St. Louis-based author Soman Chainani visits schools around the world with the message that reading is the path to a better life. The six novels in his School for Good and Evil give him plenty of opportunities to do that; they’ve sold more than 4.5 million copies, been translated into 33 languages, and were adapted into a Netflix film airing in more than 80 countries.

Coven, Chainani’s next project, is his first graphic novel, an adventure that follows a witch coven. The three young witches must answer a call for help from the mysterious Red Isle, where two factions are divided by much more than a river.

Chainani discusses his move from novel to graphic novel, a continuation of a spectacular journey that appeals to generations of readers who love fantasy worlds and rooting for true friends who fight their way from darkness back into the light.