Alison Evans is the author of Ida, which won the People’s Choice Award at the Victorian Premier’s Literary Awards 2017. Their second novel, Highway Bodies, was published earlier this year and they are a contributor to new anthology, Kindred: 12 Queer #LoveOzYA Stories. They are based in Melbourne. You can find out more at alisonwritesthings.com

Alex Villasante has always loved telling stories—though not always with words. She has a BFA in Painting and an MA in Combined Media (that’s art school speak for making work out of *anything*). Born in New Jersey to immigrant parents, Alex has the privilegio of dreaming in both English and Spanish. When she’s not writing, painting or chasing chickens around the yard, Alex plans conferences and fundraisers for non-profits. She lives with her family in the semi-wilds of Pennsylvania. You can find Alex on Twitter and Instagram at @magpiewrites or on her website, alexvillasante.com

Maggie Tokuda-Hall (1984 -) is the author of Also an Octopus, The Mermaid the Witch and the Sea, its sequel The Siren, The Spy and The Song, Squad, and Love in the Library. She lives in Oakland, California with her husband, children, and objectively perfect dog.

Hi. A teacher-librarian yelled at me to update this, so here goes. Time to talk about myself in the third-person. Will Kostakis is an absolute delight. In the past, he has written everything from celebrity news stories that score cease and desist letters, to tweets for professional wrestlers. Nowadays, he’s best known (but not particularly well known) for his award-winning YA novels. His first novel, Loathing Lola, was released when he was just nineteen. His second, The First Third, won the 2014 Gold Inky Award. It was also shortlisted for the Children’s Book Council of Australia Book of the Year and Australian Prime Minister’s Literary awards, among others. The Sidekicks was his third novel for young adults, and his American debut. It went on to win the IBBY Australia Ena Noel Award. Most recently, Will has applied his trademark style to the fantasy genre, with Monuments and its sequel, Rebel Gods. As a high school student, Will won Sydney Morning Herald Young Writer of the Year for a collection of short stories. He has since contributed to numerous anthologies, including the ABIA Award-winning Begin, End, Begin: A #LoveOzYA Anthology. An advocate for young readers and writers, Will was awarded the 2020 Maurice Saxby Award by the School Library Association of New South Wales for service to children’s and young adult literature.

Helena Fox lives in Wollongong, Australia, where she runs creative writing workshops for young people. She’s a graduate of the MFA Program for Writers at Warren Wilson College in North Carolina. She has travelled widely, living in Peru, Spain, the U.K, Samoa, and the US. Of all her adventures, Helena is proudest of the work she has done helping young people find and express their voice. How It Feels To Float is her debut novel.

Amie Kaufman is a New York Times and internationally bestselling author of young adult fiction. Her multi-award winning work is slated for publication in over 30 countries, and is in development for film and TV. Raised in Australia and occasionally Ireland, Amie has degrees in history, literature, law and conflict resolution. She lives in Melbourne with her husband and daughter, their rescue dog, and an extremely large personal library. She is the host of the podcasts Amie Kaufman on Writing, and Pub Dates. You can sign up for her newsletter to see what she's working on, hear when she releases a new book, and be automatically entered for giveaways: https://amiekaufman.substack.com/

Abdi Nazemian spent his childhood in a series of exciting locations (Tehran, Paris, Toronto, New York), but could usually be found in his bedroom watching old movies and reading. Abdi’s first novel, THE WALK-IN CLOSET, was awarded Best Debut at the Lambda Literary Awards. He has written three young adult novels, all published by Balzer + Bray / HarperCollins: THE AUTHENTICS (2017), LIKE A LOVE STORY (2019), and THE CHANDLER LEGACIES (2022). LIKE A LOVE STORY won a Stonewall Honor and was chosen by Time Magazine as one of the 100 best young adult books of all time. Abdi has written for three television shows: NBC's ORDINARY JOE, Fox’s ALMOST FAMILY, and NBC’s THE VILLAGE. He has written six produced films including THE ARTIST’S WIFE (Strand Releasing, 2020) MENENDEZ: BLOOD BROTHERS (Lifetime, 2017), and THE QUIET (Sony Pictures Classics, 2006). He also wrote, directed and produced the short film REVOLUTION (2012). He is proud to say that his words have been spoken by the likes of Carmela Soprano, The Nanny, and The Girl With The Most Cake. As Head of Development for Water’s End Productions, Abdi has been an executive producer or associate producer on numerous films, including CALL ME BY YOUR NAME, IT HAPPENED IN L.A., THE PRICE, THE HOUSE OF TOMORROW, and LITTLE WOODS. Abdi lives in Los Angeles with his two children and husband, and holds dual citizenship between the United States and Canada. Abdi is not the inspiration for Madonna’s children’s book “The Adventures of Abdi,” though he will forever insist that he is.