Justina Ireland
Justina Ireland in 2018 at the National Book Festival
Born	(1985-02-07)February 7, 1985 (age 41) French Camp, California, U.S.
Occupation	Novelist
Nationality	American
Education	Armstrong Atlantic State University (BA) Hamline University (MFA)
Genre	Science fiction Young Adult
Website
justinaireland.com

Justina Ireland (born February 7, 1985)^[1] is an Americanscience fiction andfantasy author ofyoung adult fiction and former editor-in-chief of theFIYAH Literary Magazine.^{[2][3][4][5][6]} She received the 2018World Fantasy Award for Non-Professional Work.^[7] HerNew York Times bestselling novelDread Nation won the 2019Locus Award, and was nominated for theAndre Norton,Bram Stoker, andLodestar Awards.^[8]

As a teen, Ireland had aspirations to become a historian. She enlisted in the military at nineteen, where she would serve as an Arabic linguistics expert.^[5] Now based inYork, Pennsylvania, she works for the U.S. Navy as a director of logistics and weapon-systems support, and teaches creative writing atYork College of Pennsylvania, where she is an adjunct lecturer in the department of Communication and Writing.^[9][5]

Ireland holds a BA in History fromArmstrong Atlantic State University and an MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults fromHamline University, where she wrote a thesis on "microaggressions in children’s literature".^[10][5] She is currently pursuing her PhD in English Literature.^[5]

Ireland is known for writing strong female characters, and for addressing issues of race, class, power,misogyny,sexism, andcolorism in her fiction.^[11][12]

Her best-known novel,Dread Nation, is an alternate history set in 19th century U.S. In this timeline, theCivil War ends whenzombies emerge from their graves atGettysburg. Theenslaved are then freed, but Black and Indigenous children are then trained to fight the undead and protect the nation. The main character, Jane McKeene, is abiracial teen sent to a prestigious combat school where she trains in hopes of being assigned to a wealthy white family.^[13]

Dread Nation received largely positive reviews that praised Ireland for her skillful approach to dealing with difficult issues related to slavery and its legacy.Kirkus Reviews wrote, "With a shrewd, scythe-wielding protagonist of color,Dread Nation is an exciting must-read."^[14]School Library Journal, in their review, stated, "Ireland skillfully works in the different forms of enslavement, mental and physical, into a complex and engaging story" and declared that the novel is "A perfect blend of horrors real and imagined".^[15] Alex Brown ofTor.com wrote, "Dread Nation is the perfect example of why we need more diversity in the YA author pool. Only a Black American woman could writeDread Nation."

Ireland is known as an outspoken advocate for diversifying YA literature.^[5][16]Lila Shapiro, in a 2018 article inNew York, called her "YA Twitter’s Leading Warrior."^[5] She has been vocal about the need for more authors of color, and stories that feature characters of color in YA literature.

Ireland is also the founder of Writing in the Margins, an organization that provides mentorship to writers from historically marginalized groups.^[2]

Ireland is married and has a child. The family lives together inYork,Pennsylvania.^[17][5]

This list isincomplete; you can help byadding missing items.(July 2022)

• —— (2013).Vengeance Bound.Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers.ISBN 9781442444621.
• —— (2014).Promise of Shadows.Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers.ISBN 9781442444645.
• —— (2018).Scream Site.Capstone Editions.ISBN 9781630791025.
• —— (2021).Ophie's Ghosts.Balzer + Bray.ISBN 9780062915894.
• —— (2022).Rust in the Root. Balzer + Bray.ISBN 9780063038226.
• Ireland, Justina (2023).Never and Again. Recorded Books, LLC.ASIN B091QCZCF3.
• Ireland, Justina (2024).Tales from Cabin 23: The Boo Hag Flex. Clarion Books.ISBN 9780063287822.

• —— (2018).Dread Nation. Balzer + Bray.ISBN 9780062570604.
• —— (2020).Deathless Divide. Balzer + Bray.ISBN 9780062570635.
• —— (2020).Three for the Road: Stories from Dread Nation.ASIN B08JLC2V1Q.
  • "Dread South" (2017)
  • "Letters From Home" (2018)
  • "Dread Quarter" (2020)

• —— (2017).Evie Allen vs. the Quiz Bowl Zombies. Stone Arch Books.ISBN 9781496549884.
• —— (2017).Jeff Allen vs. the Time Suck Vampire. Stone Arch Books.ISBN 9781496549860.
• —— (2017).Tiffany Donovan vs. the Cookie Elves of Destruction. Stone Arch Books.ISBN 9781496549877.
• —— (2017).Zach Lopez vs. the Unicorns of Doom. Stone Arch Books.ISBN 9781496549891.
• —— (2018).Tiffany Donovan vs. the Poison Werewolves. Stone Arch Books.ISBN 9781496565259.
• —— (2018).Zach Lopez vs. the Shadow Cats. Stone Arch Books.ISBN 9781496565242.

• —— (2018).Star Wars: Lando's Luck. Disney Lucasfilm Press.ISBN 9781368041508.

• —— (2019).Spark of the Resistance. Disney Lucasfilm Press.ISBN 9781368050814.

• Light of the Jedi Series
  • —— (2021).A Test of Courage. Disney Lucasfilm Press.ISBN 9781368057301.
  • —— (2021).Out of the Shadows. Disney Lucasfilm Press.ISBN 9781368060653.
  • —— (2022).Mission to Disaster. Disney Lucasfilm Press.ISBN 9781368068000.
• Starlight:
  • —— (2021). "Hidden Danger Part 2".Star Wars Insider: The High Republic – Starlight Stories. Disney Lucasfilm Press.ISBN 9781787738652.
  • —— (2021).The Edge of Balance Vol. 1. Viz Media.ISBN 9781974725885.
  • —— (2022).Path of Deceit. Disney Lucasfilm Press.ISBN 9781368076128.

• Official website
• Writing in the Margins official website

• Living people
• 21st-century American novelists
• American female comics writers
• American science fiction writers
• American fantasy writers
• Marvel Comics writers
• African-American comics writers
• 21st-century American women novelists
• 21st-century African-American women writers
• 21st-century African-American writers
• 1985 births

• Articles with short description
• Short description matches Wikidata
• Incomplete lists from July 2022