Josh Adams, Josh Adams, together with his wife Tracey, runs Adams Literary, a boutique literary agency exclusively dedicated to the children's and YA markets. Adams Literary represents a number of best-selling and award-winning authors and artists, and prides itself on launching, developing and nurturing successful and enduring careers for its clients. While Josh represents a diverse group of clients and material, ranging from picture books to edgy teen novels, he is primarily focused on middle grade and YA. A graduate of Dartmouth College and Columbia Business School—where he was awarded the Abe Shuchman Memorial Award in Marketing—Josh spent more than a decade in publishing, media management and brand strategy consulting before bringing his editorial and business backgrounds together as a literary agent. Follow Adams Literary on Twitter @Adamsliterary.
Jay Asher’s debut teen novel, Thirteen Reasons Why, spent over two and a half years on the New York Times bestsellers list (and began as a SCBWI Work-In-Progress Grant winner!). His second teen novel, The Future of Us, was coauthored with Carolyn Mackler. His novels have sold to over thirty foreign markets, and both were optioned by major Hollywood studios.
Jim Averbeck is the author of the Charlotte Zolotow Honor Book, In a Blue Room and the author/illustrator of Except If; Oh No, Little Dragon; and The Market Bowl. He is the illustrator of the serialized novel A Long Walk to Water by Newbery winner Linda Sue Park. His first novel, A Hitch at the Fairmont is a focus title for Simon & Schuster and has been positioned for use with Core Curriculum State Standards. Also forthcoming is One Word from Sophia (Atheneum, 2015). He studied writing and illustrating for children at UC Berkeley and was the RA for the San Francisco chapter of the SCBWI for seven years.
Bonnie Bader is the Associate Publisher of Frederick Warne, where she oversees the Peter Rabbit and Spot publishing programs, as well as the Editor-in-Chief of Penguin Young Readers/Early Readers, where she heads up the leveled reader and 8×8 programs. The leveled reader program, Penguin Young Readers, houses fiction and nonfiction readers from every imprint in the Young Readers division, including books from David Adler, Betsy Byars, Eric Carle, Ginjer Clarke, Paula Danziger, Jean Fritz, Joan Holub, Kate McMullan, Ethan Long, and Loren Long,. The 8×8 picture book program, Penguin Core Concepts, includes both fiction and nonfiction titles. She continues to edit several bestselling series including George Brown, Class Clown and Magic Bone by Nancy Krulik, and Here’s Hank by Lin Oliver and Henry Winkler. Bonnie is a member of the SCBWI Board of Advisors.
Alessandra Balzer is vice president, co-publisher of Balzer + Bray, an imprint of HarperCollins Children’s Books. She edits everything from picture books to novels for teens. Among the authors and illustrators she is fortunate enough to work with are Candace Bushnell, Gordon Korman, Kelly Light, and Mo Willems. Her books include the New York Times best-selling House of Secrets series by Chris Columbus and Ned Vizzini, the National Book Award Finalist Never Fall Down by Patricia McCormick, the William C. Morris Award Finalist The Miseducation of Cameron Post by Emily M. Danforth, and the Caldecott Honor-winner Extra Yarn by Mac Barnett and Jon Klassen.
Tracy Barrett is the author of twenty works of fiction and nonfiction for young readers, most recently The Stepsister’s Tale (Harlequin Teen), Dark of the Moon (Harcourt), and The Sherlock Files series (Henry Holt). Tracy was SCBWI’s Regional Advisor for the Midsouth from 1999 to 2009 and is currently SCBWI’s US Regional Advisor Coordinator. She was awarded the SCBWI Work-in-Progress Grant in 2005. She holds an AB in Classical Archaeology from Brown University and an MA and PhD in Medieval Italian Literature from UC Berkeley.
Aaron Becker moved to California to attend Pomona College where he scored his first illustration job designing T-shirts for his water polo team. After attending the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, he worked in the Bay Area as a concept designer for film companies such as Image Movers, Disney, and Lucasfilm. Journey, his debut picture book, was the recipient of a 2014 Caldecott Honor.
Judy Blume is perhaps the most popular author ever of works for upper elementary to junior high school readers, Judy Blume is the creator of honest, often humorous stories that focus on the concerns of teenagers. Her books, including those written for both younger and older audiences, have sold over seventy million copies around the world. Judy is also a longtime advocate of intellectual freedom. She has worked tirelessly with the National Coalition Against Censorship to protect the freedom to read. She has been a long-time member of the board of advisors of the SCBWI.
Martha Brockenbrough is the author of five books for young readers: the YA novel Devine Intervention and The Dinosaur Tooth Fairy, a picture book. Both are with Arthur A. Levine at Scholastic, as are her forthcoming titles, The Game of Love and Death, another young adult novel, and Love, Santa, another picture book. She also wrote the nonfiction middle grade Finding Bigfoot for Feiwel & Friends. In addition to her work on SCBWI's Team Blog, she is the founder of National Grammar Day and SPOGG, the Society for the Promotion of Good Grammar. She has worked as a journalist for over twenty years and as a content strategist and marketer for more than a decade.
Peter Brown studied Illustration at Art Center College of Design and moved to New York City to pursue a career as an author and illustrator of children's books. Since then he has written and illustrated seven picture books, and illustrated two others. His books have earned numerous honors, including two E.B. White Awards, a New York Times Best Illustrated Book Award, a Children’s Choice Award for Illustrator of the Year, two Irma Black Honors, five New York Times Bestsellers, and his illustrations for Creepy Carrots, written by Aaron Reynolds, earned Peter a 2013 Caldecott Honor.
Priscilla Burris is an author/illustrator and native Californian of Hispanic descent. Creating characters and images from ink, whether in the real world, or digitally, Priscilla delights most in bringing out the element of expression, emotion, and what’s bursting to be shared from heart and soul and life! She is enthusiastically involved in the SCBWI as national illustrator coordinator and advisor, as well as a member of their Board of Advisors, and the SCBWI Illustrator Committee.
Justin Chanda is vice president, publisher of the three flagship children's imprints at Simon & Schuster: S&S Books for Young Readers, McElderry Books and Atheneum. He oversees the publication of two hundred and fifty titles per year ranging from the youngest picture book to the edgiest YA. He is keenly interested in publishing books that are equal parts commercial and literary, books that make a contribution to the tradition. Justin continues to edit, working with the likes of: Jon Scieszka, Loren Long, Kenneth Oppel, Patricia MacLachlan, Peter Brown, Michael Ian Black, Karma Wilson, Dan Krall, Morgan Matson, Mike Lupica, and Debbie Ohi (who he discovered at SCBWI–LA!). Justin has is also an adjunct instructor for the NYU Graduate Publishing Program. He also recently added publisher of SAGA press, a newly minted adult Sci-Fi/Fantasy imprint, to his resume. Follow him on twitter at @jpchanda
Stephen Chbosky wrote and directed the feature film adaptation of his novel, The Perks of Being a Wallflower. A native of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, he graduated from the University of Southern California’s Filmic Writing Program. His first film, The Four Corners of Nowhere, premiered at Sundance Film Festival. He wrote the screenplay for the critically acclaimed film adaptation of Rent; and co-created the post-apocalyptic television drama, Jericho. He also edited Pieces, a collection of short stories for Pocket Books. Follow Stephen on Twitter @StephenChbosky.
Nick Clark is the founding director of The Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art. He assumed this post in January of 2001. In 2008 he shifted his responsibilities to become chief curator. Previously, he had served as the Eleanor McDonald Storza Chair of Education at the High Museum of Art in Atlanta since 1997. After holding posts at the National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC and instructor in Art and director of the Lamont Gallery at Phillips Exeter Academy from 1982 to 1989, he served as curator of American art at the Chrysler Museum of Art in Norfolk, Virginia, from 1989 to 1997. He received his B.A. cum laude from Harvard University and his M.A. and PhD in Art History from the University of Delaware.
Bruce Coville is the author of over a hundred books for children and young adults, including My Teacher is an Alien, Into the Land of the Unicorns, and Jeremy Thatcher, Dragon Hatcher. His books have appeared in a dozen languages, and have won children's choice awards in numerous states, including twice in California. Bruce is also the founder of Full Cast Audio, an audiobook publishing company devoted to producing full cast, unabridged recordings for family listening.
Pat Cummings is the author/illustrator of over thirty-five books for young readers. She also edited the award-winning series, Talking With Artists, which profiles prominent children's book illustrators. She teaches at Parsons and Pratt, and her children's book illustration class has a growing number of notable illustrator/authors among its graduates. Pat serves on the SCBWI Board of Advisors as well as on the boards of the Authors Guild, the Authors League Fund, The Authors Guild Foundation, and the Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art. Along with visiting schools, universities, and organizations to speak about children’s books, she conducts a summer Children’s Book Boot Camp that brings writers and illustrators together with top editors and art directors from major publishing houses.
Liz Czukas is a freelance writer and the author of Ask Again Later and Top Ten Clues You're Clueless (HarperTeen). Follow Liz on Twitter @lizczukas.
Sarah Davies was a children’s publisher in London for more than 25 years before moving to the USA in 2007 to launch the Greenhouse Literary Agency. Based in the US and UK, the Greenhouse represents authors of children’s and YA fiction and is very international in outlook. Among Sarah’s clients are New York Times Bestseller Brenna Yovanoff, Morris Award winner Blythe Woolston, Megan Miranda, Donna Cooner, Lindsey Leavitt, C.J. Omololu, Martha Brockenbrough, and Caroline Carlson. Sarah is a member of AAR and has been a fiction editor half her life, bringing a wealth of industry experience to her agenting role. She is open to all genres from young chapter-book series through to powerful YA, and particularly seeks strong voices, unique concepts, and stories that grab the emotions in a fresh way. Sarah says, “Everything I’d most like to tell you about the Greenhouse is in its name. It’s where writers grow!”
Tomie dePaola has been published for over forty years and has written and/or illustrated nearly two hundred and fifty books, including Strega Nona, 26 Fairmount Avenue, The Art Lesson, and Christmas Remembered. Over fifteen million copies of his books have sold worldwide, and his work has been recognized with the Smithson Medal from the Smithsonian Institution, the Kerlan Award from the University of Minnesota for his "singular attainment in children's literature," and the Regina Medal from the Catholic Library Association. Let the Whole Earth Sing Praise and Strega Nona Does it Again are his newest books.
David Diaz was awarded the 1995 Caldecott Medal for illustrating Eve Bunting’s Smokey Nights, a story about a boy’s point of view of the Los Angeles riots in 1992. He received Pura Belpre Honor Awards for Diego: Bigger Than Life by Carmen T. Bernier-Grand, César: ¡Sí, Se Puede! Yes, We Can! By Carmen T. Bernier-Grand, and The Pot That Juan Built by Nancy Andrews-Goebel. Recent books include Sharing the Seasons by Lee Bennett Hopkins, Before You Came by Patricia and Emily MacLaughin, Ocean’s Child by Christine Ford and Chris Holland, and Me Frida by Amy Novesky.
Twenty-one-year-old Stephanie Diaz wrote her debut novel, Extraction (St. Martin's Griffin, July 22, 2014), when she should've been making short films and listening to college lectures at San Diego State University.
Adriana Dominguez has over fifteen years of experience in publishing, most recently as executive editor at HarperCollins Children's Books, where she managed the children's division of the imprint, Rayo. Prior to that, she was children's reviews editor at Library Journal’s Criticas magazine. She has performed editorial both on a full time basis and as a freelance consultant, on English and Spanish language books. She is a member of the Brooklyn Literary Council that organizes the Brooklyn Book Festival, and one of the founders of the Comadres and Compadres Writers Conference in New York City. Based on the East Coast, Adriana became a literary agent and joined Full Circle in 2009, and has since represented a number of award-winning and best-selling authors of books for children and adults. She has a long trajectory of publishing underrepresented authors and illustrators, and welcomes submissions that offer diverse points of view.
Mary Lee Donovan is currently editorial director at Candlewick Press where she is celebrating her 23rd anniversary. She started her publishing career at Houghton Mifflin in the Children’s Trade Division in 1984, while also hand-selling books at The Children’s Book Shop in Brookline Village and working toward her MA in Children’s Literature at The Center of the Study of Children’s Literature, Simmons College, Boston. Mary Lee Donovan is the editor of the 2008 Newbery Medal winner, Good Masters, Sweet Ladies: Voices from a Medieval Village and the 2013Newbery Honoree, Splendors and Glooms, both by Laura Amy Schlitz; the 2014 Caldecott Honor picture book, Journey by Aaron Becker; the Judy Moody and Stink series by Megan McDonald; The Strange and Beautiful Sorrows of Ava Lavender by Leslye Walton, the #1 ABA “Indies Next” pick for March 2014; as well as books by Doreen Rappaport, Rosemary Wells, Scott Nash, Carol Diggory Shields, George O’Connor, Annette Simon, Catharine O’Neill, and many others.
Emma D. Dryden is the founder of drydenbks, a premier children’s editorial and publishing consultancy firm. Emma has edited over a thousand books for children and young readers and many of her titles hit bestseller lists in USA Today, the New York Times, the Washington Post, and Publishers Weekly. Books published under Emma's guidance have received numerous awards and medals, including but not limited to the Newbery Medal, Newbery Honor, and Caldecott Honor. Emma speaks regularly on craft, the digital landscape, and reinvention, and her blog Our Stories, Ourselves explores the intertwined themes of life and writing. Followed Emma on Twitter @drydenbks.
Chris Eboch writes fiction and nonfiction for all ages. Her novels for ages nine and up include The Genie’s Gift, a middle eastern fantasy, The Eyes of Pharaoh, a mystery in ancient Egypt; The Well of Sacrifice, a Mayan adventure; and the Haunted series, which starts with The Ghost on the Stairs. Her book Advanced Plotting helps writers fine-tune their plots.
Cindy Jenson-Elliott is a teacher, environmental educator, and the author of fifteen books of nonfiction, including Weeds Find a Way, a lyrical nonfiction picture book about weeds. She lives, teaches, and gardens in San Diego.
Tim Federle grew up in San Francisco and Pittsburgh before moving to New York to dance on Broadway, where he appeared in the original casts of The Little Mermaid and Gypsy before coaching the child stars of Billy Elliot. Tim’s 2013 Golden Kite-winning debut novel, Better Nate Than Ever—described as “Judy Blume as seen through a Stephen Sondheim lens” by Huffington Post—was named a New York Times Book Review Notable Children’s Book of 2013, a Slate.com Favorite Book of 2013, and an Amazon and Publishers Weekly Best Book of the Year. The sequel, Five, Six, Seven, Nate!, follows Nate Foster's further adventures onstage and off, and was named an Amazon Best Book of the January 2014. And recently, Tim’s novelty recipe book, Tequila Mockingbird: Cocktails with a Literary Twist, was voted Cookbook of the Year on Goodreads. Follow Tim on Twitter @TimFederle.
Sharon G. Flake is a multi-award winning author, with books published in French, Italian and soon Portuguese, her work is used in classrooms around the world and loved by young people of all backgrounds. Flake is the author of eight books, The Skin I'm In, Money Hungry, Begging for Change, Who am I Without Him, You Don't Even Know Me, Bang!, The Broken Bike Boy and The Queen of 33rd Street and Pinned. Flake’s first murder mystery, Unstoppable Octobia May, will be released in the fall 2014.
Marla Frazee was awarded a Caldecott Honor for All the World and A Couple of Boys Have the Best Week Ever. She is the author/illustrator of Roller Coaster, Walk On!, Santa Claus the World's Number One Toy Expert, The Boss Baby, and Boot & Shoe, as well as the illustrator of many other books including The Seven Silly Eaters, Stars, and the New York Times best-selling Clementine series. She most recently illustrated God Got a Dog by Cynthia Rylant. Marla teaches Children's Book Illustration at Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California.
Felicia Frazier has been the senior vice president, director, Young Readers Sales, Penguin Random House LLC, since January 28, 2014. Prior to this appointment, Felicia acted as the senior vice president, director of sales at Penguin Young Readers Group, a position she has held from July 7, 2008. During her five years at Penguin Young Readers Group, she has led PYR Sales Division’s retail strategic planning, development and execution of the Penguin Young Readers diverse publishing program across all channels of distribution. Prior to joining Penguin, Felicia was the VP director of National Accounts and Brand/Category Management at Random House Children’s Books. During her fourteen-year tenure at Random House, she held a variety of positions in both sales and marketing, and garnered several awards, including the Random House Outstanding Performance Award in both 1996 & 1997.
Julie Strauss-Gabel is the vice president and publisher of Dutton Children’s Books, a boutique imprint of Penguin Young Readers Group specializing in middle grade and young adult novels, publishing about ten books annually. Dutton does not currently publish picture books. Before joining Penguin in 2002, Julie held positions at Hyperion Books for Children and Clarion Books. Julie’s authors include Ally Condie (Matched series), Adam Gidwitz (A Tale Dark & Grimm), John Green (The Fault in Our Stars), John Grisham (Theodore Boone series), Nina LaCour (Hold Still), Lauren Myracle (Winnie Years series), Stephanie Perkins (Anna and the French Kiss), Kat Rosenfield (Amelia Anne is Dead and Gone), Andrew Smith (Grasshopper Jungle), Maya Van Wagenen (Popular), and Meg Wolitzer (Belzhar).
Lamar Giles writes for adults and teens. Penning everything from epic fantasy to noir thrillers, he's never met a genre he didn't like. His debut YA mystery Fake ID is about a teen in witness protection that investigates his best friend's murder and stumbles on a dark conspiracy that leads back to his own father. His next YA thriller, Endangered, will be published by HarperCollins in spring 2015.
Karen Grencik became a literary agent because of a man she admired. Double Luck, Memoirs of a Chinese Orphan, written by Lu Chi Fa with Becky White, went on to win The Parents’ Choice Gold Award for Best Nonfiction and Karen’s next sale, George Hogglesberry, Grade School Alien, a picture book edited by Abigail Samoun at Tricycle Press, went on to win the coveted Golden Kite Award for Best Picture Book Text. In June 2011 Karen and ex-editor Abigail Samoun opened Red Fox Literary, a boutique agency that specializes in picture books, early readers, chapter books, middle grade and young adult fiction and nonfiction.
Deborah Halverson spent a decade editing books for Harcourt Children's Books before becoming the award-winning author of Writing Young Adult Fiction for Dummies, two teen novels (Honk If You Hate Me and Big Mouth with Delacorte/Random House), a forthcoming picture book about Santa, and three books in an upcoming series for struggling readers. She has been working with authors—bestsellers, veterans, debut, and aspiring—for over fifteen years. Deborah is now a freelance editor, author, writing instructor, and the founder of DearEditor.com. She speaks extensively at workshops and conferences for writers and edits adult fiction and nonfiction while specializing in teen fiction and picture books
Tracy Holczer lives in Southern California. She has a deep love for the mountains where she grew up so she writes them into her stories. A 2014 Indies Introduce New Voices pick and Indie Next pick, her debut middle grade novel, The Secret Hum of a Daisy, was published by G.P. Putnam’s Sons in May, 2014 and is forthcoming from Konigskinder/Carlsen in Germany 2015. Also forthcoming from Putnam and Konigskinder is her second novel, The Natural History of Samantha Rossi, in Summer, 2016.
Allyn Johnston Allyn Johnston is VP & Publisher of Beach Lane Books, a San Diego-based imprint of Simon & Schuster. Among the authors and illustrators with whom she works are Mem Fox, Lois Ehlert, Marla Frazee, Jeanette Winter, Linda Davick, Cynthia Rylant, Debra Frasier, Arthur Howard, Jan Thomas, Lauren Stringer, Liz Garton Scanlon, and M. T. Anderson. Books she has edited include the New York Times bestseller Ten Little Fingers and Ten Little Toes by Mem Fox, illustrated by Helen Oxenbury; and A Couple of Boys Have the Best Week Ever by Marla Frazee and the New York Times bestseller All the World by Liz Garton Scanlon, illustrated by Marla Frazee, both of which received a Caldecott Honor. Allyn is especially proud of the fact that Beach Lane has bought twenty projects from unpublished writers and illustrators since it began in 2008!
Cynthia Kadohata is the author of the Newbery Medal-winning novel Kira-Kira; the Jane Addams Peace Award and Pen USA Award winner Weedflower; Cracker! The Best Dog in Vietnam, winner of six state awards as voted on by kid readers; Outside Beauty; A Million Shades of Gray; The Thing About Luck, winner of the National Book Award; and Half a World Away, due out September 2, 2014.
Christine Kohler is a graduate of the University of Hawaii, and lived in Japan and Guam, the setting for her debut novel No Surrender Soldier, Merit Press (Adams Media/ F+W Media), January 2014. She worked as a foreign correspondent for the Pacific Daily News and Gannett Wire Service, covering the West Pacific. She later worked as an editor and copy editor for the San Antonio Express-News, a Hearst daily. Besides being a journalist, Kohler worked as a media specialist in PR and marketing, middle and high school teacher, and writing instructor for the Institute of Children's Literature (ICL). She has seventeen children's books published.
Kristen Kittscher is the 2014 James Thurber House Children’s Writer-in-Residence and author of The Wig in the Window (2013), the first in a planned middle grade mystery series from Harper Children’s. A graduate of Brown University and former middle school English teacher, Kristen is a contributor to the Los Angeles Review of Books and The Rumpus, and presents frequently at schools, libraries, and festivals. Kristen lives with her husband in Pasadena, California, where she is at work on the next mystery in her series, The Tiara on the Terrace. She credits SCBWI for helping her on her path to publication.
Bill Konigsberg is an award-winning young adult author. His debut novel, Out of the Pocket, won the Lambda Literary Award in 2009. His second novel, Openly Straight, won the Sid Fleischman Award for Humor in 2014. It also made YALSA’s Best Fiction for Young Adults List, the TAYSHAS List as a top ten title, the ALA’s Rainbow List, and was nominated for a Lambda Literary Award. His third novel, The Porcupine of Truth, will be published by Arthur A. Levine Books in the summer of 2015. Prior to turning his attention to writing books for teens, Bill was a sports writer and editor for ESPN.com and The Associated Press.
Arthur A. Levine Books launched in 1997, a literary imprint of Scholastic Inc. We are proud to have introduced North American audiences to the work of great writers such as Markus Zusak, Francisco Stork, Lisa Yee, Dan Santat, Trent Reedy, and of course, J. K. Rowling, and we continue that tradition with such fabulous newcomers as Mike Jung, Martha Brockenbrough, Greg Pincus, Erin Bow, and Eric Gansworth. And we love artists! About thirty percent of the books the Imprint publishes are fully illustrated, and we’re proud to be working with a group that includes the incomparable Shaun Tan, well-known masters such as Richard Egielski, David Small, Komako Sakai, and Axel Scheffler, and talented illustrators at the start of their careers such as Israel Sanchez, Shino Arihara, and Bethany Murguia. As for Arthur as a writer? His recent books include Monday is One Day, illustrated by Julian Hector; a love song for kids with working parents, in families of all shapes and sizes and A Very Beary Tooth Fairy, illustrated by Sarah Brannen just out this spring.
E.B. Lewis has illustrated more than fifty books for children, including Nikki Grimes' Talkin' About Bessie: The Story of Aviator Elizabeth Coleman, the 2003 Coretta Scott King Illustrator Award winner; Alice Schertle's Down the Road, an ALA Notable Book; Tolowa M. Mollel's My Rows and Piles of Coins, an ALA Notable Book and a Coretta Scott King Honor Book; Bat Boy and His Violin by Garvin Curtis a Coretta Scott King Honor Book, and Jacqueline Woodson's The Other Side, a 2002 Notable Book for the Language Arts. His most recent book is Jacqueline Woodson’s Each Kindness.
Laurent Linn, art director for Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, began his career as a puppet designer/builder in Jim Henson's Muppet Workshop, creating characters for various productions, including the Muppet Christmas Carol and Muppet Treasure Island films. With Henson over a decade, he worked primarily on Sesame Street, becoming the creative director for the Sesame Street Muppets, winning an Emmy Award. Currently, at Simon & Schuster, Laurent art directs picture books, middle grade, and teen novels, including The Blessing Cup, by Patricia Polacco; Naked! by Michael Ian Black, illus. by Debbie Ohi; What Does the Fox Say?, by Ylvis, illus. by Svein Nyhus; Better Nate Than Ever, by Tim Federle; and the Rot & Ruin YA series by Jonathan Maberry. Laurent is creative advisor for the annual Original Art exhibit at the Society of Illustrators in New York. Follow Laurent on Twitter: @LaurentLinn.
Wendy Loggia is executive editor at Delacorte Press/Random House Children’s Books. Wendy has worked with some of the most talented authors writing today and edits middle grade and YA fiction. She is the editor of Teardrop by Lauren Kate; Hexed by Michelle Krys; Starters by Lissa Price; Being Sloane Jacobs by Lauren Morrill; Joshua Dread by Lee Bacon; Don’t Even Think About It by Sarah Mlynowski and the romantic thriller The Here and Now by Ann Brashares, to name a few. Contemporary romance, thriller, dynamic paranormal, and engaging writing are always on her wish list, and she’d love to see more contemporary middle grade projects, especially high-concept ones. She’s especially fond of debut writers, and has several SCBWI member debuts on her upcoming lists, including Charlotte Huang’s For the Record and Melissa Gorzelanczyk’s Arrows. SCBWI LA conference attendees can query her by following the directions in the conference packets. No nonfiction, picture books, historical, or easy-to-reads.
Nicole Maggi holds a BFA from Emerson College and spent many years in off-off-Broadway theatre before moving to Los Angeles and returning to her first love, writing. Her Twin Willows Trilogy launches this December from Medallion Press; the first book is Winter Falls. Her standalone novel Heartlines will be released in February 2015 from SourceBooks Fire. She is a member of SCBWI as well as the Class of 2k14 debut authors group.
Steven Malk is the third generation of his family to be involved in the children's book industry. The son and grandson of children's booksellers, he worked as a bookseller for six years before becoming an agent. He opened a west coast office for Writers House in 1998, where he represents a wide range of authors and illustrators, including Jon Klassen, Jon Scieszka, Lane Smith, Mac Barnett, Kadir Nelson, Ruta Sepetys, Colin Meloy, Carson Ellis, Jennifer Donnelly, Matt de la Peña, Cynthia Rylant, Adam Rex, Loren Long, Sara Pennypacker, Laura Vaccaro Seeger, Eugene Yelchin, Sonya Sones, Elise Primavera, and many others. Follow Steven on twitter @stevenmalk.
Krista Marino is an executive editor at Delacorte Press (Random House Children's Books) where she acquires and edits young adult and middle grade fiction. Some of the books on her list include the Maze Runner series by James Dashner, the Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel series by Michael Scott, and the Forest of Hands and Teeth books by Carrie Ryan. Other books include the young adult works of Frank Portman, Matt de la Peña, and Revolution, by Jennifer Donnelly. Krista is always looking for strong new voices, innovative concepts, and great stories for her list.
Megan McDonald is the creator of the popular and award-winning Judy Moody and Stink series, including Judy Moody & Stink: The Big Bad Blackout and Judy Moody, Mood Martian. She is also the author of three Sisters Club stories, two books about Ant and Honey Bee, and many other books for children.
Meg Medina is an award-winning author of picture books, middle grade, and YA fiction. Her work examines how cultures intersect through the eyes of young people. Her books are Yaqui Delgado Wants to Kick Your Ass (Candlewick Press), which won the 2014 Pura Belpré Award and the 2013 CYBILS award in fiction; Tia Isa Wants a Car (Candlewick Press), for which she earned the 2012 Ezra Jack Keats New Writers Award; The Girl Who Could Silence the Wind (Candlewick Press), listed as a 2012 Bank Street Best Books and a CBI Recommended Read in the UK; and Milagros Girl From Away (Henry Holt BYR); When she is not writing, Meg works on community projects that support girls, Latino youth and/or literacy.
David Meissner is an author, educator, and consultant who has developed creative educational programs, written twenty books for the school market, and interviewed dozens of children’s book authors and illustrators for Reading Rockets. David’s first trade book, Call of the Klondike, won SCBWI’s 2014 Golden Kite Award for Nonfiction and was nominated for the YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction. His website provides a free educators’ guide and tells the story behind the book, including his research trip and historical hike from Alaska to Canada. After seven years in DC and NYC, David is now happily settled in Boulder, Colorado, where he teaches Spanish and is the director of International Programs at the Alexander Dawson School.
Pat Zietlow Miller is the author of Sophie’s Squash, (Schwartz & Wade, 2013). Sophie’s Squash received four starred reviews and won the 2014 Golden Kite Award for picture book text. It also was named an Ezra Jack Keats Honor Book and a Charlotte Zolotow Honor Book. Pat has six other picture books under contract including a sequel called Sophie’s Seeds. She’s proud to be represented by Ammi-Joan Paquette of the Erin Murphy Literary Agency.. Follow Pat on Twitter at @PatZMiller
Lucia Monfried has been editing children’s books for thirty years. She is currently senior editor at Dial Books for Young Readers. She has worked with Judy Schachner, Monica Wellington, Elisa Kleven, Robert Byrd, Lloyd Alexander, Jean Craighead George, and Gary Blackwood, among many others. She edits picture books, chapter books and young novels.
Stephen Mooser, President of the SCBWI, is the author of nearly sixty books for children. He began as the author of a number of reading programs including those for SWRL/Ginn, ABC and Harcourt, but most readers know Stephen for his trade books, which began with the publication of 101 Black Cats (Scholastic) in 1975, and continues through his most recent series, Goofball Malone, Ace Detective. He has written in every genre: picture books (The Ghost with the Halloween Hiccups), to series books (The Creepy Creature Club; It's a Weird, Weird School), to nonfiction (Lights! Camera! Scream!), to novels (Elvis Is Back and He’s in the Sixth Grade).
Randy Morrison is a San Diego-based attorney whose practice is focused on First Amendment, copyright and trademark. He is also the author of the independently-published middle grade fiction novel Seven Moon Circus, the Adventures of a Wild Boy in a Space Traveling Circus (7MC.com). He is among the roughly one percent of all attorneys admitted to practice before the U.S. Supreme Court, and has also arbitrated an international trademark dispute before the International Chamber of Commerce in London.
Erin Murphy is the founder of Erin Murphy Literary Agency, which focuses on building careers and community. The agency began as a one-person operation in 1999 and now includes two additional agents and three support staff, half working long-distance. Erin’s clients include Golden Kite winner Joanne Rocklin and honor recipient Cynthia Levinson, and New York Times Bestselling authors Chris Barton, Liz Garton Scanlon, Deborah Underwood, and Robin LaFevers (whom she signed in 2001 after critiquing her at this very conference).
Shanta Newlin is a seasoned children’s book publicist with over fifteen years of experience working in the publishing industry. She is currently executive director of publicity at Penguin Young Readers Group, a division of Penguin Random House. Over the course of her career, she has worked with such literary giants as Eric Carle, Tomie dePaola, Jan Brett, Laurent de Brunhoff, Carl Hiaasen and John Grisham. In her six years at PYRG, Shanta has developed strategic and innovative publicity campaigns for many best-selling books and brands including The 5th Wave by Rick Yancey, the Matched trilogy by Ally Condie, Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys, the Here’s Hank series by Henry Winkler and Lin Oliver, and Roald Dahl among others. Prior to joining PYRG, Shanta worked at Random House Children’s Books where she orchestrated the PR launch for Markus Zusak’s The Book Thief.
Amy K. Nichols’s debut novel, YA Sci-Fi thriller Now That You’re Here, will be published by Knopf on December 9, 2014. The follow-up, While You Were Gone, will be published in 2015. She is mentored by award-winning crime novelist James Sallis, and lives on the edge of the Sonoran desert with her husband and children. Amy is represented by Quinlan Lee of Adams Literary. She is a member of SCBWI and SFWA, as well as the Class of 2k14 debut authors.
Lin Oliver is a leading children’s book author and writer-producer of family films and television. With her coauthor Henry Winkler, she writes the New York Times best-selling book series, Hank Zipzer: World’s Best Underachiever, and its prequel series Here’s Hank. She is also the author of the Who Shrunk Daniel Funk? series. Lin’s current books are Sound Bender and its sequel The Shadow Mask which she coauthors with her son, Theo Baker, the Ghost Buddy series which she co-authors with Henry WInkler , and Almost Identical, a series about ‘tween twin girls. Just released this year is LITTLE POEMS FOR TINY EARS, a poetry collection illustrated by Tomie de Paola. She is Executive Director and cofounder of the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators. Follow Lin on Twitter @LinOliver
Elizabeth B. Parisi is the creative director, Trade Publishing, for Scholastic Inc. and oversees over one hundred and fifty book titles per year, in middle grade, young adult, and nonfiction genres. A graduate of RISD with a BFA in Illustration, Elizabeth has won two gold medals as an art director from the Society of Illustrators, and has worked on many acclaimed titles, including the Hunger Games Trilogy, with her husband, Tim O'Brien as illustrator; Gorgeous, by Paul Rudnick; the Gregor the Overlander series, by Suzanne Collins; Out of the Dust, by Karen Hesse, and What I Saw and How I Lied, by National Book Award winner, Judy Blundell. Elizabeth oversees a staff of 7 designers, designing the jackets, covers and interiors of the books she handles.
Linda Sue Park has written novels, picture books and poetry for young readers, including A Single Shard, winner of the 2002 Newbery Medal, and the New York Times Bestseller A Long Walk to Water. Her most recent title is Xander’s Panda Party, an ALA Notable picture book. Reading used to be her favorite activity, but it is now her second-favorite: Do not ask her about her new grandbaby unless you have time to look at several hundred photos.
Alexandra Penfold is an agent at Upstart Crow Literary and has been working in publishing for over a decade. Formerly an editor at Paula Wiseman Books/Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, she represents young picture books, middle grade fiction, young adult and select cooking and lifestyle projects. Prior to becoming an editor, Alexandra was a children's book publicist. She’s the co-author of New York a la Cart: Recipes and Stories from the Big Apple's Best Food Trucks and the author of the forthcoming picture book, Eat, Sleep, Poop! A Memoir.
Lara Perkins is an associate agent and digital manager at the Andrea Brown Literary Agency. She represents all categories of children's literature, from picture books to young adult. Lara has a BA in English and Art History from Amherst College and an MA in English Literature from Columbia University, where she studied Victorian Brit Lit. She spent over a year at the B.J. Robbins Literary Agency in Los Angeles before coming to Andrea Brown Literary. She is a frequent speaker at conferences nationwide, and currently is based in the SF Bay Area.
Rubin Pfeffer is a veteran of the children’s and adult trade industry. He has served as president and publisher of Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, SVP and chief creative officer of Pearson, and as SVP, publisher of Children’s Books for Simon & Schuster. Pfeffer joined the East West Literary Agency in December 2009 as a partner and established the Boston base of the agency while concurrently consulting for FableVison and Ruckus Media on digital content and publishing strategies and Pearson Education for trade content for classroom use. He has served as one of two judges of the National Parenting Publications Awards (NAPPA ) for Best Children’s Books published in 2009 and 2010. In January, 2014, Pfeffer launched Rubin Pfeffer Content, LLC, a literary agency focusing on children’s content for trade and educational publishing.
Greg Pincus is a novelist, poet, screenwriter, blogger, dad, and social media consultant. Through the wonders of social media, he’s sold poetry, helped himself land a book deal (for The 14 Fibs of Gregory K.), ended up in the New York Times, the Washington Post. Follow Greg on Twitter @gregpincus.
Ed Porter is a former superintendent of schools in Long Island and current educational consultant who assists districts and individual schools in educational transformation. He guides schools in understanding and implementing the Common Core State Standards, designing ways to navigate the challenges for students, teachers, administrators, parents and community. He has been an educational and organizational development consultant for over thirty-five years, a classroom teacher, building administrator, district level curriculum supervisor, superintendent of schools, and university instructor. His consulting work with schools systems has been national in scope, including large urban districts such as Nashville, Memphis, Miami-Dade, and San Francisco, and numerous suburban and rural districts. Mr. Porter’s curriculum development background and his past work with the National Center on Education and the Economy aid his ability to offer historical context to better navigate today’s curriculum challenges.
Linda Pratt established the Wernick & Pratt Agency with her longtime friend and colleague, Marcia Wernick in 2011 after working together for twenty years at another agency. Wernick & Pratt specializes in representing authors and illustrators of children’s books with a focus on attending to the long term careers and goals of our clients. Linda’s clients include Sharon Flake, Richard Peck, Kathryn Erskine, Lita Judge and LeUyen Pham among others. She’s also honored to have the chance to introduce new talent such as Aaron Becker, whose debut Journey garnered a 2014 Caldecott Honor, and Augusta Scattergood, whose Glory Be received a lot of recognition including being featured on NPR several times. Linda is a member of SCBWI and AAR, and she volunteered on the Rutgers Council for Children’s Literature which plans the annual Rutgers One-on-One Mentoring Conference for five years.
Laura Rennert has been a senior agent with Andrea Brown Literary Agency since 1998. She specializes in all categories of children's books, from picture books to young adult. She represents award-winning and best-selling authors, including #1 New York Times bestsellers Ellen Hopkins, Jay Asher, Lauren Kate, #1 New York Times bestseller and Printz Honor Finalist Maggie Stiefvater, National Book Award Finalist Kathleen Duey, and New York Times Bestseller and Digital Bestseller Catherine Ryan Hyde, as well as brand-new, first-time authors. She’s the author of the picture book Buying, Training, and Caring for your Dinosaur, illustrated by Marc Brown, and the chapter book Royal Princess Academy, Dragon Dreams, illustrated by Melanie Florian. She has a PhD in English Literature and taught at the University of Virginia, Osaka University of Foreign Studies, and Santa Clara University. Her sweet spot is literary voice and commercial conception, and she has a special fondness for narrative risk-takers.
Jennifer Rofé has been an agent with the Andrea Brown Literary Agency for seven years. She represents projects ranging from picture books to YA, with middle grade being her soft spot. Some of Jennifer's clients include Meg Medina, author of the Pura Belpré Award- winning novel Yaqui Delgado Wants to Kick your Ass and the Ezra Jack Keats Award-winning picture book Tia Isa wants a Car (Candlewick); Christina Diaz Gonzalez, author of The Red Umbrella and A Thunderous Whisper (Knopf/Random House); Joy Preble, author of The Sweet Dead Life series (Soho Press) and the forthcoming Finding Paris (Balzer & Bray/HarperCollins); Crystal Allen, author of How Lamar's Bad Prank won a Bubba-Sized Trophy and the forthcoming Mya series (Balzer + Bray/HarperCollins); Kathryn Fitzmaurice, author of the middle grades Destiny, Rewritten and The Year the Swallows Came Early (HarperCollins); and Denise Doyen, author of the E.B. White Read Aloud Honor picture book Once Upon A Twice (Random House). Jennifer also represents author-illustrators Eliza Wheeler (Miss Maple's Seeds, Nancy Paulsen Books/Penguin), Mike Boldt (123 Versus ABC, HarperCollins), and Bob Boyle (Rosie & Rex, HarperCollins).
Emily Romero is the vice president of marketing for the Penguin Young Readers Group, a division of Penguin Random House, where she has spent over fourteen years working on a wide range of children's literature, from picture books to young adult novels. In her time at Penguin, she has worked with such legendary authors as Tomie dePaola and Eric Carle; building timeless characters and brands including Skippyjon Jones, Llama Llama, and Roald Dahl; launching best-selling series such as Rick Yancey's The 5th Wave and Ally Condie's Matched trilogy; and contributing to the long-term success of commercial and literary authors including John Green, Sarah Dessen, Oliver Jeffers, Jay Asher and Laurie Halse Anderson. Romero has gained extensive children’s book marketing experience at big and small publishing houses. Prior to Penguin, she was at Barefoot Books and North-South Books.
Meg Rosoff was born in Boston, educated at Harvard and St Martin’s College of Art in London, and worked in New York City for ten years before moving to England in 1989. She worked in publishing, journalism, politics and advertising before writing How I Live Now (now a feature film, directed by Kevin MacDonald and starring Saoirse Ronan). Her books have won or been shortlisted for nineteen international book prizes, including the Carnegie medal, the Orange first novel prize and the National Book Award in America. Picture Me Gone is her sixth novel. Follow Meg on Twitter @megrosoff
Jill Santopolo is an executive editor at Philomel Books, an imprint of Penguin Young Readers Group, a division of Penguin Random House. Her list includes many award-winning and New York Times best-selling authors including T.A. Barron, Floyd Cooper, Andrea Cremer, Olivier Dunrea, Lisa Graff, Alex London, Erin Moulton and Jane Yolen. Jill holds an MFA in Writing for Children from the Vermont College of Fine Arts and is the author of the Alec Flint series (Scholastic), the Sparkle Spa series (S&S), and the Follow Your Heart series (Puffin). Follow Jill on Twitter @JillSantopolo.
Sara Sargent is an editor at Simon Pulse, an imprint of Simon & Schuster, where she edits Jennifer Echols and Deb Caletti as well as many exciting debut authors. Most recently she was at the Balzer & Bray imprint of HarperCollins Children’s Books, where she launched authors Rosamund Hodge, Sangu Mandanna, Marcy Paul, and Kiki Sullivan. Prior to her time at HarperCollins, Sara worked at Waxman Leavell Literary Agency, and interned with Miramax Books and Hyperion Books for Children. Sara has a Masters in Journalism. She can be found on Twitter @Sara_Sargent and on her website at www.sarasargent.wordpress.com.
Judy Schachner was born into an Irish Catholic working class family from New England. Money was as tight as their apartment was tiny and though she may not have had the easiest of childhoods, she credits her imagination with helping her survive it. She can't ever remember a time when she was not drawing and like most budding artists she doodled on everything, including her father's bald head. She drew herself into stories where she was the smartest in her class and into a family where mothers lived to be a ripe old age. Described by the New York Times as “ …something like the James Joyce for the elementary school – set…”, Judy Schachner is the #1 New York Times Best Selling author/illustrator of over twenty-three books for children including Bits & Pieces, the Skippyjon Jones series, Yo Vikings, The Grannyman and Willy and May. She has won many awards including the first E. B. White Read Aloud Award.
Kelly Sonnack is a literary agent with the Andrea Brown Literary Agency, ranked the top agency in juvenile sales by Publishers Marketplace. Kelly represents writers and illustrators for all age groups within children's literature (picture books, chapter books, middle grade, young adult, and graphic novels). Her clients include SCBWI success stories Steve Watkins, winner of the 2009 Golden Kite for Down Sand Mountain (Candlewick); and Sharon Cameron, Sue Alexander winner and author of The Dark Unwinding and its upcoming sequel A Spark Unseen (Scholastic).
Dinah Stevenson is vice president and publisher of Clarion Books, a children's trade imprint of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. Her career in children's book publishing spans four decades—so far. Ms. Stevenson edits picture books, fiction, and nonfiction for all ages. She has published the debut books of many children's authors, including Bruce Coville, Barbara Joosse, and Clarion novelists Karen Cushman and Linda Sue Park, and still enjoys working with talented newcomers as well as established writers. Books she edited have received the Newbery Medal and Newbery Honor, Caldecott Medal and Caldecott Honor, the Siebert Medal, and the Orbis Pictus award, among others. She is one of the very few editors whose books won the Newbery Medal and the Caldecott Medal in the same year.
Melissa Stewart is the award-winning author of more than one hundred and fifty nonfiction books for children, including Feathers: Not Just for Flying; No Monkeys, No Chocolate; Under the Snow; A Place for Butterflies; and Animal Grossapedia. Melissa maintains the blog Celebrate Science (www.celebratescience.blogspot.com) and serves on the board of advisors for the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators.
Maggie Stiefvater is the #1 New York Times best-selling author of the novels Shiver, Linger, and Forever. Her novel The Scorpio Races was named a Michael L. Printz Honor Book by the American Library Association, while Publishers Weekly selected Maggie's The Raven Boys as a Best Book of the Year. She is also the author of Lament and Ballad.
Ginger Wadsworth is the award-winning author of over twenty-five books for young readers. She writes biographies (John Muir, Rachel Carson, Benjamin Banneker, Cesar Chavez, Julia Morgan, Annie Oakley, Laura Ingalls Wilder, and others), books with western American history themes including Words West: Voices of Young Pioneers (Clarion Books), and natural histories titles about the desert, rivers, and spiders. Her most recent books are Camping With the President (Calkins Creek Press); Up, Up, and Away (Charlesbridge); First Girl Scout: The Life of Juliette Gordon Low (Clarion Books); and Yosemite’s Songster: One Coyote’s Story (Yosemite Conservancy), illustrated by Daniel San Souci.
Andrea Welch is a senior editor at Beach Lane Books, a San Diego-based imprint of Simon & Schuster. She has the pleasure of working with a long list of wonderful authors and illustrators, including Douglas Florian, Robert Neubecker, and Angela DiTerlizzi. Recent books she has edited include the New York Times best-selling LMNO Peas by Keith Baker, Baby Bear Sees Blue by Ashley Wolff, and the Brownie & Pearl series by Cynthia Rylant, illustrated by Brian Biggs. Andrea acquires projects for children of all ages—especially those that are filled with heart, humor, and irresistible characters.
Suzanne Morgan Williams is the author of the middle grade novel Bull Rider and several multicultural nonfiction books for children. Bull Rider is a Junior Library Guild Selection, has been on state award lists, and won a Western Heritage Award from the National Cowboy Museum in Oklahoma City. Suzanne’s nonfiction titles include Piñatas and Smiling Skeletons, The Inuit, Made in China, and her latest book, China’s Daughters. She has worked with tribal elders and cultural representatives on nonfiction books and projects including Double Visions: A Native Students Arts Exchange between Paiute and Inuit students. Suzanne wrote and supported Nevada Hispanic Services’ Great Latinos Biography Project for students in Nevada schools. Her articles about diversity in children’s literature appeared in the SCBWI Bulletin in spring of 2012.
Lisa Yee’s debut novel, Millicent Min, Girl Genius, won the first Sid Fleischman Humor Award in 2004. Since then, she has written ten more novels including Stanford Wong Flunks Big-Time, Absolutely Maybe, and Bobby vs. Girls (Accidentally), plus books for American Girl. Lisa’s YA novel, The Kidney Hypothetical . . . Or How to Ruin Your Life in Seven Days, will be out early 2015.
Eugene Yelchin is a Russian-born author and illustrator of picture books and middle grade novels. His novel Breaking Stalin’s Nose received the Newbery Honor, was translated in several languages and became Children’s Choice Book of the Year in Russia. His picture books include Won Ton, a Cat Tale Told in Haiku that received over forty awards, The Rooster Prince of Breslov that was named a National Jewish Book Award winner and other titles that earned awards and starred reviews. He began writing and illustrating for children after he received the Tomie DePaola award at the SCBWI conference in 2006. His new middle grade novel Arcady’s Goal is due in October of this year.
Salina Yoon cold-called the creative director of a small publishing house specializing in children’s novelty books in Santa Monica with an offer to intern in between terms while attending the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena. The two-month internship led to a full-time position as junior designer, then to art director. She relocated to San Diego with no job, but with a passion for interactive books—especially for the very young. She sold many projects to Intervisual Books at the start of her career as author/illustrator and designer, and began to submit projects to NY houses, like S&S and Penguin. Now, Salina is an award-winning author and illustrator of over one hundred and fifty books for children. Her recent titles include the picture books Found, Penguin and Pinecone, Penguin on Vacation, Penguin in Love, and novelty books Pinwheel and Kaleidoscope.
Cecilia Yung is art director and vice president at Penguin Books for Young Readers where she oversees illustration and design for two imprints, G. P. Putnam's Sons and Nancy Paulsen Books. She is fortunate to have worked with some of the major illustrators of children’s books, but the highlight of her work is to discover and develop new talent. She is on the Board of Advisors of SCBWI, as well as a member of its Illustrators’ Committee.
Bloggers:
Martha Brockenbrough is the author of five books for young readers: the YA novel Devine Intervention and The Dinosaur Tooth Fairy, a picture book. Both are with Arthur A. Levine at Scholastic, as are her forthcoming titles, The Game of Love and Death, another young adult novel, and Love, Santa, another picture book. She also wrote the nonfiction middle grade Finding Bigfoot for Feiwel & Friends. In addition to her work on SCBWI's Team Blog, she is the founder of National Grammar Day and SPOGG, the Society for the Promotion of Good Grammar. She has worked as a journalist for over twenty years, and as a content strategist and marketer for more than a decade.
Jolie Stekly is a freelance writer and novelist, teacher, fitness instructor, and former SCBWI co-regional advisor of the Western Washington chapter. She now directs the fall retreats for the region. One of Jolie’s greatest honors was being awarded SCBWI’s 2009 Member-of-the-Year.
Jaime Temairik’s debut picture book, How to Negotiate Everything, written by award-winning novelist Lisa Lutz, was published in 2013. She’s part of SCBWI’s TEAM BLOG, which covers SCBWI International Conferences (TEAM BLOG also covers Smothers Brothers songs). During the summer, Jaime teaches Illustrating Children's Picture Books for the University of Washington Extension program and she plans to blog about the class and (the doughnuts she brings to class.)
Lee Wind is The Captain of Team Blog, the Official Blogger for SCBWI (at scbwi.blogspot.com), and a co-regional advisor for SCBWI Los Angeles. A blogger, author and speaker, Lee holds a Masters in Education and Media from Harvard. His articles and interviews with luminaries in the world of children’s literature have been published online and in print, including the 2011 and 2012 "Children's Writer's And Illustrator's Market." His award-winning personal blog on Gay, Lesbian, Bi, Transgender, Queer and Questioning teen books and culture is I’m Here. I’m Queer. What the Hell Do I Read? Lee speaks to thousands of students and educators a year on ending bullying, smashing stereotypes, and empowering diversity.
Suzanne Young currently lives in Tempe, Arizona, where she teaches high school English. When not writing obsessively, Suzanne can be found daydreaming or reading romance novels. She is the author of several books for teens, including A Need So Beautiful and A Want So Wicked.