Lauren

Magaziner

Bestselling Author

Middle Grade Writer

Travels from: Philadelphia, PA

“Lauren Magaziner fashions a rich and compelling alternative reality.” — Chicago Tribune

Lauren is the internationally bestselling author of The Incorruptibles series, the Case Closed series, The Mythics series, and three other stand-alone books for middle grade readers. Her books are available in 12 languages, have been Junior Library Guild selections, have been on the Indie Next List, been an Amazon bestseller, earned starred reviews, been on state lists, and have been optioned for a TV movie with Nickelodeon. She has also contributed short stories to Storyworks magazine and a middle grade mystery anthology called Super Puzzletastic Mysteries.

Lauren grew up in New Hope, Pennsylvania. After receiving a B.A. in Creative Writing and Philosophy at Hamilton College, Lauren Magaziner worked on two delightful Scholastic magazines, where many of her coworkers didn’t believe her last name was real. She currently lives in Philadelphia, where she writes full time.

Lauren's Featured Titles

The Writing Process

When a writer finishes their first draft… it’s only the beginning! In this interactive talk for young readers, we’ll trace a book through the idea stage, plotting/planning, writing, and finally revision. With a heavy emphasis on revision, we’ll discuss how writers start with big improvements (character, plot, setting, pacing) before working their way to smaller ones, through multiple rounds. Kids will peek at my editorial letters, and we’ll discuss revision tips and tricks they can apply to their own writing.

Cracking the Case

Sometimes mystery books can leave you feeling clueless! In this talk for young readers, we discuss different elements of a mystery and how to approach one as both a reader and a writer. Breaking down how I wrote my pick-your-own-path mystery series, I demystify the genre by sharing my whiteboard and providing craft tips to deliver on that perfect twist. Your master sleuths will leave the assembly ready to solve mysteries and write their own.

Where Do You Get Your Ideas?

One of the hardest parts of writing is coming up with an idea in the first place. In this interactive assembly for young readers, we’ll walk through idea generation: how to take a seedling of a thought and get it to blossom into a full-grown story. I’ll share pages from my writers notebooks and teach kids an exercise that is perfect for individual use and/or the classroom. We’ll also discuss what to do when you get stuck–and how to keep inspiration and ideas flowing throughout the entire writing process.

Engaging Young Readers

A lifelong love of literacy is something we want for every kid. However, sometimes kids don’t share that same passion for reading and writing. In this talk for grown-ups, we’ll discuss ways to engage young readers, including patterns and behaviors that adults can model, strategies to use either at home or in the classroom, and different ways to make books more accessible to all kids.
Audience: Adults

“Lauren was wonderful! The students and staff both enjoyed her presentations very much. We had a lot of positive feedback from the event.” — Livingston Manor Elementary School, 2025

“Lauren Magaziner led two assemblies for our students, ate lunch with students and answered questions, and did readings and signing at a family evening event. Lauren was very easy to work with and did a wonderful job with her presentations and interacting with students as well as answering their questions. Many children, parents, and staff members commented that they thought she was wonderful! Teachers appreciated her insight on being a writer, as it fit right in with what they are teaching. We were all very happy with our experience with Lauren and highly recommend her.” — Prospect School, 2024

“Lauren brought so much inspiration, insight, and expertise to over 200 fourth-grade students, inspiring them to write their own choose-your-own stories. We enjoyed learning about her inspiration for writing, her creative process, and how she became a full-time writer. She brought fresh energy and was eager to hear as many student questions as possible.” — La Porte County Public Library, 2024

“Lauren Magaziner joined my fifth grade ELA class for a virtual visit after we read Case Closed. Her knowledge, advice and writing tips for kids were amazing! They wanted to know the process for writing a “choose your path” story and after listening to Lauren, we tried it too! The kids created their own ‘Choose Your Path’ stories in Google Slides with the aid of one of our technology specialists. My classroom library has each of the Case Closed series!” — Stacy Alfano, Shoemaker Elementary School, 2022

“Virtual visits with Lauren Magaziner never disappoint my 5th grade classes each year! She keeps the students engaged throughout the entire video call and gives great advice to young writers. She is a one of a kind author and genuinely wants to encourage young readers and writers. Students often mention the visit in their end of year favorite memories! I am thankful to have built a connection with Lauren to give my students this opportunity year after year!” — Megan Benson, James Madison Intermediate School, 2023

“Hits a lot of nostalgia vibes… and sets up a brilliant shift in status quo that will raise the stakes for the rest of the series.” — Paste Magazine

“Immersive worldbuilding, strong characters, and excellent pacing make for a breathless series opener with a big scope.” — Kirkus reviews, starred review

“An exciting dystopian academy tale, with engaging, relatable characters.” — Common Sense Media

“Magaziner’s youthful narrative voice is distinctly aural: Her characters swish and swoop, clomp and screech. Her storytelling cauldron mixes the right balance of bizarre and banal, and she turns up the heat as the witch exam approaches. Readers will banish themselves from the ordinary world to finish this book in a flash.” — Kirkus Reviews, starred review

Lauren’s Events Link

The Mythics Teacher Guide Link

Write Your Own Fantasy Planning Pages

Case Closed Detective Notebook Link

Write Your Own Mystery Planning Pages

The Mythics #1 Audiobook Preview

The Incorruptibles Audiobook Preview

Lauren’s Substack

Honors, Awards & Recognition

International bestseller (Case Closed)
Amazon Bestseller (Case Closed)
Common Sense Media Selection for Families (The Incorruptibles)
Grand Canyon Reader Award (Wizardmatch)
Nevada Young Readers’ Award (Pilfer Academy)
Magnolia Book Award (The Only Thing Worse Than Witches)
Junior Library Guild Selection (Wizardmatch)
Indie Next List (The Only Thing Worse Than Witches)
Optioned to Nickelodeon for TV movie (Pilfer Academy)
Books available in a dozen languages