武内直子
is a prominent Japanese shōjo and josei manga artist. She is best known for shōjo series such as "Maiko no Uta" ("Maiko's Poem"), "Lovely Mari-chan", "Marybell", "Honoo no Romance", "Lolly no Seishun", and "Yumedokei" ("Sweet Memory"). She received the 1990 Shogakukan Manga Award for children's manga for "Lovely Mari-chan". Uehara is cited by Naoko Takeuchi, author of "Sailor Moon", as an influence, especially her dialog in "Lolly no Seishun" and "Honoo no Romance".