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Nairobi Williese Barnes

Nairobi is a nineteen-year-old college student who's grown up in Oakland, CA her entire life. Her many accomplishments include winning the Superior and Impressive Writing Chops award at her high school, a published op-ed in Teen Vogue, and a published poem in 2016 book Accomplished, a collection of poems by The American Library of Poetry. Nairobi defines herself as a poet, artist, and activist. She has created educational videos and press releases about topics including voting rights, discrimination against Black women, and Black hair and how it defines her culture. As a woman who leads with her heart, her words have never steered her wrong and with every new journey she embarks on, a poem follows.
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Michael Genhart

Michael Genhart’s text for Spanish is the Language of My Family is inspired by stories his mother told to him as a child. He is a clinical psychologist and the author of eight picture books including Love Is Love (a Notable Social Studies Trade Book) and Rainbow: A First Book of Pride, which Publishers Weekly called “A joyous tribute to LGBTQ families.” He lives with his husband in Marin County. They are the proud parents of a newly minted 5th grade teacher. When he’s not working or writing, you’ll find Michael gardening, on a hike, sitting around a dinner table with friends and family, traveling to different countries, enjoying live theatre and music, or sitting in a quiet space with a wonderful book.
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Vicky Fang

Vicky Fang is a product designer who spent five years designing kids' technology experiences for both Google and Intel, often to inspire and empower kids in coding and technology. She started writing to support the growing need for early coding education, particularly for girls and kids of color. She is the author, and sometimes illustrator, of nineteen new and upcoming books for kids, including the Layla and the Bots series, Invent-a-Pet, I Can Code Board Books, Friendbots, and the forthcoming Ava Lin series, Best Buddies series, AlphaBot, and The Boo Crew Needs You! You can visit Vicky at vickyfang.com.v
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Sophie Diao

Sophie Diao is an artist in San Francisco. As research for the book Sarah and the Big Wave, she surfed a wave that she's pretty sure was over one foot tall. She loves illustrating natural wonders and is the talent behind many a Google Doodle. She is the illustrator of I AM GOLDEN and WE ARE GOLDEN.
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Mason Deaver

Born and raised in a small town in North Carolina, Mason Deaver is an award-nominated, bestselling author and designer living in Charlotte. Their debut novel, I Wish You All the Best, was named a Junior Library Guild Selection and an NPR Concierge Book. Besides writing, they're an active fan of horror movies and video games. You can find them online at masondeaverwrites.com.
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Stephen Bramucci

Stephen Bramucci is the author of The Danger Gang and the Pirates of Borneo and its sequel, The Danger Gang and the Isle of Feral Beasts. He has written for National Geographic, Afar, Fodors, and dozens of online and print outlets. As a travel and adventure writer, he has explored the Australian outback with the Jawoyn Indigenous people, tracked cheetahs by foot in South Africa, lived with Komodo Dragons on the island of Rinca, and trekked alone into the Ecuadorian Amazon. Steve is also the founding editor of Uproxx LIFE and the showrunner for Fresh Pair and People’s Party with Talib Kweli. He regularly appears on KTLA, The Young Turks, Foodbeast, and various podcasts, streams, shows, and events. www.stephenbramucci.com • IG: @steve_bramucci
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Kamilla Benko

Kamilla Benko is the bestselling author of Frozen II: Forest of Shadows and The Unicorn Quest trilogy. She spent most of her childhood climbing into wardrobes, trying to step through mirrors, and plotting to run away to an art museum. Now, she visits other worlds as an author. She currently lives in Indiana with her husband, daughter, and cat in a house next to a friendly willow tree. kamillabenko.com
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Ashley Benham-Yazdani

Ashley Benham-Yazdani is a picture book author/illustrator and nature lover. She is passionate about arts education and has taught illustration courses at the Maryland Institute College of Art, and at Towson University. Her debut book, A Green Place to Be, is currently available from Candlewick Press and can be found at your local bookstore. Her tools of the trade are watercolors, colored pencils, and Photoshop, but she also enjoys embroidery, block printing, and screen printing. When not pushing pigment or pixels around, Ashley can be found reading, knitting, or running around in the great outdoors. She lives in Davis, CA with her husband and their two children.
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Mac Barnett

Bio coming soon!
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DeMareon Gipson

DeMareon Gipson is an award-winning polymathic wordsmith from Vallejo, California. In 2015, the premiere screening for his short film, “The Plan”, was selected by East Bay Express as a Pick of The Week. In 2017, the Academy of American Poets awarded him with the Piri Thomas Poetry Prize for his unique, provocative compositions. He is the author of the recently released children’s book “Annalise’s Cough”, which is a tale about environmental racism and eco-womanism. He utilizes the power of words in a variety of mediums, including the composition of children’s books, poetry, teaching, and community organizing.