An acclaimed young adult book co-written by an alumna of Hollins’ graduate programs in children’s literature is headed to Netflix.
The Internet TV network has ordered 10 episodes of Tiny Pretty Things, an hour-long series based on the novel by Dhonielle Clayton M.A. ’09 and Sona Charaipotra. The show is scheduled to premiere in 2020.
Tiny Pretty Things follows the triumphs and challenges of students at The Archer School of Ballet, an elite dance academy in Chicago where the competition to succeed is fierce. Published by HarperCollins in 2015, the novel is described by Kirkus Reviews as “a page-turner with a heart.” Publishers Weekly notes, “This enticing glimpse into the ballet world is rich with detail and drama as the authors highlight its glamour and darkness.” Shiny Broken Pieces, a sequel, was released the following year.
Clayton’s other works include The Belles (her debut solo novel, released in 2018) and The Everlasting Rose (Book Two in The Belles series, published in March of this year). She has also contributed to the story collections Black Enough: Stories of Being Young and Black in America; Meet Cute: Some People Are Destined to Meet; and Unbroken: 13 Stories Starring Disabled Teens. Originally from the Washington, D.C., suburbs, Clayton went on to major in English at Wake Forest University. After earning her M.A. in children’s literature at Hollins, she completed her M.F.A. in creative writing at The New School. A former secondary school teacher and elementary and middle school librarian, she is co-founder of CAKE Literary, which is described as “a creative kitchen whipping up decadent – and decidedly diverse – literary confections for middle grade, young adult, and women’s fiction readers,” and is also chief operating officer of the non-profit We Need Diverse Books.
Clayton taught a week-long workshop at Hollins in July on writing for children and will be joining the faculty of the university’s graduate programs in children’s literature in the summer of 2020.
