Today on the site I’m delighted to welcome Olivia A. Cole and Ashley Woodfolk to reveal the cover of their second Sapphic YA rom-com, Queerleaders, releasing May 26, 2026 from Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers! Here’s the story:
Two cheerleaders find themselves inconveniently tumbling head over heels for each other in this satirical, sapphic teen rom-com that’s Bring It On meets She Drives Me Crazy.
Oak Haven High doesn’t have cheerleaders—it has queerleaders.
It’s a fun coincidence that every new varsity cheerleader since Davie Cathee took the squad by storm three years ago is—or soon comes out as—queer.
But when a rumor sparks that this season, newly minted captain Davie has been specifically recruiting queer members only, Davie is accused of “discrimination” against straight students. She’s given an ultimatum: recruit a straight athlete for the team or the funding for their competitive cheer season will take a major tumble.
Enter Kendall Hayes, the edgy, mysterious new girl. When Davie sees that Kendall has a boyfriend, she quickly convinces her to join the squad. Problem solved.
Until she finds out that Kendall’s actually bisexual…and newly single.
Now Kendall and Davie are faced with having to keep those details under wraps until nationals, which only gets more complicated when they start falling hard and fast for each other. Can Kendall go back in the closet long enough to save the squad? Or will Davie find the courage to love her new crush out loud, even if it might mean the end of the queerleaders?
And here’s the cheer-worthy cover, designed by Krista Vossen with art by Betsy Cola, along with a note from the authors!
We Said Brr It’s Cold in Here, There Must Be a RomCom in the Atmosphere
The best part about writing for teens is meeting the teens you write for – even better when they inspire a book all their own. This is how Queerleaders was born.
While giving a book talk at a high school in Louisville, one of the points of discussion was how lucky I feel to be queer, and as I heard from some of the students in the class about their sources of joy, some of them gleefully discussed their cheerleading squad, which was 95% queer and had become a safe haven. “One day we’ll be totally, fully gay,” one of the kids told me. “And we’ll write a cheer about it.”
At this point Ashley and I had already written a queer YA rom-com together – Call Your Boyfriend – and hadn’t decided what our next book together would be about. But something about the idea of an all-queer cheerleading squad had my antennae up, and when I mentioned it to Ashley we laughed about the inevitable fury of The Straights. Ashley said, “You just know there would be someone claiming the squad is discriminatory for being a straight-free environment.”
That was all it took. Queerleaders was plotted within the week. What if there was an all-queer cheerleading squad? What if the president of the Conservative Club tried out and didn’t make it? What if she was so butt-hurt that she filed a formal complaint? What if the cute captain of the squad had to hurriedly recruit an even cuter straight girl to be their Token Straight in order to prevent the squad being disbanded? And <drum roll> what if that Token Straight’s straightness was a big misunderstanding and she’s actually gay as hell? Cue dating in secret. Cue heterosexuality pageantry to keep the word from getting out. Cue accidentally falling in love.
We had a great time writing this book. It’s even more hilarious than Call Your Boyfriend and has all the things we love most about romance and young love. Fans of Bring It On, Imogen Obviously, and But I’m a Cheerleader will love Queerleaders – this book is everything that its amazing cover promises, a cover made possible by artist Betsy Cola and designer Krista Vossen. We’re so excited to be sharing it here on LGBTQ Reads.
Buy it: Bookshop | B&N | Amazon
Olivia A. Cole and Ashley Woodfolk have written over ten critically acclaimed novels each. In 2023 they joined forces, determined to write something “fun,” and CALL YOUR BOYFRIEND, a queer romcom about two unpopular girls who want revenge but find love instead, was the result. QUEERLEADERS is their second co-written novel and it promises more laughs and hi-jinks than the first. They live and write in different cities but they’re always sharing ideas, jokes, and tea, thanks mostly to voice notes.
Shahriar
Chatham Greenfield is a young adult author born and raised in Florida, which is why their stories often take place in humid seaside towns. After graduating from Sarah Lawrence College, they were selected as a fellow in the inaugural class of LitUp by Reese’s Book Club. You can find them wherever there’s air conditioning, wrapped up in a blanket, reading a gay love story. Connect with Chatham @chatgreenfield on socials and at chatgreenfield.com.
The magic of tabletop RPGs lives in the creativity of the players. Given the chance to explore gender, relationships, and queer existence across vast worlds with completely different sets of rules, queer players throughout the years have found acceptance, camaraderie, and joy by rolling the dice and kicking ass. This anthology celebrates that TTRPG rite of passage with a diverse lineup of queer authors who are just as mighty with their pens as with swords… and shields… and spells!
