Michelle Coles

Author

Michelle Coles is an award-winning young adult novelist, former civil rights attorney with the U.S. Department of Justice, and public speaker. As a 9th generation Louisianan, she is highly attuned to the struggles that African Americans have faced in overcoming the legacy of slavery and the periods of government-sanctioned discrimination that followed. She is a proud alumna of Howard University School of Law, where she graduated as valedictorian of her class, and the University of Virginia. Her goal in writing is to empower young people by educating them about history and giving them the tools to shape their own destiny. She lives in Maryland with her family. Her debut young adult
historical fiction novel, Black Was the Ink, was published with Tu Books, an imprint of Lee and Low Books, on November 2, 2021. Black Was the Ink was awarded the 2022 Grateful American Book Prize, a 2022 Skipping Stone Award, and the 2019 New Visions Award Honor.