Jeffrey Patrick Kinney, known as Jeff Kinney, is an acclaimed American author and cartoonist, celebrated for his creation of the Diary of a Wimpy Kid book series. Beyond the realm of books, Kinney has also ventured into the digital world with the creation of the child-oriented website Poptropica, making significant strides in both literary and online realms.

Kinney's journey into writing and cartooning began in College Park, Maryland, where he was born and raised. It was during his time at the University of Maryland at College Park in the early 1990s that he created the popular comic strip Igdoof, which was featured in the campus newspaper, The Diamondback. This experience solidified his ambition to become a cartoonist. His commitment to creating relatable content for children has led to the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series being printed in tens of millions of copies worldwide, and its adaptation into a feature film, for which Kinney has served as an executive producer.

Jeff Kinney's contributions to children's literature and online gaming have not gone unnoticed. In 2009, he was named one of Time magazine's 100 "Most Influential People". With a full-time career as a writer and online game designer, Kinney continues to influence and entertain children around the globe from his home in Plainville, Massachusetts, where he lives with his wife Julie and their two sons, Will and Grant.