From glittering space operas to gritty cyberpunk five phenomenal authors join us to discuss their latest titles and how they are redefining and expanding the definition of speculative fiction.
About the Authors
Sara Hashem is the Sunday Times bestselling author of The Jasad Heir and The Jasad Crown. An Egyptian-American writer from California, she spent many sunny days holed up indoors with a book. Sara’s love for fantasy and magical realms emerged during the two years her family lived in Egypt. When she isn’t busy naming stray cats in her neighborhood after her favorite authors, Sara can be found buried under coffee-ringed notebooks.
Julie Leong is the USA Today and Sunday Times bestselling author of The Teller of Small Fortunes and The Keeper of Magical Things. A daughter of Malaysian Chinese immigrants, Julie grew up across suburban New Jersey and Beijing, China and managed to feel equally out of place in both. She graduated from Yale University and was very briefly an investment banker before coming to her senses. She lives in San Francisco with her needy dog, less-needy husband, and one thoroughly self-sufficient Meyer lemon tree.
Annalee Newitz is a science journalist who also writes science fiction. They are the author of several bestselling books, including The Terraformers, which was nominated for the Nebula Award, and Four Lost Cities: A Secret History of the Urban Age. They have a monthly column in New Scientist magazine, and are the co-host of the Hugo-winning podcast Our Opinions Are Correct. Their forthcoming novella is Automatic Noodle, which drops in August 2025.
C.B. Lee is an author of young adult and middle grade fiction including the New York Times Bestseller Minecraft: The Shipwreck. Their works also include the Junior Library Guild Gold Standard selected A Clash of Steel: A Treasure Island Remix, the Lambda Literary Award nominated Sidekick Squad series, Ben 10 graphic novels, Out Now: Queer We Go Again, and From A Certain Point Of View: The Empire Strikes Back. Lee’s work has been featured in NPR, Teen Vogue, Wired Magazine, Hypable, Tor’s Best of Fantasy and Sci Fi and the American Library Association’s Rainbow List.
Julia Vee was that GenX kid raised by libraries and still remains largely unsupervised. She writes with her friend from middle school, Ken Bebelle, and they have penned over 10 novels together. Their novel Ebony Gate, an Asian-inspired contemporary fantasy, was published by TOR and named a 2023 Golden Poppy Finalist for the Octavia E. Butler award. The series concludes with Pearl City in July of 2025."
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