The Night When No One Had Sex by Kalena Miller

Since the onset of the pandemic in early 2020, virtually everything about our lives has changed in some way. In particular, I’m super grateful the creative writing programs at Hamline University and the Loft Literary Center in Minneapolis, where I’ve met and worked with some wonderful people who have shaped my own writing in immeasurable ways. There are so many brilliant, thoughtful, and generous creative people in this state, and I feel immensely lucky that I get to learn from them and their work.

I attended college and graduate school in Minnesota, and I moved back a few years ago partly because I missed the incredible writing community here. If this sentiment rings true for you, what about our home state makes it such a welcoming and conducive place for writers? Minnesota enjoys a reputation as a place that values literature and reading. Share your work when you’re comfortable and embrace feedback! Publishing is slow and stressful and disheartening, so having the right people in your corner makes all the difference! Take every opportunity to develop your craft, whether it’s a workshop or a conference or a seminar. Connect with other writers on social media, in critique groups, and in your local community. Read a dozen YA books that have been published in the past few years. What advice would you give to an aspiring writer with an interest in your category? It’s okay to embrace that messiness and cut yourself some slack. If readers are in the mood to take something away from this novel, I hope it’s the assurance that they *don’t* need to have everything figured out by age eighteen or twenty-five or seventy-five. I want teens to have fun, connect with these characters, and maybe possibly forget about the chaos of the world for a few hours. Honestly, I intended this story to be an escapist read. What do you hope that your audience learns or takes away from your book? It was a challenge with four different points of view, but I love hearing from readers about which characters they loved the most or related to on a deeper level. I think I’m most proud of the humor and the voice in this book. The Night When No One Had Sex is my debut YA novel! It’s a sex-positive, all-in-one-night romp featuring a rotating cast of characters, a zany group chat, and multiple cats (obviously).

Would you tell us one or two things about your finalist book that you are particularly proud of, and why?

The Night When No One Had Sex by Kalena Miller