Erica Bauermeister is the best-selling author of three novels: The School of Essential Ingredients (2009), Joy for Beginners (2011), and The Lost Art of Mixing (2013). She is also co-author of two guides for readers: 500 Great Books by Women (1994) and Let's Hear It for the Girls (1997). She holds a Ph.D. in literature from the University of Washington and is a founding member of the Seattle7Writers. She currently resides in Port Townsend, WA, where she is working on her next novel.