Rainbow Rowell | |
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![]() Rowell at the 2019 Texas Book Festival. | |
Born | [1] [2] Nebraska, United States | February 24, 1973
Occupation | Writer |
Nationality | American |
Period | 2011–present |
Genre | Young adult, New adult fiction, Contemporary fiction |
Notable works | Fangirl , Carry On , Eleanor & Park , Runaways |
Website | |
rainbowrowell |
Rainbow Rowell (born February 24, 1973) is an American author known for young adult and adult contemporary novels. Her young adult novels Eleanor & Park (2012), Fangirl (2013), and Carry On (2015) have been subjects of critical acclaim. [3]
She was the writer of the 2017 revival of Marvel Comics' Runaways [4] and is currently the writer for She-Hulk. [5]
Rowell was a columnist and ad copywriter at the Omaha World-Herald from 1995 to 2012. [6]
After leaving her position as a columnist, Rowell began working for an ad agency and writing what would become her first published novel, Attachments , as a pastime. [7] Rowell gave birth to her first son during this period and paused work on the manuscript for two years. [7] The novel, a contemporary romantic comedy about a company's IT guy who falls in love with a woman whose email he has been monitoring, was published in 2011. Kirkus Reviews listed it as one of the outstanding debuts that year. [8]
In 2014, Rowell published Landline , a contemporary adult novel about a marriage in trouble. [9]
In August 2023, Rowell sold the future publishing rights to four adult novels. The first, titled Slow Dance, will be released in summer of 2024. [10]
In 2012, Rowell published the young adult novel, Eleanor & Park . This and her other novel Fangirl were both named by The New York Times as among the best young adult fiction of the year. [11] Eleanor & Park was also chosen by Amazon as one of the 10 best books of 2013, [12] and it also won as Goodreads' best young adult fiction of the year. [13] In 2014, DreamWorks optioned Eleanor & Park, and Rowell worked on a screenplay, but in 2016, Rowell said the option timed out and the rights reverted to her. [14] [15] In 2019, it was announced that Picturestart had acquired the film rights, with Rowell writing the screenplay and executive producing. [16]
Rowell's work garnered some negative attention in 2013 when a parents' group at a Minnesota high school challenged Eleanor & Park and Rowell was disinvited to a library event; a panel ultimately determined that the book could stay on library shelves. [17] Rowell noted in an interview that the material that these parents were calling "profane" was what many kids in difficult situations realistically had to deal with, and that "when these people call Eleanor & Park an obscene story, I feel like they’re saying that rising above your situation isn’t possible." [18]
In 2013, Rowell published the young adult novel Fangirl about Cath, a college freshman who writes fan fiction of a fictional book series about Simon Snow, a young mage at a magical school. It was influenced by the popularity of fan fiction of the Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling. [19]
In 2020, it was announced that Fangirl would receive a four-part manga adaptation, adapted by Sam Maggs and illustrated by Gabi Nam. [20]
Rowell created a trilogy of novels based on the characters from Cath's fan fiction in Fangirl. Her 2015 novel Carry On shares a title with the popular fan fiction story Cath wrote in Fangirl. In the novel, Simon Snow, in his eighth year at school, struggles to come to terms with his calling as the Chosen One meant to destroy the Insidious Humdrum, a magical force destroying the world of mages. He embarks on his quest with his best friend Penelope and his girlfriend Agatha, all the while "struggling" with Tyrannus Basilton "Baz" Grimm-Pitch, his vampire "nemesis." Rowell's Simon Snow trilogy was completed with the 2019 novel Wayward Son and 2021's Any Way the Wind Blows.
In January 2014, Rowell signed a two-book deal with First Second Books to author two young adult graphic novels, the first of which was illustrated by Faith Erin Hicks and released on August 27, 2019. [21] [22]
Rowell has also written two series for Marvel Comics. Between 2017 and 2021, Rowell wrote Runaways. [23] Since 2022, she has written She-Hulk . [24]
Rowell lives in Omaha, Nebraska, with her husband and two sons. [25] She has a sister named Jade and a half sister, Abby, who owns a popular local coffee chain in Omaha, NE. [26]
Runaways is a superhero comic book series published by Marvel Comics. The series features a group of teenagers who discover that their parents are part of an evil crime organization known as "the Pride". Created by Brian Vaughan and Adrian Alphona, the series debuted in July 2003 as part of Marvel Comics' "Tsunami" imprint. The series was canceled in September 2004 at issue #18, but due to high numbers of trade collection sales, Marvel revived the series in February 2005.
Lesléa Newman is an American author, editor, and feminist best known for the children's book Heather Has Two Mommies. Four of her young adult novels have been finalists for the Lambda Literary Award for Children's and Young Adult Literature, making her one of the most celebrated authors in the category.
Karolina Dean is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Brian K. Vaughan and artist Adrian Alphona, Karolina Dean first appeared in Runaways #1. Dean belongs to the extraterrestrial species known as Majesdanians, and possesses solar-based energy powers. She is a member of the Runaways, a group that seeks to stop the Pride, a team of supervillains. She has also been known under the codenames Lucy in the Sky and Princess Justice at various points in her history.
Christina Strain is an American comic book colorist, writer and screenwriter. Strain formerly worked for Marvel Comics as a colorist before pursuing a career as a writer. Strain's notable works include; the award-winning Marvel series Runaways, Marvel's Generation-X, the Syfy TV show, The Magicians, and the Netflix series Shadow and Bone.
Emily Jenkins, who sometimes uses the pen name E. Lockhart, is an American writer of children's picture books, young-adult novels, and adult fiction. She is known best for the Ruby Oliver quartet, The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks, and We Were Liars.
Mariko Tamaki is a Canadian artist and writer. She is known for her graphic novels Skim, Emiko Superstar, and This One Summer, and for several prose works of fiction and non-fiction. In 2016 she began writing for both Marvel and DC Comics. She has twice been named a runner-up for the Michael L. Printz Award.
Jennifer Anne Nielsen is an American author known primarily for young adult fiction. Her works include the Ascendance Series, Behind Enemy Lines, The Mark of the Thief, A Night Divided, and the Underworld Chronicles.
Eleanor & Park is the first young adult novel written by Rainbow Rowell. Published in 2012, the story follows dual narratives by Eleanor and Park, two misfits living in Omaha, Nebraska from 1986 to 1987. Eleanor, a chubby 16-year-old girl with curly red hair, and Park, a 16-year-old biracial Korean boy, meet on a school bus on Eleanor's first day at the school and gradually connect through comic books and mixtapes of 1980s music, sparking a love story.
Fangirl is a young adult novel by Rainbow Rowell, published in 2013. Fangirl is Rowell's second published young adult book, following Eleanor & Park, and third published book overall.
Colleen Hoover is an American author who primarily writes novels in the romance and young adult fiction genres. She is best known for her 2016 romance novel It Ends with Us. Many of her works were self-published before being picked up by a publishing house. As of October 2022, Hoover has sold approximately 20 million books. She was named one of the 100 most influential people in the world by Time magazine in 2023.
All the Bright Places is a young adult fiction novel by Jennifer Niven which is based on the author's personal story. The novel was first published on January 6, 2015 through Knopf Publishing Group and is Niven's first young adult book. A film adaptation starring Elle Fanning and Justice Smith was released on February 28, 2020 on Netflix.
Leigh Bardugo is an Israeli–American fantasy author. She is best known for her young adult Grishaverse novels, which include the Shadow and Bone trilogy and the Six of Crows and King of Scars duologies. She also received acclaim for her paranormal fantasy adult debut, Ninth House. The Shadow and Bone and Six of Crows series have been adapted into Shadow and Bone by Netflix, and Ninth House will be adapted by Amazon Studios; Bardugo is an executive producer on both works.
Amie Kaufman is an Australian author. She has authored New York Times bestselling and internationally bestselling science fiction and fantasy for young adults. She is known for the Starbound Trilogy and Unearthed, which she co-authored with Meagan Spooner; for her series The Illuminae Files, co-authored with Jay Kristoff; and for her solo series, Elementals. Her books have been published in over 35 countries.
Carry On: The Rise and Fall of Simon Snow is the third young adult novel written by Rainbow Rowell, published in 2015. The story follows the final year of magical schooling for Simon Snow, the "Chosen One" of the Magical world, prophesied to defeat the Insidious Humdrum, an evil force that has been wreaking havoc on the World of Mages for years. The novel is told through several narrative voices, including that of Simon, his roommate/enemy Baz, his best friend Penelope, and his ex-girlfriend Agatha.
Landline is a 2014 American sci-fi novel by Rainbow Rowell. It tells the story of 37-year-old Georgie McCool who discovers that she is able to call her husband's 22-year-old self through his landline. Rowell stated that aspects from the novel are loosely based on her own life such as the fact that Georgie is incredibly career-driven while her husband is a stay-at-home dad. The character of Georgie McCool was named after the song Georgy Girl and the village of McCool Junction.
Sam Maggs is a Canadian-American author of books, comics and video games, and is known especially for her work on The Fangirl's Guide to the Galaxy, Marvel Action: Captain Marvel, and Rick and Morty: Ever After.
Wayward Son is the fourth young adult novel written by Rainbow Rowell, published in 2019. The story follows Simon Snow and his friends a year and a half after the end of the first book of the trilogy, Carry On. It explores their young adult lives and how they navigate them now that Simon destroyed the biggest threat to the World of Mages, the universe's British sect of magic. The group finds themselves in the United States under the guise of visiting their friend, Agatha, in California, but the story takes the characters on a road trip filled with cryptids, self-discovery, and a new friend. The story is narrated by multiple characters.
Jordan Ifueko is a Nigerian American writer of fantasy and young adult fiction. She is best known for her novel Raybearer, which became a New York Times bestseller, and its sequel, Redemptor. Her third novel set in the world of Raybearer, The Maid and the Crocodile, is slated for release August 2024. She also writes short stories, which have been published in Strange Horizons.
Jennifer Lynn Barnes is an American writer of young adult novels.
Nina LaCour is an American author, primarily known for writing young adult literature with queer, romantic story lines. Her novel We Are Okay won the Printz Award in 2017.