Kevin Brooks was born in Exeter and studied in Birmingham and London. He has worked in a crematorium, a zoo, a garage and a post office, before - happily - giving it all up to write books.

Kevin is the author of many acclaimed award-winning young adult novels, including Martyn Pig, Lucas, Kissing The Rain, The Road of the Dead, Black Rabbit Summer and iBoy. He now lives in North Yorkshire. The Bunker Diary won the CILIP Carnegie Medal in 2014.

Jack Gantos has written books for people of all ages, from picture books and middle-grade fiction to novels for young adults and adults.

His works include Hole in My Life, a memoir that won the Michael L. Printz and Robert F. Sibert Honors; the Joey Pigza series, which include a Newbery Honor book and a National Book Award Finalist; Dead End in Norvelt, winner of the Newbery Medal and the Scott O'Dell Award for Historical Fiction; and the Rotten Ralph series.

Chelsea Elizabeth Manning is an American activist, whistleblower, politician and former United States Army soldier.

Sita Brahmachari won the Waterstones Children's Book Prize with her debut Artichoke Hearts and is one of the most interesting and important voices in children's books today.

Her latest novel, Tender Earth, is the UK IBBY Honour 2018 Nominee. She was the 2015 Booktrust's Writer in Residence and is the current Writer in Residence at Islington Centre for Refugees and Migrants. Sita is also an Amnesty International ambassador. She lives in London with her family.

Matt Haig is the internationally bestselling author of the novels The Midnight Library, How to Stop Time, The Humans, The Radleys, children's novel A Boy Called Christmas, and memoir Reasons to Stay Alive.

His latest novel is The Life Impossible, which will be published in September 2024. His work has been translated into over fifty languages.

Liz Kessler studied English at Loughborough University, has worked as a teacher and a journalist and has an MA in Creative Writing from Manchester Metropolitan University.

After taking a year off to travel around Europe in a camper van, Liz now lives in Cornwall.

Frances Hardinge spent her childhood in a huge old house that inspired her to write strange stories from an early age. She read English at Oxford University, then got a job at a software company. However, by this time a persistent friend had finally managed to bully Frances into sending a few chapters of Fly By Night, her first children's novel, to a publisher. Macmillan made her an immediate offer. The book went on to publish to huge critical acclaim and win the Branford Boase First Novel Award. Known for her beautiful use of language, she has since written many critically acclaimed novels, including A Skinful of Shadows, Verdigris Deep, Cuckoo Song, and the Costa Award-winning The Lie Tree.

Sarah Crossan has lived in Dublin, London and New York, and now lives in Hertfordshire. She graduated with a degree in philosophy and literature before training as an English and drama teacher at Cambridge University.

Since completing a masters in creative writing, she has been working to promote creative writing in schools.

The Weight of Water and Apple and Rain were both shortlisted for the CILIP Carnegie Medal. In 2016, Sarahwon the CILIP Carnegie Medal as well as the YA Book Prize, the CBI Book of the Year award and the CLiPPAPoetry Award for her novel, One.

Ryan Gattis is the author of Safe, Kung Fu High School, and All Involved, which won the American Library Association’s Alex Award and the Lire Award for Noir of the Year in France.

He lives and writes in South Los Angeles, where he is a member of art collective UGLARworks, a founding board member of arts non-profit Heritage Future, and a PEN America Prison Writing Mentor.

Tim Wynne-Jones is the accomplished author of numerous young adult novels, including The Emperor of Any Place, which earned seven starred reviews, Blink & Caution, winner of the 2012 Boston Globe–Horn Book Award, and The Uninvited.

In 2012 he was named an Officer of the Order of Canada for his services to literature. Tim Wynne-Jones lives in Ontario.

Chris Riddell, the 2015-2017 UK Children's Laureate, is an accomplished artist and the political cartoonist for the Observer. He has enjoyed great acclaim for his books for children.

His books have won a number of major prizes, including the 2001, 2004 and 2016 CILIP Kate Greenaway Medals.

Goth Girl and the Ghost of a Mouse won the Costa Children's Book Award 2013. His previous work for Macmillan includes the bestselling Ottoline books, The Emperor of Absurdia, and, with Paul Stewart, the Muddle Earth and Scavenger series. Chris lives in Brighton with his family.

Bali Rai's first novel for young adults, (Un)Arranged Marriage, created a huge amount of interest and won many awards, including the Angus Book Award and the Leicester Book of the Year.

It was also shortlisted for the prestigious Branford Boase first novel award. Rani and Sukh and The Whisper were both shortlisted for the Booktrust Teenage Prize.

Bali is also the author of the hugely popular Soccer Squad series for younger readers. Bali was born in Leicester where he still lives, writing full-time and visiting schools to talk about his books.

John Boyne was born in Ireland in 1971. He is the author of ten novels for adults, five for young readers and a collection of short stories.

Perhaps best known for his 2006 multi-award-winning book The Boy In The Striped Pyjamas, John’s other novels, notably The Absolutist and A History of Loneliness, have been widely praised and are international bestsellers.

In 2015, John chaired the panel for the Giller Prize, Canada’s most prestigious literary award. The Heart’s Invisible Furies is his most ambitious novel yet.

Jackie Kay is a Scottish poet and novelist, and has been the National Poet of Scotland since 2016. She is the author of a number of works, including The Adoption Papers, Trumpet and Red Dust Road.

The recipient of numerous prizes, she was also twice shortlisted for the Scottish Book of the Year Award. She is currently chancellor of the University of Salford, and divides her time between Glasgow and Manchester

Elizabeth Laird is the multi-award-winning author of several much-loved children's books, including The Garbage King, Red Sky in the Morning and The Fastest Boy in the World. She has been shortlisted for the prestigious CILIP Carnegie Medal six times and her novel based on time spent in refugee camps in Jordan, Welcome to Nowhere, was the winner of the UKLA Award. She lives in Britain now, but still likes to travel as much as she can.