Agent and Editors:
Courtney Code (she/her) is an Editor at Abrams Books for Young Readers and Amulet Books. Courtney’s list is made up mostly of picture books, with some select graphic novels. She looks for stories that put the child reader first while packing an emotional punch. She’s particularly passionate about building an inclusive list that centers underrepresented creators and stories. Since starting at Abrams in 2015, some of the extra-special projects she’s had the delight of working on include From Archie to Zack By Vincent X. Kirsch, Manhattan by Jennifer Thermes, Exquisite by Suzanne Slade and Cozbi A. Cabrera, and the Fox & Rabbit series by Beth Ferry and Gergely Dudás. (Opening for submissions)
STEPHANIE FRETWELL-HILL started her publishing career in 2004 at Walker Books Ltd. in London, where she sold foreign language rights. Working in a design-led company with legendary artists such as Helen Oxenbury and Lucy Cousins sparked her love of illustration, while her sales role gave her an international perspective on children’s publishing.
In 2011, Stephanie moved back home Atlanta, where she spent four years at Peachtree Publishers as an editor. During her four years there, her acquisitions received such honors as YALSA Best Fiction for Young Adults, Bank Street Best Children’s Books of the Year, Parents’ Choice Awards, and starred reviews from major trade magazines.
Stephanie joined Red Fox Literary in 2016. She represents authors and illustrators of literary fiction and narrative nonfiction picture books, middle grade, and young adult. Her clients include two-time Newbery Honoree Christina Soontornvat, Beth Anderson, Carolyn Crimi, R. W. Alley, and Archana Sreenivasan. The books she represents have won numerous awards, including Newbery Honor, Sibert Honor, the Jane Addams Book Award, the Youth Book Prize for Social Justice, YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction, and many, many starred reviews. Stephanie’s tastes are eclectic, but across all genres, she looks for compelling, diverse voices and strong hooks combined with literary merit and classroom value. Most of all, she loves stories and art with the perfect mix of humor and heart. (Opening for Submissions.)
Mekisha Telfer is an associate editor at Roaring Brook Press (Macmillian), where she is building a list of picture books, middle-grade, and young adult novels. She got her start in publishing in 2014 as an editorial assistant with Simon and Schuster BFYR/Salaam reads, and has also worked briefly at Glasstown Entertainment. Some titles she’s had the privilege of working on include the New York Times bestselling series To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before by Jenny Han, Emergency Contactby Mary H. K. Choi, The Gauntlet by Karuna Riazi, and Stuart Gibb’s Moon Base Alpha series. Mekisha is committed to supporting unrepresented voices and is always on the hunt for character-driven stories with a mix of humor and heart. (Opening for Submissions)
Alyssa Eisner Henkin founded Birch Path Literary, a full-service literary agency, in January of 2021 after more than twenty years in the publishing industry. Alyssa spent fourteen years as an agent, most recently as Executive Vice President at Trident Media Group, and seven years in editorial at Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers. She is proud to represent an award-winning stable of authors including Ruth Behar, Julie Berry, Jen Bryant, Lisa Greenwald and R.J. Palacio, whose international bestseller Wonder was turned into a major motion picture and sparked a movement to #choosekind.
Alyssa is seeking middle grade, young adult, picture books, graphic novels/memoirs, and select adult fiction and nonfiction projects. In all genres Alyssa is passionate about heartfelt storytelling and innovation. She is eager for more under-represented voices, more unique narrative devices, and more little-known but fascinating topics. (Opening for Submissions)
Neal Porter has been in and around children’s book publishing for over 40 years, working at houses such as Farrar, Straus and Giroux, Walker Books UK, and Roaring Brook Press, which he helped to found in 2000. He is currently Vice President and Publisher of Neal Porter Books at Holiday House. Books he has edited have received numerous awards and citations including Caldecott and Sibert Medals; Caldecott, Sibert and Geisel Honors as well as Coretta Scott King, Pura Belpré, Orbis Pictus and Boston Globe-Horn Book Awards. In 2015 he was awarded a Carle Honor for his contribution to picture books.
Kidlit Authors
Christina Soontornvat is the award-winning author of over a dozen books for children of all ages. Her picture books include The Ramble Shamble Children, illustrated by Caldecott Honoree Lauren Castillo, and Simon at the Art Museum, illustrated by Christine Davenier. She is the author of the beloved Diary of an Ice Princess chapter book series. Her recent works include the middle grade fantasy, A Wish in the Dark, which was named a 2021 Newbery Honor Book, and was chosen as Best Book of the Year by The Washington Post and School Library Journal, and All Thirteen: The Incredible Cave Rescue of the Thai Boys’ Soccer Team, which has received numerous nonfiction awards and was also named a 2021 Newbery Honor Book.
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!). 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 in the science museum field, where she designed programs and exhibits to get kids excited about science. She is passionate about STEM (science, technology engineering, and math), and loves learning new things. She lives in Austin, Texas with her husband, two young children, and one old cat.
Kirsten W. Larson used to work with rocket scientists at NASA. Now she writes books for curious kids. Kirsten is the author of WOOD, WIRE, WINGS: EMMA LILIAN TODD INVENTS AN AIRPLANE, illustrated by Tracy Subisak (Calkins Creek, February 2020), A TRUE WONDER: The Comic Book Hero Who Changed Everything (Clarion, Fall 2021), illustrated by Katy Wu, and THE FIRE OF STARS: The Life and Brilliance of the Woman Who Discovered What Stars Are Made Of, illustrated by Katherine Roy (Chronicle, Spring 2022), as well as 25 nonfiction books for the school and library market. She’s written numerous articles for children’s magazines including Boys’ Life, Boys’ Quest, Spider, ASK, Odyssey, and Appleseeds and has a forthcoming graphic novel with Roaring Brook.
MICHELLE CUSOLITO’S debut non-fiction picture book, Flying Deep: Climb Inside Deep-Sea Submersible Alvin, was awarded the PEN-NE Susan P. Bloom Children’s Book Discovery Award and was named a “Must Read” at the Massachusetts Book Awards. It was also on the Kirkus Best Books list and the NSTA Outstanding Science Trade Books list. Michelle’s second book, Diving Deep: Using Machines to Explore the Ocean, will be published in 2022. Her debut middle grade non-fiction, Into the Deep Unknown: Exploring the Ocean Twilight Zone publishes in 2023. Learn more at michellecusolito.com.
Lesa Cline-Ransome’s first book was the biography Satchel Paige, an ALA Notable Book and a Bank Street College “Best Children’s Book of the Year. She later created Major Taylor: Champion Cyclist, Young Pele, Words Set Me Free, Just a Lucky So and So: The Story of Louis Armstrong and Germs: Fact and Fiction, Friends and Foes, Game Changers: The Story of Venus and Serena Williams, The Power of Her Pen: The Story of Groundbreaking Journalist Ethel Payne, Not Playing by the Rules: 21 Female Athletes Who Changed Sports and Overground Railroad. Her verse biography of Harriet Tubman, Before She Was Harriet received five starred reviews, was nominated for an NAACP image award, and received a Coretta Scott King Honor for Illustration.
Her debut middle grade novel, Finding Langston, was the 2019 winner of the Scott O’Dell Award for Historical Fiction and received the Coretta Scott King Award Author Honor. The sequel, Leaving Lymon released in Spring 2020. Lesa’s books have received numerous honors and awards including NAACP Awards , Kirkus Best Books,ALA Notable, CBC Choice Awards, two Top 10 Sports Books for Youth, and an Orbis Pictus Recommended Book. She lives in the Hudson Valley region of New York with her husband, and frequent collaborator, James Ransome and their family. Visit her at www.lesaclineransome.com.
Evan Griffith is the author of Secrets of the Sea: The Story of Jeanne Power, Revolutionary Marine Scientist (Clarion, 2021) and Manatee Summer, a middle-grade novel forthcoming from Quill Tree/Harper in 2022. He studied creative writing at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and received his MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults at the Vermont College of Fine Arts.
He worked for several years as an editor at Workman Publishing, where he specialized in non-fiction for children and adults, and he continues to edit books on a freelance basis. Through his role as the youth programming specialist at The Writing Barn, a creative writing education center, he also teaches online writing classes for kids. He lives in Austin, Texas with a mischievous tuxedo cat and several overflowing bookshelves.
Gloria Amescua is an educator, poet, and children’s book writer. She was awarded Lee & Low’s New Voices Honor Award and was named a finalist for the Austin SCBWI Cynthia Leitich Smith Mentorship program. Native and current Austinite, Gloria received both her B.A. and M.Ed. degrees from the University of Texas at Austin. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt published one of her poems in their national textbook literature series. A Hedgebrook alumna and a CantoMundo fellow, Gloria is represented by Taylor Martindale Kean at Full Circle Literary. Her debut picture book biography, Child Of The Flower-Song People: Luz Jiménez, Daughter of the Nahua, is written in verse and illustrated by award-winning Duncan Tonatiuh (Abrams Books, August 17, 2021). Read more at gloriaamescua.com. Check Out: Gloria Amescua Writing Barn Success Story
Meghan P. Browne was born and raised in Austin, Texas. She left her beloved Lone Star State to attend the University of Arizona in Tucson, the land of saguaro cacti, the loveliest winters, and gorgeous Santa Catalina Mountains. There, she was a four-time Foundation Scholarship recipient and varsity letter winner for the Wildcat swim team. She graduated from the Honors College with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science. Meghan returned home to Austin and the bluebonnets and blue skies of her childhood where she lives and writes these days on the south side of town with her husband, Greg, their three children, and a menagerie of honeybees, goats, chickens, a barn kitty, and their beloved dog. She will graduate in July 2021 from Vermont College of Fine Arts with a Master of Fine Arts in Writing for Children and Young Adults. Check Out: Meghan P. Browne Writing Barn Success Story
Kari Lavelle is the author of We Move the World (HarperCollins 2021). She has always had a love of words: as a kid reading books, as a speech pathologist helping children talk, and now as a writer creating stories. She lives in Austin, Texas with her two children, two dogs and one husband. Learn more about Kari and her books at karilavelle.com. Check out: Kari Lavelle Writing Barn Success Story
Candy Wellins is a lifelong writer and book lover. A former elementary school teacher, Candy has a BA in journalism and an M.Ed. in literacy education. She’s now a full-time mom to three wonderful children who keep her up-to-date and immersed in kid’s literature. When she’s not reading, writing or mothering, Candy loves running, traveling and naps! Her debut picture book SATURDAYS ARE FOR STELLA (Illustrated by Charlie Eve Ryan, PAGE STREET KIDS) comes out in 2020 and her debut picture book biography THE STARS BECKONED: EDWARD WHITE’S AMAZING WALK IN SPACE (Illustrated by Courtney Dawson, PHILOMEL) comes out in 2021. You can follow her at www.candywellins.com, on Instagram @candywellins and on twitter @candy_wellins. Candy and her family live in Central Texas. Check Out: Candy Wellins Writing Barn Success Story
Candace Fleming is the author of more than forty books. Among her nonfiction titles are Giant Squid, Amelia Lost: The Life and Disappearance of Amelia Earhart, and The Family Romanov: Murder, Rebellion and the Fall of Imperial Russia. 2020 titles include The Rise and Fall of Charles Lindbergh which won the 2021 YALSA Excellence in Nonfiction, and Honeybee: The Busy Life of Apis Mellifera, winner of the 2021 Sibert Medal. She is also the recipient of the Los Angeles Times Book Prize, and the Orbis Pictus Award, as well as a two-time recipient of the Boston Globe/Horn Book Award for Nonfiction, the ALA Sibert Honor, and SCBWI’s Golden Kite Award.
Eric Rohmann is a painter, printmaker, and author. His work includes the Caldecott Award winning book, My Friend Rabbit; the Caldecott Honor book, Time Flies; and most recently, the highly praised, Bone Dog. Along with nearly a dozen picture book illustrations, Eric has created book jackets for several novels, including The Golden Compass, by Lois Lowry, and His Dark Materials series, by Philip Pullman. His latest book, a collaboration with fellow presenter Candace Fleming, is called Oh, No! To view Eric’s work, please visit www.ericrohmann.com.