Michael Leali

Last updated

Michael Leali is an American writer and educator. His debut novel, The Civil War of Amos Abernathy, won the 2023 Golden Kite Award. His first and second novels were finalists for the Lambda Literary Award for Middle Grade Literature.

Contents

Early life and education

Leali was born and raised outside of Chicago. [1]

He received a bachelor's degree in English secondary education and music from the University of Iowa in 2013, followed by a Master of Fine Arts in children's and young adult literature from Vermont College of Fine Arts. [1]

Career

Leali began his career working in marketing for the Oswegoland Park District; he was also the administrative director for the Limelight Theatre Company. He eventually was hired to teach English-related courses at Oswego High School. After teaching there for a few years, he changed positions regularly, including working with independent bookshops. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Leali returned to teaching at Oswego High School. [1]

Leali published his debut novel, The Civil War of Amos Abernathy, with HarperCollins in 2022. [2] [3] The following year, the book won the Golden Kite Award, [4] and was a finalist for the Lambda Literary Award for Middle Grade Literature. [5] Leali's sophomore novel, Matteo, was published by HarperCollins in 2023. [6] [7] It was a finalist for the 2024 Lambda Literary Award for Middle Grade Literature. [8] Leli's third novel, The Truth About Triangles was published by HarperCollins in 2024. [9] [10]

Awards and honors

In 2022, Booklist included The Civil War of Amos Abernathy on their list of the "Top 10 First Novels for Youth"; [11] they also included it on their 2023 Rainbow List. [12]

Awards for Leali's writing
YearTitleAwardResultRef.
2023The Civil War of Amos Abernathy Golden Kite Award Won [4] [13]
Lambda Literary Award for Middle Grade Literature Finalist [5]
2024Matteo Lambda Literary Award for Middle Grade Literature Finalist [8]

Personal life

Leali lives in San Francisco. [1]

Publications

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Susan Choi</span> American novelist (born 1969)

Susan Choi is an American novelist.

<i>Southland</i> (novel) 2003 novel by Nina Revoyr

Southland is a 2003 novel by Nina Revoyr. It focuses on quest for the past and present of racial justice in Los Angeles.

Lambda Literary Awards are awarded yearly by the United States-based Lambda Literary Foundation to published works that celebrate or explore LGBT themes. The awards are presented annually for books published in the previous year. The Lambda Literary Foundation states that its mission is "to celebrate LGBT literature and provide resources for writers, readers, booksellers, publishers, and librarians—the whole literary community."

Jean M. Redmann, known professionally as J. M. Redmann and R. Jean Reid, is an American novelist best known for her Micky Knight mystery series, which has won the Lambda Literary Award for Lesbian Mystery three times and been a finalist four times.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rakesh Satyal</span> American novelist

Rakesh Satyal is an American novelist, best known for his Lambda Literary Award-winning debut novel Blue Boy. Blue Boy won the 2009 Prose/Poetry Award from the Association of Asian American Studies and was a finalist for the Publishing Triangle's Edmund White Debut Fiction Award and Satyal was a recipient of a 2010 Fellowship in Fiction from the New York Foundation for the Arts.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A. S. King</span> American writer

Amy Sarig King is an American writer of short fiction and young adult fiction. She is the recipient of the 2022 Margaret Edwards Award for her "significant and lasting contribution to young adult literature."

David Francis is an Australian novelist, lawyer and academic.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Christopher Bollen</span> American writer (born 1975)

Christopher Bollen is an American novelist and magazine writer/editor who lives in New York City.

Kyo Maclear is a Canadian novelist and children's author.

SJ Sindu is a genderqueer Sri Lankan American novelist and short story writer. Her first novel, Marriage of a Thousand Lies, was released by Soho Press in June 2017, won the Publishing Triangle Edmund White Award for Debut Fiction, and was named an American Library Association Stonewall Honor Book. Her second novel, Blue-Skinned Gods, was released on November 17, 2021, also by Soho Press. Her second chapbook Dominant Genes, which won the 2020 Black River Chapbook Competition, was released in February 2022 by Black Lawrence Press. Her middle-grade fantasy graphic novel, Shakti, was published in 2023 by HarperCollins. Her work has been published in Brevity, The Normal School, The Los Angeles Review of Books, apt, Vinyl Poetry, PRISM International, VIDA, Black Girl Dangerous, rkvry quarterly, and elsewhere. Sindu was a 2013 Lambda Literary Fellow, holds an MA from the University of Nebraska–Lincoln, and a PhD in Creative Writing from Florida State University. She currently teaches Creative Writing at Virginia Commonwealth University.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Abdi Nazemian</span> Iranian-American author, screenwriter and producer

Abdi Nazemian is an Iranian-American author, screenwriter, and producer. His debut novel, The Walk-In Closet, won the Lambda Literary Award for LGBT Debut Fiction at the 27th Lambda Literary Awards.

<i>Marriage of a Thousand Lies</i> 2017 novel by SJ Sindu

Marriage of a Thousand Lies is a novel by Sri Lankan-American author SJ Sindu, published by Soho Press in 2017. It tells the story of Lucky and Kris, two gay South Asian-Americans whose parents immigrated from Sri Lanka, who marry to stay in the closet.

The Lambda Literary Award for Lesbian Poetry is an annual literary award, presented by the Lambda Literary Foundation to a lesbian-themed book of poetry by a female writer. At the first two Lambda Literary Awards in 1989 and 1990, a single award for LGBT Poetry, irrespective of gender, was presented. Beginning with the 3rd Lambda Literary Awards in 1991, the poetry award was split into two separate awards for Lesbian Poetry and Gay Poetry, which have been presented continuously since then except at the 20th Lambda Literary Awards in 2008, when a merged LGBTQ poetry award was again presented for that year only.

Anna-Marie McLemore is a Mexican-American author of young adult fiction magical realism, best known for their Stonewall Honor-winning novel When the Moon Was Ours, Wild Beauty, and The Weight of Feathers.

The Lambda Literary Award for LGBT Graphic Novel is an annual literary award, presented by the Lambda Literary Foundation, to a graphic novel with LGBT themes. As the award is presented based on themes in the work, not the sexuality or gender of the writer, non-LGBT individuals may be nominated for or win the award.

The Lambda Literary Award for Bisexual Literature is an annual literary award, presented by the Lambda Literary Foundation, that awards books with bisexual content. The award can be separated into three categories: bisexual fiction, bisexual nonfiction, and bisexual poetry. Awards are granted based on literary merit and bisexual content, and therefore, the writer may be homo-, hetero-, or asexual.

Chana Porter is an American playwright, novelist, and education activist. Her debut novel, The Seep, was a finalist for the Lambda Literary Award for Transgender Fiction.

The Lambda Literary Award for Erotica is an annual literary award established in 2002 and presented by the Lambda Literary Foundation that awards books with LGBT characters and "whose content is principally of an erotic nature." "Anthologies, novels, novellas, graphic novels, memoirs, and short story collections" are eligible for the award.

The Lambda Literary Award for Gay Romance is an annual literary award, presented by the Lambda Literary Foundation, to a novel, novella, or short story collection "by a single author that focus on a central love relationship between two or more characters, not including anthologies. The submission guidelines mention several sub-genres are included, " including traditional, historical, gothic, Regency, and paranormal romance".

Robyn Gigl is an American lawyer, writer, and LGBTQ+ activist. She is author of a series of legal thrillers centered on transgender lawyer Erin McCabe, including the novels By Way of Sorrow (2021), Survivor's Guilt (2022), and Remain Silent (2023), with a fourth novel, Nothing but the Truth, to be published in 2024.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Bio". Michael Leali. Archived from the original on September 5, 2023. Retrieved May 18, 2024.
  2. "The Civil War of Amos Abernathy by Michael Leali". Publishers Weekly . July 14, 2022. Archived from the original on August 31, 2022. Retrieved May 18, 2024.
  3. Cart, Michael (April 1, 2022). "The Civil War of Amos Abernathy". Booklist . Retrieved May 18, 2024.
  4. 1 2 Beeck, Nathalie op de (February 25, 2023). "SCBWI Announces 2023 Golden Kite Awards". Publishers Weekly . Archived from the original on December 9, 2023. Retrieved May 18, 2024.
  5. 1 2 Lewis, LeKesha (March 20, 2023). "Announcing the 35th Annual Lammy Awards Finalists". Lambda Literary . Archived from the original on June 22, 2023. Retrieved May 18, 2024.
  6. "Matteo by Michael Leali". Publishers Weekly . May 3, 2023. Archived from the original on March 4, 2024. Retrieved May 18, 2024.
  7. "Matteo". Kirkus Reviews . March 13, 2023. Archived from the original on March 23, 2023. Retrieved May 18, 2024.
  8. 1 2 "Announcing the Finalists for the 36th Annual Lambda Literary Awards". them. March 27, 2024. Archived from the original on April 5, 2024. Retrieved April 5, 2024.
  9. "The Truth About Triangles". Booklist . March 15, 2024. Retrieved May 18, 2024.
  10. "The Truth About Triangles". Kirkus Reviews . March 9, 2024. Retrieved May 18, 2024.
  11. Khuri, Ronny (November 1, 2022). "Top 10 First Novels for Youth: 2022". Booklist . Archived from the original on March 15, 2023. Retrieved May 18, 2024.
  12. "Rainbow List: 2023". Booklist . March 15, 2023. Archived from the original on March 27, 2023. Retrieved May 18, 2024.
  13. "Awards: SCWI Golden Kite Winners". Shelf Awareness . March 1, 2023. Archived from the original on March 14, 2023. Retrieved May 18, 2024.