Casey McQuiston is an American author who writes romance novels in the new adult fiction genre. They are best known for their New York Times best-selling debut, Red, White & Royal Blue (2019), and their second novel, One Last Stop (2021). McQuiston's debut novel won the Goodreads Choice Award for Best Romance in 2019, and One Last Stop received the RUSA Romance Award in 2022.
Casey McQuiston grew up in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. They attended Louisiana State University, where they earned a degree in journalism. Prior to publishing their first novel, McQuiston worked as a waiter, freelance writer and in magazine publishing. They lived in Fort Collins, Colorado, before moving to New York City.
McQuiston identifies as queer and non-binary, using the pronouns they/them. They say they write queer romantic comedies because they attended a conservative evangelical Christian school as a child and wanted books that might have made them feel less isolated as a queer teenager. McQuiston also describes their writing process as 'impulse-driven' and non-linear, influenced by their experience of ADHD.
Red, White & Royal Blue tells the story of Alex Claremont-Diaz, the son of America's first female president, who falls in love with Henry, a British prince. McQuiston conceived the idea during the 2016 US presidential election, drawing inspiration from political biographies and stories about royal families.
They describe the novel as a queer romcom, drawing on their own experience for the protagonist’s bisexuality. Published by St. Martin’s Griffin, the book received starred reviews from Publishers Weekly, Kirkus, and others. It also won the Best Debut Novel and Best Romance Novel awards at the 2019 Goodreads Choice Awards. Amazon Studios acquired the film rights in 2019.
Published in 2021, One Last Stop centres on August, a 23-year-old who meets Jane, a time traveller from 1970s Brooklyn, on the subway. Praised for its queer cast, the novel placed sixth in Bookpage’s top ten romance novels of 2021. It also earned a nomination for the Goodreads Choice Award for Best Romance.
In 2022, McQuiston released I Kissed Shara Wheeler, their debut young adult novel. Set in a Christian high school, it explores themes of queer coming of age and was described by the author as 'the most personal thing I’ve ever written'. The book was listed as a Stonewall Honor Book and came third in the Goodreads Choice Awards for Best Young Adult Fiction.
McQuiston’s fourth novel, The Pairing, is due to be released in August 2024. It follows estranged bisexual exes on a European food and wine tour, exploring themes of bisexuality and sex positivity. McQuiston has said that they live "at the intersection of fun, escapist romantic adventure and smart-mouthed characters with bad manners and big hearts".
Casey McQuiston currently lives in New York City with their dog, Pepper.
Photo credit: www.caseymcquiston.com
