Jamie Pacton

Jamie Pacton writes teen fantasy that pairs imaginative settings with questions about work, class, ambition, and belonging. The Vermilion Emporium, published by Peachtree Teen in 2022, is her fantasy debut. It brings together Twain, a boy who finds a strand of starlight, and Quinta, the daughter of a circus performer who wants to understand her own magical inheritance. A mysterious shop and an instructional book show them how to turn starlight into lace, but a wealthy commission makes the material’s hidden cost impossible to ignore. Pacton uses the curiosity shop, the craft of lace making, and the city of Severon to examine creativity as both wonder and labor. Her earlier contemporary novels include The Life and Medieval Times of Kit Sweetly and Lucky Girl. The Vermilion Emporium expands her range into a secondary world while retaining her focus on resourceful teenagers challenging the economic structures around them.