Micol Ostow (1976–) Biography

Born 1976. Ethnicity: "Puerto Rican and Jewish." Education: College graduate. Hobbies and other interests: Reading, running, watching inappropriate quantities of bad TV.

Addresses

Agent—c/o Author Mail, Simon Pulse/Simon & Schuster, 1230 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10020.

Career

Writer and editor. Simon & Schuster, New York, NY, editor in trade nonfiction, then young-adult division. Creator of Fireplace in a Box and Executive Desk Gong, for Running Press, 2003.

Writings

FOR YOUNG ADULTS

(Compiler with Steven Brizenoff) The Quotable Slayer (based on television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer), Simon Pulse (New York, NY), 2003.

30 Guys in 30 Days, Simon Pulse (New York, NY), 2005.

Changeling Places (based on television series Charmed), Simon Spotlight Entertainment (New York, NY), 2005.

Westminster Abby ("Students across the Seven Seas" series), Speak (New York, NY), 2005.

Ultimate Travel Games, Price, Stern, Sloan, 2006.

Emily Goldberg Learns to Salsa, Razorbill (New York, NY), 2006.

Also author (uncredited) of young-adult novels based on television series, including American Dreams, and for novel series, including "Fearless" and "Camp Confidential."

Sidelights

After graduating from college, Micol Ostow hired on with New York City publisher Simon & Schuster, and her job as editor eventually led to her second career as the author of young-adult novels. Describing her move to author as "a very organic" process in an online interview with NYC24 contributor Catherine Shu, Ostow ex-
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plained that she started as a ghostwriter for novelizations of popular ongoing series such as Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Charmed, and Fearless, some published under house pseudonyms. From there, Ostow has begun to make her own name known to teen readers; her novels 30 Guys in 30 Days and Westminster Abby appeared in 2005. Praising the first book as "tastefully written," Kliatt contributor Annette Wells added that older teens "will love this cleverly constructed novel" about a college freshman who decides to overcome her shyness by talking to a different guy each day for a month.

Part of the "Students across the Seven Seas" series, Westminster Abby centers around sixteen-year-old Abby, who has been sent to London for the summer by her parents as punishment for lying to them about her boyfriend James. While abroad, Abby meets up with a charming Brit named Ian and strikes up a fun relationship. A quandary arises when James appears in London, hoping to rekindle their relationship despite the fact that he cheated on her: should Abby chose between Ian and James or opt for staying single? "This is as much a travel book as a romance, and for the most part, Ostow does a good job of fitting all the sights, sounds, and smells into the story," commented Ilene Cooper in a Booklist review of Westminster Abby. Catherine Ensley, writing in School Library Journal, also enjoyed the teen read, commenting that while "light in conflict," Ostow's story "will appeal to teens … whose lives are similarly sheltered and somewhat economically privileged."