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There’s No Normal in Publishing: Stories from 2023 Young Adult Debuts
Saturday, February 10, 2024
12:10 pm to 1:25 pm
From Twitter discourse to private group chats to varying successes, Young Adult publishing can feel like the Wild West. We oftentimes hear “there’s no normal in publishing,” but what does that mean? Is the journey from idea to publication really that different between houses? Five Young Adult authors from a range of background, genres, and publishers discuss their experiences as 2023 debuts. We’ll tackle the myths and shine a light on what happens behind the scenes from a writer’s perspective.
Participants
Ellen O’Clover writes stories about finding your people, falling in love, and figuring it all out (or trying to, anyway). She grew up in Ohio and studied creative writing at the Johns Hopkins University before moving west to Colorado. Seven Percent of Ro Deverux is her debut novel.
Jenna Miller (she/her) writes young adult contemporary romance books about fat, queer, nerdy girls who deserve to be seen and have their voices heard. Her first novel, Out of Character, released February 2023 from Quill Tree Books (HarperCollins), and her second YA novel will release February 2024.
Edward Underhill (he/him) is the author of Always the Almost and This Day Changes Everything, both from Wednesday Books. A queer trans man, he grew up in the suburbs of Wisconsin, where he could not walk to anything, so he had to make up his own adventures. He now lives in California.
Trang Thanh Tran is the author of the New York Times and national indie bestselling novel, She Is a Haunting.
Krystal Marquis happily spends most of her time in libraries and bookstores. A lifelong reader, Krystal began researching and writing on a dare to complete the NaNoWrimo challenge, resulting in the first partial draft of The Davenports.
