Amanda Holtom graduated Summa Cum Laude from Jefferson College, where she studied English, creative writing, and television production. She is a member of Saturday Writers, the Write Group of St. Louis, and the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators. Her work has appeared in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and in two of Harper-Perennial's series books, among other venues. Amanda is a devoted mother, a passionate storyteller and world traveler, and she's trying to prove her theory that diet soda counteracts dessert. So far, it's not panning out. She wrote the "Mom's the Word" column on Maryland Heights Patch.