The Picture Book Buzz - Interview with Brittany Richman

Brittany Richman is an author, mom, and former political staffer who worked for the White House and Congress.

She is also the cofounder of The American Moms blog. She grew up in Salt Lake City, Utah, and treasures memories of childhood trips to Disneyland. Brittany now lives in South Dakota with her husband, three adventurous kids, and a mischievous goldendoodle. She has an MFA in writing for children from Vermont College of Fine Arts.

Brittany’s debut picture book, The Woman Behind the Magic: How Lillian B. Disney Shaped the Disney Legacy, releases on June 3rd.

Welcome Brittany, thank you so much for stopping by to talk about your debut book and your writing.

Thanks for the opportunity!

Tell us a little about yourself. (Where/when do you write? How long have you been writing? What is your favorite type of book to write? How did you come to start The American Mom’s Blog?)

Why does telling about myself always feel like the hardest question to answer? I’m a writer who wears many hats. I’m also a mom, a current Presidential Leadership Scholar, local volunteer, and co-founder of a platform on Instagram, @TheAmericanMoms. My twin sister and I started The American Moms in 2016 because we had an overwhelming sense that many parents from our generation have very little idea how our country actually works or any idea what citizenship actually entails (fyi, it’s more than just voting, although not nearly enough citizens even do that either). We wanted to help parents do better themselves so that they in turn can help raise the next generation to be more civic-minded. Whenever I say that out loud it always sounds incredibly nerdy. But the reality is it couldn’t be more important!

Back to the author stuff, since I know that’s why I’m really here: I primarily write nonfiction picture books. I’ve been writing my whole life, always wanted to be a children’s book author. After I had my own kids, and put my political career on hold, I decided to revisit that dream. My passion is history and finding women and stories that will likely never make it into history books. However, I’m also in the process of writing a nonfiction MG, as part of my Presidential Leadership Scholars program, that I’m super excited about.

That is so cool! It is wonderful to get to meet you! Who was your favorite author, illustrator, and/or your favorite book as a child? 

Now this is a question I can easily answer! 😆 My favorite author growing up was Rosemary Wells, the author of the Max and Ruby bunny books. In fact, Rosemary is the reason I wanted to become an author in the first place. When I was in 6th grade, my mom checked my twin sister and I out of school because Rosemary was speaking at our local library. I was hooked on everything she said and left that day knowing that one day I wanted to write a book too.

Such a great mom and a precious memory. What was your inspiration or spark of interest for The Woman Behind the Magic: How Lillian B. Disney Shaped the Disney Legacy? 

It all came about because of a family trip to Disneyland right before Covid changed the world. We were taking a break from rides to grab a bite to eat when we walked by the Partners Statue of Walt Disney holding Mickey Mouse’s hand. I noticed something and paused: Walt was wearing a wedding ring. I’d never realized he was married. Who was his wife? Surely she’d played a role in the company’s success. Right then and there I pulled out my phone and started researching her.

What a fun discovery to make! What was the toughest or most challenging part of writing The Woman Behind the Magic? What was the most fun?

There were two rather big challenges early on and one other that came into play later. One was that Lilly was super private. She didn’t want to be in the spotlight. That meant she rarely did interviews, etc. Therefore, there wasn’t a lot of public information about her. I had to really dig and get creative in my research.

The second challenge was that after I had a solid draft, I started taking workshops with editors to get the manuscript in the best shape possible. Several editors expressed interest in it but told me before they would consider acquiring it I would need to get the Disney family’s permission. Get the Disney’s permission!? Were they serious? How was I going to do that? The Disney family is practically American royalty. I had no idea where to start. However, that spring my family had a trip to San Francisco planned. In that beautiful city is a museum called the Walt Disney Family Museum that was started by Walt and Lillian’s daughter Diane. I made arrangements to visit and introduced myself to the communications director and asked her if she had suggestions for how to proceed. Lucky for me, she knew the family’s lawyer and we started a long two year back and forth process of trying to get a letter from the family. I’ll never forget the day the letter arrived saying Walt and Lillian’s granddaughters had given me permission to tell their grandmother’s story. I literally jumped up and down for joy!

The third challenge that came into play after my story had been acquired was that Mickey Mouse is trademarked, meaning illustrators weren’t sure they could draw him in the book. How could there be a book about the woman who named Mickey Mouse without pictures of Mickey Mouse in it? I did some research about how to get permission and discovered that the Steamboat Willie version of Mickey Mouse would enter the public domain January 1, 2024–the year before the book was scheduled to be published! Problem solved! We all breathed a big sigh of relief about that one! Everything fell into place just in time. This book really feels like a miracle some days.

Those are some complex challenges and it's awesome that you were both determined to succeed and had a bit of magic helping this along. How long did it take from the first draft to publication for the text and illustrations of The Woman Behind the Magic?

From first draft to publication was about five years (because of the aforementioned challenges)!

Did anything amaze or surprise you when you first saw Joanie Stone’s illustrations? What is your favorite spread? 

Text © Brittany Richman, 2025. Image © Joanie Stone, 2025.

I love how the illustrations look like they could be in their own Disney movie! And yet, Joanie also has her own distinct style that is so beautiful. My favorite spread is toward the end where Lillian is standing next to Mickey Mouse at the opening of Walt Disney World. It gives me goosebumps every time I look at it. It really captured the magic of the story.

It really does feel magical. Was there anything you discovered during your research that you were unable to fit into the book or the back matter?

There was so much about Lillian’s childhood growing up in Idaho that I wanted to include. None of it was earth-shattering but it was all so turn of the century in such a unique part of the country that I felt it was a shame we couldn’t include more about it. For example, Lillian grew up on the Lapwai Indian Reservation and attended the first integrated school in the nation (Lillian later donated quite a bit of money to help the Lapwai schools). She and her sister Hazel were also on their high school basketball team together and were apparently pretty good! I really just found it fascinating that a young woman from such a tiny town in Idaho could have such a drastically different life in such a short amount of time. I’m sure she never in a million years thought her life would go in the direction that it did. The courage to move to California (and it had to have required SO much courage in those days) changed her life forever.

Thank you for sharing this special tidbit on Lillian with us. What's something you want your readers to know about or take away from The Woman Behind the Magic? 

Something that drew me to Lillian’s story is that she isn’t really your typical female picture book subject. She didn’t like the spotlight, wanted to just live a normal life, and was perfectly content letting all the fame go to Walt—which I know bothers some modern-day feminists. But what I think readers can take away from her story is that even if you’re shy, quiet, or prefer to stay behind-the-scenes, you can still make a difference in your own shy, quiet, behind-the-scenes way. Not everyone wants the spotlight. But everyone can make a difference.

That is such a powerful point. The world needs all of our special individualities. Are there any new projects you are working on now that you can share a tidbit with us?

I’m super excited about my third picture book—with the same editor, Catherine Laudone, who edited The Woman Behind The Magic. It’s quite possibly my favorite picture book I’ve written (I’ve written MANY that may never see the light of day!) and is about President Harry Truman who had some spooky encounters living in the White House. It’s full of humor and charm but packed full of history that far too few know about.

This sounds really intriguing. I can't wait to read it. Last question, what is your favorite National Park or Forest, regional park, or city park (anywhere in the world)? Or the one you’re longing to visit. Why? 

Does the President’s Park in Washington, D.C. count? I worked at the White House for several years and to this day it still gives me goosebumps whenever I walk through it. The grounds are such a special place with so much history. If that isn’t what you had in mind, Muir Woods in San Francisco also gives me goosebumps! There’s something magical about those redwoods!

Thank you, Brittany, for stopping by to share with us your debut picture book.

To find out more about Brittany Richman, or to contact her:

Website: https://theamericanmoms.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theamericanmoms

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theamericanmoms