Name: Mary Reaves Uhles (that bizarre looking last name is pronounced yools)
What you Write: I write and illustrate picture books
Agent: Tracy Marchini
Why BookEnds? I am impressed with the other talent Bookends and Tracy represent!
What genres do you write or illustrate? Read?
I write and illustrate picture books but I tend to read everything! Well, everything except really gruesome or violent horror. Right now my nightstand has Rachel Hartman, Adib Khorram, and a bunch of F&Gs that I get from a friend at our local indie bookstore.
Plotter or pantser?
Definitely a plotter. I make tiny little outlines for my picture books and I won’t start on an illustration without doing all the ‘pre-work’ – working out color, value, lots of thumbnails, etc.
Synopses, love them or hate ‘em?
Fortunately, picture books don’t require synopsis but I have been known to write a pitch sentence for my manuscripts pretty early in the process. I feel like if I can’t get my story idea into one or two sentences then something is not working and I need to figure that out before I flesh out very much of the plot.
Do you have a playlist or a vision board? If so, what’s on them? I have a really well curated Pandora station based on Carbon Leaf and U2. Somehow it almost always knows if I need slower lyrical songs or a more rock beat. I also have my favorite podcasts like Throughline and Reveal. But I can only listen to those when painting or sketching. When I’m actually writing I need either the buzz of a coffee shop (or Coffitivity app) or quiet out on my deck.
Drink of choice when creating? When not writing or illustrating?
Coffee, iced tea with lemon, or red wine depending on morning, afternoon or evening. I’ll let the reader decide which time of day gets which drink 😉
Day or Night writer?
This is such an interesting question as I really think this changes depending on your life stage. Years ago, I always did my best work at night, but now with busy kids, I find myself settling in with a paintbrush or pencil at 6am. These days, it’s less about time of day and more when I can find an uninterrupted stretch of time.
Twitter or Instagram? Or Facebook? Where can we find you?
Full disclosure – Twitter and Insta are for posting images and book news, Facebook is for stories about my kids and my cat.
If you could meet any author, living or dead, who would you want to meet and why?
I would love to meet Marguerite Henry and Wesley Dennis, my childhood inspirations to get into the book business. I was a horse loving kid who grew up in the middle of nowhere. When I was younger, I thought their job – making books about horses all over the world – would be the best job ever.
Where can readers find you on the web and social media?
Besides the social channels mentioned above, you can find all my news at www.maryuhles.com
Name: Mary Reaves Uhles (that bizarre looking last name is pronounced yools)
What you Write: I write and illustrate picture books
Agent: Tracy Marchini
Why BookEnds? I am impressed with the other talent Bookends and Tracy represent!
What genres do you write or illustrate? Read?
I write and illustrate picture books but I tend to read everything! Well, everything except really gruesome or violent horror. Right now my nightstand has Rachel Hartman, Adib Khorram, and a bunch of F&Gs that I get from a friend at our local indie bookstore.
Plotter or pantser?
Definitely a plotter. I make tiny little outlines for my picture books and I won’t start on an illustration without doing all the ‘pre-work’ – working out color, value, lots of thumbnails, etc.
Synopses, love them or hate ‘em?
Fortunately, picture books don’t require synopsis but I have been known to write a pitch sentence for my manuscripts pretty early in the process. I feel like if I can’t get my story idea into one or two sentences then something is not working and I need to figure that out before I flesh out very much of the plot.
Do you have a playlist or a vision board? If so, what’s on them? I have a really well curated Pandora station based on Carbon Leaf and U2. Somehow it almost always knows if I need slower lyrical songs or a more rock beat. I also have my favorite podcasts like Throughline and Reveal. But I can only listen to those when painting or sketching. When I’m actually writing I need either the buzz of a coffee shop (or Coffitivity app) or quiet out on my deck.
Drink of choice when creating? When not writing or illustrating?
Coffee, iced tea with lemon, or red wine depending on morning, afternoon or evening. I’ll let the reader decide which time of day gets which drink 😉
Day or Night writer?
This is such an interesting question as I really think this changes depending on your life stage. Years ago, I always did my best work at night, but now with busy kids, I find myself settling in with a paintbrush or pencil at 6am. These days, it’s less about time of day and more when I can find an uninterrupted stretch of time.
Twitter or Instagram? Or Facebook? Where can we find you?
I’m on all 3:
Instagram @maryreavesuhles;
Twitter @maryuhles;
Facebook /maryuhles.
Full disclosure – Twitter and Insta are for posting images and book news, Facebook is for stories about my kids and my cat.
If you could meet any author, living or dead, who would you want to meet and why?
I would love to meet Marguerite Henry and Wesley Dennis, my childhood inspirations to get into the book business. I was a horse loving kid who grew up in the middle of nowhere. When I was younger, I thought their job – making books about horses all over the world – would be the best job ever.
Where can readers find you on the web and social media?
Besides the social channels mentioned above, you can find all my news at www.maryuhles.com
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