PRESS KIT
AUTHOR BIOS
MINI BIO
Educator and editor Kelly Coon is the Nautilus Award winning, USA Today bestselling author of young adult novels like Prank Night, the Gravemaidens duology and the inspirational nonfiction, Take Up Space, Y’all. She loves writing characters who challenge social norms and battle inner demons to become their best (and worst) selves. When she's not writing, she’s hanging out with her kids, taking a Peloton class, or reading a good book in the sunshine. She lives near Tampa, Florida with her family and two pups who refuse proper training.
SHORT BIO
USA Today bestselling author and master’s degree educator Kelly Coon is the Nautilus Award winning author of young adult novels, Gravemaidens, Warmaidens (Penguin Random House) and Prank Night (Simon & Schuster); young adult nonfiction, Take Up Space, Y’all (Hachette Book Group), 180 Days of Creative Writing Prompts (Caslmon Clark), Ace the ACT and ACT Strategy Smart (REA, Inc.); and thousands of nonfiction articles in the education, business, and parenting realm.
She’s an editor, a member of the Washington Post Talent Network, and an author who loves writing characters who challenge social norms and battle inner demons to become their best (and worst) selves.
When she's not writing, she’s hanging out with her kids, taking a Peloton class, or reading a good book in the sunshine. She lives outside of Tampa, Florida with her family and two pups who refuse proper training.
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PRANK NIGHT
A group of teens breaks into school after hours for a senior prank, only for the night to turn sinister when one of them turns up dead—and the rest are locked inside with the killer—in this edge-of-your-seat young adult thriller perfect for fans of Holly Jackson and Karen M. McManus.
Graduation at Bloomfield Academy is almost here, but golden boy Mason is not leaving without a killer senior prank. Lucy, his type A girlfriend, is only coming because he begged. Brainiacs Alex and Brady are there to problem-solve. Theater star Kenzie is thrilled they’re including her…finally. And troublemaker Ian? Well, nobody invited him, but that’s never stopped him before. All it takes is one night. One epic prank. The plan is going perfectly until…one of them is found dead at the foot of the stairs. And it looks a lot like murder.
When the school’s cutting-edge security system locks them inside, they realize there’s no way out and no one coming to save them. Trapped with a killer, their suspicions grow—everyone has a motive and secrets to hide. As the night creeps forward, paranoia rises, and it’s clear that the survivors must use their wits to make it until dawn. But as their hidden truths claw their way to the surface, a terrifying question looms: What if the killer is one of them?
Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry Books/Simon & Schuster
Editor: Nicole Florica
Pub Date: March 30, 2027
Formats: Hardback, Paperback, Ebook, Audiobook
ISBN: 979-8347110322
Purchase Link: https://bit.ly/BuyPN (all retailers), https://bit.ly/SignedPN (signed copies)
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TAKE UP SPACE, Y’ALL
As a teen, you’re under a lot of pressure, from grades to social media to relationships to looks. This can sometimes crush your emotional and mental health, leaving you with a ton of questions and no one to ask. Enter top model Tess Holliday and educator Kelly Coon, two people who have been there! Together, they created this interactive, body-positive wellness book as a safe space for you to explore what it looks like to love yourself from the inside out. In these pages, you’ll find quizzes, bite-sized interviews, writing prompts, and advice to help you:
Learn how to feed and move your body in a way that makes sense for you.
Find fashion that reflects your taste and budget.
Set boundaries around social media, friends, and frenemies.
Remix the negative thoughts that drag you into the mud. (We all have them!)
Speak up for yourself and your right to exist in the body you’re in today. And so much more!
From Tess & Kelly: Y’all, don’t worry, we’re not two more adults telling you what to do with your life. Think of us as your cool aunties handing you the life hacks that worked for us, sprinkled with all the love in the world! XO
Publisher: Running Press Kids/Hachette Book Group
Editor: Julie Matysik
Pub Date: August 26, 2025
Formats: Paperback, Ebook, Audiobook
ISBN: 978-0-762-48915-2
Purchase Link: bit.ly/BuyTUSY
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GRAVEMAIDENS
In the walled city-state of Alu, Kammani wants nothing more than to become the accomplished healer her father used to be…before her family was cast out of their privileged life in shame.
When Alu's ruler falls deathly ill, Kammani’s beautiful little sister, Nanaea, is chosen as one of three sacred maidens to join him in the afterlife. It’s an honor. A tradition. And Nanaea believes it is her chance to live an even grander life than the one that was stolen from her.
But Kammani sees the selection for what it really is—a death sentence.
Desperate to save her sister, Kammani schemes her way into the palace to heal the ruler. There, she discovers more danger lurking in the sandstone corridors than she could have ever imagined and that her own life—and heart—are at stake. But Kammani will stop at nothing to dig up the palace’s buried secrets even if it means sacrificing everything…including herself.
Publisher: Delacorte Press/Random House
Editor: Kelsey M. Horton
Pub Date: October 29, 2019
Formats: Hardback, Paperback, Ebook, Audiobook
ISBN: 978-0-525-64782-9
Purchase Link: bit.ly/ordergravemaidens
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WARMAIDENS
Just a few moons after escaping the tomb in Alu, Kammani and the other runaway maidens have found refuge in the city-state of Manzazu. There, Kammani has become a respected healer, especially among the warriors she’s brought back from the brink of death. Now that the nightmares of Alu are fading, she can finally decide whether or not to take Dagan’s hand in marriage.
But when an assassin murders a healer he believes is Kammani and attempts to kill the displaced queen of Alu, the maidens realize they’ve been found.
Hungry for revenge, Manzazu’s queen wants to strike back at Alu with her fiercest weapons—her scorpion warrior maidens—but Kammani knows that war harms more than it heals. To save the innocents and any chance of a future with Dagan, Kammani must take down Alu’s ruler before their lives burn up in the flames of war.
Publisher: Delacorte Press/Random House
Editor: Kelsey M. Horton
Pub Date: December 15, 2020
Formats: Hardback, Paperback, Ebook, Audiobook
ISBN: 978-0-525-64786-7
Purchase Link: bit.ly/orderwarmaidens
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180 DAYS OF WRITING PROMPTS
This is a guide to writing creative nonfiction, fiction, and poetry with teen-friendly prompts and expert author advice to help your writing shine.
180 Days of Creative Writing Prompts; High School Edition offers 9th - 12th graders a self-guided way to get their creativity percolating every day of the school year. The workbook includes:
60 Fiction Prompts
Story Starters: Continue the story already in action.
Scene Setters: Write a scene given an object, an emotion, and a setting.
Dialogue Builders: Finish a conversation between characters.
60 Nonfiction Prompts
Personal Queries: Answer questions about personal experiences.
Opinion Grabbers: Respond to statements about history, statistics, trivia, and more.
Debatable Topics: Debate the sides of a controversial topic.
60 Poetry Prompts
Rhyming Lines: Complete rhyming poems from given stanzas.
Free Verse Lyrics: Finish free verse poems by adding personal flair.
Rhythmic Trios: Compose unrhymed or rhymed poetry given a meter and three words.
Useful for bell work, exit tickets, extension, homework and in conjunction with state writing standards, 180 Days of Creative Writing Prompts: High School Edition is a workbook designed to empower students to dig deep and make magic!
Pub Date: November 18, 2025
Formats: Paperback, Ebook
ISBN: 979-8993871806
Purchase Link: https://bit.ly/Buy180Days
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CONTACT:
Dr. Uwe Stender at TriadaUS Literary Agency