Júlia Valentina da Silveira Lopes de Almeida (September 24, 1862 – May 30, 1934) was one of the first Brazilian women to earn acclaim and social acceptance as a writer.

In a career that spanned five decades, she wrote in a variety of literary genres; however, it is her fiction, written under the influence of the naturalists Émile Zola and Guy de Maupassant, that has captured the attention of recent critics.

Immensely influential and appreciated by peers like Aluísio Azevedo, João do Rio[1] and João Luso,[2] she is remembered as an early advocate of modernized gender roles and increased women's rights, as a precursor to later women writers like Clarice Lispector, and for her support of abolition.

A mim sempre me parecia que se viessem a saber desses versos, viria o mundo abaixo.

Estremeci, pus as duas mãos em cima do papel, num arranco de defesa, mas não me foi possível.

Minha irmã, adejando triunfalmente a folha e rindo a perder, bradava :– Então a menina faz versos?

One day, however, I was very entertained with writing a story, a verse-story, with descriptions and dialogues, when I heard behind me a happy voice: – I got you girl!

Although she was one of the first Brazilian women to write, she did not achieve the same success that European female authors had, like George Sand and Jane Austen.

Her main works for children were Histórias de nossa Terra ("Histories of our Land") and Era uma vez ("Once upon a time") She came from a privileged background and supported the domestic elements of female life.

Her novels and short stories were deeply influenced by Émile Zola and Guy de Maupassant.

Thanks to the recent republication of several of years by Brazil's Editora Mulheres press, her books have been made available to new readers and scholars.