Cynthia Leitich Smith is a NSK Neustadt Laureate as well as a best-selling, award-winning children’s-YA writer, writing teacher, and the author-curator of the Native-centered Heartdrum imprint at HarperCollins Children’s Books.

Cynthia’s latest releases are her middle grade anthology ANCESTOR APPROVED: INTERTRIBAL STORIES FOR KIDS and her middle grade novel SISTERS OF THE NEVERSEA.

ANCESTOR APPROVED received four starred reviews and is the winner of the Reading the West Young Readers Book Award, a Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection, an ALA Children’s Notable Book and a Kids Indie Next List Pick. It also was named to the ILA, Kirkus Reviews, Chicago Public Library, NY Public Library, Shelf Awareness, and Bank Street Best Books of 2021 lists.

SISTERS OF THE NEVERSEA received six starred reviews and was named to summer reading lists by the Minneapolis Star Tribune, Kirkus Reviews and Publishers Weekly. It also named to the Publishers Weekly, Kirkus Reviews, Chicago Public Library, American Indians in Children’s Literature; Politics & Prose, and Parents Magazine Best Books of 2021 lists.

Her 2023 releases are the YA novel HARVEST HOUSE and the MG graphic novel, THE BLUE STARS: MISSION ONE: THE VICE PRINCIPAL PROBLEM, co-authored by Kekla Magoon and illustrated by Molly Murakami.

Her debut picture book, JINGLE DANCER, illustrated by Cornelius Van Wright and Ying-Hwa Hu, is widely considered a modern classic. Her debut tween novel RAIN IS NOT MY INDIAN NAME was named one of the 30 Most Influential Children’s Books of All Time by Book Riot. She also was named Writer of the Year by Wordcraft Circle of Native Writers and Storytellers for RAIN IS NOT MY INDIAN NAME and won the American Indian Youth Literature Award for Young Adult Books for HEARTS UNBROKEN, which also was named to YALSA’s Amelia Bloomer list and received the Foreword Reviews Silver Medal in Young Adult Fiction. In addition, Cynthia is the New York Times and Publishers Weekly bestselling YA author of the TANTALIZE series and FERAL trilogy.

Cynthia lives in Austin, Texas, which is Jumanos, Nʉmʉnʉʉ (Comanche), Sana, and Tonkawa ancestral land, and is a citizen of the Muscogee Nation. The Austin chapter of SCBWI has instituted the Cynthia Leitich Smith Mentor Award in her honor, and Cynthia is a member of the Texas Institute of Letters. She also serves on the faculty of the Vermont College of Fine Arts MFA program in Writing for Children and Young Adults, where she was named the inaugural Katherine Paterson Endowed Chair. In addition, Cynthia coordinates and leads the annual We Need Diverse Books Native Writing Intensive.

Cynthia holds a bachelor’s degree in journalism from the University of Kansas, Lawrence and a J.D. from The University of Michigan Law School in Ann Arbor. She studied law abroad at Paris-Sorbonne University.

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Cynthia actively supports equity and inclusivity in the world of books and beyond, and she enjoys participating in events created using the same approach. She is not available for any events that discriminate against marginalized or underrepresented people, either on the page or off. This includes any non-Native/non-tribal schools with “Indian mascots.” For context, please read the WNDB definition of diversity.

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