Linnea Peterson

@lpetersonwrites

Queer, #ActuallyAutistic writer and freelance editor. My queer YA debut, THE GIRLS WILL BE OKAY, is out now. My site: They/them

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Linnea Peterson@lpetersonwrites· 22d

Grateful to the friend who gave me custom-made earrings with the cover of my book on them! Shout-out as always to @venessakelley.bsky.social for the gorgeous cover art. And if you haven't read my nerdy, queer, interfaith debut YA novel, get it here: bookshop.org/p/books/the-...

A selfie of me, a white feminine person with brown hair and glasses, wearing earrings with the cover of my book, The Girls Will Be Okay, on them.

A photo of earrings with the cover of my book, The Girls Will Be Okay, on them.

Linnea Peterson@lpetersonwrites· 26d

Like many of y'all, I've been enjoying @trungles.com's live-blog of Pride and Prejudice. It's made me want to reread P&P, and it's also made me feel like revisiting various stories in the anthology A Truth Universally Acknowledged: Queer Fanworks Inspired by Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice.

Cover of A Truth Universally Acknowledged: Queer Fanworks Inspired by Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice, a Duck Prints Press Anthology. The cover art shows two peahens and the tale of a peacock.

Linnea Peterson@lpetersonwrites· Jun 25

Austen fans: Do you want 21 stories and 20 pieces of art featuring queer takes on P&P? Do you specifically want my take on a nonbinary 15yo Lyd Bennet in a secret relationship with transphobic college frat boy George Wickham, and the way that coming out pushes Lyd away from George and toward Lizzy?

The cover of A Truth Universally Acknowledged, featuring two peahens and the tail of a peacock against a pink background

Linnea Peterson@lpetersonwrites· Jun 12

This week, my sapphic YA romance came out, and I had an awesome launch party! #SpoonieAuthChat bookshop.org/p/books/the-...

A photo of me, a white feminine person, holding a cake with the cover of my book, The Girls Will Be Okay, on it

Linnea Peterson@lpetersonwrites· Jun 12

Hey @mayakern.com, I wore your rainbow skirt to my book launch last night! It was the perfect thing to wear to talk about my sapphic YA novel that just came out.

A photo taken from the audience of an event. I, a white feminine person wearing a black skirt with a rainbow hem, am sitting on the stage talking into a microphone. The backs of audience members' heads are visible in the foreground.

Linnea Peterson@lpetersonwrites· Jun 10

My book came out on Monday! The launch event will be at Shir Tikvah in Minneapolis at 7 pm TOMORROW, June 11. It’ll start with a conversation between me and @jrdawson.bsky.social, and then we’ll do Q&A, followed by selling and signing books. Join us! Or buy the book: bookshop.org/p/books/the-...

Linnea Peterson@lpetersonwrites· Jun 8

If you're in the Minneapolis area, come to the book launch at 7 pm on Thursday, June 11 at Shir Tikvah. It’ll start with a conversation between me and @jrdawson.bsky.social, and then we’ll do some Q&A, followed by selling and signing books. Join us!

A white and gold graphic styled as an invitation. The text says, “Celebrate the launch of The Girls Will Be Okay, a novel by Linnea Peterson. Thursday, June 11, 7 pm. Shir Tikvah, 1360 Minnehaha Pkwy, Minneapolis, MN.” The top part of the book’s cover, with the title and the heads of the book’s two main characters, is framed in a gold circle toward the top of the graphic.

Linnea Peterson@lpetersonwrites· Jun 2

My book comes out next week! The launch event will be at Shir Tikvah in Mpls at 7 pm on Thurs, June 11. It’ll start with a conversation between me and @jrdawson.bsky.social , and then we’ll do some Q&A, followed by selling and signing books. Join us! Or buy the book: bookshop.org/p/books/the-...

Linnea Peterson@lpetersonwrites· May 4

If you see this, post a concert picture that you took.

A photo of Frank Turner, a thin, middle-aged white man with short brown hair, playing the guitar at a microphone with a spotlight shining down on him.

Linnea Peterson@lpetersonwrites· Mar 31

Lest anyone think I asked people to do something I wasn't doing myself, behold my phone's recent call log.

A screenshot of a phone's recent call screen. The visible calls made today are Senator Tina Smith (Washington), Senator Tina Smith (St. Paul), Senator Amy Klobuchar (Washington), Senator Amy Klobuchar (Twin Cities), Representative Ilhan Omar (Minneapolis), and Representative Ilhan Omar.

Linnea Peterson@lpetersonwrites· Feb 13

I am disabled and chronically ill, and my debut novel, The Girls Will Be Okay, is available for preorder! (The book isn't about disability.) It's a queer, nerdy YA romance about a bisexual Lutheran girl coming to terms with her sexuality and her crush on her lesbian Jewish best friend.

The cover of The Girls Will Be Okay by Linnea Peterson. The cover art is a realistic style of digital painting, showing two teenage girls holding hands and walking down a school hallway. Solveig, on the left, has pale skin and straight brown hair and is wearing a light blue turtleneck, a blue and white Norwegian sweater, and jeans. Sarah, on the right, has brown skin and curly dark hair and is wearing a red sweatshirt that says "MGHS MATH TEAM" and jeans.

Linnea Peterson@lpetersonwrites· Feb 12

Author copies of my debut novel just arrived in the mail, so here's an unboxing video for you all! THE GIRLS WILL BE OKAY is a queer, nerdy YA novel about a bisexual Lutheran girl coming to terms with her crush on her lesbian Jewish best friend by writing fanfiction about their favorite show.

Linnea Peterson@lpetersonwrites· Feb 12

I wrote this poem a few weeks ago, right before the murder of Alex Pretti, but I forgot to share it here until now. It feels dated already, but the defiant hope it expresses is still important. It's called "We Are Not Machines, and We Are Destroying Fascism Anyway."

Linnea Peterson@lpetersonwrites· Dec 21

This is from KEY OF JAE NATURAL, which feels pretty complete at draft 3.5, but it's not currently in the publishing pipeline, so I'm counting it.

A screenshot of a document with text that says,

When we get to my house, Green shakes hands with my parents and laughs when my parents call xem “Jae’s friend from the internet.” I’d made my parents practice xe/xem/xyr pronouns in preparation for Green’s visit, and it’s clear they’re trying, and when they mess up it’s by defaulting to “they,” not “she.” I’m not sure if that’s because they’ve gotten used to my pronouns by now or because Green, with xyr green hair, peacoat, skinny jeans, and Chuck Taylors, looks pretty androgynous. Either way, introductions go decently, and after dropping off Green’s suitcase in the basement, we drive to the Walker.

Linnea Peterson@lpetersonwrites· Dec 17

Thrilled to be revealing the stunning cover of my debut YA novel, a sapphic interfaith romance called THE GIRLS WILL BE OKAY! Art by the incomparable @venessakelley.bsky.social.

The cover of The Girls Will Be Okay by Linnea Peterson. The title is in a red cursive font, while the author's name is in a blocky white font in all caps. The cover image is a digital painting of two girls in their late teens. Solveig, on the left, has pale skin, straight brown hair, blue eyes, and gray rectangular glasses. She is wearing a light blue turtleneck, a blue and white unzipped sweater knit in a Norwegian pattern, and jeans. Sarah, on the right, has brown skin, curly dark brown hair, brown eyes, and round white glasses. She is wearing a bright red crew-neck sweatshirt that says, "MGHS MATH TEAM," along with jeans. Each girl is carrying a backpack. The background is a school hallway filled with lockers, and three other students are dimly visible behind Solveig and Sarah.

Linnea Peterson@lpetersonwrites· Dec 7

I'm getting ready to reveal the cover of my debut novel, THE GIRLS WILL BE OKAY. In the meantime, since it's #SpotifyWrapped week, I figured I'd introduce you to my book's leads via music!

A graphic featuring white text on a blue background. The text says,
"Get to know Solveig in 5 songs
1. 'Defying Gravity' from Wicked
2. 'Same Love' by Macklemore and Ryan Lewis
3. 'Til Ungdomen' by Sissel Kyrkjebø
4. 'Power of Two' by the Indigo Girls
5. 'Slipping through My Fingers' by ABBA"

A graphic with a red background and white text. The text says,
"Get to know Sarah in 5 songs
1. 'For Good' from Wicked
2. 'Ring of Keys' from Fun Home
3. 'Les Miserables Medley - Passover' by the Maccabeats
4. 'Kadhal Anukkal' from Enthiran
5. 'That's Mathematics' by Tom Lehrer

Linnea Peterson@lpetersonwrites· Dec 6

Hey @rainbowrowell.bsky.social, I found Baz at my candle-making class!

A photo of a candle by Kobi Co. The scent is called #For the Wins: Bergamot + Cedar. Hand poured in Minneapolis. 9oz soy candle.

Linnea Peterson@lpetersonwrites· Dec 2

I'm going to be a featured reader at a poetry event tomorrow night, Wednesday, December 3, at 6 pm at the Merriam Park Library in St. Paul! If you're in the Twin Cities, I'd love to see you there!

A graphic whose header says, "5th Wednesdays Reading Series." Below that are three pictures next to bios of the pictured individual.

The first picture shows a gray-haired woman. The bio says, "KateLynn Hibbard's books are Sleeping Upside Down (Silverfish Review Press, winner of the Gerald Cable Book Award), Sweet Weight (Tiger Bark Press), Simples, winner of the 2018 Howling Bird Press Poetry Prize, and Unblossoming (Tiger Bark Press).

"She earned an MFA at the University of Oregon while studying Dorianne Laux, Garrett Hongo, and T.R. Hummer. Her work has appeared in numerous print and online venues, including Barrow Street, Mid-American Review, Plant-Human Quarterly, Ars Medica, Nimrod, Notre Dame Review, and Prairie Schooner. Editor of When We Became Weavers: Queer Female Poets on the Midwest Experience (Squares and Rebels Press), she grew up on a dairy farm near Green Bay, Wisconsin, teaches writing at Minneapolis College, sings with One Voice Mixed Chorus, the largest LGBTQ choral group in America, and lives with her spouse Jan and many pets in St. Paul, Minnesota. Please visit katelynnhibbard.com for more information"

Next is a picture of a person with brown hair. The bio says, "Linnea Peterson (they/them) is a queer, disabled writer from Minnesota. Their work has been published by Duck Prints Press, Wishbone Words, FLARE Magazine, and Five Minutes. Their first book, a young adult novel called The Girls Will Be Okay, is forthcoming."

Next is a picture of a curly haired woman with an undercut. The bio says, "Stephanie Althea West is a Twin Cities based poet and editor, residing with two teenagers and one exceptionally opinionated cat. When she isn't reading or writing, you can find her cooking, painting, or telling her secrets to the trees. Stephanie's debut poetry collection, Her, will publish in 2026."

At the bottom of the graphic, text says, "Open mic to follow.
December 3rd, 2025
6 PM to 7:45 PM
Merriam Park Library"

Linnea Peterson@lpetersonwrites· Nov 30

Twin Cities friends! I'm one of the featured readers at this installment of the 5th Wednesday Reading Series, happening this Wednesday at 6 pm at the Merriam Park Library in St. Paul. I've got a ten-minute slot to read some of my poetry, and after the featured readers are done, it's an open mic!

A blue banner that says, "5th Wednesday Reading Series."

Linnea Peterson@lpetersonwrites· Nov 23

My latest WIP has ❤️ a two-person love triangle 📚 made-up fantasy series 📱 online fandom 🌃 teenagers up past bedtime 🧠 mental illness rep 🏳️⚧️ gender feels 🎓 the pressure of honors classes 😎 a smart-but-chill LI ✡️ High Holy Days 🇸🇪 St. Lucia Day 🫂 supportive siblings #WIPPit #YA #R #LGBT

Linnea Peterson@lpetersonwrites· Nov 23

Magdalena Erikson is 🇸🇪 Swedish American ✝️ Lutheran 🏳️⚧️ nonbinary 🚪 closeted 🧠 with undiagnosed OCD Kadhir Mandeep is 🇮🇳 Indian American ✡️ Jewish 🏳️🌈 pansexual . . . and trying to embrace being all three at once. They’re close friends on Discord, but don’t get along IRL. Yet. #WIPPit #YA #R #LGBT

Linnea Peterson@lpetersonwrites· Nov 23

At school, perfectionistic Magdalena Erikson can’t stand Kadhir Mandeep, an obnoxiously carefree fellow student. Meanwhile, on Discord, Magdalena goes by Lane, uses they/them pronouns, and is quickly becoming close to someone called Aaron . . . who’s actually Kadhir. #WIPPit #YA #R #LGBT

Linnea Peterson@lpetersonwrites· Nov 11

Convincing you to read my book with the first paragraph! Share yours if you'd like.

Unplug the phone.
That’s the first step in our family’s lefse recipe, written in Mom’s round handwriting on an index card we keep in a box with all our other family recipes. It’s the morning of December 23, so my grandmother, my sisters, and I are making lefse like we always do before Christmas. I think this might be the first year that my middle sister, Berit, has been able to look at the recipe card without crying. A little over three years have passed since our mom died of cancer, three years of creeping toward a new sort of normal, and I’m daring to hope that this year the holidays won’t feel as strained and empty as they have in past years. So far no one’s cried, and I’m taking that as a good sign.

Linnea Peterson@lpetersonwrites· Nov 11

If you see this, post your bird art. I have seen so many wild turkeys recently.

A photo taken out of a car window, showing a wild turkey in the middle of an otherwise empty street.

Linnea Peterson@lpetersonwrites· Oct 11

To wrap up #BannedBooksWeek, here are banned books that are in my apartment right now! These books have shaped me as a person and as a writer, and I'm so sad that students in some places are being denied access to them.

A photo of two stacks of books, including Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins, Isla and the Happily Ever After by Stephanie Perkins, Red White and Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston, The Fault in Our Stars by John Green, Päpperstäder by John Green, Will Grayson Will Grayson by John Green, Looking for Alaska by John Green, Turtles All the Way Down by John Green, Bloodhound by Tamera Pierce, Mastiff by Tamora Pierce, Most Ardently by Gabe Cole Novoa, May the Best Man Win by ZR Ellor, Little and Lion by Brandy Colbert, Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates, Tell Me How You Really Feel by Aminah Mae Safi, Check Please by Ngozi Ukazu, Circe by Madeline Miller, Last Night at the Telegraph Club by Malinda Lo, A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith, What If It's Us by Becky Albertalli, The Demon's Surrender by Sarah Rees Brennan, Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo, Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell, Any Way the Wind Blows by Rainbow Rowell, and Carry On by Rainbow Rowell.

Linnea Peterson@lpetersonwrites· Oct 10

Another book I love for #BannedBooksWeek: Most Ardently by @thegabecole.bsky.social! It's a fantastic take on Pride and Prejudice, featuring a transmasc Bennet sibling, gay autistic Darcy, and secret queer clubs!

A photo of my hand holding a copy of the book Most Ardently: A Pride & Prejudice Remix by Gabe Cole Novoa

Linnea Peterson@lpetersonwrites· Oct 9

It's still #BannedBooksWeek, and today I'm grateful for May the Best Man Win by @zrellor.bsky.social. It was the first book I ever read with good #ActuallyAutistic rep, and it made me feel SO seen.

A photo of my hand holding the book May the Best Man Win by ZR Ellor.

Linnea Peterson@lpetersonwrites· Oct 8

It's still #BannedBooksWeek, and today I'd like to celebrate the book Tell Me How You Really Feel by Aminah Mae Safi. It's a great story about two girls from different cultural and socioeconomic backgrounds overcoming their negative first impressions of each other and falling in love.

A photo of my hand holding the book Tell Me How You Really Feel by Aminah Mae Safi

Linnea Peterson@lpetersonwrites· Oct 7

It's #BannedBooksWeek, and I think banning nonfiction like this really gives away the game: book banning is a campaign to try to limit people's access to facts and perspectives that don't fit a narrow narrative that people in power can control.

A photo of my hand holding the book Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates

Linnea Peterson@lpetersonwrites· Oct 7

This #BannedBookWeek, I'm grateful for Little and Lion by Brandy Colbert, which offers an unflinching look at teenage mental health issues and the costs of keeping each other’s secrets. Yesterday was the 15th anniversary of the first time I talked someone out of suicide, so this book means a lot.