S.J. Leithead is a recent graduate from The University of Alberta where she majored in English and had a minor in Comparative Literature, but don't let the literary degree fool you! S.J. has been a practicing artist since she was a teenager when she won several art competitions hosted by the VISAC gallery and self-published her first children's book: The Cloudy Day Calamity.

In recent years S.J. has run her own market booth where she sole her art at markets in BC and Alberta. In 2025, S.J. illustrated a children's book called The Girls: The Wild and Wondrous Lives of Mary Imrie and Jean Wallbridge. In her free time, S.J. likes to read, give distant pets to her anxious cat Manuka, and lurk in cafes. 

In the fall S.J. will start her Masters degree in Library and Information Sciences at UBC where she will continue to learn how to be an advocate for diverse literature and expansive community services.