Born and raised in Los Angeles, Ellis now writes from North Carolina, where she lives with her husband, four children, and a cat named (without a hint of irony) Cat.

She spent her childhood filling notebooks with stories—including an ambitious series about a soldier horse that will, thankfully, never see the light of day—reading ghost stories, and wandering historic sites.

These days, you can usually find her convincing herself she probably doesn't need another iced vanilla latte and dreaming up her next novel.