Shannon Peavey
JAMES J. EADS
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Shannon Peavey was born and raised in a suburb of Seattle, Washington. The oldest of three girls, she mostly used her vivid imagination to terrify her siblings: telling them that she’d been replaced by an evil twin from an alternate dimension, or that eating crab apples gave a person magical powers. They have since forgiven her.
After receiving a degree in English from Mount Holyoke College, she returned to the Pacific Northwest and began writing in earnest. She tries to bring the unique flavor of the west coast, its history and unexplored places, to her writing.
Shannon particularly credits Robin McKinley and Lloyd Alexander for instilling in her an appreciation for strong heroines, vivid new worlds, and beautiful words.
When not writing, Shannon works as a horse trainer and continually attempts mastery of the piano (so far, the piano is winning). Her Writers of the Future win is her first published work.
ABOUT THE ILLUSTRATOR
James J. Eads is a freelance illustrator and art instructor from Orange County, California. He received his BA from California State University, Fullerton and began his career as a public school teacher, until he was quickly hired away as a graphic designer for the furniture industry, where he worked for the next fifteen years.
James became the owner and head designer for VIP Arts, a rubber art stamp and craft supply company. With VIP, he had the opportunity to teach art classes across the country. Once again, teaching became an important part of his life, leading him to teach art to the incarcerated juveniles and adults at Santa Ana Jail. For the past decade, James has worked at creating an art program for elementary schools, working with children grades K–6, as well as special needs classes. He has recently retired to work on more personal projects.
James works primarily in pen-and-ink and watercolor, but is not above drawing in crayon with his granddaughter. He is honored to be among the Illustrators of the Future, and is already hard at work on writing and illustrating children’s books.