Middle Grade Matters

[Listen Again] Ep. 21: Jessica Vitalis (Coyote Queen) on Crafting Stories from Personal Experiences

Shannon Balloon

On this Episode, Jessica Vitalis shares her thirteen-year journey to becoming a published author. Her latest novel, Coyote Queen, is a Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection, a Kirkus Best Middle Grade Book of 2023, and it received a starred review from School Library Journal. 

Books mentioned in this episode include:

  • Coyote Queen, by Jessica Vitalis
  • The Wolf's Curse,  by Jessica Vitalis
  • The Rabbit's Gift, by Jessica Vitalis
  • Story Engineering, by Larry Brooks
  • A Monster Calls, by Patrick Ness
  • A Bridge to Terabithia, by Katherine Paterson
  • Attack of the Black Rectangles, by A.S. King


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