Ben Mikaelsen lives in a cabin in Montana with his wife and pet black bear, Buffy. Buffy is 700 pounds and Ben’s best friend, as well as the inspiration for the novel’s Spirit Bear. She appears in the novel in a photo alongside Mikaelsen, hugging and licking him.

Mikaelsen was born and raised in Bolivia, where he experienced political violence and the deaths of many loved ones. He wanted to heal from his experiences and write a story of vindication by writing Touching Spirit Bear. He views Circle Justice as a more beneficial alternative to punishment and believes in the importance of helping both victims and perpetrators heal from crimes. He also wanted to shed light on the nature of bullying with the hope of promoting empathy. Mikaelsen was bullied by his teachers in school, as well as physically abused; this made him angry, much like Cole, and Mikaelsen seeks to illuminate the effects of this type of authoritarian abuse in the novel. In this way, Touching Spirit Bear reflects the experiences Mikaelsen had in his childhood and youth.