Wallis Kinney's biggest sources of joy in life are science and fairytales. She tries to imbue elements of both into every story she writes. She studied planetary science and molecular biology at the University of Colorado and has a master's degree in economics from Purdue University. She is president of the Jane Bosart Foundation, her family's private foundation that focuses on granting high school and college scholarships to underprivileged students. She wrote A Dark and Secret Magic as a gift for her older sister, in honor of all the years they spent celebrating the magical wonder of Halloween together. Wallis lives in Dallas, Texas, with her family. In her free time she enjoys playing Dungeons & Dragons and making videos on YouTube that document her writing process.