About the Author

Ellen Bryant Lloyd grew up in Wilmington, North Carolina and graduated from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro with a degree in Economics and minor in Communication Studies. Her career began in another publishing industry, newspaper, with the Greensboro News & Record. There she worked in retail advertising, real estate publication development, and marketing management.

Ellen has always been a big fan of reading and always enjoyed writing. In fact, her interest in writing books began in the third grade after she was given a class assignment to write, illustrate, and bind a book of her own. After a similar project in the sixth grade, Ellen was convinced that creating books would be part of her future. Shortly after writing the first draft of FRECKLES, Ellen began the journey of fulfilling her entrepreneurial dream.

Ellen resides in Greensboro, NC with her husband and their two children.

About the Illustrators

Carol Schwartz- Illustrator of "FRECKLES and The Great Beach Rescue"

Carol Schwartz has been an illustrator since 1976. She attended the Kansas City Art Institute, spending her last year at the Rhode Island School of Design as part of an illustration mobility program.

Carol’s career actually started when she was about two years old when she drew a picture of Mickey Mouse that looked just like the character. When she was nine, she won an art contest for a painting of her favorite place, deep in the woods, sitting around a warm fire with friends. This event marked the beginning for Carol making a profession out of her creative passion.

Carol’s first illustrations appeared in children’s trade books in 1989. She has a love for children’s literature and a whimsical, highly detailed illustration style. Her work includes a wide variety of trade, text and mass-market books as well as magazines, newspapers, advertising and other publications. To date, she has illustrated over 30 books.

Carol resides in Cincinnati, Ohio with her husband. She has two grown children.

David Stanley- Illustrator of "FRECKLES"

David Stanley spent his childhood in Yuba City, CA and eastern North Carolina. He earned a BFA degree in Communication Arts with a concentration in illustration from East Carolina University. He began his career as a co-founder of Good Soldier Graphics, which provided graphics/illustrations for Imagination Station, a children's science museum in Wilson, NC. He also has worked as an illustrator and graphic designer with Sign Design and the Moore Communications Group, both of Greensboro, NC. In 1994, David founded David Stanley Illustration, a company specializing in advertising art, logo design, and caricatures for special events.

David resides in Greensboro, NC with his wife and their two children.