Mark Teague was born in 1976. When he was a child, he started writing books before he could even write. His mother would write the words for him. In interviews Mr. Teague says writing still feels like play to him. He grew up in La Megas, California, and went to college in California. He loved books, and was working at Barnes & Noble doing window displays when he decided to write his first book.

Although he had no formal writing training, he quickly became a writer of over 20 children’s books. Additionally, he has illustrated over 40 books. Each of Mark Teague’s books starts as “notebooks full of sketches and scribbles, strange little drawings and phrases that suddenly come together” he has described in interviews. During his creative process, he doodles and scribbles with no aim. Most of his books address common childhood fears.

Teague's first full-length novel for children, The Doom Machine, was published in October 2009 by Scholastic, Inc. Set in 1956, it tells the tale of Jack Creedle, a paperboy whose world is turned upside down when a space shuttle lands in his hometown. Aliens, time machines, and Mark Teague's signature illustrations ensue!

He now lives in Coxsackie, New York and with his wife, Laura and two daughters, Lily and Ava.