This Saturday I will have a table at the Hudson Children’s Book Festival in Hudson, NY! Come see me, buy a book, get it signed, pick up some swag (while supplies last) and say HI!

75 authors and illustrators will be there, and every child in attendance will get a ticket for a free book of their choice!

I am shocked I have not posted about this yet, but like the titles says: The Wilderness of Girls is getting a paperback release! In these “unprecedented” times, paperback releases are not always guaranteed (which is weird because it seems like hardcovers are also not a guarantee and some books only ever come out in paperback) and are highly dependent upon how well the book sells in hardcover first. So I am absolutely delighted/thrilled/honored/happy to say Wilderness is getting one!

Paperback releases are important because many people can’t afford or just don’t want to pay out the high price point of a hardcover, which is completely understandable. Even I, a certified Book Person, generally don’t shell out for hardcover unless I already know I love the book (I also just don’t have room for a lot of books in my house). And especially if they’re gambling on a debut author like me, I totally get why one would not want to invest $20 in a book. But paperbacks are an economical option, one that is also easier to hold in bed while you read, or fit in your bag and carry with you everywhere you go!

So when will the paperback of Wilderness be available? July 1, 2025! That’s just around the corner, so feel free to place your pre-orders at Bookshop.org, your local independent bookstore, or wherever you prefer to get your books.

And just look at this new even-more-gorgeous-than-before cover! (With a shiny Morris Award finalist sticker!!!)

In the last several weeks I found out The Wilderness of Girls has been nominated for not one, not two, but THREE New England teen choice book awards. I am so honored! Not just to be nominated amongst other incredible YA titles and authors, but to be chosen by TEENS! Actual young people, for whom I write, but who don’t use Goodreads very much so I have no idea if they’re enjoying the YA book I wrote for them.

Here are the nomination lists if you would like to see!

The Green Mountain Book Award for Vermont teens (not sure when voting opens on this one)

The Massachusetts Teen Book Award And if you happen to be a MA teen reading this, voting opens September 15!

The Rhode Island Teen Book Award Also not sure when voting opens, but stay tuned!

If you’re a parent of a teen in any of these states (really, any state) and you enjoyed my book, I would be ever so appreciative if you shared it with your teen and encouraged them to vote! And if you’re a teen who has read The Wilderness of Girls, I sincerely hope you enjoyed it <3

To everyone involved in these committees and selection processes, and to all the librarians, teachers, parents, and booksellers who put Wilderness into the hands of teens, THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!!

While I have you here and we’re talking state stuff, you can now nominate The Wilderness of Girls for the TAYSHAS, a high school reading list for the state of Texas. Use this form to nominate Wilderness and get it into the hands of Texan teen readers! (Wilderness’s ISBN is 978-1638931003)

Thanks friends!

Because Outspoken was such a powerful event last year on Zoom, we’re bringing it to the annual AWP conference in Los Angeles at the end of March! And, unfortunately, in an era of “your body my choice,” this topic of discussion is more important than ever.

March 29, 2025 at 1:45 PM PDT (room 407, Level 2 of the Los Angeles Convention Center) come see me, Annie Cardi, Rocky Callen, Sonia Patel, and moderator Kim DeRose speak about accurately and sensitively representing sexual assault in YA fiction.

CHICAGO – The Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA), a division of the American Library Association (ALA), selected five books as finalists for the 2025 William C. Morris Award, which honors the year’s best books written for young adults by a previously unpublished author.

YALSA will name the 2025 award winner at the Youth Media Awards on January 27, 2025, during the ALA’s LibLearnX: The Library Learning Experience conference in Phoenix, AZ.

The 2025 William C. Morris Award finalists are:

“Aisle Nine,” written by Ian X. Cho and published by HarperCollins Children’s Books, a division of HarperCollins Publishers.

“Dead Things Are Closer Than They Appear,” written by Robin Wasley and published by Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, an imprint of Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing.

“Not Like Other Girls,” written by Meredith Adamo and published by Bloomsbury YA, an imprint of Bloomsbury Publishing Inc., part of Bloomsbury Publishing Plc.

“Shut Up, This Is Serious,” written by Carolina Ixta and published by Quill Tree Books, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers.

“The Wilderness of Girls,” written by Madeline Claire Franklin and published by Zando Young Readers, an imprint of Zando.

“The 2025 Morris Committee thoroughly enjoyed the journey of seeking out the newest debut novels of this year while determining which titles best met the award criteria,” said Jessica Lorentz Smith, chair of the 2025 William C. Morris Award Committee. “The reading had us laughing, crying, and asking questions while celebrating the challenge of creating a list of just five incredible titles. The work is so rewarding for all of us library professionals.”

The Morris Award is named after William C. Morris, an influential innovator in the publishing world and an advocate for marketing books for children and young adults. William “Bill” Morris left an impressive mark on the field of children’s and young adult literature. He was beloved in the publishing field and the library profession for his generosity and marvelous enthusiasm for promoting literature for children and teens.

I am thrilled and honored to report that The Wilderness of Girls is a finalist for the William C. Morris Debut Award! This book is the book of my guts, the book of my liver, the book of my marrow. It took tearing me apart and rebuilding me to write it, and I have heard readers are experiencing the same kind of healing from this book, which is exactly what I dreamed of every time I sat down to write for the six years it took me to finish a first draft of this book. This is a HUGE honor you only get one chance at as a YA debut, and I am over the moon to be on the shortlist in such talented company. I am working on a blog post to properly thank all the people who deserve thanks, but mainly I want to say thank you to YALSA and the committee that chose Wilderness to stand alongside all the finalists of this year and years past.

HOWEVER…as humbled and honored as I am to be a finalist, I would love the opportunity to be humbled and honored by having Wilderness be chosen as the winner! I wish the best of luck to all my fellow finalists, but if you’re a fan of The Wilderness of Girls feel free to send some winning vibes this way!

I will be at the ALAN Workshop for the author Meet & Greet at 5pm on Sunday, November 24. Come say hi and get a signed bookplate! (I may also have other swag if they let me…)

Monday I am FREE so you may spot me wandering around like a cryptid or taking notes in the audience of some panels. ABC-Always Be Learning! (yes I know that should be ABL, that’s part of the joke, if you don’t get it I’m sorry)

I will also be on a panel (Shadowed Secrets: Fantasy Mysteries) at 11:10 AM on Tuesday, November 26, in Room 253 A-C. Come listen to Sarah Henning (The Lies We Conjure), Kiana Krystle (Dance of the Starlit Sea), and me chat genre-bending!!! (There may also be a book signing after but I am unclear on that because I am disorganized!!! Thank the gods for my publicity specialist ❤️)