Stringfellow
Tara M. Stringfellow is a former attorney, Northwestern University MFA graduate, and two-time Pushcart Prize nominee whose debut novel and national bestseller Memphis was a Read with Jenna pick and longlisted for the Women’s Prize in Fiction, Aspen Literary Prize and Waterstones Debut Fiction Prize. Her poetry collection, Magic Enuff, will be published in June […]
Iloh
Candice Iloh (they/them) is the award-winning author of young adult novels, Every Body Looking, Break This House, and Salt the Water. A 2020 National Book Award Finalist and 2021 Printz Honoree, Iloh is a first-generation Nigerian-American writer whose books center home. In 2018, they were awarded a Critical Breaks residency with Hi-ARTS to develop and […]
Carver
Willie Edward Taylor Carver Jr. is an advocate, a Kentucky Teacher of the Year, and the author of a bestselling collection of narrative poetry about his childhood growing up queer in Appalachia, Gay Poems for Red States (University Press of Kentucky), which was named a Book Riot Best Book of 2023, a Top Ten Best […]
Velasquez
Elisabet Velasquez is a Boricua writer, mother of two children from Brooklyn, New York, now living in Jersey City, New Jersey. Velasquez uses poetry to share her own transformative narrative, illustrating how life’s diverse experiences—especially her experiences, growing up in Bushwick, Brooklyn as a first generation Puerto-Rican teen mother and GED recipient have been instrumental […]
Howell
Rebecca Gayle Howell is an award-winning poet, translator, and editor of place-based literature. As the granddaughter of Appalachian subsistence farmers, she centers the hope that ecological, economic, and human rights can offer those living in vulnerable regions. Howell regularly presents to audiences at venues like the Edinburgh Book Festival, the American Academy of Poets, No […]
Tate
As the national bestselling author of more than 50 books, ReShonda Tate has the credentials, and the passion, to bring stories to life. That’s exactly what she does in her latest novel, The Queen of Sugar Hill (William Morrow, Jan. 30, 2024), a fascinating fictional portrait of Hattie McDaniel, one of Hollywood’s most prolific […]
Metcalf
Lindsay H. Metcalf is a journalist and award-winning author of nonfiction books for young people, including Beatrix Potter, Scientist, a Mighty Girl Best Book of 2020 and Young People’s Literature Award winner from the Friends of American Writers Chicago; Farmers Unite! Planting a Protest for Fair Prices, a Kansas Notable Book, Friends of American Writers […]
Divakaruni
Dr. Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni is an award-winning author, poet, activist and professor. She is the author of 20 books including Mistress of Spices, Sister of My Heart, Oleander Girl, Before We Visit the Goddess and Palace of Illusions. Her latest novels are The Forest of Enchantments, a feminist retelling of the epic The Ramayana in […]
Kurilla
Renée Kurilla is a children’s illustrator, author, and designer who loves drawing nature, animals, and working on projects that require a little bit of research. Renée has illustrated many books for kids including ORANGUTANKA (by Margarita Engle), CHICKS RULE! (by Sudipta Bardhan-Quallen), and the ADA LACE series (by Emily Calandrelli). She has written a few […]
Sorell
Best-selling author Traci Sorell writes inclusive, award-winning historical and contemporary fiction and nonfiction in a variety of formats for young people. She is a two-time Sibert Medal and Orbis Pictus honoree and award-winning audiobook narrator and producer. Eight of her books have received awards from the American Indian Library Association. Other accolades include Charlotte Huck […]