ONCE UPON A TIME . . .

I grew up on an old farm in Maple, Ontario with Black Aberdeen Angus cattle, and loved taking long walks across the fields and through the woods. I also spent hours in the loft of our old barn, dreaming and scheming. One day, I found a mysterious black medallion and a gold ring in an old chest in the corner of the barn. For years, I kept them hidden.

And long, long, long after the barn tumbled down . . .

When the time came to write The MiddleGate Books, I remembered the black medallion and the gold ring.

Rae St. Clair Bridgman is an award-winning Winnipeg author and illustrator of children’s books, including several picture books and the mythical MiddleGate Books. She has a knack for finding the magical and extraordinary in the ordinary, in between the cracks of reality. Rae is a university professor, anthropologist, urban planner, mother of six. Favourite things to do in her spare time: watching ants, chasing crayfish, reading the dictionary, playing tuba, watching clouds, and inventing toys. Favourite sayings: "Often, secrets do not remain secrets for long." “Things that disappear by themselves can come back by themselves.” “Problems can multiply like flies.” “The story certainly changes depending on the storyteller.”

Rae is also co-director of BridgmanCollaborative Architecture, a Winnipeg design studio, and a professor in city planning at the University of Manitoba. She is a member of The Writers' Union of Canada (TWUC), SCBWI (Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators) and the Manitoba Writers' Guild. She earned her B.A. (classics) and Bachelor of Music at the University of Toronto, as well as a Master's (interdisciplinary studies) and PhD (anthropology) at York University.