Cressida Cowell grew up in London and on a small, uninhabited island off the west coast of Scotland. She was convinced that there were dragons living on this island, and has been fascinated by dragons ever since. She has a BA in English Literature from Oxford University, a BA in Graphic Design from St Martin's and an MA in Narrative Illustration from Brighton. Cressida loves illustrating her own work, but also loves writing books for other people to illustrate as the end result can be so unexpected and inspiring. Cressida has written and illustrated eight books in the popular Hiccup series. The unique blend of child centred humour and sublime prose made Hiccup an instant hit and the series is now published in over 30 languages. How to Train Your Dragon is now a major DreamWorks Animation feature film and has received both Oscar and BAFTA nominations for Best Animated Feature and Best Original Score. A sequel is scheduled for release in 2013 and an animated series is launching on the Cartoon Network in 2012. Also the author of picture books, Cressida won the Nestle Children's Book Prize in 2006 and has been shortlisted for many others. Cressida lives in Hammersmith with her husband and three children. Check out Cressida's Hiccup website: www.howtotrainyourdragonbooks.com.