How to Make a Bird

About the Author

Meg McKinlay is the author of a treasure trove of books ranging from picture books and young adult fiction through to poetry for adults. Raised in central Victoria, in a TV- and car-free household, Meg was a bookish kid, in love with words and excited by dictionaries. On the long and winding path to becoming a children’s writer, she has worked a variety of jobs including swim instructor, tour guide, translator and teacher. Meg is now a full-time writer and lives near the ocean in Fremantle, Western Australia, where she is always busy cooking up more books.


Matt Ottley is an internationally acclaimed and multi-award winning artist, working equally across the fields of literature, visual arts and music. Matt has a plethora of published picture books to his name and his awards include the CBCA Picture Book of the Year, the Queensland and NSW Premier's Awards for literature and the International IBBY Australia Illustrator Award and has been shortlisted for the Australian Prime Minister’s Literary Awards. In 2014, Matt was made an Endorsed Yamaha Artist for his work as a composer. He has worked with The West Australian Symphony Orchestra on scores for many of his picture books, and has had a large symphonic work recorded by the Brno Philharmonic Orchestra and the Czech Philharmonic Choir of Brno, Czech Republic. His music has also been performed at the Perth International Arts Festival, the Perth Fringe Festival and the Hong Kong International Literary Festival.