JULIE MURPHY lives in North Texas with her husband who loves her, her dog who adores her, and her cats who tolerate her. After several wonderful years in the library world, Julie now writes full-time. When she’s not writing or reliving her reference-desk glory days, she can be found watching made-for-TV movies, hunting for the perfect slice of cheese pizza, and planning her next great travel adventure. She is also the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the novels Dumplin’ (now a film on Netflix), Puddin’, Ramona Blue, Side Effects May Vary, Faith Taking Flight, and Dear Sweet Pea.

LEAH JOHNSON is an editor, educator, and author of books for young adults. Her bestselling debut YA novel, You Should See Me in a Crown, was a Stonewall Honor Book, the inaugural Reese’s Book Club YA pick, and named a best book of the year by Cosmopolitan, Kirkus, Marie Claire, Publishers Weekly, and New York Public Library among others. Her sophomore novel, Rise to the Sun, is forthcoming from Scholastic in 2021. 

ABIGAIL HING WEN is the New York Times bestselling author of Loveboat, Taipei, a romantic comedy following the journey of Ever Wong in her summer in Taipei. Loveboat, Taipei has been optioned for film by ACE Entertainment. Abigail holds a BA from Harvard, a JD from Columbia Law School, and an MFA from the Vermont School of Fine Arts. When she’s not writing stories or listening to her favorite scores, she is busy working in artificial intelligence in Silicon Valley, where she lives with her husband and two sons. @abigailhingwen

CALEB ROEHRIG is a writer and television producer originally from Ann Arbor, Michigan. Having also lived in Chicago, Los Angeles, and Helsinki, Finland, he has a chronic case of wanderlust, and has visited over thirty countries. A former actor, Roehrig has experience on both sides of the camera, with a résumé that includes appearances on film and TV—as well as seven years in the stranger-than-fiction salt mines of reality television. His young adult novels include Last Seen Leaving, White Rabbit, Death Prefers Blondes (a Popsugar Best Novel of 2019), and The Fell of Dark (a 2021 American Library Association Rainbow Book List Selection).

MARISSA MEYER is the #1 New York Times–bestselling author of The Lunar Chronicles series, the New York Times–bestselling Renegades trilogy, as well as the graphic novel Wires and and Nerve: Vols. 1 and 2, and The Lunar Chronicles Coloring Book. Her first standalone novel, Heartless, was also a #1 New York Times bestseller; her most recent standalone novel is the bestselling rom-com Instant Karma. She lives in Tacoma, Washington, with her husband and their two daughters. 

Cartoonist SARAH WINIFRED SEARLE originally hails from spooky New England but currently lives in sunny Perth, Australia. Her graphic novels include Sincerely, Harriet, a quiet middle-grade tale (Graphic Universe, May 2019), and a fictionalized YA memoir from First Second coming in 2022. Find her around the web: @swinsea

ELISE BRYANT is the author of Happily Ever Afters. For many years, she had the joy of working as a special education teacher in South Los Angeles. Elise now lives with her husband and two daughters in Long Beach, where she spends her days reading, writing, and eating dessert.

ELIZABETH EULBERG is the international bestselling author of more than a dozen novels for young readers, including The Lonely Hearts Club, Better Off Friends, and her latest, Past Perfect Life. Her acclaimed middle-grade detective series, The Great Shelby Holmes, has been on dozens of state reading lists across the country, including the prestigious Texas Bluebonnet list. Elizabeth currently lives in London, where she gets constant inspiration walking around  (and eating scones) and is looking forward to her own meet-cute with a British bloke. 

ANNA-MARIE MCLEMORE (they/them) grew up hearing la llorona in the Santa Ana winds, and now writes books as queer, Latine, and nonbinary as they are. They are the author of The Weight of Feathers, a 2016 William C. Morris YA Debut Award finalist; Stonewall Honor Book When the Moon Was Ours, which was longlisted for the National Book Award in Young People’s Literature; Wild Beauty, a Kirkus, School Library Journal, and Booklist Best Book of 2017; Blanca & Roja, a New York Times Book Review Editors’ Choice and one of TIME Magazine’s 100 Best Fantasy Novels of All Time; Dark and Deepest Red, a Winter 2020 Indie Next List title; The Mirror Season, a Junior Library Guild Selection; and the forthcoming Lakelore and Self-Made Boys: A Great Gatsby Remix.

SANDHYA MENON is the New York Times bestselling author of When Dimple Met Rishi, Of Curses and Kisses, and many other novels that also feature lots of kissing, girl power, and swoony boys. Her books have been showcased in several cool places, including the Today show, Teen Vogue, NPR, BuzzFeed, and Seventeen. A full-time dog servant and part-time writer, she makes her home in the foggy mountains of Colorado.