Yona Harvey is the author of the poetry collections You Don't Have To Go To Mars for Love (Four Way Books, 2020), and Hemming the Water (Four Way Books), winner of the Kate Tufts Discovery Award. She contributed to Marvel's World of Wakanda and co-authored with Ta-Nehisi Coates Black Panther and Crew. She has worked with teenagers writing about mental health issues in collaboration with Creative Nonfiction magazine.
Beth Hautala is the author of The Ostrich and Other Lost Things (Philomel 2018), which won the 2019 Christopher Award, and Waiting For Unicorns (Philomel, 2015). Her middle grade novel, Miracle Season, will be published by Viking in 2022. She lives with her husband and four children in northern Minnesota, where she strives to write stories that tie heart and imagination together.
Danette Haworth is the author of Violet Raines Almost Got Struck By Lightning, The Summer of Moonlight Secrets, Me & Jack, and A Whole Lot of Lucky. She created her first book when she was six, featuring hair-raising pictures of the battle between a green stickboy and a red stickman. She lives in Florida.
Bethany Hegedus’ children’s picture books include the award-winning Grandfather Gandhi and Be the Change: A Grandfather Gandhi Story, both co-written with Arun Gandhi (grandson of Mahatma Gandhi), as well Alabama Spitfire: The Story of Harper Lee and To Kill a Mockingbird, Rise!: From Caged Bird to Poet of the People: Dr. Maya Angelou, Hard Work But It’s Worth It: The Life of Jimmy Carter and this August Huddle Up! Cuddle Up!–an ode to family, football and bedtime. Her books have been included in numerous “best of” lists such as A Mighty Girl’s Best Books of 2018 and Kirkus’ Best Books of the Year. A former educator, Bethany is an in-demand keynote speaker, workshop leader, and mentor who speaks and teaches across the country about writing, creativity, resilience, and privilege. She holds an MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults from VCFA, is the Founder and Creative Director of The Writing Barn, a writing retreat and workshop space in Austin, Texas and is host of the popular Courage to Create podcast and online writing community.
Reed Hinckley-Barnes is a comics author currently working on his first middle grade graphic novel. By day he letters comics and works in a local middle school. The rest of the time, Reed can be found reading, writing, and playing board games with his partner in their San Francisco apartment.
Natalie Hoopes is an author/illustrator and part-time witch. She loves to wander around in nature and will steal your fries when you aren’t looking. She currently lives in Arizona with her husband, son, and too many plants.
Abeer Hoque is a Nigerian-born Bangladeshi American writer and photographer. She is the author of a book of travel photographs and poems, The Long Way Home, a linked story collection, The Lovers and the Leavers, and a memoir, Olive Witch. She has BS and MA degrees from Wharton, and an MFA from the University of San Francisco. Learn more about her at olivewitch.com.
Julie Israel is an author, artist, and real-life unicorn (for getting a degree in Creative Writing and actually using it). Between graduating and selling her first book, she taught English in Japan, tutored, wrote freelance copy, and worked as a volunteer. When not writing, she is probably teaching herself about something new: photography, French, guitar, or how to memorize a whole deck of cards. She believes life, like a good story, should be threaded through with fascinations. Her first novel, Juniper Lemon's Happiness Index, was published in 2017 by Kathy Dawson Books/Penguin Books for Young Readers.
Antony John was raised in England on a balanced diet of fish and chips, obscure British comedies, and ABBA’s Greatest Hits. In a fit of teenage rebellion, he decided to pursue a career in classical music, culminating in a Ph.D. in composition and a stint as a college professor. Music plays a major role in his novels, including Busted, Thou Shalt Not Road Trip, and the winner of the ALA's 2011 Schneider Family Book Award for Teens, Five Flavors of Dumb, which is currently in development to be a film. He is also the author of the Elemental trilogy, and the acclaimed standalone novels Imposter, The Other, Better Me and Mascot. He lives in St. Louis with his family.
Misty Kalkofen is the author, with Kristin Amman, of Drinking Like Ladies. She has been featured in Bon Appetit, Imbibe, Food & Wine Cocktail editions, Wine Enthusiast, The Wall Street Journal, The Boston Globe, Tasting Panel, Wine & Spirits, and more. Kalkofen was nominated for American Bartender of the Year at Tales of the Cocktail 2011 and International Bartender of the Year at Tales of the Cocktail 2012. She is a graduate of the rigorous BAR program and continues to minister to cocktail communities nationwide through active involvement in the BARSmarts regional programming. Kalkofen has spent years honing her craft and her palate and has earned a reputation as one of Boston’s foremost authorities on cocktail history and culture. Cultivating a spirit of camaraderie among cocktail lovers (while showing everyone a really good time in the process) is Misty’s mission across the many communities she touches.
Daphne Kalmar is the author of the acclaimed novels A Stitch in Time and Stealing Mt. Rushmore. She has taught in elementary and middle schools in Massachusetts, California, and Vermont. She stocked those classrooms with seventy-five pairs of rubber boots in order to fit any configuration of children's feet, and wearing her own boots, led many a field trip to nearby parks and creeks to explore. Daphne holds an MFA from the Vermont College of Fine Arts. She plots out her stories on long walks through the Vermont woods while her dog, Yoyo, chases squirrels and rabbits and occasionally meets a porcupine.
Suzanne Kaufman is the #1 New York Times bestselling illustrator of All Are Welcome, as well as its companion book, Big Feelings. She is the recipient of The Ezra Jack Keats/Kerlan Memorial Fellowship, Society of Children’s Book Writers Illustrators Mentorship and Portfolio Honors and Bologna Children’s Book Fair. Her books have been awarded Bank Street College Education Best Children’s Books of the Year Honors, Notable Books for a Global Society, CCBC Choice Award, Washington State Best Picture Book Award, Mathical Honor Award, and Amazon Best Children Book of the Year.
Her books include her own books Confiscated!, and the forthcoming A Friend for Ghost, in addition to stories she's illustrated for others: Take Your Pets to School Day, 100 Bugs, Naughty Claudine's Christmas, and Samanthasaurus Rex.
Over the years, she’s done everything from animating special effects for Universal and Discovery, to being animation lead on games that were awarded the Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences “Innovation in Art Direction”, “Innovation in Animation” and “Children’s Title of the Year”. She has lectured about illustration and animation around the US, England, Japan and Peru.
When not tramping through the wilds of the Pacific Northwest with her family, you will find her teaching illustration or working in her studio.
Autumn Krause's second novel, Before the Devil Knows You're Here, will be published in Fall 2023 by Peachtree Teen. Her first novel, A Dress for the Wicked, was published by Harper Teen in summer 2019. Autumn is a magazine writer in Orange County, California, who loves fashion, writing, and Instagram. Her favorite book is The Brothers Karamazov, and she is most often found wearing a black lace dress and writing in her favorite local coffee shop.
Andris Lagsdin is the inventor of the Baking Steel. He received his pizza education while working for Chef Todd English, but had given up the restaurant life to work in his family’s steel business until he discovered a way to combine the two. He lives with his family in Boston’s South Shore.
Sarah Lariviere’s debut novel The Bad Kid (Simon& Schuster) was an Edgar Award finalist. Her second novel, Time Travel for Love and Profit, (Knopf) was reviewed as “reminiscent of A Wrinkle in Time” (Kirkus Reviews) and ALA-nominated as one of the best audiobooks of 2021. Her forthcoming YA duology, RIOT ACT, is an alternate history inspired by the lust-fueled terror of growing up in central Illinois (Knopf, 2024).
Sarah studied theater at Oberlin College and earned a master’s degree in social work from Hunter College in New York City, where she specialized in casework with children and families. Sarah lives in Los Angeles, where she is inspired by experimenting in her wild gardens, painting, and learning to play the electric guitar with her son.
Vanessa Lee began her career in children’s literature writing critical theory for a Master’s Degree from Illinois State University. Not long afterwards, she set aside academics to write computer code professionally, something she had previously only done for fun. Three sons and a dare later, she reconnected with her kid lit roots and wrote her first middle grade novel. Except for frequent road trips, Vanessa and her boys live in Austin, Texas.
Adam Lehrhaupt has traveled to six continents, performed on Broadway, and lived on a communal farm. He firmly believes that opening a book is a good thing, even if there are monkeys in it. In his spare time, Adam does a bit of writing. His writing spans multiple styles, from poetry to fiction to nonfiction, and is primarily geared towards children. Adam received the E.B. White Read-Aloud Honor for his debut picture book, Warning: Do Not Open This Book! illustrated by Matthew Forsythe (Paula Wiseman Books/Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers) and has since published another dozen-plus books. Adam lives in the suburbs of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, with his wife and two sons.
Jody J. Little is the author of the middle grade novels Mostly the Honest Truth and Worse than Weird. When not writing, she is an elementary school teacher in Portland, Oregon, who loves sharing her joy of books with her students and readers. Her heart-centered novels explore the many meanings of family and friendship. She’s not afraid to place difficult situations in her protagonists’ paths and allow them to face those challenges with courage and compassion. She’s also a voracious reader of children’s literature and enjoys sharing her love of books with kids of all ages.
Jonathan Lopes is a renowned artist who works within the medium of LEGO bricks. He focuses on a variety of genres including urban landscapes, conceptual art, and life-sized sculptures and is well known for his realistic and gritty urban scenes. Lopes’ work has been likened to the Ashcan School artistic movement. His debut work, New York City Brick by Brick (Abrams Image, 2019), is an exploration of the architecture and history of New York City through the medium of LEGO® bricks, highlighting iconic structures such as the Flatiron Building, the Brooklyn Bridge, Grand Central Terminal, brownstones, fire houses, and more, unlocking techniques that can help builders of all ages. Jonathan also has an exhibit of his work visiting cities through-out the United States and he gives presentations on his creative process within this unique artistic medium at each venue.
Jenna Luecke is a designer and illustrator who spikes her morning coffee with glitter, magic spells, and feminist outrage. She is the author of The Breakup Hair Handbook (Andrews McMeel). She splits her time between Zürich, Switzerland, and Austin, Texas.