Phyllis A. Whitney was born in Japan and spent her childhood there and in China and the Philippines. After her father's death when she was fifteen, she and her mother travelled to America via Honolulu . She was a dancer as well as a writer in the early years and performed for the Red Cross. She became one of the best-known writers of classic suspense in the world, her novels always hitting the top 10 bestseller lists in the US. She was named Grand Master by the Mystery Writers of America and received the Agatha Award from Malice Domestic - both awards for lifetime achievement. She will be 103 on September 9th 2006.