One of the poems from the collection became a picture book. Published by Margaret K. McElderry Books, Arachne Speaks received a starred review in Publishers Weekly and garnered high praise from such noted authors as Lee Bennett Hopkins and Geraldine McCaughrean. Kate also received the 2002 Marion Vannett Ridgeway Memorial Honor Book Award for Arachne Speaks in recognition of her “distinguished debut in the field of children’s literature.”

Kate’s childhood passion for Greek mythology led her to study classical literature in college. “My favorite book, The Metamorphoses of Ovid, was required reading for one of my college courses,” says the author, “but I still refer to it constantly and enjoy rereading it in new translations.” In addition to classical studies, Kate pursued her interest in poetry and writing at Northwestern University, later studying with noted poet and anthologist Myra Cohn Livingston at UCLA.

The plays of Euripides and Aeschylus continue to inspire her, as do the epics of Homer and Virgil. Her most recent work, Voices of the Trojan War, revisits The Iliad of Homer, retelling the tragic story of Troy through the voices of the gods and heroes who fought there. Margaret K. McElderry Books will publish Voices of the Trojan War in the fall of 2004.

A designer and metal smith, Kate has crafted masks for university theater productions, silver and gold jewelry, and even metal clothing for rock and roll performers. She is currently using her mask-making skills in the classroom, incorporating the larger-than-life copper masks she makes into dramatic readings of her work.

Kate became interested in writing at an early age. Her favorite collections of fairy tales and mythology provided the initial inspiration, but it was her seventh grade literature teacher who gave Kate the encouragement she needed to pursue her writing goals.