Christen Randall

Okay look I know this is not a very sales-y place BUT I created this design on my own as a not-very-visual person and I am proud of it so I am sharing it!!!!

Making my Canva Pro subscription WORK this month. 💅🏻✨

BRB crying!!!!!!!

You are a treasure. Thank you for using your beautiful talent to draw my girls!!! This one is going on the fridge, too!!!

Aini holds Hollis's face and tells her nice things as she calms down from an anxiety attack.

Calming girlfriend 🌈

Aini & Hollis from The No-Girlfriend Rule by @bycrandall.bsky.social ✨

#BookSky #TTRPG #YA

Really?!?! 🥹 Okay I will tomorrow when I am at the desk! Until then don’t mind me being a big teary softie about this!!!!

Everyone buy and read this TTRPG-filled novel with the best girl squad, and then also preorder the author's upcoming book!

bsky.app/profile/bycr...

Thank you for drawing them! Also for the record this made my week and Aini’s shirt is PERFECTION. 🫶🫶🫶

This is amazing?!??!???! Thank you for drawing my girls!!! Can I print this off and put it on my fridge (for real)?!?!?!

hollis a fat redheaded girl and aini a brown girl with short dyed hair, chatting up about fantasy excitedly

Discussing fantasy with your gf 🌈✨

Hollis & Aini from The No-Girlfriend Rule from @bycrandall.bsky.social
♥️

#BookSky #YA #TTRPG

OOOH NICE. The muse wants what the muse wants!!!

I am good! Also noodling next projects and then following another one. And gearing up for my next release. Eeeeeee!

Thanks for this vote of confidence! Some people have such gorgeous stuff, and I’m just out here like “I will fold you some zines about cats and give you a Post-it like from the book!!!” and I feel very silly. It’s mostly a me thing I am sure!!!!

Fat books getting stars is my favorite!!!!

THANK YOU TRACIE!!!
(Also hi how are you!!!!)

And that’s enough being vulnerable on Bluesky for the day, okay byeeee!!!!

Anyway file this under “things I never considered when I started to pursue publishing” and also “the author class divide no one likes to talk about.”

I feel silly calling my “preorder campaign” a preorder campaign because it’s small stuff I am making on my own, but flashy preorder campaigns are expensive and the reality of being a working class author is that I can’t afford to commission artists or ship items.

Let’s call it punk rock DIY????

…wow the direct link really hard launches my release day event, but shhhhh don’t tell anyone yet, it’s still secret, okay???

Get yours here!

josephbeth.com/event/2026-0...

On a green, blue, purple, orange and pink color-blocked background is a centered image of the cover of ACCORDING TO PLAN by Christen Randall. Above it, in black text boxes, are the words “Signed Preorders!” Below in a black text box is the text, “The According to Plan Sort-Of Preorder Campaign!”

On a green, blue, purple, orange and pink color-blocked background is the centered text, “Preoder this! Get this!” On the Preorder This side is an image of the cover of ACCORDING TO PLAN by Christen Randall on the lefthand side, with the text “signed and personalized by yours truly!” On the Get This! side is an image of a bookmark with Christen Randall’s face on it in, designed in the style of According to Plan’s cover, two zines, and a hand-written Post-it note that features a heart and the phrase “make stuff that matter.” Below is the text “Only when you preorder through Joseph Beth Booksellers. Bit.ly/SignedATP.”

Signed preorders are here!

I’m really hype to partner with one of my favorite local independent bookstores to offer signed preorders of According to Plan!

As a thank you, I’ll also stuff your copy with some extra swag, inspired by the book and handmade by me!

ACCORDING TO PLAN | Kirkus Reviews A nonbinary neurodivergent teen in Kentucky fights to find a safe space after their school magazine is cancelled.

Read the full review here!

www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews...

On a plain white background is cover of According to Plan by Christen Randall. At its top right corner is a blue star within a circle. Below is the header “According to Plan by Christen Randall. Release Date Feb. 3, 2026. A rich, authentic, and affirming story about building your community.”

On a white back round is the review in full: A nonbinary neurodivergent teen in Kentucky fights to find a safe space after their school magazine is cancelled. Mal Flowers has always followed The Plan: They’ll be the editor of their school’s literary magazine, get good grades to keep their hypercritical mother happy, and support their sister until they both leave their small town for college. When the school loses funding, making it impossible for Collage to continue publication, Mal feels lost. And they’re not the only student desperately seeking another creative outlet. Loud and exuberant Emerson suggests the group go rogue and create a zine. Though Emerson is seemingly Mal’s opposite in every way, the more they work together, the more Mal feels like they’ve finally found a place where they belong and a person who gets them. Emerson, who’s bisexual and has ADHD, depression, and anxiety, offers Mal the comfort of being understood. Mal is a well-realized character, a fat teen who describes their experiences with dyslexia, ADHD, and possible autism in ways that are understandable and relatable. Alongside their sweet romance, Randall also realistically explores Mal’s struggles with family pressure and finding their own interests; these relationships are exceptionally well drawn. Interspersed between chapters are pages from Mal’s planner, text messages, emails, and pages from the zine, adding visual interest. Mal and Emerson are white, and the zine crew is diverse in race, sexual orientation, and gender identity. A rich, authentic, and affirming story about building your community. (Ficton. 13-18.)

My first review for ACCORDING TO PLAN came in and it’s a star from Kirkus!

I’m presenting it without comment because honestly I’m speechless. Thank you, Kirkus!

I am like BARELY on BlueSky but yes I am! Hiiiii! 💖

On a pink background with white checkerboard pattern, centered in a white starburst shape: REQUEST NOW ON NETGALLEY! Below, on the right hand side: an image of the cover of According to Plan by Christen Randall. To the left, the descriptors: Queer YA! neurodivergent for neurodivergent romance! kids making zines and creating community in the back room of a local coffee shop!

My second book is up on Netgalley!

I’m so excited (and anxious but that’s the norm) for this cast of characters to meet the world. I am really proud of this book! Check it out if you love a cozy-but-complicated coming of age queer romance. Mal’s story is for you!

To Brag: I visited Ohio Renaissance Festival yesterday and through a series of events which mostly include me being an insufferable extrovert and Emotional On Main IRL, I was named the Queen’s Royal Author.

Thanks for unlocking this Author Goal I didn’t know I had, ORF!

If your boyfriend won't let you join their tabletop roleplaying game, maybe you should find your own group to play with. Which is exactly what Hollis Beckwith is trying to do in THE NO-GIRLFRIEND RULE by @bycrandall.bsky.social

#MTCBA #thenogirlfriendrule #ireadya #yabooks #teenreads

According to Plan coming February 3, 2026 Mal Flowers expected senior year fall to be full of cozy sweaters, good coffee, and copyediting. As the new editor-in-chief of their school’s literary magazine, they just want to follow The Plan to graduate and get out of their small midwestern town—a place where, as a broke, fat, queer person with ADHD, they’ve never really fit in. But when budget cuts result in the lit mag’s cancellation, Mal is suddenly left scrambling for something to replace it. That is, until Emerson Pike—who also has ADHD but is loud, confident, and Mal’s complete opposite—suggests the staff go rogue and create a zine instead. Which would be cool, except that making and selling contraband isn’t exactly what Mal envisioned listing as the extracurricular activity on their college application. A zine would be unofficial, unapproved, and definitely not in The Plan. But a zine is also a good way to spend more time with Emerson, whose playful banter and bad jokes Mal can’t seem to get enough of. And maybe, with a group of new friends, the back of the charming coffee shop where Emerson works could be somewhere Mal does belong. Because breaking the rules with Emerson—and flirting with her over coffee—is fun. Maybe The Plan isn’t the only way to find happiness, but can Mal let go of something they’ve depended on for so long?

This book is my love letter to neurodivergent kids (of all ages), queer friendship, and the quiet but radical rebellion of standing in—and standing up for—your truth. I absolutely love it and I hope you will, too.

E-ARCs are on Edelweiss and going out from Simon Teen now!

On a green, blue, purple, orange, and pink colorblocked background, an image of the cover of ACCORDING TO PLAN by Christen Randall is in the top left corner. Beside it, with a pink headline, is the text “BOOKSELLERS! Consider ACCORDING TO PLAN for your Kids’ Indie Next Noms!” Below, with the heading “EARLY PRAISE” are the following pull quotes: “A must-read!” – Jonny Garza Villa, Stonewall Book Award-winning author of Canto Contigo; “Warm, witty, and wonderfully queer!" – Aiden Thomas, New York Times bestselling author of Cemetery Boys; “A total joy to read!” – Kristy Boyce, New York Times bestselling author of Dating & Dragons; “I LOVE it, Boo!” – Barclay Randall, my dad. Below that, in a black textbox, is the reminder: “(The deadline for the January/February list is NOVEMBER 3!)”

Bookseller pals!

The Kids’ Indie Next nomination deadline is November 3, and I’m asking you to consider ACCORDING TO PLAN for yours!

When Hollis is blocked from joining her boyfriend's group to play the tabletop roleplaying game, Secrets & Sorcery, she finds a group of her own... and it changes her entire life. Find out more in the next book on our list of 2025 nominees, THE NO-GIRLFRIEND RULE by @bycrandall.bsky.social #Booksky

Me, out loud, while reading a kissin’ scene as I finish pass pages,
sitting alone at my desk, with no one home but the cats who are both in another room:

“Gay.”

HEY THAT’S MY MENTEE!!!!

SUMMER V. ROBBIE RIBALDI is full of heart and growth and all the good things I love about Middle Grade. @tracierenee.bsky.social is a talent AND just a delightful person, and I am so proud!

Agents and editors, TAKE NOTE. Tracie is brilliant!

Delighted to see my #amquerying #MG #NIV on this list--especially after an early draft failed to place last year. This version was deeply revised with the guidance of my awesome writing mentor @bycrandall.bsky.social.

Thank you so much, @iaminprint.bsky.social and #agent Penny Holroyde!