Stephenie Meyer never set out to be a writer, having always been more interested in reading books than writing them. As a child, her favourite books included Gone With the Wind, Little Women, and Terry Brooks’ The Sword of Shannara.

After graduating from college, Stephenie worked as an office assistant until she gave up work to look after her children, and was considering going back to college to begin an English doctorate.

Then, in 2004, a vivid dream changed the course of her life.

Up until that point, Stephenie had never taken much of an interest in vampires: she had read Anne Rice whilst at college, but had never even seen an episode of Buffy, The Vampire Slayer.

But when a vampire appeared to her in a dream, she was so struck by what her subconscious had conjured up that she wrote it down. Three months later, that dream became the basis of the first draft of Twilight. The book has sold hundreds of thousands of copies around the world, and has found acclaim from readers of all ages.

Stephenie now lives in Glendale, Arizona with her husband and three sons.