Daria Peoples’ first job was at nine years old in the children’s section of her hometown library in Paso Robles, California. She worked a little, but she mostly read picture books. Peoples loved basketball, drawing, and painting. Her dad gave her art lessons in their garage on Rose Lane, and People’s mom rescued her first self-portrait from the kitchen trash can and had it professionally framed the next day. Today, it hangs in her parents’ living room as a reminder that our life’s purpose almost always introduces itself to us as a child. Peoples earned a BA in English from UC Santa Barbara, where she found herself shelving books in the library once again and reading the writings of many notable authors. After earning a master’s in education and 10 years of teaching, Peoples became a full-time author and illustrator.