Kwame Alexander is an Emmy® Award-winning producer, and #1 New York Times bestselling author of 46 books, including Why Fathers Cry at Night, How Sweet The Sound, The Door of No Return (2025 Audie Award Winner), The Undefeated, the National Book Award nominee, Newbery Honor, and Caldecott Medal-winning picture book illustrated by Kadir Nelson, and The Crossover, his Newbery-Medal winning novel-turned Disney+ TV series, his most recent book, J  vs K, an illustrated novel he penned with Jerry Craft, and the motivational primer for graduates, creatives, and professionals, entitled Say Yes. He is also the executive producer of Acoustic Rooster and his Barnyard Band and Acoustic Rooster: Jazzy Jams, a PBS KIDS special and series of shorts produced by GBH Kids based on his beloved children’s book of the same name.  The recipient of a 2025 NAACP Image Award, Kwame is also the founder of AuthorStudy.com, and the Michael I. Rudell Artistic Director of Literary Arts for Chautauqua Literary Arts. He regularly shares his passion for literacy, books and the craft of writing around the world, including Ghana, West Africa, where he opened the Barbara E. Alexander Memorial Library and Health Clinic. His new 501(c)(3) non-profit, One Word at a Time, strives to advance the literacy skills of children in intermediate and middle grades by helping them rediscover and expand a deep love of reading and writing.