Bio

Drew Lerman was the PUSH Writing Intern during the summer of 2005.  He wrote a screenplay while he was a sophomore in high school, but decided to turn the project into a novel. "I felt a book would allow me to flesh out the story and get into the heads of the characters more intimately," states Lerman. "I also felt there was absolutely no way I'd be able to get this story to look on screen the way I could envision it on paper." 

A couple of months into the writing process, when a friend mentioned to Lerman that the deadline for The Scholastic Art and Writing Awards was fast approaching, he decided to submit the first five chapters of his story in the Novel Writing category.  Shortly after, he completed the draft and entitled it Magic City. "I named it after the crazy, ridiculous city where its action takes place - Miami," states Lerman.  He decided to send a copy to author Eric Garcia.  "My parents bought their house from his parents," he explains.  "They still spoke to them sometimes as they lived in our community. I got in touch with Eric and sent him my manuscript and he proved to be one of the most encouraging people I met during the process."  It is through Garcia that Lerman obtained his agent.

In the spring of 2005, Lerman found that he won the Scholastic Novel Writing Gold Award.  The prize was the opportunity to work with PUSH editor David Levithan for a chance to have the novel published.  "My entire junior year was spent in brutal, arduous rewriting," states Lerman. "Much of this was done during my Research Science class, for which I brought my laptop everyday, ostensibly to look up websites about black holes or create Excel spreadsheets."  During his summer internship, he worked closely with Levithan on the novel.   Early the following year, Lerman received a call from the editor to discuss the terms of a book contract.  As well, Magic City has been sold for translation to publishers in Israel, Poland and Brazil.

In addition to writing, Drew Lerman also draws political cartoons, which have won several local and national awards while he was in high school.  His City Streets comic has appeared in OutLoud, a local south Florida newspaper.  He has also played guitar and written songs, mostly for punk rock bands. 

Drew Lerman is currently attending college at Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire.