I want a little black girl to pick up my book one day and see herself as the star. I want her to know that she's beautiful, and she matters, and she can have a crazy, magical adventure even if an ignorant part of the world tells her she can never be Hermione Granger.

What's demanded from us black creatives is both a blessing and a curse, because it pushes you to be your absolute best. You cannot be anything less.

As writers, our craft makes us sit alone at a desk and hammer away at our novel. Doing that day in and day out makes it really easy to forget that there's a whole community of writers out there, and they love contributing to other writers' success!

My very first story, I was around 5, and I really just wrote myself. When I was 5, I loved myself so much I gave myself a twin named Tomi. Everything started out fine. But then I didn't write another black character until I was 18.

Love is too strong, too intense, for what I feel. For what I am allowed to feel.

I didn't say I have to be a writer, but I did say that I needed to publish at least one book.

In terms of people who want to be writers, I wish more people knew how much work it was.

You carry all of us in your heart. We shall live in every breath you take. Every incantation you speak.

The YA author community is generally pretty friendly, and they care.

I spent 12 years of my life writing stories without black people. That's insane to me. It's insane that I could have believed in magical portals and dragons and all that stuff, but to believe a black person could be experiencing those things was unimaginable.

Despite all the pain he caused, I didn't know how to breathe without my brother in this world.

I want to give something to the world that I feel I missed out on as a child, and I want to help people of all races, ethnicities, and orientations understand that no matter what differences we may think we have, everyone is a human, and everyone deserves to be respected and valued.

At every writers' conference, you have the opportunity to hear from best-selling authors, top literary agents, and excellent editors who will demystify the publishing industry and give you great advice, no matter where you are in your writing career or what you're currently struggling with.

Each maji was born with white hair, the sign of the gods' touch.

We like epic stories, we like adventure, we like epic fights, so if you can mix a great story that can also really teach someone about a different experience, you have the potential to really help people.

Courage does not always roar. Valor does not always shine.

Not like that, Na'imah instructs, shaking her head so hard that a shower of orange flower petals fall from her curls. Dragonflies orbit her head as she repositions a maji's hands around her cheetanaire's temples. Feel the connection.

You can make something out of every unfinished story and every rejection if you work at it.

It's not about creating something that eight billion people would like. It's about creating something and being able to reach the maybe, like, one million people that would like it a lot.

There's so much talk of representation in politics and entertainment -- it's everywhere -- but I didn't realize representation was important until really my senior year of high school.