Juliet Marillier got started a bit later in life than many novelists -- her first novel was published when Marillier was in her early 50s -- but she's made up for it since then. Born in Dunedin, New Zealand, which she describes as "the most Scottish city outside Scotland itself," Marillier worked as a teacher and in the public sector before publishing Daughter of the Forest in 1999, the first book in the Sevenwaters series. Working almost exclusively in the historical fantasy field, Marillier has published more than 20 novels, winning multiple Aurealis and Tin Duck Awards along the way.