Justina Ireland

Justina Ireland
Justina Ireland in 2018 at the National Book Festival
Born	(1985-02-07) February 7, 1985 (age 39) French Camp, California, U.S.
Occupation	Novelist
Nationality	American
Education	Armstrong Atlantic State University (BA) Hamline University (MFA)
Genre	Science fiction Young Adult
Website
justinaireland.com

Justina Ireland (born February 7, 1985)^[1] is an American science fiction and fantasy author of young adult fiction and former editor-in-chief of the FIYAH Literary Magazine.^{[2][3][4][5][6]} She received the 2018 World Fantasy Award for Non-Professional Work.^[7] Her New York Times bestselling novel Dread Nation won the 2019 Locus Award, and was nominated for the Andre Norton, Bram Stoker, and Lodestar Awards.^[8]

As a teen, Ireland had aspirations to become a historian. She enlisted in the military at nineteen, where she would serve as an Arabic linguistics expert.^[5] Now based in York, Pennsylvania, she works for the U.S. Navy as a director of logistics and weapon-systems support, and teaches creative writing at York College of Pennsylvania, where she is an adjunct lecturer in the department of Communication and Writing.^[9][5]

Ireland holds a BA in History from Armstrong Atlantic State University and an MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults from Hamline University, where she wrote a thesis on "microaggressions in children’s literature".^[10][5] She is currently pursuing her PhD in English Literature.^[5]

Ireland is known for writing strong female characters, and for addressing issues of race, class, power, misogyny, sexism, and colorism in her fiction.^[11][12]

Her best-known novel, Dread Nation, is an alternate history set in 19th century U.S. In this timeline, the Civil War ends when zombies emerge from their graves at Gettysburg. The enslaved are then freed, but Black and Indigenous children are then trained to fight the undead and protect the nation. The main character, Jane McKeene, is a biracial teen sent to a prestigious combat school where she trains in hopes of being assigned to a wealthy white family.^[13]

Dread Nation received largely positive reviews that praised Ireland for her skillful approach to dealing with difficult issues related to slavery and its legacy. Kirkus Reviews wrote, "With a shrewd, scythe-wielding protagonist of color, Dread Nation is an exciting must-read."^[14] School Library Journal, in their review, stated, "Ireland skillfully works in the different forms of enslavement, mental and physical, into a complex and engaging story" and declared that the novel is "A perfect blend of horrors real and imagined".^[15] Alex Brown of Tor.com wrote, "Dread Nation is the perfect example of why we need more diversity in the YA author pool. Only a Black American woman could write Dread Nation."

Ireland is known as an outspoken advocate for diversifying YA literature.^[5][16] Lila Shapiro, in a 2018 article in New York, called her "YA Twitter’s Leading Warrior."^[5] She has been vocal about the need for more authors of color, and stories that feature characters of color in YA literature.

Ireland is also the founder of Writing in the Margins, an organization that provides mentorship to writers from historically marginalized groups.^[2]

Ireland is married and has a child. The family lives together in York, Pennsylvania.^[17][5]

This list is incomplete; you can help by adding missing items. (July 2022)

• —— (2013). Vengeance Bound. Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers. ISBN 9781442444621.
• —— (2014). Promise of Shadows. Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers. ISBN 9781442444645.
• —— (2018). Scream Site. Capstone Editions. ISBN 9781630791025.
• —— (2021). Ophie's Ghosts. Balzer + Bray. ISBN 9780062915894.
• —— (2022). Rust in the Root. Balzer + Bray. ISBN 9780063038226.

• —— (2018). Dread Nation. Balzer + Bray. ISBN 9780062570604.
• —— (2020). Deathless Divide. Balzer + Bray. ISBN 9780062570635.
• —— (2020). Three for the Road: Stories from Dread Nation. ASIN B08JLC2V1Q.
  • "Dread South" (2017)
  • "Letters From Home" (2018)
  • "Dread Quarter" (2020)

• —— (2017). Evie Allen vs. the Quiz Bowl Zombies. Stone Arch Books. ISBN 9781496549884.
• —— (2017). Jeff Allen vs. the Time Suck Vampire. Stone Arch Books. ISBN 9781496549860.
• —— (2017). Tiffany Donovan vs. the Cookie Elves of Destruction. Stone Arch Books. ISBN 9781496549877.
• —— (2017). Zach Lopez vs. the Unicorns of Doom. Stone Arch Books. ISBN 9781496549891.
• —— (2018). Tiffany Donovan vs. the Poison Werewolves. Stone Arch Books. ISBN 9781496565259.
• —— (2018). Zach Lopez vs. the Shadow Cats. Stone Arch Books. ISBN 9781496565242.

• —— (2018). Star Wars: Lando's Luck. Disney Lucasfilm Press. ISBN 9781368041508.

• —— (2019). Spark of the Resistance. Disney Lucasfilm Press. ISBN 9781368050814.

• Light of the Jedi Series
  • —— (2021). A Test of Courage. Disney Lucasfilm Press. ISBN 9781368057301.
  • —— (2021). Out of the Shadows. Disney Lucasfilm Press. ISBN 9781368060653.
  • —— (2022). Mission to Disaster. Disney Lucasfilm Press. ISBN 9781368068000.
• Starlight:
  • —— (2021). "Hidden Danger Part 2". Star Wars Insider: The High Republic – Starlight Stories. Disney Lucasfilm Press. ISBN 9781787738652.
  • —— (2021). The Edge of Balance Vol. 1. Viz Media. ISBN 9781974725885.
  • —— (2022). Path of Deceit. Disney Lucasfilm Press. ISBN 9781368076128.

• Official website
• Writing in the Margins official website