“A must-have for any elementary school or middle school library, this magical and heartening novel will keep readers engaged until the end. A perfect fit for fans of realistic fiction and fantasy alike.” — School Library Journal, starred review

Natalie Lloyd is the New York Times Bestselling Author of novels for young readers.

Her first novel, A Snicker of Magic (2014), was an ALA Notable Book, a New York Times Book Review Editors’ Choice, a top 10 Kids Indie Next Pick and an NPR, iBooks and Parents Magazine best book of the year for children. The book has been optioned for television by Sony Tristar. Natalie’s other novels include The Key to Extraordinary (Scholastic 2016), The Problim Children series (HarperCollins/Katherine Tegen 2017), and Over the Moon (Scholastic 2019). These novels have won accolades from Entertainment Weekly, Junior Library Guild, SIBA, Amazon and Bank Street College of Education, among others. Silverswift, her first Audible Original, was published in 2020. Hummingbird, her seventh (and most personal) novel for kids, was published in August 2022. The novel received four starred reviews and, in January 2023, was awarded a Schneider Family Honor Award by the American Library Association. Her next novel, The Witching Wind, will be available in Fall 2024 from Scholastic.

Natalie writes in the shadows beside a sunny window in Chattanooga, Tennessee. She loves adventuring with her husband, Justin, and their dogs.

Natalie's Featured Titles

The Witching Wind

Scholastic Press |
Children’s/Middle Grade

From Natalie Lloyd, bestselling author of A Snicker of Magic and Hummingbird, comes a heart-expanding adventure about the magic of family, friendship, and the lengths we go for the people we love.

Eleven-year-old Roxie was excited to start sixth grade… until a mortifying incident at a pool party turns her into a middle school laughingstock. Roxie can’t imagine enduring a full year of bullying and body shaming, so when her country music star Granny invites Roxie to join her on tour, she jumps at the chance to leave her troubles behind. But then Granny–who’s been struggling with memory loss–goes missing, leaving Roxie without an escape plan… and without her best friend.

Grayson doesn’t mind being sent to yet another foster home. Her older sister, Beanie, is about to turn eighteen, which means she’ll be able to become Grayson’s guardian. It won’t be long until they live in the same house again. It won’t be long until they get to be a real family. But when Beanie’s birthday finally arrives, she doesn’t show up to collect Grayson. She doesn’t respond to calls or texts. It’s almost like she’s just… vanished.

Roxie knows Granny would never leave without saying goodbye. And Grayson is certain Beanie would never abandon her. So when the new friends learn about the Witching Wind that “steals” what people love most, Roxie and Grayson are certain they’ve discovered the truth. Granny and Beanie didn’t just disappear–they were taken. And it’s up to Roxie and Grayson to outwit the Witching Wind before it’s too late.

Hummingbird

Scholastic Press |
Children’s/Middle Grade

A Schneider Family Book Award Honor Book

From the bestselling author of Snicker of Magic comes a heartfelt story about a girl who — armed with her trusty, snazzy wheelchair — refuses to let her brittle bone disease stand in the way of adventure

Twelve-year-old homeschooled Olive is tired of being seen as “fragile” just because she has osteogenesis imperfecta (otherwise known as brittle bone disease) so she’s thrilled when she finally convinces her parents to let her attend Macklemore Elementary. Olive can’t wait to go to a traditional school and make the friends she’s always longed for, until a disastrous first day dashes her hopes of ever fitting in.

Then Olive hears whispers about a magical, wish-granting hummingbird that supposedly lives near Macklemore. It’ll be the solution to all her problems! If she can find the bird and prove herself worthy, the creature will make her most desperate, secret wish come true.

When it becomes clear that she can’t solve the mystery on her own, Olive teams up with some unlikely allies who help her learn the truth about the bird. And on the way, she just might learn that our fragile places lead us to the most wonderful magic of all . . .

Over the Moon (Scholastic Gold)

Scholastic Inc. |
Children’s/Middle Grade

Twelve-year-old Mallie knows better than to dream. In Coal Top, you live the story you’re given: boys toil in the mines and girls work as servants. Mallie can’t bear the idea of that kind of life, but her family is counting on her wages to survive. It wasn’t always this way. Before the Dust came, the people of Coal Top could weave starlight into cloth. They’d wear these dreaming clothes to sleep and wake up with the courage to seek adventure . . . or the peace to heal a broken heart. But now nothing can penetrate Coal Top’s blanket of sorrow.So when Mallie is chosen for a dangerous competition in which daring (and ideally, orphaned) children train flying horses, she jumps at the chance. Maybe she’ll change her story. Maybe she’ll even find the magic she needs to dream again.But the situation proves even more dangerous when Mallie uncovers a sinister mystery at the heart of Coal Top’s struggles — a mystery some powerful people will do anything to protect.

A Snicker of Magic (Scholastic Gold)

Scholastic Press |
Children’s/Middle Grade

Natalie Lloyd’s SPINDIDDLY debut novel!

Snicker of Magic joins the Scholastic Gold line, which features award-winning and beloved novels. Includes exclusive bonus content! Midnight Gulch used to be a magical place, a town where people could sing up thunderstorms and dance up sunflowers. But that was long ago, before a curse drove the magic away. Twelve-year-old Felicity knows all about things like that; her nomadic mother is cursed with a wandering heart.But when she arrives in Midnight Gulch, Felicity thinks her luck’s about to change. A “word collector,” Felicity sees words everywhere—shining above strangers, tucked into church eves, and tangled up her dog’s floppy ears—but Midnight Gulch is the first place she’s ever seen the word “home.” And then there’s Jonah, a mysterious, spiky-haired do-gooder who shimmers with words Felicity’s never seen before, words that make Felicity’s heart beat a little faster. Felicity wants to stay in Midnight Gulch more than anything, but first, she’ll need to figure out how to bring back the magic, breaking the spell that’s been cast over the town . . . and her mother’s broken heart.

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Chasing Fireflies: Ideas, Inspiration, and the Sparkly Path to Storytelling

Where do authors get ideas for books? What inspires a story? In Natalie’s most popular school presentation, she shows readers how she draws from her own elementary and middle school memories – plus all sorts of other sparkly curiosities – to create her novels. She also talks about the road to publication including revision, rejection, and the magic of collaboration. Students will leave excited to create their own storytelling magic.

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The Character Creation Lab: The Two Things Every Character Needs to Come Alive

Utilizing some of her most popular characters as examples, Natalie tells students the two things she has to know about every character to make each story shine. She also highlights examples from her books – and life – to help readers learn to incorporate all the elements of storytelling they’re already learning in class. Readers will leave with tangible tools to make their own stories stronger — and have more fun writing them.

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Finding Narnia: How the Roar of a Good Story Can Change a Life

In this presentation for adults, Natalie shares her love of children’s literature and her own path to publication. She also shares candidly about her physical disability, osteogenesis imperfecta, and how this impacted her life as a reader and writer. This presentation is popular among librarians, teachers, fellow writers and anybody whose life has ever been transformed by the magic of books … and the roar of a good story.

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Young Writers Workshops

Natalie offers three styles of workshops for young readers. Ideally, this format is best for groups of 25 or less. In the first workshop, Camp Story, young writers will be given several prompts and asked to write a story based on one before the visit. During the workshop, Natalie asks volunteers to talk about their work. Together, students discuss the elements of storytelling as they see each other’s inspirations and learn from their classmates’ creativity. This session involves only positive feedback. Natalie also offers young writers workshops on character creation and story mechanics.

Honors, Awards & Recognition

New York Times Bestselling Author
An ALA Notable Book Recipient
An ALA Schneider Family Honor Award Winner
An ALA Odyssey Honor Award Winner
An E.B. White Read Aloud Honor Book Award
A SIBA Children’s Book Award Finalist
Mythopoeic Fantasy Award Winner for Children’s Literature
Jr. Library Guild Gold Selections
A Nerdy Book Club Award Winner
NCTE Charlotte Huck Recommended Book
A Siba Okra Pick

Media Kit

By clicking the link below you will be directed to a Google Docs Folder
where you can download author photos and cover images.

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