Oink and Moo Paint a Barn

A former teacher and curriculum writer, Marilee Joy Mayfield has been writing children’s fiction and nonfiction books for the last 20 years. Her passion has always been stories that inspire children to develop into kind, empathetic adults. Her books have sold over one million copies and have been translated into six different languages. It gives her unspeakable joy to know that children and their families are sharing her books in their homes. She lives in Mandeville, Louisiana.

Annabel Spencely’s career began with a degree in Fashion, followed by a Masters in Illustration (she hated sewing!). Her first job was in a publisher’s studio doing coloring books and encyclopedias, which was good for general knowledge. Then she went freelance with children’s books. She accidentally got into greeting cards by agreeing to cover maternity leave for a friend and she loved it. Now she’s getting back into book illustration again. She loves doing figures and animals, but does not love drawing bicycles. She prefers to work by being left alone with her pencils and paints and she likes the feel of actual paint and paper, incorporating the accidental into her work. For her, inspiration can come from anywhere: magazine snippings, TV, random animals, random things in general, cat videos.