About our collective
The MN BIPOC Kidlit Creators is a group of Minnesota-based writers and illustrators of color who stand in solidarity on issues pertaining to the BIPOC community in children’s and young adult literature and publishing.
MN BIPOC Kidlit Creators:
Serves as a collective that can speak on behalf of its members
Mutually shares opportunities
Is a connected network
Advocates for one another and promotes each other’s work
Our Founder
Anika Fajardo was born in Colombia and raised in Minnesota. Her debut middle-grade novel What If a Fish (Simon & Schuster, 2020) was awarded the 2021 Minnesota Book Award. Her latest book for young readers, Meet Me Halfway (Simon & Schuster, 2022), is a finalist for the 2023 Minnesota Book Award. She is also the author of Magical Realism for Non-Believers: A Memoir of Finding Family (University of Minnesota Press, 2019), which was awarded Best Book (Nonfiction) of 2020 from City Pages and was a finalist for the 2020 Minnesota Book Award. Fajardo also wrote Encanto: A Tale of Three Sisters, the middle-grade tie-in novel for the Disney film Encanto and The Many Mothers of Dolores Moore. Her short YA fiction is forthcoming in Boundless: Twenty Voices Celebrating Multicultural and Multiracial Identities. She teaches creative writing at Augsburg University’s MFA program, and lives with her family in Minneapolis.
Anika Fajardo
Schedule a visit, book an event, or host a BIPOC Author!
Find a local author of color for your school, group, or other event:
Picture book authors/illustrators
Picture books are for readers of all ages but most popular with young children.
Chapter book authors
These short stories are for emerging readers who are ready for books with fewer pictures.
Middle-grade authors
Novels for ages 8-12 contain plenty of adventure, growth, and friendship.
YA authors
For ages 13 and up, young adult fiction is written for teens.
Adult authors
Many of our children’s authors also write books for adults including fiction, nonfiction, and poetry.
Learn more about hosting an author visit
The authors and other creators in this collective are also available to serve on panels, judge contests, and speak at conferences. Please reach out to individual authors or contact us.
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