Meet the authors of the ten books shortlisted for the 2012 Teen Reader’s Choice Award. The award winner will be announced on 29 May 2012.

This year’s contending novels include a New York Times bestselling tale of addiction; a dystopian novel written in the voice of 16-year-old Katniss Everdeen, who lives in the future, post-apocalyptic nation of Panem; and an unforgettable novel of a childhood in a sleepy Southern town.

Ellen Hopkins author of Crank

Ellen Hopkins began her writing career in 1990 with nonfiction books for children. She has since written several verse novels exposing teenage struggles such as drug addiction and mental illness. Crank is based on the real-life experiences of her daughter, Cristal, and her addiction to methamphetamine that began at the age of seventeen.

Hopkins currently lives with her family in Carson City, Nevada, where she has founded Ventana Sierra, a nonprofit youth housing and resource initiative. You can follow Ellen on Twitter.

Jeff Kinney author of Diary of a Wimpy Kid

Jeff Kinney was born in 1971 in Maryland and attended the University of Maryland in the early 1990s. It was there that he ran a comic strip called “Igdoof” in the campus newspaper, and realized that he wanted to be a cartoonist. In 1998 Jeff came up with the idea for Diary of a Wimpy Kid, a story about a middle-school weakling named Greg Heffley. Jeff worked on his book for almost eight years before showing it to a publisher in New York. The rest, as they say, is history!

Jeff currently lives with his wife and two sons in Massachusetts. You can learn more about Jeff and his books at https://wimpykid.com/

J. K. Rowling author of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

Joanne Rowling was born on 31st July 1965 at Yate General Hospital near Bristol, and grew up in England and Wales. According to Joanne, she grew up surrounded by books. “I lived for books,’’ she has said. “I was your basic common-or-garden bookworm, complete with freckles and National Health spectacles.”

Jo conceived the idea of Harry Potter in 1990 while sitting on a delayed train from Manchester to London King’s Cross. Over the next five years, she began to map out all seven books of the series.

The Harry Potter novels have now sold over 450 million copies worldwide and been translated into 77 languages. Rowling has been married to Dr Neil Murray since 2001. They live in Edinburgh with their son, David (born 2003) and daughter, Mackenzie (born 2005). You can visit Rowling online at https://www.jkrowling.com/

Gary Paulsen author of Hatchet

Born May 17, 1939, Gary Paulsen is an American writer of young adult literature, best known for coming of age stories about the wilderness. Although he was never a dedicated student, Paulsen developed a passion for reading at an early age. After a librarian gave him a book to read — along with his own library card — he was hooked.

Running away from home at the age of fourteen and traveling with a carnival, Paulsen acquired a taste for adventure. He is currently the author of more than 200 books and has written more than 200 magazine articles and short stories, and several plays, all primarily for teenagers. You can follow Gary on Facebook and Twitter.

Suzanne Collins author of The Hunger Games

Suzanne Collins, author of the groundbreaking Hunger Games, was born on August 10, 1962, in Hartford, Connecticut. She is also the author of the New York Times bestselling Underland Chronicles series for middle grade readers. With her husband Charles, Collins has two children, Charlie and Isabella. Her books have sold over 100 million copies worldwide. You can find her online at www.suzannecollinsbooks.com.

Harper Lee author of To Kill a Mockingbird

Nelle Harper Lee was born on April 28, 1926, the youngest of four children. She grew up in Monroeville, a small town in southwest Alabama where her father was a lawyer who also served in the state legislature from 1926–1938. After graduating from high school in 1944, she attended Huntingdon College in Montgomery for a year, then transferred to the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa, where she studied law for several years and wrote for the university newspaper. Her novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, became an instant bestseller and won the 1961 Pulitzer Prize.

Rick Riordan author of The Lightning Thief

Richard Russell Riordan Jr. was born and raised in San Antonio, Texas. He graduated from Alamo Heights High School, and studied English and History at the University of Texas in Austin; he received his teaching certification in those subjects from the University of Texas in San Antonio. He taught English and Social Studies for eight years at Presidio Hill School in San Francisco. His big breakthrough was The Lightning Thief (2005), the first novel in the five-volume Percy Jackson series, which placed a group of adolescents in a Greco-Roman mythological setting.

Rick currently lives in Boston, Massachusetts with his wife and two sons. You can find him online at http://rickriordan.com/

S. E. Hinton author of The Outsiders

Susan Eloise Hinton was born in Tulsa, Oklahoma. She is a voracious reader who loves horse-back riding; she has shown both jumping and dressage.

The Outsiders, which she wrote during high school, was published in 1967 by Viking. Hinton is credited with introducing the Young Adult genre and in 1988 received the inaugural Margaret Edwards Award from the American Library Association for her cumulative contribution in writing for teens. Learn more about S. E. Hinton by visiting http://www.sehinton.com/

Jay Asher author of Thirteen Reasons Why

Jay Asher was born in Arcadia, California, on September 30, 1975. He attended Cuesta Community College and later California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo where he left during his junior year in order to pursue his career as a writer. He spent years trying to kick-start a career writing children’s picture books and has worked in various establishments, including an independent bookstore, an outlet bookstore, a chain bookstore, and two public libraries. When he is not writing, Jay plays guitar and goes camping.

You can visit Asher online at http://jayasher.blogspot.com/

Stephenie Meyer author of Twilight

Stephenie Meyer is an American novelist who, as a child, was an avid reader. She attended Brigham Young University, marrying at the age of twenty-one, before graduating with a degree in English in 1997. With no prior experience as an author, the idea for the Twilight series was conjured in a dream she had about a handsome male vampire in love with a human girl.

She lives in Arizona with her husband and sons. You can follow news and updates about Stephenie at https://stepheniemeyer.com/