Leila Mottley

Last updated
Leila Mottley
Born2002 (age 21–22)
Oakland, California, U.S.
Notable works Nightcrawling

Leila Mottley (born 2002) is an American novelist and poet. [1] She is The New York Times bestselling [2] author of Nightcrawling , which was a nominated for numerous awards, including the Booker Prize, [3] [4] making her the youngest author to have been nominated for the award. [5] In 2018, at age 16, she was named the Youth Poet Laureate of Oakland, California. [6]

Contents

Early life

Mottley was born and raised in Oakland, California, [7] where she continues to reside. [8] She began attending Smith College in 2019 and is currently on indefinite leave to pursue writing. [9]

Career

Mottley was named the Youth Poet Laureate of Oakland, [7] California in 2018 at age 16, having served the prior year as Vice Youth Poet Laureate. [6] Her poetry has appeared in The New York Times . [10]

Mottley co-wrote and starred in a documentary short, When I Write It, an official selection of the Tribeca Film Festival in 2020. [11]

In June 2022, Mottley published her first novel, Nightcrawling, [12] which she began writing at age 16. [5] She wrote the original version during the summer of 2019, shortly after completing her high school education. At the time, she was employed as a substitute preschool teacher. [13] [14] [15] [16]

Awards and honors

In 2018, at the age of 16, Mottley was named the Youth Poet Laureate of Oakland, California, [7] having served the prior year as Vice Youth Poet Laureate. [6] [17]

Her debut novel, Nightcrawling, was an Oprah's Book Club pick in June 2022, [18] and AudioFile included it on their list of the best audiobooks of 2022. [19]

In 2023 she received a PEN Oakland/Josephine Miles Literary Award for Nightcrawling.

Awards for Mottley's writing
YearTitleAwardResultRef.
2022Nightcrawling Booker Prize Longlist [3] [5]
Booklist Editors' Choice: Adult Books for Young AdultsSelection [20]
Goodreads Choice Award for Best FictionNominee [21]
Goodreads Choice Award for Best Debut NovelNominee [21]
2023 Audie Award for Best Female Narrator Finalist [22]
Lambda Literary Award for Lesbian Fiction Finalist [23]

Selected publications

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References

  1. ↑ Pineda, Dorany (7 June 2022). "'I have a lot of time': Oakland poet-novelist phenom Leila Mottley, 19, has just begun". LA Times. Archived from the original on 26 July 2022. Retrieved 27 July 2022.
  2. ↑ "Leila Mottley Graduated From High School and Wrote a Novel - The New York Times". The New York Times . 2022-06-30. Archived from the original on 2022-06-30. Retrieved 2024-01-16.
  3. 1 2 Nawotka, Ed (2022-07-26). "Six Americans Make the Booker Prize Longlist". Publishers Weekly . Archived from the original on 2022-08-08. Retrieved 2023-05-05.
  4. ↑ "Leila Mottley interview: 'There's never a wrong age to tell the story that is aching inside of you' | The Booker Prizes". thebookerprizes.com. Retrieved 2023-08-15.
  5. 1 2 3 "Awards: Booker Longlist". Shelf Awareness . 2022-07-27. Archived from the original on 2022-08-07. Retrieved 2023-05-06.
  6. 1 2 3 "Leila Mottley '23: Finding Her Voice Through Poetry". Post News Group. Oakland Post. 8 June 2018. Archived from the original on 5 September 2022. Retrieved 5 September 2022.
  7. 1 2 3 Brandon Yu (June 6, 2022). "Oakland's Leila Mottley making major splash with searing debut novel 'Nightcrawling'". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 2024-01-16.
  8. ↑ "Five Things to Know About Leila Mottley". Oprah Daily. 11 June 2022. Archived from the original on 7 July 2022. Retrieved 27 July 2022.
  9. ↑ "'I have a lot of time': Oakland poet-novelist phenom Leila Mottley, 19, has just begun". Los Angeles Times. 2022-06-07. Retrieved 2023-06-13.
  10. ↑ "Young Black Poets". New York Times. 9 October 2020. Archived from the original on 27 September 2022. Retrieved 5 September 2022.
  11. ↑ "2020 Official Selection: Shorts". Tribeca Film Festival. Archived from the original on 5 September 2022. Retrieved 5 September 2022.
  12. ↑ "Oprah's latest book club pick: 'Nightcrawling,' by Leila Mottley". Washington Post. Retrieved 5 September 2022.
  13. ↑ Egan, Elisabeth (30 June 2022). "Leila Mottley Graduated From High School and Wrote a Novel". The New York Times . Archived from the original on 4 April 2023. Retrieved 4 April 2023.
  14. ↑ Armitstead, Claire; @carmitstead (2022-06-05). "Teenager Leila Mottley on writing her debut novel: 'I've always done things at a warp speed'". The Observer. ISSN   0029-7712 . Retrieved 2023-08-15.
  15. ↑ "Young Oakland author Leila Mottley makes a splash with debut novel 'Nightcrawling'". KRON4. 2022-09-02. Retrieved 2023-08-15.
  16. ↑ "Leila Mottley's Novel Explores What Justice Means for Black Girls". Teen Vogue. 2022-06-07. Retrieved 2023-08-15.
  17. ↑ "'I have a lot of time': Oakland poet-novelist phenom Leila Mottley, 19, has just begun". Los Angeles Times. 2022-06-07. Retrieved 2023-08-15.
  18. ↑ "Oprah's Book Club Pick: Nightcrawling". Shelf Awareness . 2022-06-08. Archived from the original on 2022-07-17. Retrieved 2023-05-05.
  19. ↑ Milliot, Jim (2022-12-01). "'AudioFile' Magazine's Best Audiobooks of 2022". Publishers Weekly . Archived from the original on 2023-03-20. Retrieved 2023-05-05.
  20. ↑ "Booklist Editors' Choice: Adult Books for Young Adults, 2022". Booklist . 2022-12-01. Retrieved 2023-05-05.
  21. 1 2 "Nightcrawling". Goodreads . Retrieved 2023-05-05.
  22. ↑ "2023 Audie Award Winners". Audio Publishers Association . Archived from the original on 2023-04-06. Retrieved 2023-05-05.
  23. ↑ "2023 Lambda Award Shortlist Finalists Announced". BOOK RIOT. 2023-03-15. Archived from the original on 2023-04-28. Retrieved 2023-05-06.
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