A chemist and teacher, Dr. Robert McDaniel is the holder of 14 U.S. patents and currently writes for The Saponifier e-magazine (a bimonthly publication for the soap- and candle-making industry). Katherine McDaniel is co-manager of their home-based company, Dr. Bob's Herbal Soap. The McDaniels' first soap making book, Essentially Soap, sold over 33,000 copies worldwide.