Be More Chill (29 page)

Ned Vizzini
began writing for
The New York Press
at the age of fifteen, and at nineteen, he had his first book,
Teen Angst? Naaah…
, published. He subsequently wrote
Be More Chill
, named one of
Entertainment Weekly’s
Top Ten Books of 2004, and the first young adult novel ever chosen as a
Today
Show Book Club pick.

Next came
It’s Kind of a Funny Story
, selected by the American Library Association for its list of the Best Books for Young Adults in 2007, and named one of the 100 Best-Ever Teen Novels by National Public Radio. It was adapted into a film released by Focus Features in 2010. The last novel published before his death,
House of Secrets
, was a middle-grade fantasy co-written with filmmaker Chris Columbus; it debuted on the
New York Times
Best Seller list.

Ned’s stories often drew on his struggles with anxiety and depression, yet they had a strong comic bent. His fans appreciated his honesty and sense of humor; his writing provided solace to those who saw their feelings and experiences mirrored in the books. He was also very generous to other writers. In 2005, he started the Barnes & Noble Teen Writers Workshops, which he ran until 2012.