Genre:
Young Adult

Ben Orlin
Ben Orlin has written four books, including Math with Bad Drawings and Math for English Majors. He describes himself as a “professional apologist for mathematics,” the word “apologist” holding both in the classical sense (an advocate for a worldview) and in the modern sense (someone doing PR for a widely despised client). His writing and…

Ty Chapman
Ty Chapman is the author of Sarah Rising, Looking For Happy, and A Door Made for Me (written with Tyler Merritt). Chapman’s forthcoming publications include multiple children’s books and a poetry collection through Button Poetry. He was a 2022 Center for Arts + Social Justice Fellow – an award that supports a speculative work in…

Annette Gagliardi
Annette Gagliardi is a poet whose work has appeared in literary journals in Canada, England, and the US. Her first full-length poetry collection, titled A Short Supply of Viability, was published through The Poetry Box. Gagliardi notices the intricate details of lives lived around her. She notices the dimensions of nature, time, and the human…

Simon Hargreaves
Simon Hargreaves has been telling stories his whole life: as a photographer, as a filmmaker, and as a novelist. He’s moved across the country as often as he has switched careers. Now he lives in northern Minnesota where, when he isn’t writing, he is running a family vacation resort, scuba diving, touring the country on…

Hudda Ibrahim
Hudda Ibrahim graduated from the College of Saint Benedict and Saint John’s University, majoring in Conflict Resolution and English Literature. She went on to earn a Master’s degree in Conflict Resolution from the University of Notre Dame, South Bend, Indiana. Her books include From Somalia to Snow, What Color is My Hijab?, and Lula Wants…

Karen Latchana Kenney
Karen Latchana Kenney is an Indian-Irish author and editor, born near the equator in Guyana, and raised far north in Minnesota. She’s lived in New Amsterdam, Toronto, Minneapolis, Dublin, Maynooth, Oregon, and Rhode Island, and visited many more places on far-flung adventures. She first got lost in books as a child and hoped one day…

William Durbin
William Durbin lives on Lake Vermilion at the edge of Minnesota’s Boundary Waters Wilderness. A winner of the Great Lakes Book Award and a two-time winner of the Minnesota Book Award, he has published 14 novels for young readers, including, The Broken Blade, Wintering, Blackwater Ben, Song of Sampo Lake, The Darkest Evening, Dead Man’s…

Carol Dines
Carol Dines’s new young adult novel, The Take-Over Friend, is a finalist for the Achevan Prize. Her recent adult fiction, a collection of stories, This Distance We Call Love, won the Eric Hoffer Book Prize in 2022 and was a finalist in the National Indies Excellence Award for short fiction. In addition, her stories have…

Naomi Hughes
Naomi Hughes writes quirky young adult sci-fi and fantasy, usually featuring monsters and mental health representation. Her novels include Refraction, which was described by Kirkus Reviews as “a wild, fast-paced ride full of unexpected turns,” and “Afterimage,” which School Library Journal said “deserves a prominent place on sci-fi shelves.” Hughes is a longtime Midwesterner but…

Julie Schumacher
Julie Schumacher is the author of 11 books, including the national bestseller Dear Committee Members, winner of the Thurber Prize for American Humor. She has published five novels for younger readers, including The Book of One Hundred Truths, winner of a Minnesota Book Award; and a satirical coloring book about higher education called Doodling for…