NOVEL IDEAS   

When she was just 17 years old, Avery Volz wrote a pair of books in young adult literature—a duology titled To the One I Love and To Now and Forever. “Writing intrigues me because I can watch myself grow,” says Volz. “I can step into the genre and ask big questions, like ‘What is love?’” Her third book, Gray Matter, was published in October, and it shows off some of what she’s been studying: “In psychology, I learn so much about human beings and why they do what they do. I can implement that into my characters to make them more relatable, three-dimensional, and believable.” You can find her work at averyvolz.com.

LOCAL PRODUCT   

Growing up in York, Pa., Volz—a fourth-generation Penn Stater—wanted to spend her entire college experience learning at the campus. “I didn’t apply anywhere else,” she says, “because I knew that would be my home.”

MAJOR THEMES    

Mental health is a focal point in Volz’s life that’s also carried into her work. “Writing about different disorders sheds light on these topics that are not often talked about,” she says. After Volz graduates in May, she plans to take a gap year to gain field experience in crisis management; afterward, she wants to pursue a master’s degree in clinical mental health counseling.

PENN STATE PUBLISHER     

With a fourth book in the works, Volz has found support—and a new publisher—in Deborah Kevin ’83 Edu, founder of Highlander Press. They connected at a networking event on campus.

CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 

Volz has taken Noel Sloboda’s creative writing classes every year while at York. Says Volz: “He taught me that if you know the character, the book will write itself.”