Danielle Steel has written 93 books: 75 novels, 14 children's books, 1 book of poetry, and 3 works of non-fiction. More than 600 million copies of her books have been sold in the U.S. She is published in 98 countries. 21 of her books have been made into television movies. She has been in the Guinness book of World Records for having at least one of her books on the New York Times bestseller list for 381 consecutive weeks. She has received numerous awards, particularly for non-fiction work about mental illness, and fiction on the subject of child abuse. And she was decorated by the government of France, as an Officer of the Order of Arts and Letters. She wrote her first book at 19, and has been published since she was twenty-one years old. Danielle is deeply involved in philanthropic work, particularly involving children. She is committed to hands- on work in the fields of mental illness, child abuse, suicide prevention and causes which assist the homeless. She has set up two foundations, and engages in the work herself, as well as peer counseling for parents who have lost children, as she lost her son to suicide at nineteen. She is the mother of nine children, and despite her literary career and philanthropic pursuits, her primary interest is her family and children. She has always been a full-time mom, involved in every aspect of her children's lives. She leads an extremely quiet life, preferring to spend time with her family, or working on the causes she cares about deeply, or writing. She lives in San Francisco and Paris, having spent her youth there, and having been educated in French schools. She divides her time now between both cities.

For me, there is always something simultaneously humorous and poignant about daily life. Just when I want to rip my hair out, a child touches my heart; just when I am laughing hardest, someone makes me cry, and just when I give up all hope that life will ever be sane, someone gives me a hug, and it all makes sense again. The roller coaster ride of life, a constant potion of heartbreak, happiness, laughter and tears. I tried to share my own experiences with that in "Candy for the Soul".