AUTHOR BIO

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Aiden Thomas is a New York Times Bestselling author with an MFA in Creative Writing from Mills College.

Originally from Oakland, California, they now make their home in Portland, Oregon.

​As a queer, trans Latinx, Aiden advocates strongly for diverse representation in all media. Aiden’s special talents include: quoting The Office, winning Jenga, finishing sentences with “is my FAVORITE”, and killing spiders. Aiden is notorious for not being able to guess the endings of books and movies, and organizes their bookshelves by color.

When children go missing, people want answers. When children go missing in the small coastal town of Astoria, people look to Wendy for answers.

It’s been five years since Wendy and her two brothers went missing in the woods, but when the town’s children start to disappear, the questions surrounding her brothers’ mysterious circumstances are brought back into light. Attempting to flee her past, Wendy almost runs over an unconscious boy lying in the middle of the road, and gets pulled into the mystery haunting the town.

Peter, a boy she thought lived only in her stories, claims that if they don’t do something, the missing children will meet the same fate as her brothers. In order to find them and rescue the missing kids, Wendy must confront what’s waiting for her in the woods.

Several times, you've said that while you decided to debut with Cemetery Boys, the novel you'd originally planned first.. Lost in the Never Woods.. is an incredibly personal story for you too, would you tell us a bit about that connection?



“Cemetery Boys” is so important to me because it’s so much about my identity, but “Lost in the Never Woods” is super personal because, at its core, it’s a story about trauma. I started writing LITNW when I was first diagnosed with C-PTSD, and it was a really cathartic way of me processing my own experiences with mental health, trauma and grief. I wanted to write a book about those experiences and for others who have gone through similar experiences, especially for teens and young adults who were forced to grow up too fast and had adulthood thrust upon them.



I understand while you were an undergrad you wrote about the psychological trauma of Peter Pan and how that affected who he was. Would you mind sharing those thoughts with us?



Oh my gosh, yes! That’s where my obsession with Peter Pan started! When I first watched the 2003 Peter Pan film adaptation, at one point Peter Pan says, “I want always to be a boy, and have fun” and Wendy replies, “You say so, but I think it is your biggest pretend.” That line just STUCK with me, I rewatched the movie and then read the original book by JM Barrie. At this point I already know I wanted to double major in psychology and English so I did this deep dive and tried to figure out Peter as a character.



One of the first things I realized was that he has dissociative amnesia from a line where he states that he forgets people after he kills them. There’s really so many examples of Peter dealing with trauma, which spiraled out into me wondering what would happen to Wendy after her experiences in Neverland, and that’s how the original idea for “Lost in the Never Woods” was sparked!



I know you did a good bit of research on Mesoamerican culture for Cemetery Boys, was there any research involved for Lost in the Never Woods or is it a story purely from the heart?



I think it’s definitely both. I did a lot of literary theory research of the original Peter Pan story, and then I also brought in my personal experiences and academic research about mental health and specifically trauma. I always thought Wendy never got the story she deserved! She’s such a unique and complex character who is often overlooked by Peter’s much more dominating presence, so I wanted to give her her very own story and focus. Peter is cool, but Wendy has a really special place in my heart.



This is probably like asking you to choose between your plant children.. but who's your favorite character to write in Lost in the Never Woods.. and why?



Peter was fun to write because he’s flighty and scatter-brained, but I really enjoy the challenge of writing Wendy! It was definitely like a case study in writing about what fear and anxiety feels and affects us. She’s really complicated and going through a lot, so she’s probably the hardest character I’ve ever written, but I think I did a good job and I hope readers can connect and kind kinship with her.



Since you enjoyed Hill House (created by Mike Flanagan) and Hannibal (created by Bryan Fuller), have you checked out any creepy new shows like Flanagan's The Haunting of Bly Manor? 



YES! I thought Bly Manor was absolutely brilliant! I think I’m an outlier when I say that scary TV shows and movies are my comfort media? I’ll put on Hill House to fall asleep to all the time. Talk about a story that really explores trauma and complex characters! 



What are three songs on your playlist for Lost in the Never Woods?



Oh my gosh this is always one of my favorite questions! I have a whole dedicated playlist for “Lost in the Never Woods” which you can find (below):



But the top three songs I associate with LITNW are:
“Crime” by Grey with Skott
“Out of the Woods” by Taylor Swift
“Cardigan” by Taylor Swift

                 AUTHOR BIO


Marti Leimbach's latest novel is DRAGONFLY GIRL, a YA action/thriller about a high school girl with a gift for science who discovers a "cure" for death and ends up embroiled in an international rivalry. It is published by Harper Collins in February 2021.

Marti Leimbach is known for her bestsellers, Dying Young, made into a film starring Julia Roberts, and Daniel Isn't Talking. She is interested in neurodiversity and has shared the stage with young inventors at the Human Genome Project (Toronto), the National Autistic Society, and the University of Oxford.

She teaches on the Masters Programme in Creative Writing at the University of Oxford. Dragonfly Girl is her eighth novel, but her first for young adults.

In this spellbinding thriller and YA debut from bestselling author Marti Leimbach, Kira Adams has discovered a cure for death--and it may just cost her life.

Things aren't going well for Kira. At home, she cares for her mother and fends off debt collectors. At school, she's awkward and shy. Plus, she may flunk out if she doesn't stop obsessing about science, her passion and the one thing she's good at . . . very good at.

When she wins a prestigious science contest she draws the attention of the celebrated professor Dr. Gregory Munn (as well as his handsome assistant), leading to a part-time job in a top-secret laboratory.
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The job is mostly cleaning floors and equipment, but one night, while running her own experiment, she revives a lab rat that has died in her care.

One minute it is dead, the next it is not.

Suddenly she's the remarkable wunderkind, the girl who can bring back the dead. Everything is going her way. But it turns out that science can be a dangerous business, and Kira is swept up into a world of international rivalry with dark forces that threaten her life.

I read that you participate in the Masters Programme in Creative Writing at the University of Oxford. What motivates you to teach?


I absolutely love the students! These are often young writers at the start of their literary lives and they’ve got such enthusiasm. We teach in “residencies” throughout the academic year and I always come away from a residency fired up and freshly motivated to write, myself!


I understand your interest in neurodiversity was inspired by your experience as a mother. What do you feel is the greatest misconception or misrepresentation about neurodiversity?


People with autism or attention deficit disorder or tourettes, for example, are not massive anomalies but are part of the world, and my family is just another example of this truth. Both the family I was born into as well as my family now make up a very neurodiverse bunch. My son has taught me the most, however, because he can’t easily pass as neurotypical. Also, while he’s terrifically smart and gifted in some ways, he’s very vulnerable both socially and economically due to his autism. 
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I believe in the necessity of embracing neurodiversity, of pushing for working conditions that make it possible for a much larger range of people, especially those on the autistic spectrum. One misconception is that people with ASD aren’t able to contribute as much as a neurotypical person. That is just not the case for a number of reasons. For example, a diversity of viewpoints from differently-abled people enhance decision making at a corporate level.


What's the most interesting thing you've learned as you've developed your interest in science?


The sheer rate of change is breathtaking. If I think about the speed with which vaccinations for Covid19 were developed, for example, I get a bit teary-eyed knowing I’m witnessing a true medical miracle that will save tens of thousands of people. 


On your site, I noticed you broached the subject regarding the demographic gaps between students who enter STEM fields.. the correlations between gender, class, race and ethnicity.. and the theories about how the subconscious mechanism may trigger some students to enter other fields instead due to the persistent masculine imagery we see with science and mathematics. Did this directly influence your work on Dragonfly Girl? And were you hoping to help affect a change through your story or is that just a happy bonus to the story you wanted to tell?


I didn’t set out purposely to challenge the perception that scientific settings are the domain of white men. It was only once Kira was working after school in a laboratory that the question of demographics came up naturally. It’s as though I discovered the incredible bias inside science communities through my character. Having done that, however, I could see the value of a girl like Kira, her friend Lauren, and the women scientists in the novel in providing fictional role models for girls who may wish to study or pursue careers in STEM. Kira, herself, has role models of real life women scientists, her declared favourite being Barbara McClintock, an American scientist and cytogeneticist who was awarded the 1983 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine.


There's a recurring theme across a few of your books that centers in and around a caretaker perspective. Does that come from a personal place, like your relationship with your son or is it just a story you find yourself drawn to?


I will concede to a mild preoccupation with the role of caretakers, whether that be in a traditional manner in which we imagine caretakers, or in the way we care about each other generally. For example, in Dying Young, Hilary is in love with a young man who is foregoing treatment for a terminal condition and for whom she is sole caretaker. In Daniel Isn’t Talking, a young mother is doing her best to serve the needs of her family, especially her young son with autism, to the extent that she often neglects her own self-care. In Dragonfly Girl, Kira’s actions are highly motivated by her physical and financial responsibility to her mother, who is ill. I’ve been in two of these scenarios in my real life, so I suppose it just sticks with me.


Though Dragonfly Girl does seem to have a similar theme to your other work, I see that it's your first foray into YA. Was this your intent or did you happen to find yourself there when the story was done?


I read YA because I like it but I hadn’t imagined writing YA until I happened upon Kira’s story in Dragonfly Girl. It just came to me one day like a fully formed idea implanted in my brain. I am very excited about working in the young adult space!


What's the most important thing you'd hope readers will take with them after finishing Dragonfly Girl?


I want young people to know that they don’t have to be good at everything. You can be good at one thing and make it your life’s work. And you don’t need a million friends to be happy, either. One or two close friends is enough. If you stay true to yourself, you’ll find your tribe. Oh, and it’s from this place that true romantic love might take hold, too! 


With Dragonfly Girl releasing February 23rd and the manuscript already finished for the sequel, Academy One.. what's next for you?


While it’s true that Academy One is in a completed form, I always sit on a book for a little while to make sure it’s what I want. I’ve already decided to make two big changes in Academy One, both of which involve the love interest.


Your career is so robust after several books and over 30 years in the publishing industry. What would you tell yourself.. if you could go back to the period prior to your first novel and offer advice?


​I would tell myself to do the best with that which is under my control – writing well and consistently. I would celebrate small wins and let go of all losses. I’d insist that I took the time to make more friends with other writers, not just my students but my colleagues out there, somewhere, proofreading their galleys and trying to get noticed in such a crowded marketplace. 

The best feeling in the world is when you help another person achieve their dream of publication, or even bestseller status. I would do more of that. I would tell myself not to worry and that your readers will always find you. And some of these readers will give you some seriously excellent advice that may help you as much or more than you can imagine. There is always another book inside you. There is always another day. ​​