A Kind of Spark

Content Warning: This section of the guide includes discussion of death, ableism, and physical abuse.

Born in 1992, Elle McNicoll is a Scottish writer who specializes in writing children’s and young adult literature that features neurodivergent characters. Her books include Show Us Who You Are, Like a Charm, Like a Curse, Some Like It Cold, and Wish You Were Her. She has also written a sequel to A Kind of Spark called Keedie, which follows Addie’s older sister who also has autism. McNicoll holds a master’s degree from University College London. Her work has been widely awarded, and she has won the Blue Peter Book Award and the Overall Waterstones Children’s Book Prize. She has also been nominated for the Carnegie Medal and shortlisted for the Books Are My Bag Award and the Branford Boase Award, among others.

Many of her works reflect her lived experience with both autism and dyspraxia, and she is a vocal advocate for neurodivergent representation and inclusive storytelling. In 2022, she founded The Adrien Prize, which promotes children’s books featuring protagonists with disabilities, and she is also a staunch proponent of the #OwnVoices movement, which is dedicated to the idea that every child deserves to see themselves represented positively in stories.