Kathleen McCleary was born and raised in Grosse Pointe Farms, Mich., and lived in New York, Tennessee, and Virginia before settling in Oregon in 1992. She has worked as a staff writer and editor and freelance writer for a variety of publications, including The New York Times, USA Weekend, Good Housekeeping, More, Health, Martha Stewart Living, and Ladies Home Journal. She was a columnist for several years for HGTV.com. A 2004 job opportunity for her husband brought her reluctantly back to Virginia (which is a beautiful and friendly state that had nothing to do with her discontent other than the fact that it wasn't Oregon). The move sparked the idea for a novel, and she spent almost three years writing House and Home, while also working as a freelance writer and as a barista at the local, independently owned coffee shop in her town.