Arianne Costner
Arianne Costner lives in the middle of the desert with her husband and four children. She is a former English teacher who believes that writers should crack up at their own jokes. When she isn’t writing, she can be found playing the piano and composing music. Her favorite kind of potato is the tater tot, with mashed potatoes coming in close second—as long as they’re not gluey. Check out her middle grade books, MY LIFE AS A POTATO and CONFESSIONS OF A CLASS CLOWN
If you like author Arianne Costner here is the list of authors you may also like
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Colleen Madden
After spending her childhood doodling, making wookie noises, pretending to be other interesting people, Colleen Madden grew up to write and draw children’s literature so she could keep doing those things. Her works as an author/illustrator include the graphic novel series Shelley Frankenstein, the picture books Monkey Walk, A Christmas Too Big and The Kiddie Table. She illustrated the best-selling series What If Everybody Did That, Penguin/Random House’s The 12 Days, and Mariah Carey’s All I Want for Christmas Is You. She is currently working on new picture book titles and another graphic novel series.
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And making wookie noises. 🙃 -
Polly Holyoke
Polly Holyoke is the author of adventurous fiction for kids. SKYRIDERS, her new series about brave young couriers on their talking flying horses, along with its sequel THE SKY KING, are available now from Viking Children's Books. SKYRIDERS was named one of Bank Street's Best Children's Books of 2024. Her books published by Disney/Hyperion include THE NEPTUNE CHALLENGE (2015) and THE NEPTUNE PROJECT (2013). They have been named to state reading lists in TX, MD, FL, HI and OH. THE NEPTUNE PROJECT won Florida's Sunshine State Young Reader's Award. The last book in the Neptune Trilogy, THE NEPTUNE PROMISE, is available on Amazon and BN.
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A former teacher, Polly loves doing school visits and conducting writing workshops.
She currently lives in Ste -
Gina Loveless
It was five years after Gina Loveless earned an MFA from California Institute of the Arts that she realized her mission as an author was to write books that helped all the weird kids of the world feel less alone. When she’s not writing or reading, Gina can be found in Eastern PA, boogying at concerts with her husband, tending to their awesome produce garden, or snuggling with her rescue dog Gerdie.
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Sharee Miller
Sharee Miller has a BFA in communication design from Pratt Institute. She lives in Brooklyn, where she enjoys spending time with her two cats and illustrating fun stories.
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Tanya Guerrero
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Tanya Guerrero is Filipino and Spanish by birth, but has been fortunate enough to call three countries home—the Philippines, Spain, and the United States. Currently, she lives in a shipping container home in the suburbs of Manila with her husband, daughter, and a menagerie of rescued cats and dogs. She has volunteered for animal welfare organizations since 2008, focusing on Trap/Neuter/Return and Rescue/Foster/Adopt. In her free time, she grows her own food, bakes, and reads. Farrar, Strauss and Giroux BYR has published three of her middle grade books, How to Make Friends with the Sea (2020), All You Knead is Love (2021) and Adrift (2022), which have been nominated for state awards, been selected for the Junior Library Guild Gold Standard S -
Gordon Korman
Gordon Korman is a Canadian author of children's and young adult fiction books. Korman's books have sold more than 30 million copies worldwide over a career spanning four decades and have appeared at number one on The New York Times Best Seller list.
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Alan Gratz
Alan Gratz is the bestselling author of a number of novels for young readers. His 2017 novel Refugee has spent more than two years on the New York Times bestseller list, and is the winner of 14 state awards. Its other accolades include the Sydney Taylor Book Award, the National Jewish Book Award, the Cybils Middle Grade Fiction Award, a Charlotte Huck Award Honor, and a Malka Penn Award for Human Rights Honor. Refugee was also a Global Read Aloud Book for 2018.
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Alan’s novel Grenade debuted at number three on the New York Times bestseller list, and his most recent book, Allies, debuted at number two on the list and received four starred reviews. His other books include Prisoner B-3087, which was a YALSA Best Fiction for Young Readers pick and -
Katherine Applegate
#1 New York Times bestselling author Katherine Applegate has written many books for young readers, including THE ONE AND ONLY IVAN, winner of the 2013 Newbery Medal.
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Katherine’s picture books include THE BUFFALO STORM, illustrated by Jan Ormerod (Clarion Books); THE REMARKABLE TRUE STORY OF IVAN, THE SHOPPING MALL GORILLA, illustrated by G. Brian Karas (Clarion Books); SOMETIMES YOU FLY, illustrated by Jennifer Black Reinhardt (Clarion Books); and ODDER: AN OTTER’S STORY, illustrated by Charles Santoso (Feiwel & Friends).
She’s written or co-written three early chapter series for young readers: ROSCOE RILEY RULES, a seven-book series illustrated by Brian Biggs (HarperCollins); DOGGO AND PUPPER, a three-book series illustrated by Charlie Alde -
Erin Bow
TEN THINGS ABOUT ME:
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1. I'm a physicist turned poet turned YA novelist.
2. I am world-famous in Canada, which is kind of like being world-famous in real life.
3. I write books for young readers and people like me who didn't grow up. All my books will either will make you either cry on the bus or snort milk out your nose. I am dangerous to your dignity and should be stopped.
4. I needed WHERE THE RED FERN GROWS to have a happy ending, so I wrote a middle-grade book called STAND ON THE SKY
5. I needed a book with a Spock-like hero who was also a queer girl, so I wrote THE SCORPION RULES, and its sequel THE SWAN RIDERS.
6. I think cats can actually talk, but don't find us worthy, hence PLAIN KATE.
7. I hate horror, so I wrote a horror: SORROW'S K -
Doogie Horner
Doogie Horner is the author of This Might Hurt a Bit, Some Very Interesting Cats Perhaps You Weren’t Aware of, Everything Explained Through Flowcharts, A Die Hard Christmas, and other books. His comedy album A Delicate Man was an AV Club staff pick. He won over a hostile NYC audience on America’s Got Talent and is a frequent guest on Doug Loves Movies.
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(source: Amazon) -
Morgan Matson
Morgan Matson grew up in New York City and Greenwich, Connecticut. She attended Occidental College in Los Angeles but halfway though a theater degree, she started working in the children's department of Vroman's Bookstore and fell in love with YA literature.
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Following college graduation (and the proud bearer of an incredibly useful theater/English degree) she moved back East to attend the New School, where she received her M.F.A in Writing for Children.
Amy & Roger's Epic Detour, inspired by Morgan's three cross-country road trips, was published in May 2010. It was named an ALA Top Ten Best Book, a PW "Flying Start" book, and was shortlisted for the Waterstone's Book Prize.
In the meantime, Morgan moved back to California, went back to school -
Polly Holyoke
Polly Holyoke is the author of adventurous fiction for kids. SKYRIDERS, her new series about brave young couriers on their talking flying horses, along with its sequel THE SKY KING, are available now from Viking Children's Books. SKYRIDERS was named one of Bank Street's Best Children's Books of 2024. Her books published by Disney/Hyperion include THE NEPTUNE CHALLENGE (2015) and THE NEPTUNE PROJECT (2013). They have been named to state reading lists in TX, MD, FL, HI and OH. THE NEPTUNE PROJECT won Florida's Sunshine State Young Reader's Award. The last book in the Neptune Trilogy, THE NEPTUNE PROMISE, is available on Amazon and BN.
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A former teacher, Polly loves doing school visits and conducting writing workshops.
She currently lives in Ste -
Chad Morris
Chad Morris coauthored The Wild Journey of Juniper Berry, Virtually Me, Mustaches for Maddie, Squint, and Willa and the Whale, with his wife, Shelly Brown. He is also the author of the Cragbridge Hall series (The Inventor's Secret, The Avatar Battle, and The Impossible Race). He has won the Utah Book Award, the Buckeye Award, and the Nebraska Book Award, and the Silver Foreword INDIES award for Juvenile fiction. Chad also wrote one of the short stories in True Heroes: A Treasury of Modern-day Fairy Tales Written by Best-selling Authors. His story was based on JP Gibson, an amazing boy who faced cancer with courage, heart, and a basketball dream.
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Chad grew up wanting to become a professional basketball player or a rock star. (Inspired by Ani -
John David Anderson
Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.
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John David Anderson once hit himself so hard on a dare by his sister that he literally knocked himself out of a chair and nearly blacked out. He has since translated this passion and singularity of purpose to the related arts of novel writing and pizza eating. The author of STANDARD HERO BEHAVIOR, SIDEKICKED, MINION, THE DUNGEONEERS and the soon-to-land MS. BIXBY's LAST DAY, Anderson is a firm believer in wearing the same pair of jeans for three days in a row (four in the winter) and the power of writing to solve 73% of the world's problems. He lives with his beautiful wife and twins in Indianapolis, Indiana. -
Lindsay Currie
Lindsay Currie is a #1 New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of mysteries for young readers, including the Delta Games series and It's Watching, She grew up on Nancy Drew and loves a good twisty tale. When she's not writing, Lindsay can generally be found looking for an adventure of her own. She loves researching forgotten history and recently relocated from Chicago to a 220 acre farm in downstate Illinois where she finally gets to see stars every night, and take hikes every day.
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Coming soon: THE HOUSE WITH NO KEYS (October 2025) and X Marks the Haunt (February 2026)! For more details on Lindsay's upcoming books, please visit the My Books tab at the top of the page.
To find out more about Lindsay, please visit her website at www. -
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Sharee Miller
Sharee Miller has a BFA in communication design from Pratt Institute. She lives in Brooklyn, where she enjoys spending time with her two cats and illustrating fun stories.
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Sally J. Pla
Sally J. Pla is the author of ALA Schneider Award-winning THE FIRE, THE WATER, AND MAUDIE McGINN, the Dolly Gray Award-winning THE SOMEDAY BIRDS, and other acclaimed novels and picture books. Her work has gained many awards and starred reviews, and has been included on many state awards lists and “best book” roundups.
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Sally has appeared on television and radio as an author and neurodiversity advocate. She also runs A Novel Mind, an online resource for neurodiversity/mental-health/disability representation in children's lit.
Sally believes in the beauty of different brains. We are all stars shining with different lights.
For more, visit her website at sallyjpla.com . -
Christina Soontornvat
Christina Soontornvat grew up behind the counter of her parents’ Thai restaurant in a small Texas town with her nose stuck in a book. She is very proud of both her Thai and her Texan roots, and makes regular trips to both Weatherford and Bangkok to see her beloved family members (and eat lots and lots of Thai food!). Christina is the author of the fantasy middle grade series, The Changelings, and the early chapter book series, Diary of an Ice Princess. Her forthcoming books include the middle grade fantasy, A Wish in the Dark, and All Thirteen, a nonfiction account of the Thai Cave Rescue.
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In addition to being an author, Christina holds a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering and a master’s degree in Science Education. She spent a decade working i -
Megan E. Freeman
Megan E. Freeman attended an elementary school where poets visited her classroom every week to teach poetry, and she has been a writer ever since. Her New York Times bestselling novel in verse, ALONE, won the Colorado Book Award, the Illinois, Kentucky, Maine, Massachusetts, Mississippi, and Vermont Children’s Book Awards, the High Plains Book Award, is an NCTE Notable Verse Novel, and is included on over two dozen "best of" and state reading lists.
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Megan is also a Pushcart Prize-nominated poet and the author of the poetry chapbook Lessons on Sleeping Alone. An award-winning teacher with decades of classroom experience, Megan is nationally recognized for her work leading workshops and speaking to audiences across the country.
Megan used to -
Alicia D. Williams
What's there to know about Alicia D? Well, that depends on who you ask.
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If you ask kindergartners, they'd tell you:
1. She likes chunky guacamole.
2. She likes shiny things.
3. She tells good stories.
If you ask her middle schoolers, they'd surely say:
1. She gets us.
2. She makes us laugh with all her jokes.
3. She is Da BOMB.
While all of these may be true, there are a few more points to add . . . Alicia D. is a teacher in Charlotte, NC. She is the proud mother of a brilliant college student. Her love for education stems from conducting school residencies as a Master Teaching Artist of arts-integration. Alicia D infuses her love for drama, movement, and storytelling to inspire students to write. And like other great storytellers, she made the leap -
Gina Loveless
It was five years after Gina Loveless earned an MFA from California Institute of the Arts that she realized her mission as an author was to write books that helped all the weird kids of the world feel less alone. When she’s not writing or reading, Gina can be found in Eastern PA, boogying at concerts with her husband, tending to their awesome produce garden, or snuggling with her rescue dog Gerdie.
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