Loreen Leedy was born in Wilmington, Delaware in 1959. She majored in art in college but wasn't sure what kind of artist to be. She began making polymer clay jewelry and chess sets and selling them at craft shows. The pins, earrings, and chess pieces were whimsical pigs, cats, dragons, and other animals. At the age of twenty-five years old she began turning her jewelry into book characters. Her first published title was A Number of Dragons, a counting book written in verse. She has written and illustrated over 30 picture books, and is working on one right now in her studio in central Florida. Loreen’s husband, Andy, is a scientist who works on space biology research at Kennedy Space Center.