samirA ahmed, author of hollow fires

Samira Ahmed is the New York Times bestselling author of stories about revolutionary girls. Her novels include, Internment, Love Hate & Other Filters, Mad Bad & Dangerous to Know, the Amira & Hamza series, and the forthcoming Hollow Fires. She also writes the Ms. Marvel comic books. Samira currently lives in the Midwest. When she's not writing or reading, she can be found on her lifelong quest for the perfect pastry.

www.samiraahmed.com
Twitter & Instagram: @sam_aye_ahm

autumn allen, author of step on board

Autumn Allen is a writer, an editor, an educator, and a reviewer of books for young people. She is a senior editor at Barefoot Books, a small, independent publisher of children’s books in Massachusetts, where she acquires and develops picture books and board books. Autumn was the 2020-21 Writer in Residence selected by the Associates of the Boston Public Library, where she worked on her young adult novel, All You Have to Do, which also won a Susan P. Bloom Discovery Award. Her debut picture book, Step On Board, illustrated by Ekua Holmes, will be published by Knopf in 2025.

www.autumnallenbooks.com
twitter: @AutumnAAllen
instagram: @autumnallenbooks

abhi alwar, artist, designer & illustrator of hamsters make terrible roommates

Abhi Alwar is an artist and designer who was born in India, raised in Illinois, and is currently based in NYC. Her debut picture book as an illustrator, Hamsters Make Terrible Roommates written by Cheryl B. Klein, was published by Dial Books for Young Readers in November 2021. Her forthcoming books include the middle grade graphic novel Super Pancake (Knopf, 2023) written by Megan Wagner Lloyd, and the picture book Summer is for Cousins (Abrams, 2023) written by Rajani LaRocca. She loves oddball characters, truly upsetting puns, and especially enjoys working on stories that make her laugh.

www.abhialwar.com
Twitter & Instagram: @abhi_alwar

Hala Alyan, author of the arsonists’ city and actor/producer in short film tallahassee

Hala Alyan is a Palestinian American writer and clinical psychologist whose work has appeared in The New York Times, Poetry, Guernica and elsewhere. Her poetry collections have won the Arab American Book Award and the Crab Orchard Series. Her debut novel, Salt Houses, was published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt in 2017, and was the winner of the Arab American Book Award and the Dayton Literary Peace Prize. Her second novel, The Arsonists’ City, was recently published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. Hala lives in Brooklyn with her husband and dog.

halaalyan.com
Social Media: hala.n.alyan

GLORIA amescua, author of child of the flower-song people: luz jiménez, daughter of the nahua

Gloria Amescua (Ah MES qua) has been a writer since she was a child, writing poems and stories throughout her life. When she was a girl, she would often climb into the cradle of an oak tree and enter the world of words. She loves books that reach a young person’s heart, head or funny bone and strives to do just that in her writing. Gloria is proud of her Mexican American heritage. She is an educator, poet and children’s book writer. Abrams Books for Young Readers will publish her picture book biography in verse, Child of the Flower-Song People: Luz Jiménez, Daughter of the Nahua August 17, 2021. Highly regarded Duncan Tonatiuh is the illustrator. An earlier version won the 2016 Lee and Low New Voices Honor Award. A Hedgebrook alumna and a CantoMundo fellow, Gloria’s poetry has been published in a variety of literary journals and anthologies. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt has published one of her poems, “Summer of His Fourteenth Year,” in their national textbook literature series.  Gloria received both her B. A. and M. Ed. degrees from the University of Texas at Austin.  She lives outside Austin, Texas, surrounded by grand oaks with Jeff, their lively dog, Pixie, and sleepy cat, Lovey. The grandmother of two amazing granddaughters, Gloria believes in children, pets and possibilities.

https://www.gloriaamescua.com/

CAITE AROCHO, MARKETING COORDINATOR, RANDOM HOUSE CHILDREN’S BOOKS

Caite Arocho is a Marketing Coordinator at Random House Children's Books, specializing in middle grade titles. Prior to this, she worked as a Marketing Lead at Outside the Lens, a nonprofit that seeks to elevate unique, community-based stories. With every title that she works on, Caite strives to build a creative campaign that engages new readers and allows the story to shine authentically.

SUSANNAH AZIZ, AUTHOR OF HALAL HOT DOGS

Susannah Aziz is a creative/freelance writer and children's book author living in NYC. She writes stories that focus on Arab and Muslim characters and hopes to see more culturally diverse characters, as well as neurodiverse characters represented in traditional publishing. Her debut picture book, Halal Hot Dogs (Little Bee Books), features an Arab-Muslim character named Musa that enjoys a special treat with his family after Jummah prayer at the local masjid. Susannah is also a librarian with a MSLIS from St. John's University (NYC). She hopes to create more library programs for children with Autism. As an urban librarian, she loves running into patrons all around town. Susannah also spent some time teaching as a middle school educator at an Islamic School. She is an advocate for UNRWA USA. UNRWA USA National Committee (UNRWA USA) aims to promote a life of dignity and human development for Palestine refugees by informing the American public about UNRWA’s work and generating support for its programs in the Gaza Strip, the West Bank (including East Jerusalem), Syria, Lebanon, and Jordan. Susannah lives in a very old, creaky, squeaky house with her husband, three kids, and cat. Her favorite summer activity with her kids includes trying to hit every halal hot dog stand in NYC in search of the BEST hot dog! They still can't decide on just one!

susannahaziz.com
Instagram: @librarycatnyc
Twitter: @susannah29

Darcie Little Badger, AUTHOR OF A SNAKE FALLS TO EARTH

Darcie Little Badger is a Lipan Apache writer with a PhD in oceanography. Her critically acclaimed debut novel, Elatsoe, was featured in Time Magazine as one of the best 100 fantasy books of all time. Elatsoe also won the Locus award for Best First Novel and is a Nebula, Ignyte, and Lodestar finalist. Her second fantasy novel, A Snake Falls to Earth, received a Newbery Honor and is on the National Book Awards longlist. Darcie is married to a veterinarian named Taran.

https://darcielittlebadger.wordpress.com/
Instagram: dr.littlebadger
TikTok: dr.littlebadger

SCHUYLER BAILAR, AUTHOR OF OBIE IS MAN ENOUGH

Schuyler Bailar (he/him) is the first transgender athlete to compete in any sport on an NCAA Division 1 men’s team. By 15, he was one of the nation’s top-20 15-year-old breast-strokers. By 17, he set a national age-group record. In college, he swam for Harvard University, on Harvard’s winningest team in 50 years. Schuyler’s difficult choice – to transition while potentially giving up the prospect of being an NCAA Champion – was historic. His story has appeared everywhere from 60 Minutes to The Washington Post and The Olympic Channel. Schuyler’s tireless advocacy has earned him numerous honors including The Out100 and LGBTQ Nation’s Instagram Advocate for 2020. Obie Is Man Enough is Schuyler's first novel.

pinkmantaray.com
IG & FB: @pinkmantaray
Twitter @sb_pinkmantaray

Jennifer Baker, Senior Editor at Amistad Books / HarperCollins Publishers & AUTHOR OF FORGIVE ME NOT

Jennifer Baker is a publishing professional of almost 20 years, creator/host of the Minorities in Publishing podcast, and faculty member of the MFA program in Creative Nonfiction at Bay Path University. Formerly a contributing editor to Electric Literature, she received a 2017 NYSCA/NYFA Fellowship and a Queens Council on the Arts New Work Grant for Nonfiction Literature. Her essay "What We Aren't (or the Ongoing Divide)" was listed as a Notable Essay in The Best American Essays 2018. In 2019, she was named Publishers Weekly Superstar for her contributions to inclusion and representation in publishing. Jennifer is also the editor of the BIPOC short story anthology Everyday People: The Color of Life (Atria Books, 2018) and the author of the forthcoming novel Forgive Me Not (Putnam BFYR, 2022). She has volunteered with organizations such as We Need Diverse Books and I, Too Arts Collective, and spoken widely on topics of inclusion, the craft of writing/editing, podcasting, and the inner-workings of the publishing industry. Her fiction, nonfiction, and criticism has appeared in various print and online publications.

www.jennifernbaker.com
@jbakernyc
See Jennifer’s WISHLIST here.

WINSOME BINGHAM, AUTHOR OF SOUL FOOD SUNDAY

Winsome Bingham is a soul food connoisseur, master cook, and a US Army war and disabled veteran. She received both bachelor’s and master’s degrees in education and an MFA in Writing For Children and Young Adults. She has more than 15 years of teaching experience. You can find her writing on a deck while waiting patiently with a camera to capture a submarine shooting out of the water. Bingham’s debut picture book, Soul Food Sunday, illustrated by Charles G. Esperanza, was published in 2021 by Abrams Books.

https://binghamwrites.com/

Stefanie Sanchez Von Borstel, cO-FOUNDER, LITERARY AGENT, full circle literary

Stefanie Sanchez von Borstel is co-founder of Full Circle Literary, a literary agency with a focus on discovering, developing, and advocating underrepresented creators of books and media. Some of the creators Stefanie represents include Monica Brown, Carmen Tafolla, Diana López, Celia C. Pérez, Jasminne Mendez, David Bowles, Rafael López, John Parra, Estelí Meza and Juana Martinez-Neal, to name a few. She is a board member of LatinxinPublishing. A proud Tejana from San Antonio, Stefanie is now based in southern California.

Fullcircleliterary.com
Twitter and IG: @fullcirclelit
See here for interview and WISHLIST.

angeline boulley, author of firekeeper’s daughter

Angeline Boulley (Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians) is a #1 New York Times bestselling author. Her debut, Firekeeper’s Daughter, won the 2022 Michael L. Printz Award for excellence in literature written for young adults and the 2022 William C. Morris Award for a debut book published by a first-time author writing for teens. It was an American Indian Youth Literature Award Young Adult Honor Book and won the 2022 Walter Dean Myers Award for Outstanding Children’s Literature in the Teen category. The Obamas’ Higher Ground Productions is adapting it for a Netflix series.

https://angelineboulley.com
Twitter: @FineAngeline
Instagram, Facebook, & TikTok: @angelineboulley

Nana Ekua Brew-Hammond, author of blue: a history of the color as deep as the sea and as wide as the sky

Nana Ekua Brew-Hammond is the author of the children's picture book BLUE: A History of the Color as Deep as the Sea and as Wide as the Sky, illustrated by Caldecott Honor Artist Daniel Minter, and the young adult novel Powder Necklace, which Publishers Weekly called “a winning debut.” Her short fiction for adult readers is included in the anthologies Accra Noir edited by Nana-Ama Danquah, New Daughters of Africa edited by Margaret Busby, CBE, Hon. FIRSL, Everyday People edited by Jennifer Baker, and Woman’s Work edited by Michelle Sewell, among others. Her writing has also appeared in Now2, African Writing, Los Angeles Review of Books, and Sunday Salon. Forthcoming from Brew-Hammond are a novel and anthology.

NanaBrewHammond.com
Insta: nanaekuawriter

mahogany L. Browne, author of vinyl moon & chlorine sky

Mahogany L. Browne, selected as Kennedy Center's Next 50, is the Executive Director of JustMedia, a media literacy initiative with a focus on the criminal legal system, and is informed by her career as a writer, organizer, & educator. Browne has received fellowships from Art for Justice Fund, Air Serenbe, Cave Canem, Poets House, Mellon Research & Rauschenberg. She is the author of recent works: Vinyl Moon, Chlorine Sky, Woke: A Young Poets Call to Justice, Woke Baby, Black Girl Magic & book-length poem: I Remember Death By Its Proximity to What I Love. She is the founder of Woke Baby Book Fair, a traveling diverse reading campaign, and is the first-ever poet-in-residence at the Lincoln Center and lives in Brooklyn, NY.

www.mobrowne.com All social media: @mobrowne

COZBI a. CABRERA, Author / illustrator of ME AND MAMA & MY HAIR IS A GARDEN

Cozbi A. Cabrera is the author/illustrator of Me & Mama (2021 Coretta Scott King Honor/Caldecott Honor) and My Hair is A Garden deemed by Kirkus as “how needed, how refreshing.” Her star reviewed illustrated titles include Exquisite: The Poetry and Life of Gwendolyn Brooks by Suzanne Slade (2021 ALA Sibert Informational Award Honor/Coretta Scott King Honor), Most Loved In All The World by Tonya Cherie Hegamin, Stitchin’ and Pullin’ A Gees Bend Quilt by Patricia McKissack, Thanks A Million by Nikki Grimes. Cozbi has been a contributing illustrator for various titles including Our Children Can Soar by Michelle Cook (NAACP Image Award). Cozbi lives in Evanston, Illinois with her husband and daughter.

www.cozbi.com
Instagram: @cozbi
Twitter: @cozbihandmade
Facebook: CozbiBooks

HAYAN CHARARA, author of the three lucys

Hayan Charara is a poet, children’s book author, essayist, and editor. His poetry books are These Trees, Those Leaves, This Flower, That Fruit (Milkweed Editions), Something Sinister (Carnegie Mellon Univ Press), The Sadness of Others (Carnegie Mellon Univ Press), and The Alchemist’s Diary (Hanging Loose Press). His children’s book, The Three Lucys (2016), received the New Voices Award Honor, and he edited Inclined to Speak (2008), an anthology of contemporary Arab American poetry. With Fady Joudah, he is also a series editor of the Etel Adnan Poetry Prize.

sarah kim choi, marketing and communications consultant

Born and raised in Texas by first-generation Korean immigrants, Sarah has lived and worked all over the U.S. as a cause marketing and communications consultant and freelance writer. Currently, she helps companies and organizations develop their authentic brand voice and facilitates the practice of circle storytelling to build compassion and equity. Sarah is also an advisory board member of Inprint Houston, a premier nonprofit supporting the excellence and diversity of literary arts in the U.S. Sarah hopes her books for children will shine a joyful light on the humanity and innate worthiness of every child. She lives with her family in Atlanta.

sarahkchoi.com

deborah cowell, digital artist, editor and writer

Deborah Cowell is a product of the public school system, first grade through graduate school. She is an editor, writer, digital artist specializing in black and white photography and film. She was born and raised in New York City.

https://www.instagram.com/i.deborah.cowell https://www.instagram.com/deborah_bklyn

Susan Muaddi Darraj, author of farah rocks Series

Susan Muaddi Darraj is the author of the FARAH ROCKS (Capstone Books) series, the first chapter book series to feature a Palestinian American character. Her short story collection, A Curious Land: Stories from Home, was named the winner of the AWP Grace Paley Prize for Short Fiction. It also won the 2016 Arab American Book Award, a 2016 American Book Award, and was shortlisted for a Palestine Book Award. In 2018, she was named a Ford Fellow by USA Artists. In 2019, she launched the viral #TweetYourThobe social media campaign to promote Palestinian culture. Later that year, she was named winner of the Rose Nader Award, by the American Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC), an award given by the Nader family to a person who “demonstrates an unwavering dedication and commitment to values of equality and justice.” In January 2020, Capstone Books launched her debut children’s chapter book series, Farah Rocks, about a smart, brave Palestinian American girl named Farah Hajjar. Farah Rocks is the first chapter book series to feature a Palestinian American protagonist.

She lives in Baltimore, where she teaches fiction writing at the Johns Hopkins University. Susan is a recipient of many awards, including the American Book Award, the Arab American Book Award, and a Ford Fellowship for her books.

www.SusanMuaddiDarraj.com
Twitter/Insta: @SusanDarraj

TRACY DEONN, author of legendBorn & BLOODMARKED

Tracy Deonn is the New York Times bestselling and Coretta Scott King/John Steptoe Award–winning author of Legendborn, and its sequel Bloodmarked. A second-generation fangirl, after earning her master’s degrees in communication from UNC-Chapel Hill, she worked in live theater, video games, and K–12 education. When she’s not writing, Tracy speaks on panels at SFF conventions, reads fanfic, and keeps an eye out for ginger-flavored everything.

https://www.tracydeonn.com/
@TracyDeonn

Jessica Echeverria, executive EDITOR, LEE & LOW BOOKS

Jessica Echeverria is an executive editor at Lee & Low Books. She began her career at Simon & Schuster Simon Spotlight, where she worked on licensed properties, brands, and developing new paperback series. In 2012, she joined Lee & Low to help bring more diverse voices and stories to children’s publishing. She is interested in picture books that feature strong or quirky characters, stories with lots of heart, humor, and culture, and on her ultimate wishlist is to work on a wordless picture book. Her most recent book is JUNA AND APPA by Jane Park, illustrated by Felicia Hoshino.

https://www.leeandlow.com/

Zetta EllioTT, author of dragons in a bag & A PLACE INSIDE OF ME

Zetta Elliott is the author of over forty books for young readers, including the award-winning picture books Bird, Melena’s Jubilee, and A Place Inside of Me. Dragons in a Bag, a middle grade fantasy novel, was selected for the 2021 Global Read Aloud. The sequel, The Dragon Thief, was named one of the best books of 2019 by the Cooperative Children’s Book Center. Her young adult poetry collection, Say Her Name, was nominated for the YALSA Excellence in Nonfiction Award. Her own imprint, Rosetta Press, generates culturally relevant stories that center children who have been marginalized, misrepresented, and/or rendered invisible in traditional children’s literature.

zettaelliott.com
IG & Twitter: @zettaelliott

Kelly Fernández, cartoonist & creator of ¡¡Manu!!: A Graphic Novel

Kelly Fernandez is a cartoonist who was born and raised in Queens, New York. Her family is from the Dominican Republic, whose folklore and culture she draws inspiration from. Her debut graphic novel, ¡¡Manu!!, was published by Scholastic Graphix and has received starred reviews from Kirkus, Publisher's Weekly, and Booklist. Her work has been featured in a number of comic anthologies such as Dates, Mine!, and Tales from la Vida. She has also done illustrative work for Cicada magazine and received the 2017 Cupcake Award from the Chicago Alternative Comics Expo (CAKE).

abigail frank, Associate Agent at Sanford J. Greenburger Associates

Abigail is passionate about stories for young people, especially those that are hilarious, poetic, quietly heartbreaking, and/or swoon-worthy, and she cares about voice, above all. She is committed to advocating for the work of authors and artists with marginalized identities, and she’s actively looking for stories that allow young readers to recognize themselves in the books they love. She's also reading select adult projects, focusing on rom-coms. Abigail joined the Greenburger team in 2017 after interning at Writers House. She graduated with a degree in English from Swarthmore College and worked in healthcare before pursuing her passion for books.

https://www.greenburger.com/agent/abigail-frank
On Twitter @abigailcrfrank

ADRIANA M GARCIA, illustrator, where wonder grows & all around us

A San Anto, Texas native, Adriana M Garcia, is a Chicana muralist turned illustrator which she likes to think of as mini murals for book lovers. Her debut picture book All Around Us (by Xelena Gonzalez, Cinco Puntos Press) was awarded the prestigious 2018 Pura Belpré Honor for illustration, and the 2018 Tomas Rivera Award among other honors. She hopes her second book Where Wonder Grows by the same author and press will inspire young ones to spend time in nature and listen to what our elders have to say.

www.adrianamjgarcia.com
instagram: @adrianamjgarcia
Facebook: adriana.m.garcia.14 adrianamjgarcia

Michaela Goade, author / illustrator of berry song & illustrator of i sang you down from the stars

Michaela is a Caldecott Medalist and #1 New York Times Bestselling illustrator. She is the illustrator of a number of award-winning and bestselling books, including "We Are Water Protectors" by Carole Lindstrom, "I Sang You Down from the Stars" by Tasha Spillett-Sumner, and "Shanyaak'utlaax: Salmon Boy." Her first self-authored picture book "Berry Song" is set to release July 2022. Michaela is a member of the Lingít Nation and grew up along the southeast coast of Alaska. She currently lives in Sheet'ká or Sitka, Alaska, an island at the edge of a wide, wild sea.

michaelagoade.com
Instagram: @michaelagoade
Twitter: @MichaelaGoade

Camille Gomera-Tavarez, author of high spirits

Camille Gomera-Tavarez is an Afro-Dominican writer, designer, and creative from New Jersey. She has a BFA in Graphic Design & Creative Writing from the Maryland Institute College of Art and is currently based in Philadelphia, PA. High Spirits is her debut.

Xelena González, author of where wonder grows

Xelena González is a storyteller, poet, and visiting author who centers self-love in her multi-disciplinary workshops for all ages. Her picture books include the recently-released Where Wonder Grows and All Around Us, winner of multiple accolades, including the Tomás Rivera Mexican American Children’s Book Award and an American Indian Youth Literature Honor Award. Her third collaboration with friend and muralist Adriana M. Garcia will be released by Simon & Schuster in 2023. Xelena’s storytelling skills were honed as a public librarian in her hometown of Yanaguana/San Antonio and in Guangzhou, China, where she served as head librarian for an international school.

XELENA.SPACE
Instagram: @xfactor.live
Facebook: Xelena Gonzalez

WENDI GU, Agent at greenburger associates

Wendi Gu is an agent at Greenburger Associates. She was raised by hardworking immigrant parents in the northern suburbs of Chicago. Shortly after graduating from Northwestern University with a degree in Creative Writing and Anthropology, she started working at Greenburger under the mentorship of Brenda Bowen.

See Wendi’s WISHLIST here.

Arely Guzmán, kweli contributing editor

Arely Guzmán is a Kweli contributing editor who grew up in the Tijuana/ San Diego border. They have worked as an intern at Writers House and Bloomsbury and as an editorial assistant at Penguin Random House. She is fascinated by stories that navigate in-betweens and intersectional identities, particularly those of Latinx and queer communities. You can often find them reading a good book, obsessing over tea or engaging in deep conversations with her cat.

Social Media: @areliteration
See Arely’s WISHLIST here.

serene hakim, agent at ayesha pande literary

Serene Hakim is an agent at Ayesha Pande Literary. She represents authors in a variety of genres, from MG fantasy to adult literary fiction to contemporary YA. Serene is particularly interested in both YA and adult fiction that has international themes, highlights a variety of cultures and focuses on underrepresented and/or marginalized voices. Specifically, she's looking for writing that explores different meanings of identity, home, family and parenthood/motherhood. Her educational background is in French and Women's Studies and she holds an M.A. in French-English Translation from NYU.

www.pandeliterary.com
Twitter: @serenemaria
See Serene’s WISHLIST here.

leah henderson, author of daddy speaks love & A DAY FOR REMEMBERIN’

Leah Henderson is the author of several critically acclaimed books for young readers including Daddy Speaks Love, A Day for Rememberin’, and Together We March. Her middle grade novels include The Magic in Changing Your Stars and One Shadow on the Wall. Leah holds an MFA in Writing and is on faculty in Spalding University's graduate writing program.

www.leahhendersonbooks.com
twitter: @LeahsMark
instagram: @Leahs_Mark

joanna ho, author of eyes that kiss in the corners & Playing at the Border: A Story of Yo-Yo Ma

Joanna Ho is the New York Times bestselling author of Eyes that Kiss in the Corners, Playing at the Border: A Story of Yo-Yo Ma, and Eyes that Speak to the Stars. She is a writer and educator with a passion for anti-bias, anti-racism and equity work. Her debut YA novel, The Silence that Binds Us will be released in June 2022 with more books on the way. She is currently the vice principal of a high school in the Bay Area, where she survives on homemade chocolate chip cookies, outdoor adventures, and dance parties with her kids.

joannahowrites.com All social media: @joannahowrites

NASUGRAQ RAINEY HOPSON, AUTHOR OF EAGLE DRUMS

Born and raised in the rural expanse of the North Slope of Alaska, Nasugraq Rainey Hopson grew up on fantastic tales from her unique and rich Indigenous Inupiaq culture. When she is not writing or creating art inspired by these stories, she is studying how to grow food in the arctic and is working at preserving traditional Inupiaq knowledge. She has a degree in Studio Art and has taught all levels of Art from kindergarten to college level. She lives in Anaktuvuk Pass Alaska with her husband and daughters, three dogs, and a small flock of arctic chickens where she lives off the land and the amazing bounty it provides like her ancestors did for thousands of years.

https://www.nasugraqhopson.com/

CONNIE HSU, EXECUTIVE EDITOR, ROARING BROOK PRESS AT MACMILLAN

Connie Hsu is an executive editor at Roaring Brook Press at Macmillan Publishing, a founding member of the Children’s Book Council Diversity Committee, and a member of the Brooklyn Book Festival Children’s Planning Committee. Recent books include I Dream of Popo, Outside, Inside, Black Is a Rainbow Color, and Fry Bread. Her authors include Vera Brosgol, Angela Dominguez, Shannon Hale, Pat Zietlow Miller, Dan Santat, Steve Sheinkin, and Tillie Walden. She was born in Taiwan, raised in Alabama, and now lives in Brooklyn.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/123365003
Twitter: @editorhsu
See Connie’s EDITOR INTERVIEW here.

Cheryl Willis Hudson, EDITORIAL DIRECTOR OF JUST US BOOKS & EDITOR OF RECOGNIZE, AN ANTHOLOGY HONORING AND AMPLIFYING BLACK LIFE

Cheryl Willis Hudson is V.P. and editorial director of Just Us Books, Inc., an independent publishing company founded with her husband Wade that focuses on Black interest books for young people. Her books include Afro-Bets ABC Book, Bright Eyes, Brown Skin (co-authored with Bernette G. Ford); Hands Can, My Friend Maya Loves to Dance, Brave. Black. First. 50+ African American Women Who Changed the World and three anthologies which she co-edited with her husband Wade: We Rise, We Resist, We Raise Our Voices, The Talk: Conversations About Race, Love & Truth and RECOGNIZE! An Anthology Honoring and Amplifying Black Life.

cherylwillishudson.com
FB @cherylwillishudson
Twitter @cherylwilhudson

WADE HUDSON, PRESIDENT OF JUST US BOOKS & AUTHOR OF DEFIANT, GROWING UP IN THE JIM CROW SOUTH

Wade Hudson is the author of more than thirty-five books for young readers and is co-founder of Just Us Books, Inc. His most recently published titles include Recognize! An Anthology Honoring and Amplifying Black Life (co-edited with his wife, Cheryl) and the coming-of-age-memoir, Defiant—Growing Up in the Jim Crow South, both published by Crown Books for Young Readers. He is also president of Just Us Books, a children and young adult book publishing company he and his wife founded in 1988.

justusbooks.com
FB: wade.hudson2

Paula Chase Hyman, AUTHOR OF KEEPING IT REAL

Co-founder of the award-winning blog, The Brown Bookshelf, Paula Chase is a longtime Inclusion Jedi and advocate for diversifying the type of fiction featuring Black characters that’s highlighted among educators, librarians and parents. She’s presented and blogged about the need to expand the focus beyond children’s literature that centers the pain of the Black experience and is the 2021 recipient of the Assembly on Literature for Adolescents (ALAN) Konigsberg Award for her advocacy. Chase is the author of nine children’s books. So Done (Greenwillow/HarperCollins), her critically acclaimed middle grade debut, was named a 2018 Kirkus Reviews Best Book. So Done and its companions, Dough Boys and Turning Point are blazing the trail for books that tackle tough and sometimes taboo topics for younger readers. Her latest novel, Keeping It Real, focuses on classism in the Black community and impact of family secrets.

paulachasebooks.com
Twitter: @ThatMGBookchick
IG: @ThatPaulaChase

Candice Iloh, AUTHOR OF BREAK THIS HOUSE & EVERY BODY LOOKING

Candice Iloh is a first-generation Nigerian American writer and dancer from the Midwest by way of Washington, D.C. and Brooklyn, New York. They are a proud alumna of the Rhode Island Writers Colony and their work has earned fellowships from Lambda Literary, VONA, Kimbilio Fiction and a residency with Hi-ARTS, where they debuted their first one-person show in 2018. Candice became a 2020 National Book Award Finalist and in 2021, a Printz Award Honoree for their debut novel, Every Body Looking. Their forthcoming novel, Break This House, is out in May 2022.

becomher.com
twitter: @candiceiloh
instagram: @thisiscandiceiloh

HARSHITA JERATH, AUTHOR OF THE LEAPING LADDOO

Harshita (pronounced her-SHE-ta) is the author of picture book, The Leaping Laddoo published by Albert Whitman in March 2022. Her second picture book, Cooler than Lemonade by Sourcebooks comes out in March 2023. Born and raised in India, Harshita’s stories offer a window into the vibrant Indian culture and traditions. Harshita holds a masters in hospital administration and is bilingual in English and Hindi. 

For more information visit her blog ipenlife.com where she shares her views about everyday life.

http://harshitajerath.com/
Twitter: @hjerath Insta: @harshitajerath

kRISTI jEWEL, AUTHOR OF WHAT IS JUNETEENTH?

Kirsti-Jewel is a former Bay Area school leader who recently accepted a role as the Director of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion at an independent school in Manhattan. She is a 2020 Kweli Fellow and she enjoys writing nonfiction for both children and adults. Her writing centers Black love, Black joy and Black resistance, and she has a forthcoming children’s book about Juneteenth that will be released in 2022 with Penguin Random House. She currently lives in Biggie’s neighborhood in Brooklyn with her dog, Trini, and their favorite thing to do is to open up the windows and listen to the music their neighbors are playing.

KEVIN JOHNSON, AUTHOR OF CAPE

Kevin Johnson is author of the forthcoming picture book, Cape (Roaring Brook Press, Feb 2023). The adopted son of two loving educators, Kevin fell in love with storytelling at an early age. This led him to study screenwriting and filmmaking, receiving a Bachelors of Arts from Temple University. Kevin is a lover of movies, books, comics, music, and gadgets. While his birthplace, Philadelphia, will always remain home, Kevin loves to travel and find inspiration for his next tale.

www.captaincreate.com
FB, IG, Youtube: @CaptainCreate
Twitter: @Captain_Create

aYA kHALIL, author of the night before eid & the banned books bake sale: a protest story

Aya Khalil, M.Ed, is an award-winning author and freelance journalist. She holds a master’s degree in Education with a focus in teaching English as a second Language. Aya and her book have been featured in Oprah Daily, Teen Vogue, Yahoo!, Book Riot and USA Today. Her writing has been published in The Huffington Post, The Christian Science Monitor, Toledo Area Parent and many others. Her debut picture book The Arabic Quilt was published in February 2020 by Tilbury House & illustrated by Anait Semirdzhyan and has won numerous awards and honors. Her next upcoming picture book, The Night Before Eid, will be published in 2023 by Little, Brown/ Christy Ottaviano, about three generations of Egyptian-Americans bonding over a special Eid treat. It will be illustrated by Rashin Kheiriyeh. Her third book, The Banned Books Bake Sale: A Protest Story is slated to be released in 2023. Aya is represented by Brent Taylor of Triada US Agency.

www.ayakhalil.com
Insta: ayakhalilauthor
Twitter: ayawrites

Adib Khorram, author of kiss & tell

Adib Khorram is the queer Iranian-American author of numerous award-winning books for young readers, including Darius the Great is Not Okay, Darius the Great Deserves Better, Seven Special Somethings, and Kiss & Tell.

adibkhorram.com
Twitter & Instagram: @adibkhorram
Tiktok: @adib.khorram

cheryl klein, editorial director at Lee & low books

Cheryl Klein is endlessly fascinated by the power and possibilities of picture books (see: Ten Blocks to the Big Wok by Ying-Hwa Hu; Seven Golden Rings by Rajani LaRocca, illustrated by Archana Sreenivasan; When Aidan Became a Brother by Kyle Lukoff, illustrated by Kaylani Juanita . . .) and edits select older titles as well. She is the author of The Magic Words: Writing Great Books for Children and Young Adults and four picture books, most recently <I>Hamsters Make Terrible Roommates, illustrated by Abhi Alwar.

www.cherylklein.com
Twitter & Instagram: @chavelaque
See Cheryl’s MS WISH LIST.

london ladd, illustrator of black gold

London Ladd, currently pursuing an MFA in Illustration at Syracuse University, uses a mixed media approach to bring his diverse subjects to life. His goal is to open a visual arts community center for lower-income families so they can create their own art. He has illustrated many award winning picture books, including American Anthem, Midnight Teacher: Lilly Ann Granderson and Her Secret School and Frederick's Journey: The Life of Frederick Douglass. He recently collaborated with Laura Obuobi, the debut author of Black Gold. London lives in Syracuse, New York.

https://www.londonladd.com/
Instagram: @london.ladd

rajani larocca, author of red, white and whole & seven golden rings

Rajani LaRocca was born in India, raised in Kentucky, and now lives in the Boston area, where she practices medicine and writes award-winning books for young readers. She’s always been an omnivorous reader, and now she is an omnivorous writer of fiction and nonfiction, novels and picture books, prose and poetry. She finds inspiration in her family, her childhood, the natural world, math, science, and just about everywhere she looks. Learn more about Rajani and her books at www.RajaniLaRocca.com. She also cohosts the STEM Women in KidLit Podcast.

https://www.rajanilarocca.com/ Twitter & Instagram: @rajanilarocca

Minh Lê, author of the blur & a lotus for you

Minh Lê is the author of Drawn Together (winner of the 2019 Asian/Pacific American Award for Literature), Lift (an Eisner Award-nominee), Green Lantern: Legacy, and others. He has several forthcoming projects including The Blur ( a new picture book with Dan Santat) and A Lotus for You, the authorized picture book biography of the world-renowned Zen Buddhist monk and Nobel Peace Prize nominee, Thích Nhất Hạnh. In addition to writing books, Minh serves on the board of We Need Diverse Books and has written for a number of national publications, including NPR, The Huffington Post, and the New York Times.

minhlebooks.com
Twitter & Instagram: @bottomshelfbks

Emeline Lee, author of bonnie’s rocket

Emeline Lee is the author of the forthcoming children's picture book, Bonnie's Rocket, illustrated by Alina Chau and published by Lee & Low Books. The STEM-friendly story was inspired by her grandfather, who was an engineer for Apollo 11. She holds a degree from Columbia University, where she studied English Literature and Sustainable Development, and she currently works in the renewable energy sector. During her free time, she enjoys quiet hikes where she can see the stars at night.

www.emelinelee.com
Twitter, Instagram, TikTok: EmelineLeeBooks

Kristen R. Lee, author of required reading for the disenfranchised freshman

Kristen R. Lee is a native of Memphis, Tennessee. After graduating from college, she began to write her experiences attending a predominantly white institution, which led to the first draft of Required Reading for the Disenfranchised Freshman. She’s worked as a mentor for foster youth and has interned in a school setting, where she counseled middle-school-aged children. Writing stories that reflect often-unheard voices is what she strives to do.

www.kristenleebooks.com
Social Media: kristenleebooks

Arthur a. levine, President and Editor-in-Chief of Levine Querido

Arthur A. Levine is the President and Editor-in-chief of Levine Querido, an independent publisher founded in 2019. Among the books he’s edited are Printz medalist Daniel Nayeri’s Everything Sad is Untrue, Sundee Frazier’s Mighty Inside, Cat Min’s Shy Willow and Young Vo’s Gibberish. Among the lenses through which he sees the world are those of a Gay, Jewish person with disabilities.

www.levinequerido.com
twitter: @arthalevine1

Tiff Liao, executive editor at zando’s young reader’s initiative

Tiffany Liao leads ​Zando’s Young Readers initiative. Prior to joining Zando, Tiffany ​worked at Henry Holt Books for Young Readers, where she edited the #1 New York Times bestsellers Firekeeper’s Daughter by Angeline Boulley, winner of the Morris and the Printz Awards, Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi, and its sequel Children of Virtue and Vengeance. She’s had the honor and joy of working with authors such as Lily Anderson, Dhonielle Clayton, Maurene Goo, Lesley Livingston, Goldy Moldavsky, Tochi Onyebuchi, Margaret Owen, Jenn Reese, and "Queer Eye" star Karamo Brown.

http://www.mackidsbooks.com/staff/ Twitter: @tiff_liao
See Tiff’s MS WISH LIST.

ALVINA LING, editor-in-chief, little brown books for young readers

Alvina Ling is VP and Editor-in-Chief at Little, Brown Books for Young Readers (a division of Hachette Book Group) where she has worked since 1999. She edits children's books for all ages, including A Big Mooncake for Little Star and Where the Mountain Meets the Moon by Grace Lin, Dave the Potter by Laban Carrick Hill and illustrated by Bryan Collier, The Land of Stories series by Chris Colfer, The Wild Robot by Peter Brown, Ghost Boys by Jewell Parker Rhodes, Troublemaker by John Cho, The Astonishing Color of After by Emily X.R. Pan, and The Cruel Prince by Holly Black. She lives in Brooklyn with her husband and two cats.

http://bloomabilities.blogspot.com/
Twitter: @planetalvina; Instagram: @alvinaling

Amina Luqman-Dawson, author of freewater

Amina Luqman Dawson loves using writing to tell stories and to build an understanding of race, culture and community. Her published writing includes op-eds in newspapers, magazine articles, travel writing and book reviews. She’s authored the pictorial history book Images of America: African Americans of Petersburg (Arcadia Publishing). She’s worked as a policy professional, researcher and consultant on issues of education and criminal justice. She has a BA in Political Science from Vassar College and a Master of Public Policy from UC Berkeley. She’s a proud mother of a 13-year-old son. She, her husband and son reside in Arlington, VA. Freewater is her debut novel.

www.aminaluqman-dawson.com
Social Media: @aminaluqman

eva lynch-comer, assistant editor, harpercollins children’s books

Eva Lynch-Comer is an assistant editor at HarperCollins Children’s Books. Before working at Harper, Eva interned at the Jennifer De Chiara Literary Agency and Hannigan Getzler Literary Agency. Eva is particularly drawn to young adult and middle grade, novels in verse, fantasy/speculative fiction, and stories centering marginalized identities. She has a Bachelor's degree in Creative Writing from Hamilton College. When she’s not fully immersed in the book world, you can find Eva singing, journaling, swimming, writing poetry, or walking her dog Osito.

IG: @evalynchcomer

katie v. madison, composer, director, producer, writer and vocalist

Katie is a Brooklyn based composer, director, producer, writer and vocalist. She is an inaugural member of Hi-ARTS’ Artspace Exchange Program. With a New York City Artist Corps Grant Katie produced, directed and performed in a concert of her work at the historic Weeksville Heritage Center. A Critical Breaks Resident with Hi-Arts in April 2021 and a 2021 Jonathan Larson Award finalist, Katie’s work has been commissioned by Lincoln Center, the University of Michigan’s Musical Theatre Department, New York Stage and Film, Crossroads Theatre Company, The Civilians, Milwaukee Skylight Theatre, The Tank, En Garde Arts and The Cowles Center.

www.kvmadison.com
IG: @kvmad

Kekla Magoon, author of revolution in our time: the black panther party’s promise to the people & the season of styx malone

Kekla Magoon is the award-winning author of many novels and nonfiction books for young readers, including The Season of Styx Malone, How it Went Down, and Revolution in our Time: The Black Panther Party’s Promise to the People, which was a Michael L. Printz Honor winner and National Book Award Finalist. Kekla has also received four Coretta Scott King Honors, two Walter Award Honors, the Boston Globe-Horn Book Award, and an NAACP Image Award. She holds an MFA in Writing from Vermont College of Fine Arts, where she now teaches.

keklamagoon.com
IG and Twitter: @KeklaMagoon

Meghan Maria McCullough, editor, levine querido

Meghan Maria McCullough is an Associate Editor at Levine Querido. Previously, she was an Editorial Assistant at Arthur A. Levine Books, an imprint of Scholastic. Prior to joining Scholastic, she worked in marketing at Penguin Random House. She holds an MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults from The New School.

levinequerido.com
@meghanmariamcc

Madelyn McZeal, editorial assistant, levine querido

Madelyn McZeal is an Editorial Assistant at Levine Querido. She graduated from Columbia University with a BA in Creative Writing. She has a terrible sense of direction, and gets lost in books quite easily. When she grows up, she wants to be Lemony Snicket.

levinequerido.com
Twitter: @MadelynMcZeal

Sydnee Monday, ASSOCIATE EDITOR, PENGUIN YOUNG READERS

Sydnee Monday has assisted on bestselling and critically acclaimed titles such as Hair Love by Matthew A. Cherry and Vashti Harrison, Patron Saints of Nothing by Randy Ribay, The Legend of Auntie Po by Shing Yin Khor, and Maya and the Robot by Eve L. Ewing. They've edited titles such as The Cot in the Living Room by Hilda Eunice Burgos and Gaby D’Alessandro, A Blue Kind of Day by Rachel Tomlinson and Tori-Jay Mordey, and Sam's Super Seats by Keah Brown and Sharee Miller. A graduate of Howard University, they mentor NYC students with the Governor’s Committee on Scholastic Achievement.

https://www.penguin.com/kokila-books-overview/
Social Media: @sydneemonday

MAgaly morales, illustrator, pura’s cuentos: how pura belpré reshaped libraries with her stories

Magaly Morales is the illustrator of Pura’s Cuentos: How Pura Belpré Reshaped Libraries with Her Stories by Annette Bay Pimentel. The book garnered multiple starred reviews (Kirkus, Booklist, and Publishers’ Weekly) and Kirkus named it a best book of the year. It also earned the 2021 Goddard Riverside CBC Youth Prize for Social Justice. Other projects include What Can You Do with a Paleta?, a Tomás Rivera Mexican American Children’s Book Award winner, as well as the picture books Chavela and the Magic Bubble and A Piñata in a Pine Tree. She was born in Xalapa, Veracruz, Mexico.

Instagram: @magymg
Facebook: magaly.m.garcia

Yuyi morales, author / illustrator, bright star & dreamers

Yuyi Morales is an author/illustrator whose books have won the Pura Belpré Award, the Christopher Award, and the Jane Addams Award. She lives in northern California. Her books include Bright Star, Dreamers, Just In Case, Viva Frida, and Little Night/Nochecita.

yuyimorales.com
Twitter and Instagram: @yuyimorales for Twitter and instagram

MARILYN NELSON, AUTHOR OF AUGUSTA SAVAGE: THE SHAPE OF A SCULPTOR’S LIFE

Marilyn Nelson is the author or translator of seventeen poetry books and the memoir How I Discovered Poetry. She is also the author of The Fields Of Praise: New And Selected Poems, which won the 1998 Poets’ Prize, Carver: A Life In Poems, which won the 2001 Boston Globe/Hornbook Award and the Flora Stieglitz Straus Award, and Fortune’s Bones, which was a Coretta Scott King Honor Book and won the Lion and the Unicorn Award for Excellence in North American Poetry. She is also the author of the biography Augusta Savage: The Shape of a Sculptor’s Life (2022). Nelson’s honors include two NEA creative writing fellowships, the 1990 Connecticut Arts Award, a Fulbright Teaching Fellowship, a fellowship from the J.S. Guggenheim Memorial Foundation, and the Frost Medal. She was the Poet Laureate of the State of Connecticut from 2001-2006.

LISETTE J. NORMAN, AUTHOR OF PLATANOS GO WITH EVERYTHING & my feet are laughing

Lissette J. Norman is the children’s book author of MY FEET ARE LAUGHING and PLATANOS GO WITH EVERYTHING. She is also co-author of the books, ON THE LINE: The First African-American Rockette (w/ Jennifer Jones) and UNTIL SOMEONE LISTENS (w/ Estela Juarez). Lissette was awarded the New York Foundation for the Arts - 2018 Artist Fellowship in Fiction, the Barbara Deming Memorial Fund Grant, and the Hedgebrook and Martha’s Vineyard writer’s residencies. She was also an Author-in-Residence for the BookUpNYC program through the National Book Foundation. Lissette received her BA in English at SUNY-Binghamton and currently lives in New York City.

Twitter & Instagram: @lissettejnorman

DANIEL J. O’BRIEN, author / illustrator, the carnival prince

Daniel O’Brien is a Trinidadian born author, illustrator, and all around storyteller. Residing in New York with his amazing partner Ashleigh and his loyal dog Obbie, Daniel holds a BFA in Illustration from The School of Visual Arts. His training coupled with his love of science, folklore, and nature inspires Daniel to create otherworldly illustrations. He is enthusiastic about contributing to the telling of Caribbean stories and is honored to be a part of the Caribbean Reads community. Daniel's ultimate goal is to help children in the Caribbean and of Caribbean descent see themselves in the books they read.

www.DanielOStudios.com
Instagram: @danielostudios

LAURA OBUOBI, author of black gold

Laura was born and raised in Accra, Ghana, but has been living in the United States since 2003. She is fascinated by pre-colonial West African history and how it connects with the Black diaspora and Black history. Laura loves to explore these themes, elements, and cultural connections in her stories. Before she was a children’s author, Laura was a preschool teacher. Her time in the classroom birthed the desire to write for children. Laura is a graduate of the Writing for Children and Young Adults program at Vermont College of Fine Arts. Her debut picture book, Black Gold, illustrated by London Ladd releases in Fall 2022.

lauraobuobi.com
Instagram: @lauraobuobi

Nnedi Okorafor, author of akata woman & Binti

Nnedi Okorafor is an international, award-winning novelist of African-based science fiction, fantasy and magical realism for both children and adults. She's the author of the Black Panther comics from Marvel Comics, with a movie adaptation that became a world-wide sensation! She's authored a spinoff graphic novel, Wakanda Forever, with a movie to follow. Her other comics include Antar: the Black Knight (IDW/Mirage Films), and LaGuardia. Author George R.R. Martin (Game of Thrones) and HBO are turning Nnedi's adult novel, Who Fears Death, into a TV series. The Book of Phoenix (prequel to Who Fears Death) was heralded by the NY Times as a "triumph." Born in the United States to two Nigerian immigrant parents, Nnedi is known for weaving African culture and folklore into creative, evocative settings with memorable characters. She's considered by many to be the successor to Ursula LeGuin for her literary quality fantasy and sci-fi creations. She's a multi NYTimes bestselling author, and her many literary awards include a Nebula and Hugo Award. She has a passionate YA following for her Binti series, and the Akata Witch books. Her children's book Chicken in the Kitchen won an Africana Book Award. Akata Witch 2: Akata Warrior, and Binti 2: Home, are now out in paperback. She holds a PhD in English.

https://nnedi.com/
Social Media: @nnedi

Daniel José Older, author of star wars: the high republic & ballad & dagger (outlaw saints series)

Daniel José Older, a lead story architect for Star Wars: The High Republic, is the New York Times best-selling author of the upcoming Young Adult fantasy novel Ballad & Dagger (book 1 of the Outlaw Saints series), the sci-fi adventure Flood City, the monthly comic series The High Republic Adventures. His other books include the historical fantasy series Dactyl Hill Squad, The Book of Lost Saints, the Bone Street Rumba urban fantasy series, Star Wars: Last Shot, and the Young Adult series the Shadowshaper Cypher, including Shadowshaper, which was named one of the best fantasy books of all time by TIME magazine and one of Esquire’s 80 Books Every Person Should Read. He won the International Latino Book Award and has been nominated for the Kirkus Prize, The World Fantasy Award, the Andre Norton Award, the Locus, and the Mythopoeic Award. He co-wrote the upcoming graphic novel Death’s Day. You can find more info and read about his decade long career as an NYC paramedic at http://danieljoseolder.net/

Molly O’Neill, agent, root literary

Molly O’Neill is an agent with Root Literary. She loves the creative process and early-stage project development, is invigorated by business strategy and entrepreneurial thinking, and is fascinated by the intersections of creativity, commerce, storytelling, innovation, and community. Over the course of nearly two decades in publishing, she has worked as an editor, a marketing expert, and a start-up executive; all of these skills now power her expertise as a literary agent of award-winning and bestselling authors, illustrators, and graphic novelists.

mollyoneillbooks.com; rootliterary.com

Twitter: @molly_oneill lugbemiso
Instagram: @mollyoneillbooks

Julian Randall, author of pilar ramirez and the escape from zafa

Julian Randall is a Living Queer Black poet from Chicago. He is the author of the middle grade novel Pilar Ramirez And The Escape from Zafa (Holt, Winter 2022). His other writing has been anthologized in Wild Tongues Can’t Be Tamed: 15 Voices from the Latinx Diaspora (Flatiron, 2021) and Black Boy Joy (Delacorte, 2021), a #1 New York Times Best Seller!

JulianDavidRandall.com
Twitter and Instagram: @JulianThePoet

olugbemisola rhuday-perkovich, author of OPERATION SISTERHOOD & IT DOESN’T TAKE A GENIUS

Olugbemisola Rhuday-Perkovich is the author of several children’s books, including Operation Sisterhood, It Doesn't Take A Genius, Two Naomis, with Audrey Vernick, which was nominated for an NAACP Image Award, 8th Grade Superzero, Above and Beyond: NASA's Journey to Tomorrow, Saving Earth: Climate Change and the Fight for Our Future, Someday Is Now: Clara Luper and the 1958 Oklahoma City Sit-Ins, easy readers, and more. She is a member of the Brown Bookshelf, and editor of the WNDB anthology The Hero Next Door. Olugbemisola is a Jamaican Nigerian New Yorker who lives with her family in NYC where she writes, makes things, and needs to get more sleep.

olugbemisolabooks.com
Instagram: @olugbemisolarhudayperkovich

ANDREA L. ROGERS, author of man made monsters

Andrea L. Rogers is a citizen of the Cherokee Nation. She grew up in Tulsa, Oklahoma. She graduated with an MFA from IAIA. Her stories have appeared in several literary journals. In 2020, Capstone published Mary and the Trail of Tears. Her work has also appeared in You Too? 25 Voices Share Their #METoo stories from Inkyard Press, Ancestor Approved: Intertribal Stories for Kids from Heartdrum, and in the anthology Allies by DK. Her picture book called, When We Gather, is forthcoming from Heartdrum. Man Made Monsters, a book of YA Horror, will be released by Levine Querido in Fall 2022.

https://andrealrogers.com/
Social Media: @andrealrogers

KIM ROGERS, author of just like grandma

Kim Rogers’s debut picture book, Just Like Grandma, illustrated by Julie Flett, is slated for winter 2023, A Letter for Bob, illustrated by Jonathan Nelson, is planned for summer 2023, and I Am Osage, is due out in winter 2024, illustrated by Bobby Von Martin, all with HarperCollins/Heartdrum. She is a contributor to Ancestor Approved (HarperCollins/Heartdrum, 2021). The cover was inspired by Jessie, the protagonist in her short story, “Flying Together.” Kim is an enrolled member of Wichita and Affiliated Tribes and the National Native American Boarding School Healing Coalition. She lives with her family on her tribe’s ancestral homelands in Oklahoma.

Kimrogerswriter.com
Twitter: @kimrogerswriter

RHONDA ROUMANI, author of umm kulthum, star of the east

Rhonda Roumani is a Syrian-American journalist who has written about Islam, the Arab world and Muslim-American issues for more than two decades. Currently, she is a Contributing Fellow at the Center for Religion and Civic Culture at USC, and a Journalism Fellow for their Spiritual Exemplar Project. She is also a Highlights Muslim Storytellers Fellow. She is represented by Brent Taylor of TriadaUS. Her first middle grade novel about a Syrian graffiti artist is scheduled to be released in Fall of 2023 with Sterling; and her first picture book, Umm Kulthum, Star of the East, will be released in Fall 2023 with Interlink Publishing.

@rroumani

Isabel Roxas, author / illustrator of the adventures of team pom: squid happens

Isabel Roxas is the author and illustrator of The Adventures of Team Pom: Squid Happens. The first book in a series, it features three questing kids, a lonely giant squid, dramatic synchronized swimming routines, nefarious rats in bowler hats, mayhem and pigeons. She was born in Manila, Philippines, was raised on luscious mangoes, old wives’ tales, and monsoon moons. Isabel has illustrated several books for young readers, including Our Skin: A First Conversation about Race by Megan Madison and Jessica Ralli, Let Me Finish! by Minh Lê (named an NPR Best Book of 2016) and Day at the Market by May Tobias-Papa (2010 winner of the Philippine National Book Award).

https://studioroxas.com/
Instagram @studioroxas
Twitter @studioroxas

AIDA SALAZAR, AUTHOR OF JOVITA WEARS PANTS: THE STORY OF A MEXICAN FREEDOM FIGHTER & A SEED IN THE SUN

Aida Salazar is an award-winning author, arts activist, and translator whose writings explore issues of identity and social justice. She is the author of the critically acclaimed and multiple award-winning middle grade verse novels The Moon Within and Land of the Cranes; and the picture book, In the Spirit of a Dream. Her forthcoming books include the historical fiction novel, A Seed in the Sun; the bio picture book, Jovita Wore Pants: The Story of a Mexican Freedom Fighter; and the menstruation anthology Calling the Moon. She lives with her family of artists in a teal house in Oakland, CA.

www.AidaSalazar.com
Social Media: @aida_writes

victoria sanders, founder of victoria sanders & ASSOCIATES

I founded Victoria Sanders & Associates in 1992, following law school graduation, and after working in the legal/contracts department of Simon & Schuster, and at two literary agencies. I represent a multi-cultural roster of internationally bestselling and award-winning authors, I endeavor to seek out and champion new and diverse voices and viewpoints. As a literary agent for these 25 years, I've taken great pride in having represented many of my clients for their entire careers. I am honored to work with the extraordinary group of visionary writers and thinkers who grace this agency, the publishing marketplace, and their devoted readers.

www.victoriasanders.com

SHIRIN SHAMSI, AUTHOR OF ZAHRA’S BLESSING: A RAMADAN STORY & THE MOON FROM DEHRADUN

Shirin’s family left India during the Partition. Having lived on three continents, she views herself as a global citizen and now spends her time sharing stories with children of the world. Shirin and her husband have raised six children - three human and three feline -and reside in the suburbs of Chicago.

www.ShirinShamsi.com
@ShirinsBooks

SHEETAL SHETH, AUTHOR OF BRAVO ANJALI & ALWAYS ANJALI

Sheetal Sheth is an acclaimed actress/producer, author, and activist. She has starred in over 20 feature films and many TV shows and has earned a loyal, international following. Sheetal has become a favorite in the independent film world, having won five best actress awards on the festival circuit. Sheth began her career at a time when few South Asians were making their living as actors. Despite being told she'd have to change her name to work, her successful career has trail-blazed paths for other women of color across media. She has delivered talks and keynotes at festivals and charity galas and has had op-eds published on CNN, The Daily Beast, and Thrive Global. She is one of the founders of the non profit, 1001 Diverse Books, she served in President Clinton's AmeriCorps and is currently on the advisory board of Equality Now. She is the author of the popular and award winning Anjali children's book series, the first and only in this age group featuring an Indian American girl hero.

www.sheetalsheth.com
IG: @beneaththesheetz
T: @sheetalsheth
FB: @OfficialSheetalSheth

KRYSTAL SITAL, AUTHOR OF SECRETS WE KEPT: THREE WOMEN OF TRINIDAD

Krystal A. Sital is the author of the critically acclaimed memoir Secrets We Kept: Three Women of Trinidad which was a finalist for the PEN America Emerging Writers Award. Her essays have been anthologized in A Map Is Only One Story: Twenty Writers on Immigration, Family, and the Meaning of Home and Fury: Women’s Lived Experiences in the Trump Era. Krystal’s work has been featured in The New York Times, ELLE, Today’s Parent, Salon, Catapult, LitHub, and elsewhere. She currently teaches in Sierra Nevada University’s MFA program.

IG: @krystalsital

TRACI SORELL, AUTHOR OF POWWOW DAY & She Persisted: Wilma Mankiller

Traci Sorell writes award-winning fiction and nonfiction works for young people. Born and raised in northeastern Oklahoma, she is an enrolled citizen of the Cherokee Nation and lives on her tribe's reservation. Her work focuses on combating the erasure and invisibility of Native Nations and their citizens while centering their humanity, sovereignty, histories, cultures and languages in trade published literature for young people. Traci's nonfiction books include We Are Grateful: Otsaliheliga (2018); Classified: The Secret Career of Mary Golda Ross, Cherokee Aerospace Engineer (2021); and, We Are Still Here: Native American Truths Everyone Should Know (2021).

https://www.tracisorell.com
Twitter & Instagram: @tracisorell

Elizabeth Stranahan, associate editor, crown books for young readers

Elizabeth Stranahan is an Associate Editor at Crown Books for Young Readers (PRH) where she acquires young adult and middle-grade fiction that is character driven, filled with banter, and challenges readers to life’s big questions. At Crown, she has worked with Elle McNicoll whose debut A Kind of Spark is a Schneider Award Honor and Waterstones Children’s Book Prize Winner, YA thriller writer Alexa Donne (The Ivies), and the Smithsonian Latino Center among others. When not tending to her email, Elizabeth can be found catching up on the latest gymnastics competition, quilting, and rewatching Derry Girls—occasionally at the same time.

https://www.manuscriptwishlist.com/mswl-post/elizabeth-stranahan/
Social Media: @estranahan

LISA STRINGFELLOW, author of a comb of wishes

Lisa Stringfellow writes middle grade fiction and has a not-so-secret fondness for fantasy with a dark twist. Her debut fantasy A Comb of Wishes will be published on February 8, 2022 by HarperCollins/Quill Tree Books. It was selected as an ABA Indies Introduce title for Winter/Spring 2022 and Lisa received the inaugural Kweli Color of Children’s Literature Manuscript Award in 2019 for the novel manuscript. Her work often reflects her West Indian and Black southern heritage. Lisa is a middle school teacher and lives in Boston, Massachusetts, with her children and two bossy cats.

lisastringfellow.com
Tiwtter & Instagram: @EngageReaders

TASHA Spillett, author of I sang you down from the stars

Tasha Spillett (she/her/hers) draws her strength from both her Inninewak (Cree) and Trinidadian bloodlines. She is a celebrated educator, poet, and emerging scholar. Tasha is most heart-tied to contributing to community-led work that centres on land and water defence, and the protection of Indigenous women and girls. Tasha is currently working on her Ph.D. in Education through the University of Saskatchewan, where she holds a Vanier Canada Award. In her work as a doctoral student, she is weaving in her cultural identity, and commitment to community to produce a body of research that echoes Indigenous women’s demands for justice for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls and Two-Spirit People. Her work is a continuation of the resistance against the assault of colonialism that she has inherited.

An active member of Manitoba’s Indigenous community, Tasha is a ceremony woman and a traditional singer. In her work as an educator, Tasha makes every effort to infuse her cultural knowledge into her teaching philosophy and practice to support the positive cultural identities of Indigenous students and to strengthen relationships between all communities. Tasha acknowledges her unique opportunity and responsibility to create learning environments that are culturally responsive, and foster belonging for Indigenous students, students of colour, and families.

https://tashaspillett.com/

Brittany J. Thurman, author of fly

Brittany J. Thurman is the author of Fly, illustrated by Anna Cunha, the forthcoming Forever and Always, and is co-author of Fearless: Boulevard of Dreams by Mandy Gonzalez. Brittany holds an MFA in Dramatic Writing from Carnegie Mellon University. She is a graduate of Kingston University, London, England, where she studied theater. Brittany is a former children’s specialist and museum educator, where she advocated for representation in early literacy. Brittany lives in Louisville, Kentucky, where she holds tight to her elders, her family, and her childhood home.

www.brittanythurman.com
Twitter: @janeebrittany
Instagram: @britjanee
TikTok: @brittanyjthurman

namrata tripathi, Vice President and Publisher of Kokila, Penguin Young Readers

Namrata Tripathi is Vice President and Publisher of Kokila, a new imprint at Penguin Young Readers dedicated to centering stories from the margins. She was born in the USSR, and lived in Afghanistan, India, Canada, Pakistan, Germany, and Poland before moving to New York in 1997. Prior to launching Kokila, Tripathi edited many critically acclaimed, award-winning, and bestselling books, including Islandborn, for which illustrator Leo Espinosa received a Pura Belpré Honor; John Corey Whaley’s Printz Award-winning debut, Where Things Come Back; and Veera Hiranandani’s The Night Diary, a 2019 Newbery Honor winner.

https://www.penguin.com/publishers/kokila/
Social Media: @Tweetpathi
See Namrata’s Interview & WISHLIST here.

Irene Vázquez, editorial and marketing assistant

Irene Vázquez is a Black Mexican American poet, journalist, and editor (and now burgeoning publicist) born and raised in Houston, Texas. Irene graduated from Yale with a BA in Ethnicity, Race, and Migration and English. Irene gravitates to voice-driven stories that are firmly rooted in a sense of place (whether real or imagined). Mostly Irene likes drinking coffee, impulse-buying books, and reminding people that the South's got something to say.

www.irenevazquez.com
Twitter: @capaciousmood

ELISABETH VELASQUEZ, author of when we make it

Elisabet Velasquez is a Boricua writer born in Bushwick, Brooklyn. Her work has been featured in Muzzle Magazine, Winter Tangerine, Latina Magazine, We Are Mitú, Tidal, and more. Her debut novel, When We Make It was named a book to watch for by The New York Times. You can find it wherever books are sold.

elisabetvelasquez.com/
social media: ElisabetVelasquezPoetry

TRICIA ELAM WALKER, author of dream street & NANA AKUA GOES TO SCHOOL

Tricia Elam Walker is author of the novel, Breathing Room. Her first children’s book, Nana Akua Goes to School, was published by Random House in June 2020 and won a 2021 Children’s Africana Book Award and the 2021 Ezra Jack Keats writer award. Her second picture book, Dream Street was published in November 2021, has garnered five starred reviews and is a New York Times Best Children’s Book of 2021 selection. Tricia is an Assistant Professor of Creative Writing at Howard University.

triciaelamwalker.com
Instagram: @triciawriting
Twitter: @triciabreathing
FB: Tricia Elam Walker

Andrea Y. Wang, AUTHOR OF WATERCRESS & the many meanings of meilan

Andrea Wang is an acclaimed author of children’s books. Her book Watercress was awarded the Caldecott Medal, a Newbery Honor, the Asian/Pacific American Award for Literature, and a Boston Globe-Horn Book Honor. Her other books, The Many Meanings of Meilan, Magic Ramen, and The Nian Monster have also received awards and starred reviews. Her work explores culture, creative thinking, and identity. She is also the author of seven nonfiction titles for the library and school market. Andrea holds an M.S. in Environmental Science and an M.F.A. in Creative Writing for Young People. She lives in Denver with her family.

https://andreaywang.com
Twitter: @AndreaYWang
IG: @andreawhywang

renee watson, author of The 1619 Project: Born on the Water & Piecing me together

Renée Watson is a #1 New York Times bestselling author, educator, and activist. Her young adult novel, Piecing Me Together (Bloomsbury, 2017) received a Coretta Scott King Award and Newbery Honor. Her poetry and fiction often center around the experiences of black girls and women, and explores themes of home, identity, and the intersections of race, class, and gender. Renée served as Founder and Executive Director of I, Too, Arts Collective, a nonprofit committed to nurturing underrepresented voices in the creative arts, from 2016-2019. Renée grew up in Portland, Oregon, and splits her time between Portland and New York City.

www.reneewatson.net Twitter: @reneewauthor Instagram: @harlemportland

Carole boston weatherford, author of unspeakable: the tulsa race massacre & CALL ME MISS HAMILTON

A Newbery Honor, Coretta Scott King and NAACP Image Award winner ,Carole Boston Weatherford has authored 60-plus books, including four Caldecott Honor titles-- Unspeakable: The Tulsa Race Massacre, Freedom in Congo Square, Voice of Freedom: Fannie Lou Hamer, and Moses: When Harriet Tubman Led Her People to Freedom. She also wrote BOX: Henry Brown Mails Himself to Freedom, Becoming Billie Holiday, Freedom on the Menu: The Greensboro Sit-ins, R-E-S-P-E-C-T: Aretha Franklin, and The Roots of Rap. She and her son, Jeffery Weatherford, collaborated on You Can Fly: The Tuskegee Airmen and Call Me Miss Hamilton.

https://cbweatherford.com/
Twitter: @poetweatherford
Instagram: @caroleweatherford
Facebook: carole.weatherford

Clarissa Wong, EXECUTIVE EDITOR, SCHOLASTIC 

Clarissa Wong is an executive editor at Scholastic, where she acquires and edits picture books and select graphic novels. She worked on critically-acclaimed and award-winning books like "Eyes that Kiss in the Corners" by Joanna Ho and Dung Ho, "Where Are You From?" by Yamile Saied Méndez and Jaime Kim, and "Measuring Up" by Lily LaMotte and Ann Xu. Prior to joining Scholastic, she was a senior editor at HarperCollins. She is looking for joyous books that uplift voices from BIPOC and marginalized communities.

anne wynter, AUTHOR OF EVERYBODY IN THE RED BRICK BUILDING & NELL PLANTS A TREE

Anne Wynter is a children’s book author and playwright. Her debut book—Everybody in the Red Brick Building, illustrated by Oge Mora—was a Kids' Indie Next pick, a Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection, a Booklist 2021 Editors' Choice Book and a Boston Globe Best Book of 2021. Anne is also the author of two board books—Hands On! and One Big Day—both illustrated by Alea Marley and published in 2022. Her next book—Nell Plants a Tree, illustrated by Daniel Miyares—will be out in early 2023. Originally from Houston, Anne currently lives in Austin, TX with her family.

www.annewynter.com
Insta: @anne_wynter

PHOEBE YEH, VP/PRESIDENT, CROWN BOOKS FOR YOUNG READERS

Phoebe Yeh is the Vice President and co-publisher at Crown Books for Young Readers/Random House. She worked with Joanna Cole and Bruce Degen on The Magic School Bus series and with Walter Dean Myers for twenty years. She has published the New York Times bestsellers, Max & the Midknights (Lincoln Peirce), Dear Justyce and debut novels Dear Martin and Clean Getaway (Nic Stone);Recognize: An Anthology Honoring & Amplifying Black Life edited by Wade Hudson and Cheryl Willis Hudson; Defiant: Growing Up in the Jim Crow South by Wade Hudson. Middle grade novels include The Swag Is in the Socks (Kelly J. Baptist) and upcoming: The Natural Genius of Ants (Betty Cully). YA novels include Vinyl Moon (Mahogany L. Browne), Radha & Jai’s Recipe for Romance (Nisha Sharma) and the upcoming Publishers Marketplace YA Buzz Book Finding Jupiter by debut novelist Kelis Rowe. Picture books include The Rise (and Falls) of Jackie Chan (Kristen Mai Giang/Alina Chau) and the upconing Mae Finds a Way: The True Story of Mae Reeves, Hat & History Maker (Olugbemisola Rhuday-Perkovich/Andrea Pippins) in collaboration with NMAAHC/Smithsonian Institution. Yeh is a recipient of the inaugural CBC Diversity Outstanding Achievement Award.

brian young, author of healer of the water monster & GUARDIANS OF THE WATER MONSTER

Author and filmmaker, Brian Young is a graduate of both Yale University with a Bachelor’s in Film Studies and Columbia University with a Master’s in Creative Writing Fiction. An enrolled member of the Navajo Nation, he grew up on the Navajo Reservation but now currently lives in Brooklyn, New York. As an undergraduate, Brian won a fellowship with the prestigious Sundance Ford Foundation with one of his feature length scripts. He has worked on several short films including Tsídii Nááts’íílid – Rainbow Bird and A Conversation on Race with Native Americans for the short documentary series produced by the New York Times.

https://brianlyoung.com/
FB: @BYoungWrites
Instagram: @byoungwrites
Twitter: @BYoungWritres

mARIETTA zACKER, AGENT, GALLT & ZACKER LITERARY AGENCY

Marietta has worked with books, authors and illustrators throughout her career -- studying, creating, editing, marketing, teaching and selling. She supports independent bookselling, believes in libraries and takes pride in her work as a Latina in the world of publishing. Diversity in any story must be inherent and authentic, not trendy. She is thrilled to shine the spotlight on soulful, insightful, well-crafted, literary or commercial projects aimed at any age group from young adult to the youngest of readers. Books she is championing this spring include: Fly by Brittany Thurman, Because Claudette by Tracey Baptiste, Isla to Island by Alexis Castellanos, Saving Earth by Olugbemisola Rhuday-Perkovich.

www.galltzacker.com
Social Media: @agentzacker
See Marietta’s WISHLIST here.

IBI ZOBOI, AUTHOR OF STAR CHILD: A BIOGRAPHICAL CONSTELLATION OF OCTAVIA ESTELLE BUTLER & THE PEOPLE REMEMBER

Ibi Zoboi was born in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, and holds an MFA in writing for children and young adults from Vermont College of Fine Arts. Her YA novel American Street was a National Book Award finalist and and her debut middle grade novel, My Life as an Ice Cream Sandwich, was a New York Times bestseller. She is the author of Star Child: A Biographical Constellation of Octavia Estelle Butler, The People Remember, a Coretta Scott King honor book, Pride, a contemporary YA remix of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, and editor of the anthology, Black Enough: Stories of Being Young & Black in America.

www.ibizoboi.net
Twitter: @ibizoboi