The Writers’ Colony at Dairy Hollow (WCDH) is pleased to announce the winners of the 2022 “Dancing in the Rain” fellowship for writers of mid-grade or young adult (YA) literature. The judges ranked the submissions of Kalena Miller highest for its literary merit and the likelihood of publication. She will receive a two-week residency at the Writers’ Colony at Dairy Hollow as well as a stipend.
Kalena Miller is a writer, teacher, editor, and scone enthusiast. She currently lives in Minnesota with her husband and lovable, if slightly neurotic, dog. When she isn't writing, Kalena enjoys tap dancing, scrapbooking, and watching an embarrassing amount of reality television. Her debut YA novel, The Night When No One Had Sex, winner of the Minnesota Book Award, is available now! Her debut middle grade novel, Shannon in the Spotlight is forthcoming from Delacorte Press (PRH) in Spring 2023. Visit her website at https://www.kalenamiller.com/ to learn more.
Miller is planning a 2023 residency when she will be working on a middle grade novel, tentatively titled Margaret Faye, Junior Bridesmaid. Titular character Margaret Faye is traveling to Palm Springs to be a Junior Bridesmaid in her cousin’s wedding. But when she finds out her other cousin, and former confidante, was invited to be a regular bridesmaid, Margaret must grapple with difficult questions of how she is perceived by others. Miller says of her project, “This middle grade novel, which will be equal parts heartfelt and comedic, explores themes of fatphobia, disordered eating, and internalized self-hatred. In a world where people (especially children!) are ostracized, ridiculed, and discriminated against for the way they look, even existing in a fat body can be a defiant act of self-love.”
The Writers’ Colony at Dairy Hollow would like to thank former Board President Peggy Kjelgaard for generously funding this fellowship. For more information about funding a fellowship, please visit https://www.writerscolony.org/product-page/fund-a-fellowship.