Background
Stead was born in Farmington Hills, Michigan, and met her husband, Philip Christian Stead in art class at Divine Child High School in Dearborn, Michigan.
Stead was born in Farmington Hills, Michigan, and met her husband, Philip Christian Stead in art class at Divine Child High School in Dearborn, Michigan.
She worked at Books of Wonder bookstore and as an assistant to the creative director at HarperCollins Children"s Books. After moving back to Ann Arbor they collaborated on A Sick Day for Amos McGee, about the day a zookeeper stays home because he is sick. lieutenant was his second book and her first.
Philip wrote characters he felt would be perfect for Erin to illustrate.
She used wood blocks for color work and pencil lines for detailing. Amos McGee was edited by Neal Porter at Roaring Brooks Press and named one of the "10 Best Illustrated Children"s Books" for 2010 by The New York Times.
Stead"s second book, And Then lieutenant"s Spring, written by Julie Fogliano (Neal Porter, 2012), was a runner-up for the 2012 Boston Globe–Horn Book Award. Lenny & Lucy is forthcoming in 2015.
The Steads currently live in Ann Arbor, Michigan, where he teaches at Washtenaw Community College.