Anyone who knows Luke Reynolds will not be at all surprised to hear that his first EMLA book deal is a collaborative project designed to inspire and challenge teens, and that all of the royalties—both from contributors and for himself as editor—are being donated to the Children’s Defense Fund. I first heard about this project in its very early stages: as a long-time middle school teacher, Luke constantly found himself struggling with teens’ perceptions of what society tells them they “must do” in order to have a successful, happy, and productive life. But are those “rules” always the best way to run your life?
 
With the goal of providing answers for his students (and others like them) in an appealing way, BREAK THESE RULES was born. Luke began corresponding with various YA and MG authors with the idea of putting together a series of first-person essays on this subject. The anthology will features contributions from authors such as Sara Zarr, Gary Schmidt, Kathryn Erskine, and EMLA’s own Olugbemisola Rhuday-Perkovitch, among many others.
 
This week, I am thrilled to announce that BREAK THESE RULES will be published in fall 2013 by Lisa Reardon at Chicago Review Press. I am so honored to be involved with this deal and can’t wait to see the finished result!
 
Congratulations, Luke!
 

—Joan