About Mark Ludy

So, Mark’s asked me to say a few words about him, since I’ve known him for years and years. Heavens, there are oodles of really good stories. Where do I start?

Oh, I know! One of the questions Mark gets asked a lot is how he got started drawing. Well, the story I’ve most often heard Mark tell is how he and his dad would pass time in restaurants.

You know how children can never sit still in a restaurant – always squirming around asking every two minutes when the food is coming. Well, clever Dad Ludy used to draw something on a paper napkin – like eyeballs or a goofy grin – and then passed the napkin to Mark, who added something else to it – maybe the nose with lots of hair and warts. The two passed the napkin back and forth until they had finished the drawing. The drawings always became a competition with Mark and his dad each trying to beat the other by making the funniest part of the picture.

And, that’s how Dad Ludy showed Mark how much fun drawing can be. Boy! Did he have fun with it. He even went as far as making his homework look like works of art – handing in assignments with little scenes on the side of the page – like people climbing up the side with bears waiting hungrily at the top.

Mark never really considered art as a profession, though. He imagined artists as people with sunken-cheeks in barren rooms painting deep and complicated things – the starving artist. Mark had no interest in starving; instead, he went to work for a bakery, thinking he was going to be a baker. Let me tell you, he was shocked when the bakery asked him to draw the labels for their bread, instead!

Suddenly, Mark started to think he could find a job doing something with his artwork. Then, in 1994, Mom Ludy pushed Mark to give it a shot. Thinking he’d start small, Mark went to a printing and design house to get a quote on how much it would cost to make some greeting cards. Instead, the printing house offered him a job.

After a few years as a graphic designer, he thought he could make a living off of his art on his own. So, he tried it, and what did we get out of it? That’s right. The Farmer became Mark’s first picture book.

Now, Mark lives with his wonderful wife and two darling children in the land of Colorado where he writes and draws every day. He’s come a long way from doodling on paper napkins while waiting for food.

But, if you want a really good piece of Mark Ludy trivia, I’ll give it to you:

Mark’s family and pets often make appearances in his artwork. Ms. Pickles, Mark’s English bulldog, made her debut in The Flower Man. And, if you look very carefully in the background of The Flower Man, you might find a picture of Mark kissing his wife. You can even find his pet dragon in one of his books, too! (I won’t tell you which one, though!) You see, it’s all about the details!