Joan Marie Galat was first published at age 12, when she became a paid weekly newspaper columnist. Now an award-winning author of more than 30 books with translations in eight languages, her works include Make Your Mark, Make a Difference (Aladdin/Beyond Words); Mortimer: Rat Race to Space (DCB), Solve This! (National Geographic Kids), Too Much Trash: How Litter is Hurting Animals (Orca Book Publishers), and the Dot to Dot in the Sky series (Whitecap Books). Honors include the Crystal Kite Award, Martha Weston Grant, Green Prize for Sustainable Literature, Edmonton Artists’ Trust Fund award, and Junior Library Guild selections. A popular presenter, Joan has traveled extensively to promote literacy. She spoke at a United Nations event in Seoul, accepted a NASA invitation to observe the Crew 9 SpaceX rocket launch, and has been featured at the New Zealand Starlight Conference and numerous other events. She writes from the Edmonton region.

Joan operates MoonDot Media, a communications business offering writing and editing solutions in broadcast, print, and multi-media. Her freelance jobs have encompassed writing radio and video scripts, a cartoon, magazine articles, exhibit text, speechwriting, annual reports, grant applications, and other projects. She also provides corporate training and public workshops, as well as consults for writers on the submission process.