Melissa Baker is an author from Sydney, Australia. From the first time she fed a sheet into her childhood typewriter, Mel has been shaping worlds in words – stories that invite readers into a space of empathy, courage, and transformation. Her non-fiction works draw from a lifetime of lived experience: from childhood adversity to frontline trauma work, and military service. Today, readers know Mel for works like Sleeping Under the Bridge, the opening of her powerful trilogy, as well as A Two-Way Street, Painting Beauty with the Ashes, and Conflict to Hope. Each weaves resilience and hope into unforgettable narratives that meet people where they are – in the quiet turning of a page, on a train ride, or on a holiday. Now, Mel is taking her storytelling into new territory – translating the emotional depth and vulnerability of her books into cinematic form. Her first short film, Say My Name (2023) based on Sleeping Under the Bridge, received over 90 international film awards.