BIO

Ann M. Martin gives baby-sitting . . . and books . . . a good name. As a child, Martin loved books -- and by age ten she herself was already starting to baby-sit with her friends. No one could have predicted that one day Martin would be celebrating because her prized book series had nearly 125 million copies in print!

After more than ten years of writing, Martin still has her finger on the pulse of her preteen audience. She understands and communicates the secret language of young girls today -- who struggle with peer pressure, hang out after school, and deal with difficult family issues -- in distinctly-drawn portraits of everyday situations. Of course, the inspiration for these top-selling books comes from Martin's own personal commitment to values embodied in the Baby-sitters Club: a strong sense of friendship, integrity, and hard work.

Born in Princeton, NJ, Ann Matthews Martin always treasured reading, from The Secret Garden to Roald Dahl to Frank L. Baum's Wizard of Oz books. A graduate of Smith College, Martin first worked in publishing as an editor of children's books for both Bantam and Scholastic, then moved on to work full-time as a novelist. Up at 6 a.m. each day, Martin writes diligently under the quiet gaze of her cats Rosie and Gussie. Characters in the BSC books are based in part on individuals in Ann's own life; in fact, shy baby-sitter Mary Anne is partially based on Ann herself.

Dividing her time between an apartment in New York City and her home in upstate New York, Ann M. Martin works on the BSC books and all the spin-off series and answers fan mail from the more than 15,000 letters she receives annually. In addition to the BSC, Martin writes thought-provoking middle-grade and young adult novels like Ten Kids, No Pets, which have garnered praise from reviewers as well as state book awards.

How does Martin feel about the BSC's motion picture debut? During production, she was very involved in script review, casting decisions -- and even went on location in Hollywood! "I couldn't believe that most of the actresses who play the baby-sitters are BSC readers themselves! The movie really captures the spirit of the BSC."

Whether on a movie set or on a booksigning tour across the USA, Ann M. Martin continues to be inspired by her young audience -- and eagerly looks ahead to a whole new generation of BSC fan club members, moviegoers, and, of course, loyal and enthusiastic readers.

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