Nova Ren Suma | |
|---|---|
 Nova Ren Suma | |
| Born | |
| Occupation | Novelist |
| Nationality | American |
| Education | Antioch College (BA) Columbia University (MFA) |
| Period | 2009 - present |
| Genre | Young adult fiction |
| Notable works | The Walls Around Us |
| Website | |
| novaren | |
Nova Ren Suma is an American #1New York Times best selling author[1] of young adult novels. Her best-known work isThe Walls Around Us. Her novels have twice been finalists for theEdgar Award for Best Young Adult fromMystery Writers of America.[2]
Suma was born inQueens, New York, and grew up in theHudson Valley.[3] She lived inSaugerties, New York, until she was five and moved toPennington, New Jersey, after her parents' divorce.[3] She spent her teen years living inWoodstock, New York, where she frequented theAshokan Reservoir, which became the setting for her novelImaginary Girls.[4][5][6] Suma studied ballet from six to sixteen, which served as inspiration for her novelThe Walls Around Us.[7]
She cites discovering the works ofMargaret Atwood when she was twelve years old as her reason for wanting to become a writer.[8] The first fiction she ever wrote were poems and short stories, which piqued her interest to study writing.[7] After Suma received her self-designedBA in journalism, creative writing and photography fromAntioch College, she moved to New York City for graduate school at age 22, inspired by her mother's stories of her own experience in the city.[9][3] She stayed in New York City and obtained anMFA in fiction fromColumbia University.[10]
She wrote two adult novels before discovering the possibility of writing young adult novels, through her day job out atHarperCollins Children's Books.[7] She citesLaura Kasischke,Laura Ruby,Rita Williams-Garcia,Bennett Madison, andFrancesca Lia Block as authors whose works deeply inspired her to write young adult novels herself.[7] Other of her past jobs include being an assistant editor atMarvel Comics and an editorial & production associate atRaw Books.[7][11]
She has been awarded residencies at theMacDowell Colony,[12]Yaddo,[13] and theMillay Colony for the Arts.[14] She was awarded anNEA fellowship for a residency at the Hambidge Center for Arts & Sciences.[15]
Her novelThe Walls Around Us was a finalist for anEdgar Award for Best Young Adult in 2016. Her novelA Room Away from the Wolves was a finalist for the same award in 2019.[2]
She teaches atVermont College of Fine Arts, in the Writing for Children & Young Adults low-residency MFA program,[16] and at theUniversity of Pennsylvania.[17]
In November 2017, she and fellow authorEmily X.R. Pan foundedForeshadow: A Serial Anthology via the crowdfunding platformIndiegogo, as an online venue for established authors to publish short stories alongside new voices.[18]
| Year | Award | Work | Category | Result | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | Cybils Award | The Walls Around Us | Young Adult Fiction | Won | [31] |
| 2016 | Edgar Award | The Walls Around Us | Best Young Adult Novel | Nominated (Finalist) | [2] |
| 2019 | Edgar Award | A Room Away from the Wolves | Best Young Adult Novel | Nominated (Finalist) | [2] |
| International | |
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| National | |
