The Virginia G. Piper
Center for Creative Writing

Konigsberg, Bill. "Bill Konigsberg." RUComingOut."

Coming out as a teen was one of the hardest, most traumatic experiences I've ever had, and I think I gravitated toward writing the kinds of books I write because of this. It's a way of re-living and re-imagining my own experience, as well as "paying it forward" and helping others who are coming out now. It was a different time when I came out for the first time -- the 1980s. We didn't have all the gay role models that we have now, and I had to search the word "homosexuality" in my school library. All that came up were stories of this new disease -- AIDS -- that was killing gay men. Consequently I felt very alone, and I also felt very afraid. My experience telling family members was really mixed.

---. "Industry Q&A with Author Bill Konigsberg." Children's Book Council Diversity (2013).

I want to include all different sorts of characters, and I do. In my current project, one of my two protagonists is an African American lesbian who lives in Billings, Montana. In creating a character like this, I need to be careful to sidestep expectations and archetypes. In reality, she is a person. A person whose background includes many different experiences, some that I share, and some that I don’t. For those I don’t, I need to find another entry point so that I can understand what it feels like to be in her skin. This is one of the great challenges of writing, and I love it. I can’t tell you yet whether I will be successful in creating this character, but it won’t be for lack of effort.

---. "The True Meaning of Patriotism." The Huffington Post, October 1, 2015. See also My Trans Education and Hot-Headed in Houston: An LGBTQ Author Goes Rogue.

If I’ve learned one thing on my trip around the United States, talking to LGBTQ youth about coming out and suicide and depression for The Trevor Project, it’s the fact that the concept of unity in this country is an impossibility [ . . . ] I do believe the word “united” is probably the wrong word for what these states are. United in what?

Ríos, Alberto. "The Porcupine of Truth by Bill Konigsberg." Books & Co., Arizona PBS, July 16, 2015.

The Porcupine of Truth follows the story of Carson Smith who is living with his estranged dad over the summer. When he meets Aisha Stinson, the two connect right away. After the two find a box of recent cards from Carson’s grandfather, who had disappeared thirty years ago, they decide to go on a journey to find him. This delightful, inspiring, hilarious trip transforms both Carson and Aisha’s lives.

Serrao, Nivea. "Exclusive Excerpt from Honestly Ben by Bill Konigsberg." Entertainment Weekly, March 3, 2017. See also "Honestly Ben's Bill Konigsberg On Writing the Sequel He'd Never Planned".

When the announcement came over the loudspeaker that I needed to go to the headmaster’s office, I thought: Maybe they’re putting me on academic probation?

It was the first morning of classes after winter break, and as I hur­ried across the empty quad to the administration building, all bundled up in my brown hooded jacket, part of me realized how crazy that was — one C plus wasn’t exactly probation­worthy. Another part of me couldn’t stop my heart from pounding because I was sure I’d done something bad.

I’d never been to Headmaster Taylor’s office. Swank. I sat in the waiting room, which was all wood paneling and high ceilings and sculptures. It even smelled manly, like the aftershave lotion my old roommate, Bryce, used to put on before parties.

The secretary told me the headmaster would see me, and I stood up and slowly walked toward his door, trying to get my heart to stop pounding in my ears. I opened the door.