Alexandra Aceves (she/her) is a Latine writer and editor originally from Mexico City and currently based in Brooklyn. She works as an associate editor at Holiday House, where she oversees the expansion of the Holiday House Spanish language publishing program while also acquiring YA and MG fiction and graphic novels for Holiday House’s English language list. Alex was the 2015 Honor winner of Lee & Low’s New Visions Award for previously unpublished YA fiction writers whose work centers on characters from marginalized communities; her debut novel is forthcoming from Lee & Low’s Tu Books imprint.
Erin Clyburn is a literary agent with Howland Literary, representing middle grade fiction, YA fiction, and adult fiction and nonfiction, and is particularly interested in stories that lean dark and weird. Previously, she was an associate agent with The Jennifer De Chiara Literary Agency. She has also worked in collection development for a book distribution company to the school and library market and in magazine editorial for brands including Food & Wine, People, Entertainment Weekly, and Cooking Light. She holds an M.A. in Children’s Literature from Hollins University. Erin lives in Birmingham, Alabama, with her partner, Michael, and four unruly rabbits.
Feather Flores joined Atheneum in 2022 after a four-year stint at Chronicle Books. She works on smart, joyful picture books; middle grade romps with coming-of-age themes; and bold, open-hearted YA that reimagines everything our identities can be. Her list encompasses fiction and nonfiction, with an emphasis on stories by, about, and for people from marginalized communities.
Across the board, Feather gravitates to voice- and character-driven narratives with high-concept plots and solid command of their readers’ emotional responses. She champions books that depict the beauty and diversity of the human experience: the humor, the complexity, the curiosity, the magic. Anything that encourages young readers to be more fully and unapologetically themselves, she wants to see it.
Feather edits from the San Francisco Bay Area. You can find her expressing endless enthusiasm on Twitter @featherfully and explore her full manuscript wishlist at featherflores.com.
Mary Kole founded Mary Kole Editorial in 2013. A former literary agent, she provides consulting and developmental editing services to writers of all categories and genres. She founded Good Story Company in 2019 with the aim of creating valuable content—like the Good Story Podcast, YouTube channel, and Good Story Learning classes and resources—for writers of all categories and ability levels. Her Story Mastermind small group workshop intensives help writers level up their craft, and she offers done-for-you writing and ghostwriting at Manuscript Studio and marketing services with Good Story Marketing. She also develops unique and commercial intellectual property for middle grade, young adult, and adult readers with Upswell Media and Bittersweet Books (website forthcoming).
Mary has appeared at regional, national, and international SCBWI conferences, as well as independent conferences including Writer’s Digest, Penn Writers, Writer’s League of Texas, San Francisco Writers Conference, WIFYR, Writing Day, and dozens of others. She has guest lectured at Harvard, the Ringling College of Art and Design, the Highlights Foundation, and the Loft, and her classes can be found online at Writing Mastery Academy, Writing Blueprints, Udemy, and LinkedIn Learning.
She holds an MFA in Creative Writing and has worked at Chronicle Books, the Andrea Brown Literary Agency, and Movable Type Management. She started blogging at Kidlit.com in 2009. Her book, Writing Irresistible Kidlit, a writing reference guide for middle grade and young adult writers, is available from Writer’s Digest Books/Penguin Random House.