Laini Taylor
{{short description|American young-adult fantasy writer born December 11,1971}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=January 2014}}
{{Infobox writer
| name = Laini Taylor
| image = Laini Taylor by Gage Skidmore.jpg
| caption = Taylor in March 2018
| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1971|12|11}}
| birth_place = Chico, California, U.S.
| occupation = Writer
| alma_mater = University of California, Berkeley
| period = 2004–present
| genre = Young adult fantasy
| spouse = Jim Di Bartolo (2001–present)
| children = Clementine
| relatives = {{Plainlist |
- Alex (older brother)
- Emily (younger sister)
}}
| notableworks = {{Plainlist |
- Faeries of Dreamdark series
- Daughter of Smoke and Bone series
- Lips Touch: Three Times
}}
| awards = {{Plainlist |
- Cybils Award (2009)
- National Book Award Finalist (2009)
- Michael L. Printz Honor Book (2018)
}}
| influences =
| influenced =
| signature = Laini Taylor signature (cropped).jpg
| website = {{URL|lainitaylor.com}}
}}
Laini {{IPAc-en|ˈ|l|eɪ|n|i}}{{Cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hk5XtCQitGs&feature=youtu.be |title=Introduction to Strange the Dreamer by Laini Taylor |date=2017-03-01 |last=Hodder Books |access-date=2024-12-20 |via=YouTube}} Taylor (born December 22, 1971) is an American young adult fantasy author and a finalist for the National Book Award in Young People's Literature,{{cite web | url=http://www.oregonlive.com/books/index.ssf/2009/10/portland_writer_laini_taylor_i.html | title=Portland Writer Laini Taylor is National Book Award finalist | accessdate=June 5, 2017}} best known for the Daughter of Smoke and Bone series, Strange the Dreamer, and Muse of Nightmares.
Biography
Taylor was born in Chico, California, grew up as a US military kid in Europe and California, and earned her English degree from UC Berkeley. She currently lives in Portland, Oregon with her husband and daughter.{{cite web | url=http://www.lainitaylor.com/p/about-laini.html | title=Laini Taylor's Blog: About Laini | accessdate=March 2, 2013}} She always wanted to be a writer, and was 35 before she finished her first novel.{{cite news | url=http://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/childrens/childrens-authors/article/54760-5-writing-tips-from-laini-taylor.html | title=5 Writing Tips from Laini Taylor | work=Publishers Weekly | date=November 16, 2012 | accessdate=March 2, 2013}}
Career
File:Event chalkboard at Powell's Cedar Hills.jpg]]
In 2004, she wrote a graphic novel for Image Comics, illustrated by her husband, Jim Di Bartolo.{{cite press release | url=http://www.comicbookresources.com/?page=article&id=3380 | title=This July, "The Drowned" surfaces from Image | publisher=Comic Book Resources | date=April 13, 2004 | accessdate=March 2, 2013}} Her first novel, Dreamdark: Blackbringer, was published in 2007. The sequel, Dreamdark: Silksinger, was a winner of the 2009 Cybil Award.{{cite web | url=http://www.cybils.com/2010/02/the-2009-cybils-winners.html | title=The 2009 Cybils Winners | accessdate=March 2, 2013}} In 2011, she published Daughter of Smoke and Bone, a young adult fantasy series. The first book in the series was chosen by Amazon as the Best Teen Book of 2011,{{cite web | url=https://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html/ref=br_lf_m_1000744211_grlink_2?ie=UTF8&plgroup=2&docId=1000744211 | title=Best Books of 2011: Young Adult | publisher=Amazon.com | accessdate=March 2, 2013}} and the sequel, Days of Blood and Starlight, was also on the list in 2012.{{cite web | url=https://www.amazon.com/b/ref=amb_link_366462362_3?ie=UTF8&node=6129720011&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=hero-quick-promo&pf_rd_r=1ZS6ZQE1VEQ1202V2C5K&pf_rd_t=201&pf_rd_p=1416128362&pf_rd_i=0316133973 | title=Best Teen Books of 2012 | publisher=Amazon.com | accessdate=March 2, 2013}} In 2017, she published Strange the Dreamer, followed by its sequel Muse of Nightmares in 2018, in which protagonist Lazlo Strange, a scribe and polyglot, journeys to the Lost City of Weep. Taylor created a unique language for this world, which she weaves into the plot. Strange the Dreamer became a Michael L. Printz Honor Book{{Cite web|url=http://www.lainitaylor.com/2018/02/printz-honor.html|title=PRINTZ HONOR!!!|website=www.lainitaylor.com|access-date=2018-09-26}} as well as the 2018 Leslie Bradshaw Award for Young Adult Literature.{{Cite web|title=2018 Oregon Book Awards honor 10 authors|url=https://www.oregonlive.com/books/2018/05/2018_oregon_book_awards.html|last=Oregonian/OregonLive|first=Amy Wang {{!}} The|date=2018-05-02|website=oregonlive|language=en|access-date=2020-05-27}}
Works
= Faeries of Dreamdark =
- Dreamdark: Blackbringer (2007)
- Dreamdark: Silksinger (2009)
= ''Daughter of Smoke and Bone'' =
- Daughter of Smoke and Bone (2011)
- Days of Blood and Starlight (2012)
- Dreams of Gods and Monsters (2014)
- Night of Cake and Puppets (novella) (2013)
= Strange the Dreamer =
- Strange the Dreamer (2017)
- Muse of Nightmares (2018)
= Graphic novels =
- The Drowned, illustrated by Jim Di Bartolo (2004)
= Collections =
- Lips Touch: Three Times (2009)
- "Spanking Robots" in Fractured Fables (2010)
- "Gentleman Send Phantoms" in Foretold: 14 Tales of Prophecy and Prediction (2012)
- "The Girl Who Woke the Dreamer" in My True Love Gave to Me: Twelve Holiday Stories(2014)
References
{{reflist |25em}}
External links
{{Commons category}}
- {{official website |lainitaylor.com }}
- {{isfdb name|138152}}
- {{LCAuth|n2006066751|Laini Taylor|6|}}
- {{cite web |url=http://www.fantasyliterature.com/author-interviews/rebecca-chats-with-laini-taylor/ |title=Interview at Fantasy Literature |publisher=FantasyLiterature.com |first=Rebecca |last=Fisher|date=August 30, 2014}}
{{Portal|Children and Young Adult Literature}}
{{Daughter of Smoke and Bone}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Taylor, Laini}}
Category:21st-century American novelists
Category:American fantasy writers
Category:American women novelists
Category:People from Chico, California
Category:University of California, Berkeley alumni
Category:21st-century American women writers