Judy Blume Says She’s Done Writing: ‘50 Years Is Enough!’
Judy Blume, the beloved author whose books have shaped generations of young readers over a five-decade career, has announced she is done writing. The 88-year-old writer made the declaration during an interview with NPR’s Scott Simon at the Santa Fe International Literary Festival in May, which was broadcast on Weekend Edition Saturday on June 20, 2026.
“That’s why 50 years is enough,” Blume told Simon. “I was ready to come out into the world.”
A Career That Defined Young Adult Literature
Blume’s impact on literature is difficult to overstate. Beginning with her first published book, The One in the Middle Is the Green Kangaroo (1969), and her breakthrough novel Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret (1970), she became one of the first authors to write honestly about topics previously considered taboo in children’s literature — menstruation, masturbation, teen sex, birth control, bullying, divorce, and death.
According to Wikipedia, her books have sold over 82 million copies worldwide and have been translated into 32 languages. She was named one of Time magazine’s 100 most influential people in 2023 and has won more than 90 literary awards, including the Margaret A. Edwards Award (1996), the Library of Congress Living Legends award (2000), and the E.B. White Award (2017).
Her most prolific period spanned the 1970s through the 1990s, producing classics such as Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing (1972), Deenie (1973), Blubber (1974), Forever (1975), Superfudge (1980), and Summer Sisters (1998). Her last novel, In the Unlikely Event, was published in 2015.
A New Chapter Behind the Counter
Blume has not published a novel in over a decade, and she says she does not miss writing — but she is deeply grateful for the career she had.
“I don’t miss writing but I’m very glad that I wrote,” she told NPR. “Writing changed my life. But it was time to let it go. Could I have come up with more ideas and written more books? Yes. But I’m really happy that I found something else that I love to do.”
That something else is running a bookstore. Blume now spends her days at Books & Books @ The Studios of Key West, which she co-owns with her husband, George Cooper. She is known to work behind the counter, reading children’s books and recommending titles to customers.
“But I have found another career that I love dearly. I have a bookstore and I love that,” Blume said.
A Legacy of Honesty and Controversy
Blume’s frank approach to adolescence made her a frequent target of censorship. Five of her books appeared on the American Library Association’s list of the top 100 most banned books of the 1990s, with Forever ranking seventh. This experience turned Blume into a prominent free speech activist. She serves on the board of the National Coalition Against Censorship and has been a leading voice in the fight against book banning in American schools and libraries.
Her influence extends beyond the page. In 2023, the documentary Judy Blume Forever premiered at the Sundance Film Festival, and the film adaptation of Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret was released to critical acclaim. A Netflix adaptation of Forever followed in 2025.
The Stories Remain
Despite fans’ hopes for one more book — including persistent requests for a sequel titled “Margaret in Menopause” — Blume insists her characters belong to the ages.
“Margaret is always going to be 12,” she said with characteristic humor. “She’s not knocking, saying, ‘Let me out. I’m in menopause!’”.
Blume’s archive at Yale University’s Beinecke Library ensures her papers will be available for scholars, and her books continue to find new readers. As she reflected on her journey from a stay-at-home mother desperate for a creative outlet to one of the most influential authors in American literature, Blume expressed contentment with how her story has unfolded.
“I was a reader,” she recalled. “And I meet so many kids and they say, ‘I want to be a writer when I grow up, but I don’t like to read.’ And I say, ‘You know what? Forget being a writer.’”
Fifty years may be enough for Judy Blume. But for millions of readers who grew up with Margaret, Fudge, Davey, and Deenie, her stories are just beginning.