James Robinson is an Emmy Award–winning documentary filmmaker and video producer for New York Times Opinion. James speaks to audiences across the country, from grade school to grad school, about disability, filmmaking, and getting people to care. 

Raymond Santana is an activist, speaker, author, and designer. Raymond travels the country telling his story of hope and overcoming obstacles as he continues to fight against the inequities of the American justice system. He also works closely with the Innocence Project on lobbying for legislation to help those falsely convicted. He currently lives in Harlem and is running for a New York City Council seat representing District 8. 

Jacqueline Alcántara is the award-winning illustrator of many picture books, including Jam, Too? by JaNay Brown-Wood, The Field by Baptiste Paul, Freedom Soup by Tami Charles, Jump at the Sun by Alicia D. Williams, and Kirkus Prize finalist Your Mama by NoNieqa Ramos. Tíos and Primos is Jacqueline’s author-artist debut and was inspired by her visits to Honduras with her father. She draws and teaches illustration in Chicago, Illinois. 

Jenn Bailey is an author, editor, blue-ribbon pie baker, and eager traveler. She received her MFA from the Vermont College of Fine Arts. Born and raised in Rhode Island, she now calls Leawood, Kansas, home. Although her kids insisted on growing up, she and her husband, Kevin, still share their space with numerous cats and dogs. Visit her at jennbailey.com. 

Ann Bausum writes history for readers of all ages. Her books for young people help upper elementary, middle school, and high school students discover the drama and significance of stories from the past that may barely be presented in textbooks. In 2015 her adopted home state named her the year's Notable Wisconsin Children's Author. Two years later, the body of her work received national recognition with the Nonfiction Award of the Children's Book Guild of Washington, D.C. 

Max Beaudry is an Emmy Award-winning writer of TV, Film, and Books, who was recently a Story Editor for Nickelodeon’s Super Duper Bunny League. Previously, he was a Story Editor for Nickelodeon’s Baby Shark, and a Staff Writer for Disney’s Emmy Award-winning Muppet Babies. In addition to TV, Max co-wrote an original animated film for On Animation and has an original animated film with Major Chord. Before settling into the world of entertainment, Max lived in South Korea where he taught English to elementary school children. 

Nell Cross Beckerman writes books for children to inspire wonder and celebrate adventure. A former reality/documentary TV producer, she is the author of the acclaimed book Caves, which received three starred reviews. She is also the author of Down Under the Pier, When the Sky Glows, and more to come. Nell lives in Culver City, California, with her husband, two daughters, and their beloved pooch, Teddy. Visit her at NellCrossBeckerman.com. 

Daniel Bernstrom is a poet and the author of seven picture books, including One Day in the Eucalyptus, Eucalyptus Tree, illustrated by Brendan Wenzel, and the popular A Bear, a Bee, and a Honey Tree. Many of Daniel’s books include Black characters, reflecting everyday adventures and joy. A graduate of the Hamline MFA in writing for children and young adults, Daniel lives in Worthington, Minnesota with his wife and five children. 

Mauli Junior Bonner is a Grammy Award-winning songwriter and acclaimed film director who works to promote representation for communities of color through the arts. Chantél Bonner is a licensed marriage and family therapist and sound practitioner who works to uplift and heal marginalized communities through therapy and holistic wellness. Together Mauli and Chantél are the cofounders and directors of the nonprofit Lift Up Voices, which provides various resources to underserved children in disadvantaged areas. 

Angeline Boulley, an enrolled member of the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians, is a storyteller who writes about her Ojibwe community in Michigan's Upper Peninsula. She is a former Director of the Office of Indian Education at the U.S. Department of Education. Her debut novel Firekeeper's Daughter was an instant #1New York Times bestseller and recipient of many international accolades including the ALA Printz and Morris Awards; the YA Goodreads Choice Award; the Walter Award for Outstanding Children's Literature; and is Carnegie Mellon nominated. Angeline lives in southwest Michigan, but her home will always be on Sugar Island. 

Jesse Byrd is an international award-winning children's book author and the youngest NPR Board member. After working at Google in Silicon Valley and later EY in Dubai as Director of Communications for Middle East and North Africa, Jesse turned all of his energy toward his deepest love: making stories for youth and families with a focus on supporting diverse creators and #ownvoices material.  

Sarwat Chadda decided to embrace his passion for over-the-top wild adventure stories by trading in a career in engineering for a highly unstable, brand new one as a writer. That resulted in his first novel, Devil's Kiss, back in 2009. He has been published in a dozen languages, writing comic books, TV shows and novels, preferring non-European settings and legends, such as the award-winning Indian mythology-inspired Ash Mistry series, the epic high fantasy Shadow Magic trilogy (as Joshua Khan) and City of the Plague God for Rick Riordan Presents, featuring the imprint’s first Muslim hero. His most recent series is the epic eastern fantasy Storm Singer. 

Co-founder of the award-winning blog, The Brown Bookshelf, Paula Chase is a longtime advocate for diversifying the type of fiction featuring Black characters. Chase is the author of nine critically acclaimed Upper Middle Grade and YA novels and a winner of NCTE’s Assembly on Literature for Adolescents (ALAN) Konigsberg Award.

Nicholas Day is the author of The Mona Lisa Vanishes, winner of the Robert F. Sibert Award and the Boston Globe-Horn Book Award for nonfiction. He is also the author of the picture book Nothing, which received three starred reviews, and the adult narrative nonfiction title, Baby Meets World. He has written regularly for Slate; his work has also appeared in the Atlantic, the New York Times, and the Washington Post, among other publications. He lives in Western Massachusetts with his family.

Susan Dennard is the award-winning, New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of the Witchlands series (now in development for TV from the Jim Henson Company), the Luminaries series, the Something Strange and Deadly series, The Executioners Three, as well as various short stories and other tales across the internet. She also runs the popular newsletter for writers, Misfits and Daydreamers. When not writing or teaching writing, she can be found reading, playing with her daughter, or mashing buttons on one of her way too many consoles. 

Hà Dinh was born in Vietnam and immigrated to the United States with her family when she was 5 years old. She graduated from the University of Louisville with a bachelor’s degree in English and Humanities and a Master’s of Art in Teaching in Early Elementary Education. She is married to her high school sweetheart, is a mother of two, the founder of Happy Days in First Grade teaching blog, and a former elementary teacher of 16 years. Hà seeks to inspire kids to share their own stories and make a positive impact in the world. 

Lily Dodd is a California-born, Brooklyn-based writer. In 2022, she graduated from Yale University, where she was a recipient of the Theron Rockwell Field Prize. Her previously published work includes Search and Rescue, a novella produced for Audible. When not writing, she works in education, including with the literary nonprofit Writers and Artists Across the Country, which sends children's and YA authors and illustrators to under-resourced schools. The Aerimander is her debut novel. 

Regina Feldmann was born in Germany. After living in Malta, Ireland, New York and Portugal, she now lives in Berlin with her family. Regina writes and translates children’s books and is also involved in projects that promote a diversity of voices in children’s literature.

Greg Foley didn’t know what he wanted to be when he grew up. So he never really grew up. Just like Dex, he’s always wanted to be the World’s Best Great Ever at something. So he tries his best at being lots of different things like author, illustrator, designer, director, cartoonist, New Yorker cover artist, teacher, inventor, and dad. Along the way Greg has received numerous honors including the Charlotte Zolotow Award, Art Directors Club Gold and Silver Awards, a Grammy nomination, a Guinness World Record, and his work has been exhibited at places like the MoMa, Centre Pompidou, New York Public Library, Yale’s Beinecke Library, and many more. Greg lives in Austin, Texas, with his family. 

Debbie Fong is a rising children’s book star author and illustrator. She is the illustrator of How to Be a Person and author of Next Stop and Ignatz Award-nominated and Broken Frontier winner Greenhouse. She is also the artist behind POMMO Press, an online art shop selling prints, stationery, and other fun goods. Debbie lives in Brooklyn. 

Josh Funk is the co-creator of the Lady Pancake & Sir French Toast series, including Lady Pancake and Sir French Toast, The Case of the Stinky Stench, Mission Defrostable, Short & Sweet, The Great Caper Caper, and Attack of the Scones. His other works include How to Code a Sandcastle, Lost in the Library, Albie Newton, and more. Josh lives in Massachusetts with his family and invites you to learn more about him by visiting joshfunkbooks.com. 

Shaenon K. Garrity is an award-winning cartoonist and writer best known for the webcomics Narbonic and Skin Horse. Her short stories have appeared in many science fiction magazines and anthologies, and she is the author of Dire Days of Willowweep Manor. She lives in Berkeley, California.

Chris Grabenstein is the bestselling author of the Mr. Lemoncello, Smartest Kid in the Universe, Dog Squad, and Welcome to Wonderland series, as well as the coauthor of numerous page-turners with James Patterson and of Shine!, cowritten with Chris's wife, J.J. Grabenstein.

Donna Barba Higuera grew up dodging dust devils in the oil fields of central California. She was a daydreamer, constantly blending life experiences and folklore into stories. Higuera currently lives in the Pacific Northwest with her family, two dogs, 11 chickens, and one frog. She is the author of the picture books El Cucuy Is Scared, Too! and It’s Navidad, El Cucuy!, both illustrated by Juliana Perdomo and she is also the author of the middle-grade novels The Last Cuentista, winner of the Newbery Medal and Pura Belpré Award, Alebrijes, winner of the Pura Belpré Honor, and Lupe Wong Won’t Dance, winner of a Pura Belpré Honor. 

Jarvis is the creator of the picture books The Boy with Flowers in His Hair; Thank You; Follow Me, Flo!; Tropical Terry; and Alan’s Big, Scary Teeth among others. He is also the author-illustrator of a chapter-book series about Bear and Bird and the illustrator of Pick a Pine Tree, Pick a Pumpkin, Pick a Perfect Egg, and Together with You, all by Patricia Toht, as well as Oh, Are You Awake? by Bob Shea. An animator who has worked as a record jacket designer and an animation director, Jarvis lives in Manchester, England. 

Varian Johnson is the author of several novels for children and young adults, including The Parker Inheritance, which won both Coretta Scott King Author Honor and Boston Globe-Horn Book Honor awards, The Great Greene Heist, an ALA Notable Children’s Book, a Kirkus Reviews Best Book, and a Texas Library Association Lone Star List selection, and the graphic novel Twins co-created with Shannon Wright, an NPR Best Book. He lives with his family near Austin, Texas. You can visit him on the web at varianjohnson.com and @varianjohnson. 

Frederick Joseph is a Yonkers, New York–raised two-time New York Times and USA Today best-selling author. His books include the poetry collection We Alive, Beloved; the nonfiction works Patriarchy Blues, The Black Friend, and Better Than We Found It, co-written with Porsche Joseph; the picture book Black Panther: Wakanda Forever: The Courage to Dream, illustrated by Nikkolas Smith; and the forthcoming YA novel This Thing of Ours. He was recognized with a 2021 International Literacy Association Young Adult Book Award, was named to the 2019 Forbes 30 Under 30 list for marketing and advertising, and is an activist, philanthropist, and poet. Frederick Joseph was also honored with a 2023 Malcolm X and Dr. Betty Shabazz Vanguard Award and the 2018 Bob Clampett Humanitarian Award, and he was selected for the 2018 Root 100, a list of the most influential African Americans. 

Peyton June is an author and illustrator based in Seattle, Washington. When she’s not writing, she enjoys riding her fifty-year-old Schwinn bicycle, collecting antique photographs, and ghost hunting. Bad Creek (Norton Young Readers, June 2025) is her debut novel. 

Anna Kang was born in the Bronx and grew up on Long Island where she spent much of her free time reading Teen Beat magazine, Archie comics, and going to the local multiplex. Her debut picture book, You Are (Not) Small, won the 2015 Theodor Seuss Geisel Award. Anna lives with her husband, cartoonist/illustrator Christopher Weyant, their daughters, and their fluffy dog, Hudson. Visit her at www.annakang.com. 

Adrienne Kress (writer) is a Toronto-based actor and author of award-winning internationally published children’s and young adult novels, including the quirky adventure series The Explorers and the Ticket to Ride books. Adrienne’s first foray into writing horror came with her work on the Bendy and the Ink Machine novels and, more recently, the Five Nights at Freddy’s interactive novel Return to the Pit. As an actor she has had the pleasure of being creepy in many horror films. She has also written a children’s play based on the classic “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” story. Yeah, she might be a bit of a fan of the Headless Horseman! Find her at AdrienneKress.com and on Instagram @AdrienneKress. 

Tae Keller is the Newbery Medal–winning and New York Times best-selling author of When You Trap a Tiger, Jennifer Chan Is Not Alone, and The Science of Breakable Things. Her debut picture book, We Carry the Sun (illustrated by Rachel Wada), will be published by Norton Young Readers in June 2025.   

Laekan Zea Kemp is the Pura Belpré Honor-winning author of Somewhere Between Bitter and Sweet, a young adult novel, as well as the picture book A Crown for Corina and numerous other titles for young readers. Her work celebrates Chicane grit, resilience, creativity, and joy while exploring themes of identity and mental health. She lives in Austin, Texas. 

Freddie Kölsch is a connoisseur and crafter of frightful fiction (with a dash of hope) for teens and former teens. She is the author of Now, Conjurers. She lives in Salem, Massachusetts, with her high school sweetheart-turned-wife, a handful of cats, a houseful of art, and a mind’s eye full of ghosts. 

Torben Kuhlmann lives and works in Hamburg as a freelance children’s author and illustrator. He studied illustration and communications design at the Hamburg University of Applied Sciences. He wrote and illustrated his first picture book, Lindbergh: The Tale of a Flying Mouse, in 2012 as his final thesis, and it was published in 2014 by NorthSouth. Three more Mouse Adventures followed and were equally successful, including 2019 Batchelder honor and ALA Notable Book Edison. The publication of Earhart, the fifth book, marks the tenth anniversary of the series. 

With over 30-years experience, Cartoonist Mike Kunkel has continued to do what he loves. . . create and tell cartoon stories for audiences. As a Published Writer and Artist, Mike has been nominated four times for the prestigious EISNER AWARD and four IGNATZ AWARDS and is the creator of the two-time EISNER Award-winning comic book series “Herobear and the kid.” He has also helped to relaunch the “SHAZAM” franchise for DC comics as an all-ages comic series. He lives in Southern California where he spends most of his extra time trying to learn new magic tricks, draw cartoons and play games with his family. He’s never been early for a deadline. 

Steph Littlebird is an Indigenous artist, writer, curator, and a member of Oregon’s Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde. She is the award-winning illustrator of the picture book My Powerful Hair, written by Carole Lindstrom, and the chapter book The Summer of the Bone Horses, written by Virginia Driving Hawk Sneve. 

Michael G. Long writes about politics, nonviolent protests, and civil rights history. His books for young readers include More Than a Dream, Call Him Jack, Troublemaker for Justice, and Fight Aids: How Activism, Art, and Protest Changed the Course of a Deadly Epidemic and Reshaped a Nation  (Norton Young Readers, June 2025). 

Corinna Luyken is the author/illustrator of four previous picture books, The Tree in Me (an NCTE Notable Poetry Book and Indie Bestseller), My Heart (a New York Times Best Seller), ABC and You and Me, and The Book of Mistakes (which the Wall Street Journal called "sublime"), and the illustrator of several other books, including Patchwork and Adrian Simcox Does Not Have a Horse. She lives in Western Washington, near the Salish Sea, with her family. 

Kevin Maillard is a contributor to the New York Times and a professor of law at Syracuse University. He is the author of Fry Bread: A Native American Family Story, a picture book illustrated by Juana Martinez-Neal, which won the Sibert Medal and the American Indian Youth Literature Honor. An enrolled member of the Seminole Nation of Oklahoma, he lives with his family in Manhattan and Vermont. 

Crystal Maldonado is a young adult author with a lot of feelings. She writes romcoms about (and for) fat, Puerto Rican girls, including The Fall of Whit Rivera, which People Magazine called a “pumpkin-spice-latte-flavored treat”; Fat Chance, Charlie Vega, which was a New England Book Award winner; and No Filter and Other Lies, which was named a POPSUGAR and Seventeen Magazine Best New YA. 

Peter McCarty has been writing and illustrating picture books since graduating from The School of Visual Arts in 1992. Little Bunny on the Move, Hondo and Fabian, Moon Plane, Jeremy Draws a Monster, Henry in Love, Chloe, and Bunny Dreams are among his favorites. His books have won many awards over the years including the Caldecott Honor for Hondo and Fabian. Peter grew up in a big family and has been drawing pictures out of his bedroom since he was four years old, and he has never stopped. He draws with pens, inks, and watercolors. The Five Wolves is his latest book. 

Jasminne Mendez is Pura Belpré Honor Award recipient and a Dominican-American poet, playwright and author of several books for children and adults. She is also a poet, playwright, translator, and professional audiobook narrator. 

Sarah Mensinga has illustrated several books, including Flipping Forward Twisting Backwards, the Trillium Sisters series, and the New York Times bestseller Different: A Great Thing to Be! Her short stories have appeared in comic anthologies such as Flight 4 and Flight 5, she’s published two indie novels, and she has also worked on a variety of animated movies and TV shows. Born in Canada, Sarah now lives in Texas with her husband and three kids. 

New York Times bestselling author Kate Messner is passionately curious and writes books for kids who wonder, too. Her titles include award-winning picture books like Over and Under the Snow, The Next Scientist, and The Scariest Kitten in the World as well as novels for older readers like All the Answers, Chirp, and her new series, Wildlife Rescue. 

Dora M. Mitchell is a writer and illustrator living in a small Northern California town that dates back to the Gold Rush. She has always had a fascination with abandoned places, dark woods, and all things mysterious and otherworldly. You can find her online at doramitchell.com and on instagram @inkybeast. 

Daniel Miyares is the critically acclaimed author-illustrator of Night Out, which was called a “pleasure” by Publishers Weekly in a starred review, and Float, which the Boston Globe called a “perfect wordless picture book.” He is also the illustrator of Night Walk to the Sea, written by Deborah Wiles, described as “majestic” by Bulletin Center for Children’s Books, and That Is My Dream!, a picture book version of Langston Hughes’ “Dream Variation,” hailed as “a must-read” by Kirkus in a starred review. He lives in Kansas with his family. 

Yuyi Morales was born in Xalapa, Mexico, where she currently resides. She is a Caldecott Honoree and a repeated winner of the prestigious Pura Belpré Medal for Illustration, among other honors. Her titles include Dreamers (A New York Times bestseller), Niño Wrestles the World, Viva Frida, and Bright Star. 

Nora Neus is an Emmy Award–nominated journalist and writer who has reported from inside wartime Ukraine during the Russian invasion, from behind bars at a maximum security prison, from 14,000 feet above sea level in the San Juan Mountains, and from rural Puerto Rico after devastating earthquakes. Nora studied the history of journalism, with a focus on the turn of the twentieth century, for her master’s degree from King’s College London. She invites you to visit her online at noraneus.com. 

Trung Le Nguyen, also known as Trungles, is a comic book artist and illustrator working out of Minnesota. He received his BA from Hamline University in 2012, majoring in Studio Art with a concentration in oil painting and minoring in Art History. He has contributed work for Oni Press, BOOM! Studios, Limerence Press, and Image Comics. He is particularly fond of fairy tales, kids' cartoons, and rom-coms of all stripes. 

Jennifer A. Nielsen is the acclaimed author of the New York Times and USA Today bestselling Ascendance Series: The False Prince, The Runaway King, The Shadow Throne, The Captive Kingdom, and The Shattered Castle. She also wrote the New York Times bestseller The Traitor's Game and its sequels; the New York Times bestselling Mark of the Thief trilogy; the standalone fantasy The Scourge; and the critically acclaimed historical thrillers A Night Divided, Resistance, Words on Fire, Rescue, Lines of Courage, Iceberg,Uprising, and One Wrong Step. Jennifer collects old books, loves good theater, and thinks that a quiet afternoon in the mountains makes for a nearly perfect moment. She lives in northern Utah with her family, and is probably sneaking in a bite of dark chocolate right now. You can visit her online at jennielsen.com or follow her on Twitter and Instagram at @nielsenwriter. 

Jennifer Niven is the #1 New York Times and internationally bestselling author of All the Bright Places, Holding Up the Universe and Breathless. Her books have been translated in over 75 languages and have won literary awards around the world. An Emmy-award winning screenwriter, she co-wrote the script for the All the Bright Places movie—currently streaming on Netflix. She is also the author of several narrative nonfiction titles and the Velva Jean historical fiction series. Jennifer divides her time between coastal Georgia and Los Angeles with her husband and literary cats. 

Annabelle Oh is the author of several acclaimed books for children and young adults, as well as insightful works in national and international publications. When she’s not in the story world, she reviews toys and loves spending time with her husband and daughter in sunny San Diego. 

John Parra’s illustrations for Frida Kahlo and Her Animalitos, written by Monica Brown, earned the book a New York Times Best Illustrated Book designation. He also illustrated Green Is a Chile Pepper: A Book of Colors by Roseanne Thong, which received a Pura Belpré Honor and the Américas Book Award: Commended; Marvelous Cornelius: Hurricane Katrina and the Spirit of New Orleans by Phil Bildner, which won the Golden Kite Award for Picture Book Illustration and was a Bank Street Best Book of the year; and Hey, Wall, by Susan Verde, which School Library Journal called “a must-purchase” in a starred review. 

Alexs Pate is the President and CEO of Innocent Technologies and creator of the Innocent Classroom, a program for K-12 educators that aims to transform American public education and end disparities. Alexs’s first children’s book, Being You delivers a message of hope and self-discovery in a time of uncertainty in our world. Alexs has worked as a professor and teacher at Macalester College, the University of Minnesota, Naropa, and the University of Southern Maine’s Stonecoast Creative Writing Program. 

Victor Piñeiro heads up content and social media at an ad agency where he’s run @YouTube, some of @Google and launched @Skittles, creating its award-winning zany voice. He’s also designed games and toys for Hasbro, written/produced a popular documentary on virtual worlds and taught third graders. He is also the author of the Time Villains series and the forthcoming Island of the Forgotten Gods. 

David Pinckney is a long-time comic book fan that's always had a passion for storytelling. Growing up, he always knew that telling stories in a creative way was something he aspired to do. David was able to fulfill this through working on comics like Needle and Thread as well as working on small indie games and developing board games as side projects. 

Tom Rademacher has spent the last two decades devoted to students and education as an award-winning teacher and acquisitions editor. He’s the author of 50 Strategies for Learning without Screens, It Won’t Be Easy, and Raising Ollie: How My Nonbinary Art-Nerd Kid Changed (Nearly) Everything I Know, and has written for Huffington Post, Education Post, City Pages, and more. As a teacher, Tom was named Minnesota’s 2014 Teacher of the Year. Before that, he mostly wrote bad poetry and talked about Kurt Cobain. He lives too close to the Mall of America in Minnesota with his wife, son, and absolute chonk of a dog. 

Kam Redlawsk is a multi-award-winning disabled industrial designer, artist, rare disease and disability advocate, traveler, writer, consultant, and speaker, born in South Korea, raised in Michigan, thriving in California. She’s also a Korean American adoptee. Kam is a self-taught artist. Yumi & Monster is her children’s book debut as author and illustrator. You are invited to visit Kam at kamredlawsk.com.   

Mary E. Roach is a former teacher who now writes across genres and age categories, most recently thrillers and romance. When she is not writing stories for powerful girls, Mary enjoys running, teaching martial arts, and disappearing into the wilderness. Mary lives in St. Paul with her fiancée and their very disagreeable cat, Lulu. She can be found online at maryeroach.com 

SF Said (he/him) is a British Muslim author of Middle Eastern background who was born in Beirut and grew up in London’s Iraqi diasporic community. After graduating from the University of Cambridge, he worked as a press attaché and speech writer for the Crown Prince of Jordan’s office in London. He began a PhD in 1997 looking at the lives of young Muslims in Britain but left academia to focus on film journalism for the Daily Telegraph—where he brought attention to world cinema, including contemporary Islamic cinema—and writing for children. 

Laura Purdie Salas has written more than 130 books, including Zap! Clap! Boom!: The Story of a Thunderstorm, Lion of the Sky, Clover Kitty Goes to Kittygarten, and Flurry, Float, and Fly!. Her books have earned the Minnesota Book Award, NCTE Notables, and many starred reviews. 

Hannah V. Sawyerr was recognized as the Youth Poet Laureate of Baltimore in 2016. Her debut novel in verse All the Fighting Parts was recognized as a William C. Morris Debut Award finalist, a Walter Dean Myers Award Honoree, a Rise Feminist Book Project Top Ten Title, and a Kirkus Best Book of the Year. Her spoken word has been featured on the BBC’s World Have Your Say program as well as the National Education Association’s “Do You Hear Us?” campaign. She holds a BA in English from Morgan State University and an MFA in Creative Writing from The New School. 

Originally from Ukraine, Katerina Spaeth works and lives as a professor and artist in Northern California. She received her BFA in illustration from San Jose State in 2019. 

Nessa Bellido Schwarz is a Latina author who writes about history, science, nature, and the joys and perils of growing up. She lives in Southern California with her husband, son, and a tortoise named Leonardo Da Vinci. GEORGE the Flybot is her debut chapter-book series for children. 

Melissa T. Shultz has extensive writing, editing, and management experience that traverses video, TV, books, magazines, newspapers, and marketing. Her previous titles include acquisitions editor, director of creative services, and manager of video production. She’s a published author; her articles and essays are featured in The New York Times, The Washington Post, Reader’s Digest, AARP, and more.  

Colby Cedar Smith is a poet, novelist, and educator and the author of two verse novels The Siren and the Star and Call Me Athena. Her work often focuses on the untold stories of women throughout history and has been selected for an American Booksellers Association Indie Next Pick, a Goodreads Choice for Poetry Nominee, a Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection, a Michigan Notable Book Award, a Midwest Book Award, and a New Jersey Council on the Arts Fellowship in Poetry. 

Michael Sweater is a writer and cartoonist from Philadelphia known for a dense and fun style. He has worked for Cartoon Network, Vice, and Oni Press, and has self-published more than 1,000 pages of comics. Most recently, he co-created the fantasy adventure graphic novel The Wizerd! and did storyboards and background design for Cartoon Network’s Supercamp Island. Michael currently lives in Arkansas, and he invites you to visit him online at michaelsweater.com. 

Mariko Tamaki is a Canadian writer living in California. She is a writer of prose, comics, TV and film. She is a Harvey, Ignatz, Eisner, and Printz Honor winner. She is also the curator for Surely Books. 

Ali Terese is a middle grade and YA author who writes funny and heartfelt stories including FREE PERIOD (Scholastic - 2024) and VOTE FOR THE G.O.A.T. (Aladdin / Simon & Schuster - 2025). Her work has received the National Book Award longlist honor, a School Library Journal starred review, an Audiofile Magazine Earphones Award, a Kids’ Indie Next selection, and spots in the Chicago Public Schools Battle of the Books and the Texas Lone Star Reading List.   

Duncan Tonatiuh (toh-nah-tee-YOU) is an award-winning author-illustrator whose accolades include: a Pura Belpré Medal and multiple Honors, the Robert F. Sibert Medal, the Tomás Rivera Mexican American Children’s Book Award, the Américas Award, the Jane Addams Children’s Book Award, and multiple Texas Bluebonnet Award Master List selections and New York Times Best Illustrated mentions. Both Mexican and American, Tonatiuh aims to create images and stories that honor the past but are still relevant to people today, especially children. He grew up in and currently lives in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, with his wife and children, but travels to the United States often. 

Arriel Vinson is a Reese's Book Club LitUp Fellow and Midwesterner who writes about being young, Black, and in search of freedom. She earned her MFA in Fiction from Sarah Lawrence College. Under the Neon Lights, a YA novel-in-verse, is her debut. 

Jasmine Walls is an award-winning writer, editor, artist, and hot chocolate enthusiast based in California, with a passion for inclusive and creative stories that are fun, engaging, and critical. She's had the honor of working with incredible artists on books such as BROOMS with Teo DuVall (LevineQuerido), The Last Session with Dozer (Mad Cave/Maverick), and Vixen: NYC with Manou Azumi (DC/Webtoon). 

Pasha Westbrook, a multiracial writer and a Chickasaw and Choctaw Freedmen descendant, lives among the Arizona cacti with her husband and three beautiful boys. When she’s not voraciously reading, you’ll find her penning poetry, nourishing her plant babies, concocting herbal remedies, and reveling in nature as often as possible.  

Salina Yoon is an award-winning author and illustrator of over 170 books for children, including Kat and Mouse: I Like Cheese!, Penguin and Pinecone, Penguin and Ollie, Penguin and Penelope, Stormy Night, and Be a Friend, as well as the Duck, Duck, Porcupine early reader series, including the Geisel Honor winner My Kite is Stuck!. 

Jade Zhang (artist) is a queer Chinese Canadian illustrator and comic artist. She has illustrated comics for BOOM! Studios, HarperCollins, and the Ignatz Award–winning anthology Shades of Fear. When she is not drawing ghosts and ghouls, she is writing stories about magic, family, and the occasional eldritch horror.

Alicia Abdul is a high school librarian in Albany, NY. She shares her reading (and dresses) on Instagram @ReadersBeAdvised and blogs at readersbeadvised.wordpress.com. She's served or chaired on several YALSA book committees, presents at local, state, and national conferences on books, programs, and graphic novels, and recently became an adjunct for two graduate programs on young adult literature.

Amalia E. Butler is a public school librarian (P-7) with experience in public libraries and special collections. She is an active ALSC member, most recently serving on the 2023 (John) Newbery Award Selection Committee and the ALSC Children & Libraries Editorial Advisory Committee (2020-23).

Denise Dávila is an assistant professor of children's literature and literacy education at the University of Texas at Austin who has served on multiple book award committees. Her research agenda focuses on families' engagement with children's books by/for/and about members of marginalized communities to support early literacy development.  

Jonah Dragan reviews for School Library Journal and serves on their year-end Best Books Committees. He holds a Master's degree in Education from Bank Street College and is also a member of the Bank Street Children's Book Committee. His many other hats include preschool teacher, author, professional storyteller, rare book collector, and parent. He can often be found exploring the dusty shelves of used bookstores, curling up with a mug of tea and a good ghost story, or diving into worlds of imagination with his husband and child.

Brandi Grant has 12 years experience as a school librarian and currently is a middle school librarian at Pearson Middle School in Frisco ISD. The mission statement that guides her professionally is to strive to educate, prepare, and inspire all students to achieve their highest potential with various resources, a contagious love of reading and a positive and fun environment. What she holds tight is to provide a safe, inclusive, and flexible learning environment where whoever enters through the doors feels that they are free to COLLABORATE, INNOVATE, and ESCAPE.

Mandi Harris (Cherokee Nation) is a children’s librarian and PhD student at the University of Washington Information School, where she uses Indigenous Systems of Knowledge to examine children’s literature, education, and the futures of libraries. She is an American Library Association Spectrum Doctoral Fellow. Mandi has a Master of Library and Information Science degree from the University of Washington and has a decade of experience working in youth services at public libraries.  

Jen Hubert Swan (@ReadingRants) is a former middle school, current high school librarian, author, adjunct professor, professional reviewer, and veteran ALA book committee member. She has been gushing about books for teens at Reading Rants since 1998 (!) In her spare time when she is not reading, writing or taking long river walks with her husband and dog, she watches way too much BRAVO reality TV, collects original SVH paperbacks, and eats out as often as possible in the Hudson Valley’s amazeballs restaurants. 

Louie Lauer is an elementary library media specialist for Fargo Public Schools, with 13 years of experience in this role. An avid reader, Louie is also a frequent presenter at regional and state conventions, a reviewer for SLJ, and has just finished his participation as a member of the 2024 Seuss Geisel Committee. When he doesn’t have his nose in a book, he can be found enjoying lake life in central MN, finding new regions of the globe to explore and spending time with his nine-year old dog, Truly.  

Ashley Leffel is the librarian in Frisco, TX.  Before becoming a librarian, she taught music for many years. She loves reading all types of books and fangirling for her favorite authors. When not reading, she enjoys Broadway musicals and can quote just about every episode of Bob’s Burgers.

Dr. Michelle H. Martin is the Beverly Cleary Endowed Professor in Children and Youth Services in the Information School at the University of Washington in 2016, and she was the inaugural Augusta Baker Endowed Chair in Childhood Literacy at the University of South Carolina from 2011-2016. Martin, Tammy Mielke and Sarah Layzell, co-edited the forthcoming Song of the Land: Critical Perspectives on the Works of Mildred D. Taylor (UP of Mississippi, August 2025). She co-founded with Dr. Rachelle Washington Read-a-Rama (www.Read-a-Rama.org), a non-profit that uses children’s books as the springboard for programming. 

Kerra Mazzariello is the full-time librarian at Eggert Elementary School and part time librarian at Hilbert College - both located just outside of Buffalo, NY. She also writes children's book reviews for School Library Journal and serves as a Staff Writer for "Die by the Blade," the Buffalo Sabres' community website. She is an avid sports fan, lover of fashion, and lives in Western New York with her husband and their two French bulldogs, Zoey and Monet. 

Alea Perez has been a Youth and Young Adult Services manager in the Chicago suburbs since June 2015. She aims to help children, teens, and their caregivers discover the many services libraries provide. Alea is dedicated to advocacy for youth and teen services, youth and teen services management, graphic novels for youth and teens, and equity and inclusion in the field at large.

Clair Quaintance has been working with tweens and teens in school libraries since 2010 and loving every minute of it.

As digital media coordinator, Justin Shannin oversees teen makerspace technology (including recording studios, sewing stations, and 3D printers) across Chicago Public Library's 81 branches. He has also served multiple terms on the library's "Best of the Best" committee, helping to select and publicize the library's annual top 50 list of new teen books. Before becoming a librarian, Justin worked in theatre and education. He has a B.A. in theatre from Northwestern University and an MLIS degree from UNC Greensboro.

Desiree Thomas is a Youth Services Librarian in Worthington Ohio. She has worked in libraries for the past 22 years and believes that our lives are made better when we share stories and learn about each other. She is an avid gardener, yogi, and reader’s advisory enthusiast.   

Allison Tran is a Library Services Manager for the City of Irvine in California. She's dedicated to fostering self-expression, curiosity, and empathy in the community through art and literature. Before earning her Masters of Library and Information Science from San Jose State University in 2006, Allison taught English in Japan. 

Ricci Yuhico is an award-winning public librarian who celebrates her multifaceted identity as a first-generation Filipino-American. As the Managing Librarian for Young Adult Services at the largest lending branch of The New York Public Library in midtown Manhattan, she has had the privilege of launching and running their flagship Teen Center. Ricci previously managed premiere teen centers in the Miami-Dade Public Library System and Broward County Library—spaces that empower young adults in pursuit of their right to vetted information, accessible resources, and to thrive in public places. The radical power of love continues to shape her commitment to public service.