Erin Alladin is an editor, a writer, and an ecology enthusiast who is always looking for ways to combine her passions. Born in Northern Ontario to a gardener and a forester, she spent most of her early life looking at and thinking about the natural world. As a young adult she spent nearly a decade immersed in Toronto’s children’s literature scene before retreating back up north to the Parry Sound region, where she continues to edit while writing Earth Undaunted, a blog about regenerative gardening.
SUZANNE DEL RIZZO began her career in picture books as the illustrator of the award-winning Skink on the Brink. She left scientific research to make children’s books, creating illustrations with polymer clay/mixed media. Suzanne’s author-illustrator debut, My Beautiful Birds, was a New York Times Notable Book and Malka Penn Award for Human Rights in Children’s Literature winner. Suzanne lives with her family in Oakville, Ontario.
Gabrielle Grimard uses various media to research and create the illustrations for a book, but her favorite aspect will always be color. She uses mainly watercolors, gouache and oil. She adds a touch of wooden pencil for the details. She has illustrated dozens of books and has been nominated for several awards. She lives near Sherbrooke, Quebec.
A folk artist and award-winning illustrator who trained at the Ontario College of Art and Design, Tara Anderson is known for her lively and humorous illustrations of animals. Her books include the illustrated novels Harvey Comes Home, Harvey Holds His Own, and Sapphire the Great and the Meaning of Life, the holiday picture books Pumpkin Orange, Pumpkin Round and Easter Morning, Easter Sun, and the award-winning Nat the Cat Can Sleep Like That. Tara shares a farmhouse in Tweed, Ontario, with her husband, her young daughter, and several cats.
François Thisdale’s work blends traditional drawing and painting with digital imagery. He is the illustrator of The Stamp Collector, which is on IBBY Honor List, and That Squeak, an honour book for the IBBY Canada Elizabeth Mrazik-Cleaver Picture Book Award. Missing Nimama won the TD Canadian Children's Book Award. François lives in Montreal, Quebec.
MIKI SATO is an artist and maker of tiny things who uses a variety of different papers and fabrics to create her intricate, 3D-looking illustrations. Born and raised in Ottawa, she now lives in Toronto, Ontario.
Tamara Campeau received her Bachelor's of Illustration at Sheridan College. She has worked for a diverse range of publishing and editorial clients such as Kayak Children's magazine, Inhabit Media and currently working with HEMMA Publication and Heinemann Education.
Emma Pedersen is an illustrator and concept artist with a love for visual storytelling and character design. With BFAs from the Ontario College of Art and Design in drawing and painting, and from Sheridan College in illustration, Emma specializes in children’s illustration. Her first picture book is Queenie Quail Can’t Keep Up (2019). Emma lives in Toronto, Ontario, with her partner and a beloved, and smelly, little dog.
CARMEN MOK is a studio-art graduate of the University of Waterloo and a craft and design graduate of Sheridan College. She has illustrated Percy's Museum by Sara O'Leary, Violet Shrink by Christine Baldacchino and Grandmother’s Visit by Betty Quan, an Asian/Pacific American Award for Literature Picture Book Honor title. Carmen’s other noteworthy books include A Stopwatch from Grampa by Loretta Garbutt, Cone Cat by Sarah Howden and Tough Like Mum by Lana Button. She lives in St. Catharines, Ontario.
A child of newcomers, Aino Anto grew up one of four rambunctious kids in a big city, with summers spent exploring forest paths. Aino graduated from the University of Toronto and earned an associate’s diploma from the Ontario College of Art, now the Ontario College of Art and Design. Aino’s first picture book is The Moon Watched It All. She lives in a leafy corner of Toronto and still treasures her earliest notebook of stories.
Sue Macartney's creative style as an author-illustrator has been shaped by life on four continents and work as a graphic designer and children's art educator. She has a deep love of nature and lives in Victoria, British Columbia with her husband and a backyard full of birds.
Amélie Dubois is an artist living in Trois-Rivières, Quebec. She has worked as an artist for almost two decades in the domains of animation and visual effects. Her knowledge in the field led her to work as a visual effects artist in various post-production studios for television and film. Today Amélie is devoted to illustration. When she isn’t drawing she can be found walking her dog or playing guitar and signing songs.
Andrea Blinick is an artist and an art educator with a passion for children’s literature. After graduating from the Ontario College of Art and Design with an illustration diploma, she went on to receive a Bachelor of Design through OCAD in conjunction with Thompson Rivers University and then pursued a Bachelor of Education at York University. Her first picture book, Outside, You Notice, earned a starred review from Kirkus Reviews. Most recently she has published Sun in My Tummy and Serge the Snail Without a Shell. Andrea lives in Toronto with her husband and two daughters, who often inspire the storytelling behind her art. She enjoys music, writing, comedy, travel, and making a mess on her art table.
