words, pictures & mice

A Q&A with Kevin Henkes

Do the words come first? Why mice? Which character is most like him? Kevin answers twenty-one questions from readers — tap any question to hear his answer.

Kevin says —
A: I grew up desperately wanting to be an artist. That desire was a huge part of my identity for as far back as I can remember. It wasn’t until I was in high school that writing became as important to me. During my junior year of high school I decided I wanted to write and illustrate children’s books for a career.

Still curious?

Read the biography Meet the mice Watch Kevin in the studio

A Q&A with Kevin Henkes

01When Lilly’s at school, she knows she wants to be a teacher. When you were at school, did you know you wanted to be a writer and illustrator?

02Your picture book stories are told just as much through your illustrations as through your words. Do the illustrations sometimes come to you before the story?

03When you begin a picture book such as Wemberly, do you always know where the story is going, or do your characters ever take you by surprise and pull the story in quite another direction?

04It must be a very different process, working on a novel. Do you still have vivid pictorial images of the characters and their environment in your head?

05To what extent is your writing inspired by your own experience, or by watching your children’s experiences?

06The Horn Book wrote of The Birthday Room as “a story that helps us see our own chances for benefiting from mutual tolerance, creative conflict resolution, and other forms of good will.” Is this a theme that you are consciously pursuing in all your writing?

07If you had to sum up in one word the characteristic you most admire in each of your mice—Chester, Chrysanthemum, Lilly, Owen, Sheila Rae, Wendell, Sophie, and Wemberly—what words would you choose?

08How did you come to use mice as the characters in so many of your books? Did you consider other animals as well?

09Your mouse characters have loving, supportive, understanding parents, teachers, and other adults in their lives. What was your own childhood like?

10Which of your characters is most like you?

11How long does it take you to complete a new picture book, from getting the idea to final page proofs? How much time do you spend on each illustration, and what kinds of changes do you make to your words and pictures?

12What comes first—the words or the pictures?

13Do you have a favorite among your own books?

14Children adore Kitten’s First Full Moon, but they do wonder why there’s no color in it. Can you give them some insight into how you came up with the story and developed the illustrations?

16What is a typical workday like for you?

17What does your studio look like?

18Do you work on more than one book at a time?

19Which is more satisfying to you—writing or drawing?

20In your books, we meet several inspirational teachers, notably Mr. Slinger and Mrs. Delphinium Twinkle. Who were the inspirational teachers in your life?

21Do you have any recommendations for ways classroom teachers or parents can help children grow as readers, writers, and artists?