Renkl
Billy Renkl grew up in Birmingham, Alabama, and earned his undergraduate degree in illustration from Auburn University. His M.F.A., from the University of South Carolina, is in drawing. Today he teaches illustration, collage, and drawing as a professor of art at Austin Peay State University in Clarksville, Tennessee. He and his wife have three adult […]
James
Cassandra James grew up in a mixed immigrant family with a penchant for storytelling, so becoming a writer was almost inevitable. She recently graduated from Princeton University with a degree in English focusing on Creative Writing. After solo-traveling the world for several months, she met her swoon-worthy husband and landed in Orlando, Florida, where she […]
West
Wallace is an award-winning children’s book author / illustrator and a world explorer. His first picture book, Mighty Red Riding Hood won a Lambda Literary Award. He also illustrated the NY Times bestselling middle-grade Dogtown series by legendary authors Katherine Applegate and Gennifer Choldenko. Kirkus has called his illustrations “utterly charming” and “expressive” with a […]
Kunz
Rebecca Lee Kunz is an artist, illustrator, and the owner of Tree of Life Studio. She was awarded the 2025 Randolph Caldecott Award for her illustrations in the picture book Chooch Helped. A citizen of the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma, Rebecca’s work draws upon tribal iconography, archetypal symbolism, and mythology. A visual storyteller and folklorist, […]
Foody
Amanda Foody is the New York Times, USA Today, and indie bestselling author of the Wilderlore series, A Fate So Cold and All of Us Villains (with C. L. Herman), and more. Wilderlore: The Accidental Apprentice was a Bank Street Best Children’s Book of the Year, and All of Us Villains was awarded a Junior […]
Baron
Chris Baron is the award winning author of Novels for young (and young at heart) readers including ALL OF ME an NCTE Notable Book, THE MAGICAL IMPERFECT a Sydney Taylor Book Award Notable Book/ a SLJ Best Book of 2021 THE GRAY, a ProjectLIT Selection, SPARK a JLG Gold Standard Selection & Golden Poppy Finalist, […]
Wyman
Christina Wyman is the USA Today-bestselling author of the middle-grade novels Jawbreaker, Slouch, and Breakout. She is a teacher and writer living in Michigan with her husband and silly rescue cats named Alfred and Greta Cannoli―not to mention the raccoons, owls, and hummingbirds that occupy a tree outside their bedroom window. She grew up in […]
Upchurch
Shanna Upchurch is the award-winning author of picture books and middle grade novels that celebrate brave kids, remarkable animals, and big-hearted journeys. Raised in rural Illinois and now based in Texas, Shanna’s stories are inspired by the wonder found just outside our doors. Her book The Honeybee Highway (April 2026), is a celebration of honeybees, […]
Amato
Dr. Jarred Amato is an award-winning English teacher, the author of Just Read It: Unlocking the Magic of Independent Reading in Middle and High School Classrooms, and the co-founder of Project LIT Community, a grassroots literacy movement. Jarred is an avid reader and writer who enjoys collaborating with fellow educators to improve literacy access, attitudes, […]
Adame
Leslie Adame is a first-generation Mexican American and graduate of UCLA with a degree in political science and a minor in film, television, and digital media. She’s always enjoyed giving back and telling stories about characters not often found in books or films. Her debut Latinx middle grade fantasy is Chloe Vega and the Agents […]