Melanie Koster lives in Christchurch with her husband and two young children. She worked as a travel consultant for 13 years and used the opportunities her job provided her with the opportunity to travel extensively throughout the world. She started writing seriously in 2002. The Reluctant Little Flower Girl is her first book. Jenny Cooper is a prolific illustrator of children's books. She has been a full time freelance illustrator for the last 15 years and has twice been nominated for the Russell Clark award for illustration. She is also the illustrator of Mallinson Rendel's The Littlest Llama.