Does self-published YA literary fiction have a place?
Can a self-published book be nominated for a book award usually reserved for traditional authors?
Yes AND yes! Today’s guest Shelley Pearson proves it.
Shelley Pearson self-published her first zine when she was sixteen. She grew up making art and crafts and, despite being an adult, has always gravitated toward young adult books. She leads a book club for adults to discuss young adult books through a queer and feminist lens, and self-published her first young adult novel in July of 2018. The novel, Book Smarts and Tender Hearts, was recently named a finalist for the Oregon Book Award in Young Adult Fiction. She lives in Portland with her girlfriend and two cats. Check out her website shelleypearsonwrites.com and find her on Instagram @shelleypearsonwrites.
Shelley came to chat with Emily and Corinne about making friends with strangers the old fashioned way—through placing an ad in a magazine! Other topics include: writing with a mentor, staying vulnerable while weathering promotions and the sudden attention that comes with being nominated for an award, and of course influential YA books.
Links from this episode:
- Sweet Candy Press
- Book Smarts and Tender Hearts (Shelley’s Oregon Book Award nominated YA novel!)
- Info about the 2019 Oregon Book Awards Ceremony
- Lost Souls by Poppy Z. Brite
- Juliet Blackwell cozy mysteries
- Annie on My Mind by Nancy Garden
- Everything’s Trash but It’s Okay by Phoebe Robinson
