amazon.com in the literacy category and won a Parent’s Choice Gold Medal, and silver medals from the Living Now and IPPY Book Awards, respectively. It also received Honorable Mention from ForeWord Magazine’s Best Book of the Year.
Emma is a faculty member for Stony Brook Southampton’s MFA in Writing and Literature Program, where she serves as Director of the annual Southampton Children’s Literature Conference, and Executive Director of YAWP (the Young American Writers Project), an inter-disciplinary writing program for middle and high school students on Long Island. She is also the creator and host of the “Children’s Book Hub” online writer’s salon (http://childrensbookhub.com) and “Just Write for Kids!” (http://www.justwriteforkids.com), a home-study course for aspiring children’s book authors.
In addition to writing and editing children’s books, both for the Julie Andrews Collection and independently, Emma works as a freelance children’s book editor. Her blog, Emmasaries: Raising the Next Generation of Readers and Writers, can be found at http://www.emmawaltonhamilton.com/blog.
The Lucky 13s are a group of novelists debuting in 2013. To meet them all, click here.
The YA Muses met in critique groups at a writing conference. Despite writing different genres, we recognized kindred souls and began reading each others’ work online, ultimately becoming beta readers. We now blog together, brainstorm and critique, support and celebrate, and try to meet in person a couple times a year. The Muses are: Donna Cooner, Katy Longshore, Talia Vance, Veronica Rossi and Bret Ballou.
Donna Cooner is an author, blogger, speaker, and teacher currently living in Fort Collins, Colorado. A former teacher and school administrator, she now teaches teachers and principals at Colorado State University where she is the director of the School of Teacher Education and Principal Preparation. Donna is the author of over twenty picture books and was a founding member of the Brazos Valley Society of Children’s Bookwriters and Illustrators. She has also written children’s television shows for PBS and textbooks for future teachers.
SKINNY (Fall, Scholastic/EgmontUK) is her debut novel for young adults.
Katy Longshore is the author of GILT, a story of friendship and betrayal set in the court of Henry VIII. She has spent time as a cake decorator, freelance travel writer, travel agent, coffee shop barista, bookseller, ship’s steward, construction company contracts manager and Montessori preschool teacher, but has finally found her true calling. After five years in England, she now lives in northern California with three British citizens and one expatriate dog.
Talia Vance is a practicing litigation attorney living in Northern California with her real life love interest, two-point-five kids, and a needy Saint Bernard named Huckleberry. Talia blogs about writing on Wednesdays with the YA Muses. Her debut novel, Silver, will be published by Flux on September 8, 2012. Her second novel Spies and Prejudice will be published by Egmont USA in June 2013. You can visit Talia at taliavance.com.
Veronica Rossi was born in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Growing up, she lived in several countries and cities around the world, finally settling in Northern California with her husband and two sons. She completed undergraduate studies at UCLA and then went on to study fine art at the California College of the Arts in San Francisco. UNDER THE NEVER SKY is her debut novel, and the first a trilogy that will be published in over twenty international markets. Book two, THROUGH THE EVER NIGHT, will be available January 8, 2013.
Bret Ballou writes Middle Grade fantasy-adventures and is a graduate of the Nevada SCBWI Mentorship Program. He pays for his writing addiction by developing medical devices to help treat Abdominal Aortic Aneurysms. His awesome (though sassy) wife, brand new son, wacky extended family, and red-devil dogs keep him on his toes.
