Elena Malisova

Elena Malisova is a Russian author best known for co-writing the bestselling coming-of-age novel, "A Summer in a Pioneer Tie," with Ukrainian author Katerina Silvanova. The novel, which has gained significant attention from readers and publishers worldwide, was first published by an independent publisher, Popcorn Books, in 2021.
==Early Life and Career==
Elena Malisova was born in a provincial Russian town in the late 1980s and moved to Moscow in the mid-2000s. From a young age, she wrote poetry and was published in local newspapers. Malisova's first prose work, an autobiographical novel, was written and published on the internet platform Ficbook.net in 2012.
Between 2012 and 2016, Malisova wrote and published small literary works, including a mystical novel about Ural and a novel about a teacher in love with a student. However, work on these novels has been halted due to the current Russian legislation that deems it dangerous to discuss such topics in novels, even online.
==A Summer in a Pioneer Tie==
Malisova co-wrote "A Summer in a Pioneer Tie" with Katerina Silvanova," which made its debut on the CIS fanfiction website Ficbook.net. Although it had a small but devoted fan base at first, Popcorn Books, an independent publisher focusing on queer fiction, discovered the series and published it, leading to an explosive surge in popularity that made it the top-selling fiction book in Russia for 2022. Initially, the novel gained tremendous popularity among teens and young adults, quickly becoming a cultural phenomenon. As the book's appeal spread, it also garnered a massive following among adults.
The book's success was significantly amplified by social media, particularly on TikTok, where fans created content to express their admiration for the story and characters. The platform saw a surge of fan-made videos, including emotional reactions to the book's ending and various creative tributes. The book's popularity further increased after its publication by Popcorn Books
However, the novel's popularity also attracted the attention of Russian Parliament officials and anti-LGBT activists, who began a campaign to ban the book due to its content, marking the beginning of a series of controversies and legal issues for the authors.
==Reception==
Despite facing significant backlash and controversy, Elena Malisova has remained dedicated to her writing. Along with co-author Katerina Silvanova, she released the highly anticipated sequel to their bestselling novel, "A Summer in a Pioneer Tie," titled "Silence of the Swallow."
The novel has been a critical and commercial success, selling over 100,000 copies in just two months. It continues the story of Volodya and Yura, who fell in love in 1986 but were forced apart. The book explores their lives twenty years later, as they grapple with the aftermath of their past and whether they have a future together. Despite its popularity, the book was banned by the Russian Parliament in December 2022, sparking outrage among its readers.
Malisova and Silvanova have not let the ban dampen their creative spirits. They are currently working on the third book in the series, which has yet to be titled. While details about the book are not yet available, fans are eagerly anticipating its release. The third installment in the series is expected to continue exploring themes of love, loss, and identity in the context of a rapidly changing society.
==Controversy and Legal Issues==
Following the success of "A Summer in a Pioneer Tie," Russian Parliament officials and anti-LGBT activists began a campaign to ban the book, claiming that it defaced the idea of the USSR, promoted Western values, and contained LGBT propaganda. The authors faced death threats and were forced to leave Russia.
Category:1980s births
Category:Russian people
Category:Author