Kim Rendfeld has a lifelong fascination with fairy tales and legends, which set her on her quest to write "The Cross and the Dragon" and its companion, "The Ashes of Heaven's Pillar." She grew up in New Jersey and attended Indiana University, where she earned a bachelor's degree in journalism and English, with a minor in French. If it weren't for feminism, she would be one of those junior high English teachers scaring the bejesus out of her students, correcting grammar to the point of obnoxiousness. Instead, her career has been in journalism, public relations, and fiction.

Kim was a journalist for almost twenty years at Indiana newspapers and won several awards from the Hoosier State Press Association. Her career changed in 2007, when she joined the marketing and communications team at Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana. She is proud to have been part of projects that have received national recognition.

She lives in Indiana with her husband, Randy, and their spoiled cat. She and Randy have a daughter and four grandchildren.

Kim opines about the craft of writing and history at her blog, Outtakes of a Historical Novelist, at kimrendfeld.wordpress.com, and she is a contributor to the blogs Unusual Historicals (unusualhistoricals.blogspot.com) and English Historical Fiction Authors (englishhistoryauthors.blogspot.com).