Julie Krantz always wanted to be a writer and often describes herself as "one of those kids who headed to the library for a good time." A lifelong book lover, she published her first article in the Riverton, NJ newspaper in eighth grade. Now a full-time poet, picture book writer and novelist, her work can be found in Spider Magazine and the SCBWI National Bulletin as well as various other print and online forums.

Julie's first picture book, TACHI'S GIFT, appeared in the September 2007 issue of SPIDER Magazine as a story entitled, "Yoshi's Yucca." This same story received a Letter of Merit from the SCBWI Magazine Merit Award Committee in 2008. Julie also won a 2006 Emerging Artists Grant from the Durham Arts Council, a First Place in Children's Writing from Carteret Writers, Inc. in 2002, and an Honorable Mention from the Society of Southwestern Authors in the early '90's. A graduate of Douglass College and Rutgers University, she recently earned a Certificate with Honors in Creative Writing from UCLA-Extension.