Kristin Hardy

At 12, Kristin Hardy started her first
book, and the seed of ambition was
planted. Trained as an engineer, she was
part of the team that built the mirrors
for NASA's orbital x-ray telescope, an
experience that drove her to switch
careers to trade magazine editor. Later,
she took her act online and joined a
business-to-business dot com (where she
was a paper millionaire for a heady 30
seconds). Around the time her stock
options were spiraling down to
worthlessness, she was recruited to
launch a print magazine for an
engineering society. She currently lives
in New Hampshire with her husband.