Jodi Toering was born in the Mallee, at Hopetoun, and grew up on a wheat farm outside a small town called Beulah. Jodi now juggles the roles of full-time teacher, mother, performer and author in Creswick, near Ballarat. Her first picture book, Mallee Sky (Walker Books), was an Honour Book in the 2020 CBCA Picture Book of the Year Awards.