David Almond is the author of Skellig, My Name is Mina, Counting Stars, The Savage, Island, A Song for Ella Grey, The Colour of the Sun and many other novels, stories, picture books, opera librettos, songs and plays.

His work is translated into 40 languages, and is widely adapted for stage and screen. His major awards include the Carnegie Medal, two Whitbread Awards, the Eleanor Farjeon Award, the Michael L Printz Award (USA), Le Prix Sorcieres (France) and the Guardian Children's Fiction Prize. In 2010 he won the Hans Christian Andersen Award, the world's most prestigious prize for children's authors.

David speaks at festivals and conferences around the world. He is Professor of Creative Writing at Bath Spa University. He is widely regarded as one of the most exciting, inspirational and innovative children's authors writing today. He has one amazing daughter. He lives in Bath and in Newcastle, the city in which he was born.

After briefly considering careers in space travel, cookery and being a rabbit, Alex T. Smith finally decided to become an illustrator.

Soon after he graduated from art school he won second place in the Macmillan Prize for Children's Illustration and has gone on to have a stellar career, creating such favourite picture book characters as Claude from Claude in the City, Claude on Holiday and Claude Going for Gold.