Amber Chen
Growing up, Amber Chen was an avid sci-fi/fantasy reader. Tamora Pierce’s Song of the Lioness series is still one of her all-time favorites, and she sees echoes of its heroine Alanna’s journey in Of Jade and Dragons, her first YA novel.
more
LaDarrion Williams
LaDarrion Williams is having his “I told you so” moment. After struggling to have his short film featuring Black boy magic picked up by Hollywood executives, Williams is sitting on a New York Times bestseller: his YA debut fantasy novel, Blood at the Root.
more
K.A. Cobell
It was K.A. Cobell’s Blackfeet father who guided her throughout her life, teaching her about their culture and greatly supporting her goals. She put everything he taught her into her YA thriller debut, Looking for Smoke, and getting that book into his hands was the final step of a roller-coaster journey.
more
Cassandra Calin
Cassandra Calin's career as a cartoonist began on the internet. Ten years later, Calin is reintroducing herself with the middle grade graphic novel The New Girl, her debut long-form endeavor, in which she highlights the parallel experiences of moving to a new country and the start of her first period.
more
