The author, Gary Chapman, was born in 1938 and joined the staff of Calvary Baptist Church in North Carolina in 1971 after receiving multiple graduate degrees in anthropology and education. Best known for his book The Five Love Languages, Chapman has authored several related follow-up books and tours the United States giving talks and seminars on marriage, love, and relationships.

An acting counselor for his church for over 50 years, Chapman wanted to write a book that spoke to the real, lived experience of married couples who genuinely desired to improve their relationship, or salvage a relationship that had gone sour. The Five Love Languages gives examples of actions that can be performed within marriage for the good of the spouse. It can also be useful for people who are not married or in romantic relationships.

The fundamental tenets of the book describe how we can communicate love and care for anyone; they just happen to be most explicit in the context of intimate, married love. Chapman notes that the book is not meant to be an academic treatise; he admits to not having all the answers. The five love languages are not shortcuts to healthy relationships; they can, however, be useful in discerning how spouses can genuinely and sincerely love one another in their words and deeds.