Margaret Peterson Haddix grew up on a farm in a small town in Ohio, in a family of farmers and bookworms, and she read widely: classic fiction, but also the newspaper and Time magazine. She also found time to participate in activities that she later drew on as material for her books: school plays; playing flute and piccolo in the marching, pep and symphonic bands; singing in the school choir; working on the school newspaper; running track; and volunteering with her 4-H club. At Miami University (Ohio), she worked on the school paper and double majored in Creative Writing and Journalism.
After college, Haddix worked for a while as a newspaper reporter, but longed to write stories from her imagination. She eventually took the leap to writing fiction and experienced her share of rejection, before having a book accepted. With young children, Haddix had to write those earlier stories around the children’s nap times.
Her kids are now teenagers, so Haddix has more time to write, including the Shadow Children series, the Missing series, Dexter the Tough, and an installment of the wildly successful The 39 Clues series.
Margaret Peterson Haddix and her family live in Columbus, Ohio.
Books by this author
39 Clues: Book 10: Into the Gauntlet
Among the Hidden
Claim to Fame
Dexter the Tough
Found
Just Ella
Running Out of Time
