No Bears

Meg McKinlay grew up in Bendigo, Victoria, in a book-loving, TV- and car-free household. A poet as well as a children's writer, Meg developed an affinity with the Japanese language after going on an exchange year in high school, and went on to complete a PhD in Japanese Literature. She lives with her family near the ocean in Fremantle, Western Australia, and is an Honorary Research Associate at the University of Western Australia, where she has taught Australian Literature, Japanese, and Creative Writing. Meg divides her time between teaching and writing, a balance that swings wildly between chaos and calm but she is always busy cooking up more books. Leila Rudge was born in England and grew up making mud pies with six siblings and Jeni from number 15. After completing an Illustration Degree at Bath Spa University, Leila headed to Australia to seek her fortune (and the sunshine). Creating tiny characters for books is her favourite part of illustrating.