Jennifer De Leon

First Draft Episode #247: Jennifer de Leon

Jennifer De Leon is Assistant Professor of Creative Writing at
Framingham State University, and a GrubStreet instructor and
board member. Her debut young adult novel, Don’t Ask Me Where I’m
From, is out from Atheneum/Simon & Schuster on August 4,
2020.


This episode was sponsored by HIGHLAND 2, a better way to write,
and by We Didn’t Ask For This, the newest novel by Adi Alsaid,
out from Inkyard Press April 7 (listen to his First Draft
interview here).


Links and Topics Mentioned In This Episode




Herb Kohl was Jenn’s professor at USF while she was getting
her master’s degree




Ben Brooks, author and senior writer in residence at Emerson,
taught Jenn in a continuing education class




GrubStreet in Boston is the country’s largest and leading
independent creative writing center




Christopher Castellani, Artistic Director, Stage and
Convenings at GrubStreet




The Bread Loaf Writer’s Conference




VONA, the Voices of Our Nation Arts Foundation




The Macundo Foundation, founded by Sandra Cisneros, author of
The House on Mango Street




Junot Diaz, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Brief
Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao




The Vermont Studio Center




Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA)




We Need Diverse Books




Atheneum/Caitlyn Dlouhy Books




Jason Reynolds, author of Ghost, Long Way Down, and Look Both
Ways (listen to his First Draft interview here)





I want to hear from you!


Have a question about writing or creativity for Sarah Enni or her
guests to answer? To leave a voicemail, call (818) 533-1998.


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Every Tuesday, I speak to storytellers like Veronica Roth, author
of Divergent; Linda Holmes, author and host of NPR’s Pop Culture
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