67

Here are 7 Author Shoutouts for this week. Check out which authors are your favorites, and discover an author whose work you have not yet read.

Jacqueline Carey

Jacqueline Carey, born in Highland Park, Illinois, receives an Author Shoutout. Originally inspired by her work at a bookstore, Carey pursued her literary aspirations. In 2001, she published Kushiel’s Dart, a politically charged and romantically dark (and erotic) saga. This marked the beginning of a historical fantasy trilogy set in Terre D’Ange, where the guiding principle is love as thou wilt. Carey’s talent extends beyond this trilogy, as she has also written two other trilogies within the same universe. Additionally, she explored JRR Tolkien-style themes from a darker perspective in a two-book series called the Sundering Duology. With her unique voice, Carey has made a notable impact in the fantasy genre.

Now the author of 20 novels, Cassiel’s Servant (which revisits Terre D’Ange) was recently released.

Nora Roberts

Nora Roberts, born in Silver Spring, Maryland, deserves an Author Shoutout. She holds the honor of being the first author inducted into the Romance Writers of America Hall of Fame. With over 225 novels to her name, her books have collectively spent an impressive 861 weeks on The New York Times Best Seller list, often claiming the top spot. Nora Roberts embarked on her writing journey during a blizzard in February 1979. At the time, she was a stay-at-home mom with two young boys, faced with three feet of snow, limited chocolate supply, and no morning kindergarten. These circumstances left her with little to do but start writing.

Less than 30 years later, she was named to TIME magazine’s 100 Most Influential People list.

Anne Enright

Anne Enright, a Dublin, Ireland native, deserves an Author Shoutout as an accomplished author. She gained recognition as the inaugural Laureate for Irish Fiction (2015-2018) and achieved the prestigious Man Booker Prize in 2007 for her fourth novel, The Gathering. Enright has contributed extensively to the literary world with the release of eight novels, including The Wren. Additionally, she has authored numerous short stories and a non-fiction book titled Making Babies: Stumbling into Motherhood, chronicling the experiences of becoming a mother to her two children.

Her essays have been featured in the London Review of Books and The New York Review of Books, while she frequently contributes to The Irish Times and The Guardian. Through her works of fiction, she delves into subjects encompassing family dynamics, love, personal identity, and the complexities of motherhood.

NoViolet Bulawayo

NoViolet Bulawayo, born as Elizabeth Zandile Tshele in Tsholotsho, Zimbabwe, receives an Author Shoutout. Her book, We Need New Names, made it to the 2013 Man Booker Prize shortlist, making her the first black African woman and the first Zimbabwean to achieve this honor. She has also been recognized and awarded the Etisalat Prize for Literature and the Hemingway Foundation/PEN Award, among other notable achievements.

Glory, her second novel published in 2022, draws inspiration from George Orwell’s Animal Farm and depicts a nation on the verge of revolution. This captivating book has been recognized on the longlist for both the Booker Prize and the 2023 Women’s Prize for Fiction.

Conrad Richter

Conrad Richter, born in Pine Grove, Pennsylvania, deserves an Author Shoutout. At 19, he became the editor of a weekly newspaper, and at 21, he founded a children’s magazine. Until the age of 47, Richter primarily wrote short stories, but then he achieved success with the publication of his novel, The Sea of Grass. His literary works mostly focused on historical fiction, specifically documenting the American frontier. The Town, which is the third book in his renowned The Awakening Land trilogy, tells the story of a frontier family in the early 19th-century Ohio Valley and was honored with the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1951.

Another novel, The Waters of Kronos, won the National Book Award ten years later. Mr. Richter died of a heart attack at age 78.

e.e. cummings

Edward Estlin Cummings, also known as e. e. cummings, deserves an Author Shoutout. Born in Cambridge, Massachusetts, he excelled in multiple artistic disciplines, including novels, plays, and painting. However, it was his poetry that truly brought him fame. Starting as early as age 8, he began writing poetry on a daily basis, resulting in an impressive collection of approximately 2,900 poems.

His works, characterized by their inventive grammar and syntax, creative punctuation, deliberate misspellings, and even manipulated typography, combined elements from both avant-garde and traditional styles. He passed away in 1962 at the age of 67.

Roxane Gay

Roxane Gay, originally from Omaha, Nebraska, receives an Author Shoutout. She made her mark in 2014 with the publication of the highly acclaimed essay collection Bad Feminist, which became a New York Times best-seller. Additionally, Gay introduced readers to the gripping novel An Untamed State. In a groundbreaking move, she joined forces with poet Yona Harvey in July 2016 to become the first black women to serve as lead writers for Marvel Comics’ World of Wakanda, a spin-off from Black Panther. This collaboration resulted in a six-issue series that garnered praise for its significant representation of LGBTQ characters.

She released the short story compilation Difficult Women in 2017, along with her pioneering memoir Hunger which tackles topics of weight, body image, and fostering a healthy connection with food.

Other LitStack Resources

Please take a look at other Author Shoutouts, a weekly feature on LitStack and be sure and support independent bookstores – buy a book today at LitStack Bookshop, with tons of author shoutout titles on our list of LitStack Author Shoutouts.

As a Bookshop, BAM, Barnes & Noble, Audiobooks.com, Amazon, and Envato affiliate, LitStack may earn a commission at no cost to you when you purchase products through our affiliate links.