Calixthe Beyala (born 1961) is a Cameroonian-French writer who writes in French.

Stories from which she drew inspiration and used to motivate her to work hard toward the creation of a meaningful career.

[1] Beyala was educated at the École Principale du Camp Mboppi in Douala and went on to study at the Lycée des Rapides à Bangui and the Lycée Polyvalent de Douala.

She eventually won a scholarship to study in Paris at the age of seventeen, where she through a strong academic performance obtained a baccalaureate.

After a few years in Spain she published her first book, C'est le soleil qui m'a brûlée, at the age of 23 and eventually chose to become a full-time writer.