Fall 2019 Flying Starts

We spotlight six notable children’s and YA debut authors and artists.

Dec 20, 2019

Brittney Morris

For author Brittney Morris, seeing Black Panther on opening night in early 2018 inspired her to shift career paths and write her debut YA novel, Slay. The book—which sold at auction in a six-figure, two-book deal—stars a black girl who creates a multiplayer online role-playing card game celebrating black culture. “Slay has definitely changed my life,” Morris says.

Julia Drake

Julia Drake knew early on that she wanted to write for teens, but it wasn’t until she began pursuing her MFA that the idea for her debut novel, The Last True Poets of the Sea, a loose YA retelling of Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night, emerged. Drake explains, “I thought the women in the play, Viola and Olivia, were so well matched. I wanted to explore that relationship through a queer lens.”

Christine Day

A contest for diverse storytelling gave Christine Day the “epiphany” to write ‘I Can Make This Promise,’ an #OwnVoices contemporary novel about an adopted girl who is exploring her Native American identity. “I knew right away that this was the story that I would keep fighting for,” Day says. It took nearly a year of sending the book to editors before Day’s book finally captured the attention and heart of an editor.

Joowon Oh

South Korean artist Joowon Oh’s passion for illustration led her all the way to the School of Visual Arts in New York, where a project for a bookmaking class grew into her first picture book. Based in part on her childhood memories, Our Favorite Day tells a quiet story about “the special relationship between a grandparent and grandchild —and dumplings.”

Katy Rose Pool

Katy Rose Pool’s lifelong ambition to write professionally has come to fruition with the release of her debut fantasy, There Will Come a Darkness. Pool says that it was her agent’s suggestion to reframe the book, which was originally conceived as an adult novel, as teen fiction. “I’m super grateful that she nudged me in that direction, because I love writing YA, and I love the whole YA world,” she says.

Kwame Mbalia

Kwame Mbalia uses both sides of his brain as an author and a pharmaceutical metrologist. Writing is a calling, he says; “I just want to put stories out into the world.” Mbalia’s middle-grade debut, Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky, incorporates his fascination with African-American culture and mythology. He describes his journey to writing for the Rick Riordan Presents imprint as “a series of happy mishaps.”

A version of this article appeared in the 12/23/2019 issue of Publishers Weekly under the headline: Fall 2019 Flying Starts