Essa Hansen grew up in the beautiful wilderness of California, from the coastal foothills to the Sierra Nevada mountains and the Canadian Rocky Mountains, which fostered a love of nature, ecology, and biology. She has ranched bison and sheep, trained horses, practiced Japanese swordsmanship, and is a licensed falconer. Essa debuted with Nophek Gloss, the first book in the now completed space opera trilogy The Graven from Orbit Books. By day she works as Nia Hansen for Skywalker Sound as a sound designer on science fiction and fantasy feature films for clients such as Marvel, Pixar, and Disney Animation.