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Wendy Lu

@wendyluwrites

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Middle-grade author of CASTING APRIL 🎭 (@knopfyoungreaders, 6/16/26)
Editor focusing on disability @nytimes
Rep’d by Abigail Frank @greenburgerkids

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🚑🪴Need plant help?!

Join us at the LAST NYC Plant Market at @culturelablic on Sunday, October 18

Plant Clinic is a free service for NYC plant parents! Best part? The admission is FREE! Drop any Q’s you may have below!

See you there!

#plantdaddymd #nycplants #thingstodonyc #nycevent #plantdoctor

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Join A4 for our November Town Hall, which will be centered on creative writing and gather writers of all genres to share their work and knowledge with each other and the wider AAPI community.⁠
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Featured presenters include @ashathanki, who will present on how narration can be a political tool, as seen in her debut novel, “A Thousand Times Before,” winner of the 2025 Balcones Prize and named one of the best books of 2024 by NPR and The Boston Globe.⁠
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We’ll also hear from @wendyluwrites, an award-winning journalist who will present on her debut novel, “Casting April,” and the importance of disability representation in youth literature. “Casting April” was selected for the Indie Next List and Indies Introduce, and was called “one of the best surprises of 2026.”⁠
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🎟️ RSVP is required via our website #linkinbio⁠
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📅 11/10, 6:30–8:30pm⁠
📍 @primeproduce⁠

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On Sept. 10, AAJA New York hosted its first panel focused on social media and journalism at @adelphiu Manhattan Center. “Journalists in the Influencer Age: Navigating Storytelling on Social Media” featured @malikaburievaatabeg, Adelphi professor and content creator; @azaxdeh, founder and editor-in-chief @envimediaco; and @siruihua, Head of Audience and Analytics @nowthis. The panel explored how Instagram, Reels, and other social platforms have increasingly become go-to places for audiences to discover and engage with news.

Speakers shared practical strategies for translating reporting into formats such as carousels and short-form video, using analytics to better understand audiences, and creating content that can capture attention without sacrificing substance.
One of the biggest takeaways was that journalists do not need to become influencers to succeed on social media. Instead, speakers emphasized finding formats that feel natural to their voice, staying grounded in journalistic values, and building trust with audiences through consistency and authenticity.

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✨YA & MIDDLE GRADE FAVORITES✨ I’ve read a bunch of YA and Middle Grade books this year, and I’ve been blown away again and again by the depth and quality of these stories.

One of my favorite parts of YA and MG lit is that there’s often more clear themes and character development. Not only is the author entertaining us, they’re trying to teach us something about growing up and what it means to be human. I know— this is the point of all fiction. But for some reason, it just hits differently for me. And when the world is feeling horrible, I know I can always turn to YA and MG for some hope.

So, here are (a sampling of) the young adult and middle grade books I’ve loved this year. I highly recommend them! In fact, I have recommended them already to a bunch of students— from my superspeed readers to my reluctant readers— there’s something for everyone here.

💬TELL ME: what are YOUR ya and middle grade recommendations? I need all the book recs, please! Especially paranormal. ⬇️⬇️⬇️
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#bookstagram #bookstagrammer #bookrecommendations #youngadult #yabookstagram

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Emmy Rossum (@emmy) and Steve Way (@thesteveway) gave warm introductions to our feature film @take_me_home_film written/directed by @lizziesarge premiering @ifccenter. Thank you all for using your voices to help amplify our film!

“I was on set of [the feature film] Take Me Home for one day... And yet the access was impeccable. … Because of the accessibility to the highest level, I was able to do my job to the best of my ability.” - Steve Way (@thesteveway)

Access isn’t a bonus, it’s what lets people do their best work.

The chocolate chip and snickerdoodle cookies at our IFC Center Q&A came from our partner Invictus Bakery (@invictusbakery), a Brooklyn bakery creating a reimagined future with employment for all. Visit them in Brooklyn!!! 🍪

Take Me Home is at IFC Center (@ifccenter) through Tuesday, 9/29. Link in bio!
& LA we’re on the way to you next week!

Wendy Lu (@wendyluwrites) of The New York Times (@nytimes) moderated a great panel with Liz Sargent (@lizziesarge), Ali Ahn (@aliahn), and Lydia Storie (@lydiastorie). Photo/Video by @e.lin_____

Take Me Home is at IFC Center through Tuesday, 9/29. Quote graphic over a photo taken at IFC Center. Text reads: "The portrayal of disability on screen [in this film] has been taken to new heights and has now set a new standard for what disabled performers are capable of." - Steve Way. Below the text, a woman with dark curly hair and red lipstick crouches on the left, smiling and looking toward Steve Way, who sits in a power wheelchair on the right wearing glasses, a plaid shirt, and a nasal cannula, with a microphone positioned near his mouth. Logos for IFC Center, Willa, and Give Not Take Media appear on the image.

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Bachelorette party scenes at @publichotels and beyond ❤️ planned and perfected by the best maid of honor @akandez

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What advice would you give to your younger self?

In this clip, author Wendy Lu @wendyluwrites shares a reminder that I think all young people need to hear: believe in yourself, and surround yourself with people who believe in you too.

Watch more of my conversation with Wendy about her writing, disability representation, and the stories she hopes to share with young readers in the link in bio

#WendyLu #AuthorInterview #BelieveInYourself #YoungReaders #ReadWithVal

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Looking for feminist middle grade books that tackle big topics with humor, thrill, and heart? I’ve got you covered! Check out these 8 titles (on shelves now!) for the young reader in your life:

💙RAYANA JOHNSON’S GIANT LEAP by Jill Tew @jtewwrites
💙JUST ASK ELSIE by Ari Koontz @ari.koontz
💙THE GINGHAMS by TC Kemper @tckemperwrites
💙DRESS CODED by Carrie Firestone @carriefirestone
💙WHEN YOU’RE BRAVE ENOUGH by Rebecca Bendheim @rebeccabendheim
💙FREE PERIOD by Ali Terese @alitereseauthor
💙CASTING APRIL by Wendy Lu @wendyluwrites
💙THE TROUBLED GIRLS OF DRAGOMIR ACADEMY by Anne Ursu @anneelizabethursu

And remember, feminism is about equality, and it includes all genders. 💙

#middlegradebooks #bookrec #bookstagram #feministreads #kidlit Looking for feminist middle grade fiction? 8 titles to add to your TBR

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I thoroughly enjoyed listening to Casting April by Wendy Lu and narrated by Sunny Lu! Hand this to your theatre loving kids or students who are interested in a story about pursuing your passion even when it is challenging.

I can't recall ever reading a book with a character that uses a trach tube. I learned a lot about what day-to-day life is like for April.

I thought it was cool to see a middle grade book with a character that has my name! I also love the cover - it is perfect!

Publisher's Summary:
Sixth grader April Xue lives and breathes all things Broadway. When she builds up the courage to audition for the lead role in the school play, she thinks she's knocked it out of the park — until she finds out that she's been assigned to the stage crew. April is devastated—it seems like the curtain is closing on her dream of being an actor.

A day later, April overhears that the theater director, Ms. Rooney, decided not to cast her because she's disabled. With the help of her best friend, a sneaky student reporter, and her spirited castmates, April learns to confront her own insecurities as a performer and proves to everyone (including Ms. Rooney) that she deserves a fair shot — all in time for opening night.

#castingapril #theatre #middlegradefiction #theaterkids #mglit

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Back-to-school season calls for some exciting new books for 5th graders! Whether your kids love robot books, mysteries, friendship stories or fantasy, there’s something for them on this list.

Comment 5TH or FIFTH below and I’ll send you a link to check out the full post.

#middlegradebooks #elementarylibrarian #middleschoollibrary #mglit #elementarylibrary

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Having a rough summer, medically speaking 😮‍💨 so I haven’t been able to read as much as I’d like. But the books I have managed to read are phenomenal!! 🥰

🏡➡️🛌 I’ve been housebound for the past few years and have become mostly bedbound due to several chronic illnesses escalating in severity.

I am doing what I can, and making peace with all I can’t do right now. 🪽

Very grateful for the accessibility of audiobooks when I can tolerate sound and mentally retain plot 🙏🏼 💞 📚

#bookstagram #bookreviews #disabilityrepresentation #queerbooks

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Stopped by the lovely @parnassusbooks to sign copies of #RavenRising while road-tripping today! I also signed my short story, Momentum, in #LegendaryFrybreadDriveIn!

Grab your signed edition and check out some of these delightful titles while you’re there!

#author #CherokeeAuthor #middlegrade

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