Cassandra Clare

A childhood spent traveling and growing up in foreign lands must have been fertile imaginative ground for a young Cassandra Clare. From a successful stint as one of the most popular writers of Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter fan fiction, to New York Times best-selling author of The Mortal Instruments series, Cassandra Clare had risen to become one of the most successful authors in the field of young adult fiction.

Clare was born Judith Rumelt in Tehran, Iran to American parents. Her grandfather, Max Rosenberg, was a producer primarily of horror films including the first one in color, "The Curse of Frankenstein" (1957). Her mother and father were world travelers, and she spent much of her childhood living and traveling abroad.

In her twenties, Clare lived in New York City and Los Angeles where she wrote about celebrity gossip by day and rose to superstardom in online fan fiction by night under the name Cassandra Claire. Known for her comedic Lord of the Rings parody, called "The Very Secret Diaries," as well as a number of Harry Potter stories, most notably "The Draco Trilogy," Clare went from a beloved fan writer, to a somewhat controversial figure, when she was accused of plagiarizing some of her work.

She soon left the controversy, as well as the "i" in her fan fiction pen name, behind when she landed a book deal. Her first novel, 2007's City of Bones, was not only a best-seller but was nominated for a number of young adult literary awards. Clare continued to pen successful books in The Mortal Instruments series, as well as books in a prequel trilogy, The Infernal Devices.

During the casting of the film "The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones" (2013), Clare fought to make sure that Magnus, an Asian character in her novel, was not "whitewashed," and that an Asian actor was cast in the role. The film proved to be a critical and commercial disappointment, however. The same year, the final book in The Infernal Devices trilogy, Clockwork Princess, was released.