Paul Magrs was born in Jarrow, Tyne and Wear in 1969. He was educated at Woodham Comprehensive, in Newton Aycliffe, before attending Lancaster University. 'Strange Boy' was his twelfth published book, but his first for a teen audience. Exchange is his third novel for Simon & Schuster Children's. He's always wanted to write the kinds of book he could never find when he was a teenager. Nowadays he runs the Creative Writing MA course at Manchester University.