Andrea Nicole Livingstone (born July 10, 1985), known as Nic Stone, is an American author of

young adult fiction Young adult fiction (YA) is a category of fiction written for readers from 12 to 18 years of age. While the genre is primarily targeted at adolescents, approximately half of YA readers are adults. The subject matter and genres of YA correlate ...

and

middle grade fiction Middle grade fiction is fiction intended for children between the ages of 8 and 12. While these books are sometimes grouped together with books for other age bands and called collectively "children's books", middle grade is distinct from, and is ...

, best known for her

debut novel A debut novel is the first novel a novelist publishes. Debut novels are often the author's first opportunity to make an impact on the publishing industry, and thus the success or failure of a debut novel can affect the ability of the author to p ...

Dear Martin ''Dear Martin'', published in 2017 by Crown Publishing Group, is a young adult novel by Nic Stone. It is Stone's debut novel, written as a reaction to the murder of Jordan Davis. The book appeared as #4 on The New York Times Best Seller list. ...

'' and her middle grade debut, ''Clean Getaway''. Her novels have been translated into six languages.

Personal life

Stone was born and raised in a suburb of Atlanta, Georgia. She has a degree in

Psychology Psychology is the scientific study of mind and behavior. Psychology includes the study of conscious and unconscious phenomena, including feelings and thoughts. It is an academic discipline of immense scope, crossing the boundaries betwe ...

from

Spelman College Spelman College is a private, historically black, women's liberal arts college in Atlanta, Georgia. It is part of the Atlanta University Center academic consortium in Atlanta. Founded in 1881 as the Atlanta Baptist Female Seminary, Spelman re ...

. She is

African-American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American ...

and is openly

bisexual Bisexuality is a romantic or sexual attraction or behavior toward both males and females, or to more than one gender. It may also be defined to include romantic or sexual attraction to people regardless of their sex or gender identity, whi ...

. After college, she worked in teen mentoring and moved to Israel for a few years.

Career

During a trip to Israel in 2008, Stone discovered that she wanted to become a writer when encountering a family with a story that fascinated her. Stone wrote her first novel for young adults in 2017, inspired by American young adult novelist

Veronica Roth Veronica Anne Roth (born August 19, 1988) is an American novelist and short story writer, known for her bestselling ''Divergent'' trilogy which has sold more than 35 million copies worldwide. Personal life Veronica Roth was born on August 19, ...

's ''Divergent'' series because it was the first series featuring black characters that she encountered that lives until the end. That same book later landed her a literary agent.

''Dear Martin''

Her debut novel ''

,'' about a high school senior in a predominantly white school who starts writing letters to

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Martin Luther King Jr. (born Michael King Jr.; January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968) was an American Baptist minister and activist, one of the most prominent leaders in the civil rights movement from 1955 until his assassination in 1968 ...

after he has a dangerous encounter with racist police officers, was sold as a proposal in a two-book deal and published in 2017 by

Crown Books for Young Readers The Crown Publishing Group is a subsidiary of Penguin Random House that publishes across several fiction and non-fiction categories. Originally founded in 1933 as a remaindered books wholesaler called Outlet Book Company, the firm expanded int ...

. Stone has stated she began writing her debut novel ''Dear Martin'' after the death of Jordan Davis, a 17-year-old black high school student who was fatally shot by a white man in a hate crime in 2017. The book debuted on the

New York Times bestseller ''The New York Times'' Best Seller list is widely considered the preeminent list of best-selling books in the United States. John Bear, ''The #1 New York Times Best Seller: intriguing facts about the 484 books that have been #1 New York Times ...

list at #4. It was also chosen as a finalist for the

William C. Morris award The William C. Morris YA Debut Award is an annual award given to a work of young adult literature by a "first-time author writing for teens". It is administered by the Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA), a division of the American ...

in 2017 and received a

starred review A starred review is a book review __NOTOC__ A book review is a form of literary criticism in which a book is merely described (summary review) or analyzed based on content, style, and merit. A book review may be a primary source, opinion piece ...

from

Booklist ''Booklist'' is a publication of the American Library Association that provides critical reviews of books and audiovisual materials for all ages. ''Booklist''s primary audience consists of libraries, educators, and booksellers. The magazine is av ...

. It has been published and translated in Germany, Brazil, Indonesia, The Netherlands, UK, Turkey, and Romania. Two years after it was first published, ''Dear Martin'' again hit the New York Times bestseller list, for Young Adult Paperbacks and at #1, in February 2020. A sequel, ''Dear Justyce,'' about an incarcerated teen who is on trial for murder charges, was published in October 2020. Stone says she was not planning on writing a sequel. but encouraged by her publisher, and decided to write a book about a " black boy that everybody is afraid of."

''Clean Getaway''

Her Middle Grade debut, ''Clean Getaway'', illustrated by Dawud Anyabwile, was published by Crown in January 2020. It tells the story of an 11-year-old Scoob, who goes on a roadtrip with his grandmother. It received starred reviews from Publishers Weekly and Booklist, and debuted on the Children's Middle Grade Hardcover New York Times bestseller list, at #5. Stone says the inspiration for the novel was a Twitter headline about a shoplifting grandma in Atlanta who turned out to be an international jewel thief.

Other works

Her second young adult novel, ''Odd One Out'', is about three queer teenagers of color in a love triangle and explores themes of gender,

sexual fluidity Sexual fluidity is one or more changes in sexuality or sexual identity (sometimes known as sexual orientation identity). Sexual orientation is stable and unchanging for the vast majority of people, but some research indicates that some people may ...

and identity. It was published in 2018 by Crown Books for Young Readers. It also received a starred review from Booklist. In 2019, her third novel, ''Jackpot'', following a gas station clerk that she sold a winning lottery ticket to, was published by Crown. Stone originally wrote the novel in 2015. In September 2019, it announced that Stone would write a novel focused on Shuri, from

Marvel Marvel may refer to: Business * Marvel Entertainment, an American entertainment company ** Marvel Comics, the primary imprint of Marvel Entertainment ** Marvel Universe, a fictional shared universe ** Marvel Music, an imprint of Marvel Comics ...

Black Panther A black panther is the melanistic colour variant of the leopard (''Panthera pardus'') and the jaguar (''Panthera onca''). Black panthers of both species have excess black pigments, but their typical rosettes are also present. They have been d ...

. It was published by Scholastic in 2020. Stone wrote a young adult novel '' Blackout'', released in June 2021, which she co-authored with

Dhonielle Clayton Dhonielle Clayton is an American author and chief operating officer of We Need Diverse Books. Life and career Clayton was born in Washington, D.C. She went to Our Lady Of Good Counsel in Wheaton Maryland. She graduated with a B.A. from Wake F ...

, Tiffany D. Jackson,

Angie Thomas Angie Thomas (born September 20, 1988) is an American young adult author, best known for writing '' The Hate U Give'' (2017). Her second young adult novel, ''On the Come Up'', was released on February 25, 2019. Early life Angie Thomas was born ...

, Ashley Woodfolk, and

Nicola Yoon Nicola Yoon is a Jamaican-American author. She is best known for writing the 2015 young adult novel '' Everything, Everything'', a ''New York Times'' best seller and the basis of a 2017 film of the same name. In 2016, she released ''The Sun Is ...

. Aside from young adult fiction and middle grade, Stone also writes essays, and her short fiction has appeared in multiple anthologies. Starting in February 2022, Stone presented the 6 episode

and

Sirius XM Sirius XM Holdings Inc. is an American broadcasting company headquartered in Midtown Manhattan, New York City that provides satellite radio and online radio services operating in the United States. It was formed by the 2008 merger of Sirius Sat ...

podcast, the history of Marvel comics: Black Panther.

Bibliography

Young adult fiction * ''Dear Martin'' (Crown Books for Young Readers, 2017) *''Odd One Out'' (Crown Books for Young Readers, 2018) *''Jackpot'' (Crown Books for Young Readers, 2019) *''Dear Justyce'' (Crown Books for Young Readers, 2022) *''Shuri: A Black Panther Nove''l (Scholastic, 2020) *''Shuri: The Vanished'' (Scholastic, 2021) Middle Grade fiction *''Clean Getaway'' (Crown Books for Young Readers, 2020)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Stone, Nic Living people Women writers of young adult literature 21st-century American women writers 21st-century American novelists American LGBT writers Spelman College alumni American women novelists 1985 births African-American novelists