i read a lot of manga and manga artists will sometimes actually add a section at the end of each volume (or little sections between chapters) that tells them a bit about themselves. you don't tend to get any gritty details but thanks to it i know that the guy that writes PHD: phantasy degree is a huge gaming nerd that sometimes would have rather have just played fantasy video games all day instead if writing manga,the lady that writes tokyo mew mew likes to cosplay as her main character when she appears at cons and sometimes get's weird questions and the lady that writes emma: a victorian romance is such a huge maid nerd that she used the series as an excuse to take a trip to london for "research".

it's not a LOT of info but it does let you get to know them a little bit and creates a level of connection between author and reader that just wouldn't otherwise be there.