LORI ANN STEPHENS
Author
literary fiction ~ young adult ~ thriller ~ middle grade
ABOUT MY Work
I grew up in North Texas, where I developed an addiction to the arts. My award-winning work has been published in Glimmer Train Stories, The Chicago Tribune, the English National Opera, and other places. Texas, my home state, usually finds its way into my work, as well as girls who fight back, southern beasts, and gentle boys. I’m a novelist, short story writer, librettist, and university Teaching Professor.
BLUE RUNNING
Fourteen-year-old Bluebonnet Andrews is on the run across the Republic of Texas. An accident with a gun killed her best friend but everyone in the town of Blessing thinks it was murder. Even her father – the town’s drunken deputy – believes she did it. Now, she has no choice but to run. In Texas, murder is punishable by death.
On the road she meets Jet, a pregnant young woman of Latin American heritage. Jet is secretive about her past but she’s just as determined as Blue to get out of Texas before she’s caught and arrested. Together, the two form an unlikely kinship as they make their way past marauding motorcycle gangs, the ever watchful Texas Rangers, and armed strangers intent on abducting them – or worse. When Blue and Jet finally reach the wall, will they be able to cross the border, or will they be shot down in cold blood like the thousands who have gone before them?
Some things are worth dying for.
REVIEWS FOR BLUE RUNNING
“Stephens manages to take the classic thriller style… and melds it with a heartfelt coming of age story. The end result of this can only be described as one of the most nail-biting depictions of adolescence I’ve ever read.” Glassworks review“Gripping” ~ THE GUARDIANBook of the Month ~ THE INDEPENDENT & THEFT“Brilliant” ~ HEAT MAGAZINE“A book for teenage or adult alike, the author doesn’t spare the reader as she paints a vivid picture of what could so easily be in the near future. As well as a darn good read, this book gets you thinking about some of the hot topics facing America today - racism, treatment of illegal immigrants, fundamentalism, family relationships, and of course guns, to name only a few - within a fast-paced story that races along, and stays with you long after you’ve finished it.” ~ THE AMERICAN magazine“Prepare for your socks to be well and truly knocked off long before reaching the end of this explosive novel.” ~ BOOKS FOR KEEPS
NOVALEE AND THE SPIDER SECRET
Novalee starts the fourth grade determined to not just make friends but to change herself from boring Nova into super Nova. Her mom finds her grandfather's violin, and Nova decides to take lessons. It seems to work as Nova finds acceptance for her growing skill. But her world soon tumbles out of control when her violin teacher does something that threatens her universe: he kisses her. She makes an unlikely friendship with a fellow outcast, Toby, who helps her find the courage, voice, and persistence to confront the spider secret.
REVIEWS FOR NOVALEE
Lovely…such a different, profound story. Nova is so charming and has her young-person quirks, but is also so real and sweet and (at times, understandably) sad. You can really feel her sense of yearning. ~Samantha Mabry, Tigers, Not Daughters and All the Wind in the World (Longlisted for the National Book Award)“Read Novalee and the Spider Secret. The narrative is easily accessible to all ages and provides an engaging story with takeaways for everyone. If you like the way Perks of Being a Wallflower plays out, Nova’s story will similarly enrapture you. Stephens manages to capture the balance between a story its young audience can digest, while also presenting timely commentary on heavy issues. Nova’s spider secret is universal, a web of silence our society has been stuck in for far too long; stuck in the web, children and adults aren’t so different. The book empowers and enlightens, and Nova’s narrative voice makes it all a poignant experience.” GLASSWORKS
SOME ACT OF VISION
After a lifetime of ballet lessons, Jordan Walker has landed the principal role in Romeo and Juliet. But on opening night, a devastating earthquake triggered by local fracking activity tears apart the city. The Walker family survive, but awaken the next morning utterly changed. When a group of violent men with military ties descends on them, Jordan and her family must flee the wreckage of their hometown in search of a safer, anonymous existence. Without her friends and dance, Jordan’s very identity slips away. It isn’t until she befriends a blind musician that she dares to hope again. But hope, and acts of vision, can be dangerous.
REVIEWS FOR SOME ACT OF VISION
YA winner of the National Readers’ Choice Award, YA (Romance Writers of America)"A gripping and enchanting tale of love and discovery. I want more!" ~Amy Plum, international bestselling author of the Die for Me series"This was a great read, pulling the reader in from the very beginning... I was on pins and needles waiting for the shoe to drop because an invisible existence is one that, at some point, must be found out." - A Book Vacation
PIERRE FRANÇOIS: 5TH GRADE MISHAPS
Ten-year-old Pierre François--otherwise known as Pierre the Fantastic Flying Fish and Pierre the Genius Brain--is an expert at signing his school papers with original names. He's also good at extolling the greatness of France, using weird words like "extolling," dissecting owl vomit, and avoiding The Stinky Chair in math class. What he's not good at is a foolproof bladder. Accidents happen, although this is Top Secret information. So when it's time for the entire fifth grade to go to Adventure Camp, a two-night trip in the wilderness, Pierre would rather complain about the fifth grade meanies, dream of mastering the spelling bee with Jedi skills, and devise ways to meet the fascinating new girl in school. But Adventure Camp is coming for him, along with a wet and icy cold front. Can Pierre muster all his courage and wit to survive nature's onslaught of ice, rain, and other liquid fiascos?
REVIEWS FOR PIERRE FRANÇOIS
“A winning protagonist and a charming setting.” ~ KIRKUS Reviews“Pierre Francois navigates the wacky wilds of 5th grade with inventiveness and flair. Funny, smart, and heartwarming, Pierre is an endearing character whose honest awareness of his strengths and challenges will have young readers cheering him on.” ~Kevin Emerson, Last Day on Mars“Pierre Francois: Fifth Grade Mishaps is the charming tale of a French/American boy trying to navigate the baffling social currents of fifth grade. Boys and girls alike will be able to relate to Pierre’s humorous misadventures at school, and they will be rooting for him to triumph over the challenges he faces in spending two nights away at Adventure Camp.” ~Polly Holyoke, author of Texas Bluebonnet Award Nominee The Neptune Project and The Neptune Challenge“Overall, the lively writing, childish preoccupation with body smells and fluids, good-natured cast of characters, and whimsical drawings combine to create an entertaining story with the underlying theme of inclusivity.” ~ Carol Michaels for IndieReader
SONG OF THE ORANGE MOONS
A mosaic of stories that follow the intertwined lives of three girls coming of age. Two young girls from Jewish and Christian families and their elderly widow next door try to find happiness in a seemingly cruel world. In spite of their different cultural and economic backgrounds, Rebecka, Helen, and Adelle all share the delicate and self-conscious journey to womanhood. In their search for they find lasting strength in the power of their friendships.
Praise For SONG OF THE ORANGE MOONS
“The mark of a well-written book is layers: “It sounded good, but there was a threat behind her words.” To be clear, after a quotation such as that, Song of the Orange Moons is not a thriller—except in the way that all coming-of-age stories are scary and exhilarating—but there is an intensity behind each of author Lori Ann Stephens’s carefully chosen words that makes this short yet still sprawling history of three females so enjoyable to read.” ~ RAIN TAXI““Just as one music note depends on another to form a beautiful song, so do the characters in Song of the Orange Moons. The melodically written novel is a mosaic of stories about three women searching for the meaning of life-Is it everlasting love? Is it religion? Is it family? A story about every woman's longing-and her desire to belong-Rebecka, Helen, and Adelle find strength in the power of their friendship.” ~ PLANO MAGAZINE“Stephens's small-scale debut captures several facets of adolescence from three overlapping perspectives. Rebecka, a passionate girl struggling to escape her parents' poor marriage, relays an impressionistic story of alienation. Helen, her misfit best friend, desperately seeks to connect with others—literally, by secretly touching them; and Adelle, an older, neighboring widow, watches over Rebecka and Helen and shares memories of her own brutal childhood. Alternating among these three voices, which eventually become entwined, Stephens creates a strictly personal portrait of longing and discovery.… Small, acute observations (a professor with "walnuts for knuckles") and intimate encounters are Stephens's strengths, and readers will appreciate the rare friendships that bring comfort after hardship. (Nov.) ~ PUBLISHERS WEEKLY“Nuanced and lovely, written in the pitch-perfect voice of a narrator aching for a self, Song of the Orange Moons is an enchanting debut novel from an exciting new writer.” ~ Robert Olen Butler, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of A Good Scent from a Strange Mountain
University Page
Contact Me:
I'm available for workshops and book club visits. Workshops for schools or private events last from 1 1/2 hours to 4 hours and are tailored for middle-school age through adults. Workshops range from $450-$900. Private virtual book club visits are generally free, based on availability and book purchases. Link below.
EVENTS & APPEARANCES
Little Things in 2024-25
One of my favorite comedic short stories was republished in Doubleback Review. “The Epidural” was previously performed at Arts & Letters Live in Dallas in their Texas Bound series.WOMEN TAKE THE CONN
Spring 2024 is also saw the release of Women Take the Conn, an anthology of essays on the women of Star Trek. I have a little chapter on a marvelous character, Elaan of Troyius (a Helen of Troy type). Click here to get your copy.2025 APPEARANCESMarsh 28, 2025: Keller Remote WritersApril 2, 2025: Dallas Literary Festival2024 APPEARANCESSeptember 14, 2024: Trinity River BookfestSeptember 28, 2024: Leaves Bakery and Books, Ft. Worth 12:30-3PM.November 2, 2024: Arlington Public Library’s Indie Author Book Festival, 11 AM-2PM2023 APPEARANCES
July 17, 2023: Speaker at Writers Guild of Texas (WGT), 7 PM At the Richardson Public Library.June 25, 2023: Leaves Tea and Book Shop “Afternoon with Authors”, 2 PM
120 St. Louis Ave., #101 Fort Worth, TX.July 8, 2023: LITGOGGLE: A Festival of Writing and Ideas, at Leaves Tea and Book Shop, 3 PMApril 9, 2023: Half-Price Books, 1-3 PM Dallas Flagship location: 5803 E NW Hwy, Dallas, TX 75231March 30, 2023: Special Guest Author, Friends of the Kaufman County Library 21st Book & Author Event, 11 AMMarch 23, 2023: Visiting Author with the National English Honor SocietyMarch 2, 2023: LitTalk, "Creative Writing Feeds on Risk" 7 PM at Whose Books - 1300 S Polk St, Unit 267, Dallas, TX 75224February 15-18, 2023: CCCC in Chicago2022 APPEARANCES
March 19, 2022. 6 PM. Tables of Content, hosted by the Friends of SMU Libraries, Southern Methodist University, Dallas, Texas.March 18-22, 2022. Dallas Literary Festival, Dallas, Texas.
Librettist: a writer who creates the words, story, and lyrics for musical theater works like operas, operettas, or musicals.
HOW DO YOU BECOME A LIBRETTIST?
The short answer is: I have no idea. You write some lyrics and then you’re audacious enough to share them publicly and, if you’re lucky, a composer sees what you’ve done and commissions work. Volia! You’re a librettist.For me, it was luck. I used to write songs when I was child and perform them for my mother, but that was the extent of my song-writing experience. In 2012, I was procrastinating drafting my novel chapter and scrolling on Twitter when I ran across a call for entries into the English National Opera Miniopera contest, judged by Jeremy Sams and a well-known author.In the surprise of the century, I won. You can read about my adventure here on my now-retired blogger site.Once I won, several composers wrote to me to ask for a libretto for their work. On another old Blogger post, you can read about one opera scene that I wrote for the talented Charlie McCarron. It was performed live by the Opera on Tap singers in Minneapolis, and later performed by the stunning opera singers at SMU.I worked with another composer shortly after that. Évariste, a short original opera about the 19th century mathematician Évariste Galois, debuted in London’s Courtauld Gallery in July 2015. Two more performances were part of London’s Tête-à-Tête Opera Festival. The composer, Helgi Ingavarrson, currently resides in Iceland:“Évariste, composed by Helgi R. Ingvarsson, is a re-enactment of the life of French mathematics genius Évariste Galois. It depicts his struggles with love interest Stéphanie and his failed examination at the Polytechnique institute. Choral scholar Jonathan Hyde gives a heart-breaking performance as the vulnerable and obsessive Évariste with soaring mezzo-soprano Freya Jacklin as the selfish Stéphanie. Three examiners [ Callie Swarbrick, Claire Bournez and Christian Valle] sing operatically and move like dancers, and, together [with] a small ensemble, produce a highly dramatic opera that grabs the audience’s attention with touching music that captures the intensity and tragedy taking place on stage.”
–Mary Grace Nguyen at LDNcard.comNow, I’m finishing up a song cycle with the prolific composer, W. Brent Sawyer.Writing lyrics and creating worlds for operatic or classical pieces taps a different part of my brain than does writing fiction. When one part of the brain is unwilling, the other leaps at the chance to create.