Neville Abbott Jacobs earned degrees in anthropology and journalism from the University of Alaska. Beyond that, real-life experiences in the paranormal motivated her to research worlds beyond the physical. After marrying Bob Jacobs, an airline pilot, in 1968, they often vacationed in Hawaii. In January, 1977, with Bob flying overseas, Neville returned to Hawaii to visit a girlfriend, and then met the Nechung Rinpoche, a high Tibetan lama. This meeting launched her into a deeper exploration of Buddhism and the mysteries of Tibet. The Master on the Mountain is her first book.