“Mahmoud, Aunt Melodie, and the Fight Against Censorship: Including LGBTQ+ Characters in Books for Kids”
Writing for children has always been fraught. All authors are expected to conform to their chosen genre, of course, but writing for kids adds an additional layer of convention depending on the age of the readers we’re targeting. Once the book is written, if it passes through the ever-narrowing pipeline to publication then it needs to be sold. If we want to sell it, we must market and publicize it. But the selling, marketing and publicizing are also more complicated when writing for kids because until you get into the YA space, there are middlemen between you and your reader. You need a product that will delight your core consumer, the child reader, but it must be a product of which the middlemen approve. After all, they are the ones who hold the purse strings.
It’s a maxim of writing for children, then, that if your book can’t be shelved in a school, it’s not likely to sell. And by sell, I mean get published at all. Editors know not to spend time and money on a manuscript that its targeted demographic won’t be allowed to access.
Understanding all this, I’ve worked hard over many years to develop a platform to engage parents, teachers and librarians. I’ve specifically targeted upper middle grade readers, paying close attention to the lives, developmental phases and reading interests of 10–12-year-olds, especially girls. I’ve written four manuscripts for middle grade readers featuring diverse ensemble casts encountering realistic, contemporary challenges.
So, when the Supreme Court released its decision in Mahmoud v. Taylor, I was gutted.
Technically speaking, Mahmoud, decided in June 2025, held that the petitioning parents were entitled to a preliminary injunction based on their First Amendment right to the free exercise of religion. The practical consequence of this decision is that parents of public school children in Maryland may request their child be removed during classroom readings that feature LGBTQ+ characters or issues.
On its face, Mahmoud is not far-reaching. The trouble comes from the chilling effect it will have on all publications for children. My fear is that despite the good intentions of authors, agents, editors, bookshop owners and librarians, Mahmoud will be a death knell for books with LGBTQ+ characters, themes or plotlines.
Remember, if a book for kids can’t be shelved in a school, it won’t sell.
The decision in Mahmoud is one of the reasons I opted to publish my debut middle grade novel, The Twin Stars and the Soccer Superstar, with a hybrid publisher. My manuscript benefited from the professionalism of publisher Brooke Warner and the team at SparkPress. The product is high quality. But because I was the only financial investor in the project, I didn’t have to worry that someone would ask me to change or tone down the storyline involving Aunt Melodie, my protagonist’s beloved aunt who is married to a woman.
The Twin Stars and the Soccer Superstar is set in the Texas Hill Country. One blogger with whom I recently spoke said the Hill Country basically serves as a character because the story is so deeply ensconced in the geography, food, architecture and culture of the area. But the Texas Hill Country is also at the heart of a statewide movement to oppose books with LGBTQ+ characters and themes. In fact, my fictional Barons Creek sits only tens of miles from two book restricting hotbeds – Llano County and New Braunfels, Texas.
Despite my fierce belief in the importance of representation and my strong desire to get my book into the hands of readers, I will admit that I cringed somewhat when a reviewer noted, “Aunt Melodie is gay and married.” It’s true! It’s important to the story! Aunt Melodie is awesome! Kids need to know people like Aunt Melodie exist! And yet, I was still struck by a moment of panic.
Chilling effect, indeed.
I am not going to stop writing books with LGBTQ+ characters, plot lines and themes. I just know too many kids who have found their truth through the pages of fiction, and I know too many families who deserve to see themselves on the pages to self-censor. I’m also not going to stop setting my tales in places I know and love, like Texas and my current home state of Georgia. But I also know the winds of change are blowing against LGBTQ+ representation in children’s fiction and that reality is taking a personal and professional toll on many.
“You know, it’s not your job to go around fixing everything that’s broken,” Aunt Melodie tells Cassaty in The Twin Stars and the Soccer Superstar. I hear you, Melodie. But that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t try.
To learn more about the fight against book restrictions in Texas, visit Texas Freedom to Read Project.
Published June 9th, 2026 by SparkPress
About the Book: Perfect for fans of Laurie Morrison and Jenn Bishop, this lively middle-grade mystery follows a vibrant group of teens and tweens navigating grief, authenticity, and—above all—soccer, while taking an enjoyable romp through the Texas Hill Country.
Every year, spring in Texas means two very different things to sixth grader Cassaty Greene: her beloved Barons Creek High School soccer team, the Battling Billies, will contend for the state title, and the anniversary of her twin brother’s death will plunge her family into a deep, unspoken grief. But this year, the script changes when the Battling Billies’ star midfielder goes missing right before the playoffs begin. Presented with this mysterious disappearance, Cassaty seizes the chance to heroically bring the missing girl home—and hopefully, in doing so, help fill the hole her brother’s death left in her family so many years ago.
About the Author: Kristine Rudolph lives in Atlanta, Georgia and Austin, Texas. She earned a B.A. in History and Religious Studies at Southern Methodist University, a J.D. from The University of Texas at Austin School of Law and a Graduate Certificate in Children’s Literature from Pennsylvania State University. She is a member of the Atlanta Writers Club, the Broadleaf Writers Association, SCBWI and the Children’s Literature Assembly of NCTE. She’s a Girl Scout troop leader and CASA/GAL volunteer. Her middle grade debut, The Twin Stars and the Soccer Superstar, is slated for publication in June 2026 with SparkPress. Learn more about Kristine at kristinerudolph.com.
Thank you, Kristine, for fighting for childrens’ freedom to read!
