Judy was able to get a job working at Hallmark Cards and began designing all kinds of cards for them. This proved to be unsatisfactory work and she became discouraged. Eventually, Judy married her husband, Bob, and she became a mother to two daughters, Sarah Elizabeth and Emma Rose. She had more free time and was able to spend more time drawing things she liked and writing. She realized how much she liked motherhood and how much her daughters inspired her. The books she would read to her Sarah and Emma encouraged her to start working on her portfolio again. While working on her portfolio, she met Donna Jo Napoli. Donna wanted her to illustrate her children's book, “The Prince of the Pond”. Helping Donna with her illustration gave her a head start in the illustration and publication field. When she first went to meet an editor, they asked her if she was a writer and she lied and said yes. She had only been working on illustrations at this point. Eventually she met an editor named Lucia Monfried and was able to get some books in the working. She was able to get her first book, “Willy and May” published. Since then, she has had several other well-known books published. She has a studio on the second floor of her house. She surrounds herself with things that inspire her while she works. Some of the things in her studio include toys, textiles, and taxidermy. She loves to listen to music while working on her project, especially her daughter Sarah’s compositions. She draws a lot of her inspiration from her own life. A lot of her books have characters based on people in her life, such as her children. “Yo, Vikings!” is based on a true story about her daughters. She is best known for her book series, Skippyjon Jones. Skippyjon Jones is inspired by her own cat and her brothers, Ted and Kevin. The book series is about a siamese cat who is under the impression that he is a chihuahua. The book contains many instances of mock Spanish and has received some negative reviews because of it. Judy continues to write and illustrate today. She also makes visits to schools and libraries to give presentations on her work and inspired the less than stellar students.
