How did Julie Powell die? Cause of death explored as tributes pour in for 'Julie & Julia' author

American author Julie Powell, who is best known for her book Julie & Julia: 365 Days, 524 Recipes, 1 Tiny Apartment Kitchen, passed away at the age of 49.

Her husband, Eric Powell, announced the news of her demise to The New York Times, adding that the cause of death was cardiac arrest. Julie was at her house in Olivebridge, New York, when she died on October 26.

A native of Austin, Texas, Julie Powell graduated from Amherst College in 1995 and earned degrees in theater and fiction writing.

As per The Times, Julie and Eric first crossed paths in high school while participating in All My Sons, a production based on the works of Arthur Miller. The duo tied the knot in 1998.

After the news of Julie Powell's death went viral, people shared tributes and offered condolences to the famous author. Several users pointed out her contribution to the literary world, while others called her an inspiration gone too soon.

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From blog to book - Julie Powell's journey to fame in brief

Julie Powell's journey to fame began in 2002 when she began writing her food blog, the Julie/Julia Project, for news website, Salon. In it, she recorded her time making every recipe from Julia Child's cookbook, Mastering the Art of French Cooking: Volume I.

The New York Times reports that by the end of 2002, Julie Powell's blog had more than 400,000 page views.

Her famed blog was then published into a book in 2005, titled Julie & Julia: My Year of Cooking Dangerously, by Little, Brown, and Company.

In 2009, the book got adapted into a silver screen film, Julie & Julia, which starred Amy Adams as the author and Meryl Streep as Julia Child. It was directed by Nora Ephron.

The motion picture brought the spotlight to both Julie and Julia, with the former selling more than one million copies of her book and later becoming a New York Times best-seller.

However, Child was not happy with Powell's actions in recreating her recipes. In a 2005 interview with a Los Angeles Times reporter, Julia Child said that she did not think Powell was "serious" after reading her blog.

"I worked very hard on that book," the chef told Parsons. "I tested and retested those recipes for eight years so that everybody could cook them. And many, many people have. I don't understand how she could have problems with them. She just must not be much of a cook."

In 2009, Powell went on to publish her second book Cleaving: A Story of Marriage, Meat and Obsession, which talked about her marriage to Eric and the challenges that the duo faced after delving into the world of butchery.

The book did not do as well as her first, and Powell did not write another book before her death.

Aside from her husband, Powell is survived by her parents and brother.