18 | JUNE 6 • 2024 
J
N

S

unny Shanker’s goal 
was to publish their 
first book while still 
a kid. They (Sunny uses this 
pronoun) were 9 years old 
when the idea sparked, back 
when 12-year-olds seemed 
so big. 
 They got to work, taking 
time out each day to pursue 
creative writing. Whether 
in their room on a beanbag, 
at school during creative 
writing time or even in 
the car, they crafted, and 
eventually the story of Julia 
Nickson, 12-Year-Old Spy 
emerged. When it was nice 

outside, they used to even sit 
under a tree in the front yard 
to write, they add. 
“I’ve always been creative 
and loved to write,” says 
Sunny, whose mother, 
Wendy Shanker, is also an 
author. “I feel like it was a 
pretty big monumental point 
I achieved by publishing a 
book.” 
Julia Nickson, 12-Year-
Old Spy has a diverse set of 
characters and empowerment 
as one of its themes, Sunny 
says. Along that vein, they 
say they hope it can serve 
as an inspiration for other 

kids, too. “If I can write a 
book, you can, too,” they 
say, adding that the key 
is putting your mind to it 
and not thinking about the 
limitations. 
Their writing style contin-
ues to evolve, and they 
say they’ve learned much 
from the experience. “A lot 
of people, my family, my 
school, my mom included, 
have been big inspirations.”
The bulk of the tale was 
written in 2022 and 2023, 
they say. It follows the 
adventures of a 
seventh-grader 
named Julia as 
she goes to the 
Spy Training 
Academy (STA) in 
her quest to find 
her father.
“I knew that I 
wanted something 
big to happen with 
Julia; I originally 
just wrote her 
waking up and 
going to school, but 
what’s cooler than 
going to a school? A 
spy school,” Shanker says. 
Their influences as a writer 
came from reading mystery 
series like Nancy Drew and 
the mischief-making tales 
of Carmen Sandiego, Sunny 
says, adding that they loved 
The Mysterious Benedict 
Society as well. “I’ll like that 
idea and decide I’m going to 
try and do something with 
that idea,” they say. 
Outside of writing, the 
Roeper seventh-grader takes 
part in school plays and 
theater, is active with Temple 
Israel and recently celebrated 
coming-of-age at their bet 
mitzvah. They like to crochet 

and also compete as part of 
the school’s forensics team.
The book was self-publish-
ed on Feb. 14, Sunny’s 13th 
birthday, and is available 
through Amazon and Kindle.
They’ve been spreading the 
word with the help of friends 
and family and even already 
received their first royalty 
check. 
Shanker says they dream 
of seeing the book on the 
shelves at the local West 
Bloomfield Township Public 
Library — other libraries, 
too. 
“I hope people like the 
book,” they say. 
Wendy Shanker says 
she is impressed with the 
professional quality of the 
writing, and the way Sunny 
so maturely entered into 
the editing process with a 
willingness to write, rewrite 
and take ideas. “I give Sunny 
a lot of credit for the talent 
and the patience, and for 
seeing it through,” Wendy 
Shanker says. 
Meanwhile, Sunny says 
the process has all been 
worthwhile. “First it was 
first-person, then there was 
a narrator — there have been 
a whole lot of little changes, 
and I’m pretty happy with 
how it landed,” they say. 
As for what’s next, they say 
they’re working on a fantasy 
story and continuing to 
read a lot of books. Favorite 
recent reads include The 
Ones We Burn by Michigan-
based fantasy author Rebecca 
Mix and A Magic Steeped in 
Poison by Judy I. Lin. 
“I hopefully will make 
other books,” Sunny says. 
“But I don’t know if a sequel 
is on its way.” 

Roeper seventh-grader 
publishes YA spy novel.

 A 
Young 
 Author

KAREN SCHWARTZ CONTRIBUTING WRITER

OUR COMMUNITY