American · b. 1964
Maria Semple worked as a television writer on "Arrested Development" and "Mad About You" before writing novels. "Where'd You Go, Bernadette" (2012) became a word-of-mouth bestseller—an epistolary comedy about a reclusive architect, her devoted daughter, and a disappearance to Antarctica. Semple's wit is sharp; her characters are smarter than they seem; Seattle's tech culture gets affectionate satire. The novel was adapted into a film by Richard Linklater.