Meet Alan Gratz

author of Ground Zero and Refugee

Do you have a special writing ritual?

I put on over-the-ear headphones and play music with no words. I only wear those headphones when I write, so it has kind of trained me that when I'm wearing them, it's time to write!

Alan's Top Ten Things He is Afraid Of:

1. Sharks

2. Being in a play and forgetting my lines

3. E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial

4. Dancing in public

5. Grapes

6. Nose rings

7. My daughter getting a nose ring

8. Anything about the inside of the body

9. Loud, sudden noises

10. Tumblr

What’s a fun fact about you?

I have two. I have eaten a pizza for dinner almost every night for the past thirty years. That's approximately 10,500 pizzas. I once made a sixteen-foot-tall Totoro costume that won a Best in Show award in a comic con masquerade contest.

What is Ground Zero about?

Nine year old Brandon is trapped in the North Tower when an airplane slams into the World Trade Center on September 11th, 2001. Nearly twenty years later in Afghanistan, eleven year old Reshmina struggles to survive when the U.S. and the Taliban use her village as a battleground. But the past and present are tied together, and Brandon and Reshmina are connected in more ways than they know…

About Alan

Alan Gratz is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of several highly acclaimed books for young readers, including Allies, Grenade, Ground Zero, Refugee, Projekt 1065, Prisoner B-3087, and Code of Honor. Alan lives in North Carolina with his wife and daughter. Look for him online at alangratz.com, on Twitter @alangratz, or on Instagram @alan.gratz.