His debut piece, Orchesis: The Legends of Thailand, premiered in Wakayama-shi, Japan in December 2011.
[1] In addition to composing, Jay has written several novels over the years, including the Black Lives Matter-inspired stand-alone, Tyler Johnson Was Here, which was published March 20, 2018 by Little Brown Books for Young Readers.
Coles now lives in Muncie, Indiana, where he works for a church Union Chapel as a youth pastor, and continues to write.
Tyler Johnson Was Here was nominated for the 2018 Goodreads Choice Award for Young Adult Fiction.
[3] The American Library Association included Tyler Johnson was Here (2019)[4] and Black Enough (2020)[5] on their list of Amazing Audiobooks for Young Adults.