Laurie Halse Anderson is an award-winning, New York Times best-selling young adult author. She is best known for her novel Speak, which was a finalist for the National Book Award. She is also the author of Catalyst, The Impossible Knife of Memory, Winter Girls, Prom, and Twisted.

Anderson’s father was an alcoholic preacher who had served in World War II, and her mother also suffered from alcoholism. Growing up, Anderson’s family moved around often due to her father’s inability to keep a job. Anderson’s father wrote poetry, which inspired Anderson to do the same as a child.

Just before ninth grade, Anderson was raped by a peer who died soon after. This event would eventually go on to inspire her novel Speak. In addition to her work as a writer, Anderson now advocates against banning books and in support of survivors of sexual violence.