In December of 1963, Loretta Lopez was born on a snowy afternoon in the dusty west Texas city of El Paso. As a very young child she had a pet duck, but was terrified of dogs. She loved looking through her older siblings' books, art books, and magazines, and by the third grade, decided that she wanted to be a children's book author and illustrator.

Upon graduation from high school (1982), Loretta was accepted at, and attended Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, NY. There, she studied under Joe Smith, Franklin Faust, Bill Fogler, Jacob Landau, Jack Sonnenberg, Dave Passalaqua, and Rudolph Baranick; to name but a few of her esteemed instructors. While there, she also studied alongside such talented people as Paula Barragan, Robert Bacigal, James Ebersole, Sam Kuo, Yohannes Knoops, Timothy Tait, and Eli Elysee: students who's dedication and talent inspired her as much as the works of master artists available for viewing in the museums and galleries of New York City (in the 1980's). Those students (and friends), who are now stellar luminaries in the world of art and design, continue to inspire her to this day.

After her graduation (1986), Loretta pursued various livelihood schemes including, but not limited to: art store sales assistant, waitress, gallery assistant, admissions counselor, box-comp consultant, trading card colorist, model maker/painter, illustrator, fine artist, commercial artist, psychic/palm/tarot card reader, assistant chairperson of communications design, writer, art instructor, office temp, amateur astrologer, and cookie decorator.

In 1994 she decided to focus on illustration and writing, and finally published her first book in the spring of 1996, after which she published four more titles as illustrator, and one more as both author and illustrator. To date, Loretta Lopez has illustrated a total of six trade books, one of which she was also the author.

*See Bibliography for a complete list of books and stories, illustrated and written by Loretta Lopez.

Loretta currently resides in New Jersey, Texas, and New York, where she does freelance illustration, fine art, and hand comps for huge powerful multinational companies, and obscure strangers. However, she can still be coaxed into the occasional psychic palm/tarot card reading, amateur astrological chart consultation, or pastry decoration- for a tidy/modest sum.

Sadly, she no longer has a pet duck, but happily, she has lost her fear of dogs and now is rarely parted from her dog (who is featured in much of her work). Her favorite color is blue. Her favorite insects are ladybugs and dragon flies. Her favorite birds are crows/hawks/owls. She has many favorite foods. New York City is still her favorite city... (now more than ever.)

If you have any questions, need any other information, or wish to contact her, please follow the link that says "contact," and thank you, for visiting this site.