Raven Leilani is an American writer born in New York City on August 26, 1990. She publishes under the name Raven Leilani and gained recognition for her debut novel Luster, which was released in 2020 to critical acclaim. In the same year, she was named a '5 Under 35' Honoree by the National Book Foundation, an award recognizing exceptional writers under the age of 35.