Susin Nielsen (born 1964) is a

Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

author for children, adolescents and young adults. She received the 2012

Governor General's Award for English-language children's literature The Governor General's Award for English-language children's writing is a Canadian literary award that annually recognizes one Canadian writer for a children's book written in English. It is one of four children's book awards among the Governor Ge ...

and the 2013

Canadian Library Association Book of the Year for Children Award The Canadian Library Association Book of the Year for Children Award was a literary award given annually to recognize a Canadian children's book. The award was given to a book written in English by a citizen or permanent resident of Canada and pub ...

for her young adult novel '' The Reluctant Journal of Henry K. Larsen'', which deals with the aftermath of a

school shooting A school shooting is an Gun violence, armed attack at an educational institution, such as a primary school, secondary school, high school or university, involving the use of a firearm. Many school shootings are also categorized as mass shooti ...

. In 2019, she received the

Vicky Metcalf Award for Literature for Young People The Vicky Metcalf Award for Literature for Young People, colloquially called the Vicky, is given annually at the Writers' Trust Awards to a writer or illustrator whose body of work has been "inspirational to Canadian youth". It is a top honour for ...

Personal life

Nielsen was raised in London and

Chatham-Kent Chatham-Kent (Canada 2021 Census, 2021 population: 103,988) is a Census divisions of Ontario#Single-tier municipalities, single-tier municipality in Southwestern Ontario, Canada. It is mostly rural, and its population centres are Chatham, Wallac ...

, Ontario. She is married to Goran Fernlund and has one child: Oscar.

Career

Nielsen began her writing career with the

Degrassi franchise ''Degrassi'' is a Canadian teen drama television franchise created by Kit Hood and Linda Schuyler, that follows the lives of youths attending the eponymous secondary school in Toronto. Each entry since 1987 has taken place in the same continu ...

, writing scripts for the television shows as well as books for the series. Nielsen also played Louella Hawkins the Janitor in Degrassi Junior High. Following her work with ''Degrassi'', Nielsen wrote for many other Canadian television series such as '' Heartland'', ''

What About Mimi? ''What About Mimi?'' is a Canadian animated children’s television series. The show was produced by Junior-EM.TV (Germany), Decode Entertainment and Studio B Productions (then DHX Media, now WildBrain). The show was first premiered on Teletoon ...

'', and ''

Braceface ''Braceface'' is a coming-of-age teen drama animated television series co-produced by Nelvana Limited and Jade Animation (Shenzhen) Company that aired on Teletoon (now known as "Cartoon Network" in Canada). The show features U.S. actress Alicia ...

''. While working on these shows she produced three children's picture books: ''Hank and Fergus'', ''Mormor Moves In'', and ''The Magic Beads''. Her first independent novel, ''Word Nerd'', deals with bullying, a theme she returns to in ''The Reluctant Journal of Henry K. Larsen''. Her books often describe the effect of broken families on children. Nielsen's 2015 book, ''We Are All Made of Molecules'', about two step siblings trying to form a bond with each other, was shortlisted for the

Governor General's Award The Governor General's Awards are a collection of annual awards presented by the governor general of Canada, recognizing distinction in numerous academic, artistic, and social fields. The first award was conceived and inaugurated in 1937 by the ...

. Nielsen's books have been translated into Dutch, French, Portuguese, Italian, German and Polish (In the Polish language, not all of them have been translated). Nielsen's 2021 book, ''Tremendous Things'', was nominated for the 2022

Ontario Library Association The Ontario Library Association (OLA) was established in 1900 and is the oldest continually operating library association in Canada. With over 4,000 members, OLA is also the largest library association in Canada and among the 10 largest library ...

Red Maple Award The Red Maple Award is an award in the Ontario Library Association (OLA) Forest of Reading Awards. The Red Maple Award celebrates fiction (since 1998) and non-fiction Non-fiction (or nonfiction) is any document or content (media), media conte ...

for Fiction.

Awards and honors

In 2019, Nielsen was honored with the

, which honors writers and illustrators whose body of work has been "inspirational to Canadian youth." Two of Nielsen's books are

Junior Library Guild Junior Library Guild, formerly the Junior Literary Guild, is a commercial Book sales club, book club devoted to juvenile literature. It was created in 1929 as one of the enterprises of the Literary Guild, an adult book club created in 1927 by Samue ...

selections: ''No Fixed Address'' (2018) and ''Tremendous Things'' (2021). In 2015, ''

The Globe and Mail ''The Globe and Mail'' is a Newspapers in Canada, Canadian newspaper printed in five cities in Western Canada, western and central Canada. With a weekly readership of more than 6 million in 2024, it is Canada's most widely read newspaper on week ...

'', ''

Kirkus Reviews ''Kirkus Reviews'' is an American book review magazine founded in 1933 by Virginia Kirkus. The magazine's publisher, Kirkus Media, is headquartered in New York City. ''Kirkus Reviews'' confers the annual Kirkus Prize to authors of fiction, no ...

'', ''

Quill & Quire ''Quill & Quire'' is a Canadian magazine about the book and publishing industry. The magazine was launched in 1935 and has an average circulation of 5,000 copies per issue, with a publisher-claimed readership of 25,000. ''Quill & Quire'' reviews ...

'', and ''The Telegraph'''''' included ''We Are All Made of Molecules'' on their list of the best young adult novels of the year.

Bibliography

Picture books

* ''The Magic Beads'', illustrated by

Geneviève Côté Geneviève Côté (born 1964) is a Canadian illustrator living in Montreal, mainly known for her work on children's books. She was born in Montreal, Quebec, and received a bachelor's degree in graphic design from Concordia University in 1987. Cô ...

(2007) * ''Princess Puffybottom . . . and Darryl'' , illustrated by Olivia Chin Mueller (2019) * ''All Cats Welcome'', illustrated by Vivian Mineker (2022)

Middle grade and young adult books

*''Mormor Moves In'' (2004) *''Hank and Fergus'' (2005) *''Word Nerd'' (2008) *''Dear George Clooney: Please Marry My Mom'' (2010) – also published as ''My Messed-Up Life'' *'' The Reluctant Journal of Henry K. Larsen'' (2012) *''We Are All Made of Molecules'' (2015) *''Optimists Die First'' (2017) *''No Fixed Address'' (2018) *''Tremendous Things'' (2021)

References

External links

''The Reluctant Journal of Henry K. Larsen'' on The Canadian Encyclopedia"Susan Nielsen: The Queen of Tragicomedy" by Cheri Hansen
''

'', March 2015
Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nielsen, Susin Living people 1964 births Canadian women novelists Governor General's Award–winning children's writers 21st-century Canadian novelists 21st-century Canadian women writers Canadian women television writers Canadian television writers Canadian television producers 21st-century Canadian screenwriters Canadian women television producers Forest of Reading Award winners Canadian Screen Award winning writers