Saundra Mitchell

Saundra Mitchell is an American novelist and screenwriter born September 3, 1973, in Indianapolis, Indiana. Before turning to fiction, she spent two decades as head screenwriter and executive producer for Dreaming Tree Films. She writes young-adult fiction often blending paranormal elements with LGBTQ+ themes, including the historical Vespertine trilogy and standalone novels such as Shadowed Summer and Mistwalker, and has also written under the pseudonyms Jessa Holbrook and Alex Mallory. Mitchell edited several acclaimed queer-themed anthologies, including All Out: The No-Longer-Secret Stories of Queer Teens Throughout the Ages and Defy the Dark, and co-created the comic middle-grade series Camp Murderface. Her honors include a Society of Midland Authors Award, an Indiana Authors Award for best young-adult novel, and Edgar and Lambda Literary Award nominations.