Danielle Esplin studied BSc Food Science with Chemistry at the University of Stellenbosch. She was one of the top students, and she got a full-ride scholarship. After almost three years of sleepless nights, working in the laboratories and experimenting with new food products, she realized that something was missing.

And that was writing fiction.

Without telling anyone, she packed her bags in her apartment, waved her twin good-bye, trudged down the street on campus and got on a bus. When she crossed the border, entering Namibia, she switched on her phone and sent her mother a text. “I dropped out of University,” she said and never looked back.

In Namibia, among the countless dunes that appeared like a half-closed girdle nestling the everlasting sea, her desire to write resurfaced. Danielle loves to travel, and she writes about her adventures on her blog exploringmyplanet.com.

Today she is an award-winning author who lives with her husband in Seattle. In her spare time, she likes to sing, read or spend time with family and friends