I’m Helen — an author-illustrator creating picture books rooted in warmth, curiosity, and everyday wonder. I’m also a longtime elementary teacher based in Northern Virginia.

I grew up in New York City and spent my childhood summers in Greece and Wales, exploring ruins, wandering through villages, and listening to stories that felt older than the stones beneath my feet. Somewhere along the way, I decided I wanted to make stories like that — the kind that stay with you.

After studying literature, art, and design (and earning my Master’s in Teaching from NYU), I spent more than twenty years in the classroom with children ages four through fourteen. Watching children learn to see, read, imagine, and create continues to shape everything I make.

Today, I create picture books and early learning materials through my literacy project, LitSteps, and am currently developing new picture book projects for publication.

When I’m not drawing, you’ll find me hiking through the woods with my dogs, fly-fishing, sketching, or noticing small details in nature that find their way into my work.

I’m so glad you’re here.