Lee Knox Ostertag, formerly known as Molly Knox Ostertag*, is an award-winning graphic novelist. He got his start in comics with the webcomic Strong Female Protagonist, written by Brennan Lee Mulligan. He then started writing his own books beginning with The Witch Boy series, followed by The Girl From the Sea and The Deep Dark, as well as the Dungeon Club series illustrated by Xanthe Bouma. His books are about magic, identity, and love, and are mostly aimed at children and teenagers.
Lee grew up traveling between coastal Nova Scotia and upstate New York, where he went to the Wayfinder Experience LARP camp as a teen. He attended the School for Visual Arts in New York City and currently lives in Los Angeles with his husband ND Stevenson, two cats named Fig (pictured above) and Toast, and a dog named Winston. He mostly works in graphic novels, but has also written for television animation, notably the Peabody award winning episode Enchanting Grom Fright for the Owl House, as well as an original project for Disney Television Animation.
Lee is a Forbes 30 Under 30 Scholar and has won an Ignatz and Prism award, as well as a Prinz honor, for his work in books. His graphic novels have been optioned and developed for film.
*A note on names: As of 2025, I have used the name Lee and he/him pronouns. Many of my books have my old name on the cover, which is a necessary awkwardness when one transitions after publishing work! I do not, and will never, mind seeing and signing copies of my work with my old name on them. You are always welcome to replace ‘Molly’ with ‘Lee’ using some masking tape if you’re so inclined!
