Rachel Vail is the award-winning author of more than 30 books for young people. As a theater lover, Rachel sees and reads as many plays as she can. Well, That Was Awkward was in part inspired by her love of the play Cyrano - another tale of secrets, wit, self-confidence, self-loathing, friendship, identity-hiding, and romance that blossoms between all the wrong people. Or does it? Rachel lives in New York City with her husband, their two sons, and (like Gracie) a tortoise named Lightning.

Matthew Cordell is the Caldecott Medal–winning author-illustrator of Wolf in the Snow, as well as many other books, including King Alice and Wish. Matthew Cordell lives in Illinois, USA.