The Picture Book Buzz - Interview with Deborah Underwood

Born in Walla Walla, Washington, Deborah Underwood dreamed of being an astronomer. (even named her stuffed bear Ursa Major), a singer, or a writer. Today, she writes and sings, so she’s done pretty well. She also wanted to work in a piano factory and paste the labels on new pianos. And on tough days, she occasionally dreams of changing careers.

Deborah is a NY Times best-selling author and “when she's not writing, you might find her singing in a chamber choir, playing a ukulele (very badly), walking around in Golden Gate Park, baking vegan cookies, or petting any dogs, cats, pigs, or turkeys that happen to be nearby.”

She has written over 65 books, both fiction and non-fiction, picture book and chapter book, including The Man Who Didn't Like Animals illustrated by LeUyen Pham (2024), A Mouse Family Christmas illustrated by Leah Hong (2024), Once Upon a Zombie: Tales for Brave Readers illustrated by Kaley McCabe (2023), Walter Had a Best Friend illustrated by Sergio Ruzzier (2022), Bearplane! illustrated by Sam Wedelich (2022), Jo Bright and the Seven Bots illustrated by Meg Hunt (2022), Bearnard Writes a Book illustrated by Misa Saburi (2022), XO, Exoplanet illustrated by Jorge Lacera (2021), Loving Kindness illustrated by Tim Hopgood (2021), Every Little Letter illustrated by Joy Hwang Ruiz (2020), Outside In illustrated by Cindy Derby (2020), Ducks! illustrated by T. L. McBeth (2020), Finding Kindness illustrated by Irene Chan (2019), Reading Beauty illustrated by Meg Hunt (2019), and the Sugar Plum Ballerina chapter book series written with Whoopi Goldberg and illustrated by Maryn Roos.

For additional information, see our earlier interviews (here) and (here).

Her newest picture book, The Fairy Tale Fixers: Cinderella: A Graphic Novel0, releases on August 12^th.

Deborah, thank-you so much for stopping by again to talk about your newest book and writing.  

Thanks so much for having me back!

Having written a number of fractured fairytales for picture books, earlier readers, and now a graphic novel, can you share a bit of your process in figuring out new angles? Did the process change at all for The Fairy Tale Fixers: Cinderella: A Graphic Novel?

I didn’t have a master plan in place when I started writing this book. I just had a title (back then Fairy 911; we changed it to be more clear to kids, and I was also a bit concerned kids might try calling 911 to see if the fairy showed up!) and the main character: a rat-fairy in a 1940’s-movie-like private investigator who gets called into fairy tales when there’s a problem.

Once I had this cranky-but-endearing character and the idea that a mouse would summon him to the story of Cinderella because she (the mouse) was being kept awake by all the yelling in the Cinderella household, the story almost wrote itself.

I love the "film noir" feel of the book. And the irascible detective rat-fairy is totally genius! Did working on your 6-book Sugar Plum Ballerina chapter book series, help you decide to write an early graphic novel/picture book?

Hm, not really. This story just started coming out a graphic novel, I think because that form seemed a good vehicle for the snappy dialogue I wanted the story to have.

I am so impressed, you did such a great job with the tone and dialogue. And the illustrator obviously had fun with it, too. What was your inspiration or spark of interest for The Fairy Tale Fixers: Cinderella?

The gruff, somewhat mercenary P.I.-like fairy was the spark.

And the format inspired me, too. When I got out of college, I really wanted to write screenplays. After writing a few (and possibly giving up too quickly), I moved on to other forms. I wasn’t exactly sure how to format a graphic novel, so I just started writing it in screenplay format. It felt like coming home. I am terrible at description and good at dialogue, so scripts play to my strengths. I had so much fun writing it, which is not always the case!

Hmm, I imagine we are going to see a few more tales get fixed in the future! While each book, its process, and challenges are different, what was the toughest aspect of writing The Fairy Tale Fixers: Cinderella? And though we might not focus on it as much, what was the most fun in creating this graphic novel?

I wrote it so long ago that I may be romanticizing it, but I don’t remember any really challenging parts. And that’s partly related to the fun bits: if you have two strong characters (a grumpy rat-fairy and a smart mouse who nudges him to be a better…rat, I guess), their interactions can really power the story. And of course, when you’re fracturing a fairy tale (as I seem to do a lot!), you have a basic template for the other characters and events, so you don’t need to start from scratch.

True enough! When you first saw Jorge Lacera’s illustrations in The Fairy Tale Fixers: Cinderella did anything surprise, amaze, or delight you? Which is your favorite spread?

Oh my gosh, I love his illustrations so much! I loved them from the beginning, and they just got better as he finalized them. The character design is so great—he totally got my humor, and Fairy looks like he stepped out of a Humphrey Bogart movie. If, y’know, Humphrey Bogart had been a rat.

Text © Deborah Underwood, 2025. Image © Jorge Lacera, 2025.

I love all the physical humor and action, but probably my favorite spread is when they’re heading to the ball—gorgeous sunset colors with the castle in the background. It’s a lovely pause in the chaos.

This really is a magical spread and a needed pause. Do you work on multiple books at the same time? If so, are you able to switch back and forth from creating The Fairy Tale Fixers: Cinderella to working on picture books?  Any hints for working on multiple projects?

Alas, no! I’ve been having a hard time working at all lately, much less on more than one project at once. One thing I loved about FTF is that if you’re writing a script, you sit down, you write, and you end up with more pages at the end of the day than you had at the beginning. You actually see your progress.

If I’m writing a picture book, it’s 95% mulling and stewing and thinking and 5% getting the words down on the page. Sometimes at the end of the day it feels like I’ve accomplished nothing. But I think letting the ideas rattle around in my head as I do other things is part of the process.

So, I tend to only work on one picture book at a time so my subconscious doesn’t get confused! Although if I’m really stuck, I may move on to another project for a while.

Yeah, that rattling around in the subconscious can take a while, but fortunately, sometimes, a good walk or a little gardening can shake ideas loose. Is there something you want your readers to know or hope they discover about The Fairy Tale Fixers: Cinderella?

Really, my biggest hope is that they laugh a lot and enjoy it. The world is crazy now. When I was worried or scared as a kid, I’d escape into one of my favorite books. I’ve always wanted to write a book that would be a comfort book for kids. I hope this will be one. And maybe it will even be one for adults, too.

Well, it definitely made this 'adult' laugh. You and Jorge have sprinkled lots of humor for all ages throughout the book! Having published a number of books, what was the most rewarding part of the publishing process for The Fairy Tale Fixers: Cinderella?

Probably seeing the illustrations for the first time. But oh, it sure made me realize what I’d done to poor Jorge! I hadn’t quite registered how much work a graphic novel is for the illustrator. I’m used to writing books with maybe 20 illustrations. Here there are sometimes six illustrations on a single page, and I think the book is 128 pages long. It’s ridiculous.

Maybe it's better you didn't realize that at the start and try to temper your writing. I really hope Jorge enjoyed himself and will be up for doing more! Are there any projects you are working on now that you can share a tidbit with us?

Right now, we’re finalizing Tiny Garden, a picture book inspired by my own gardening adventures. It has beautiful illustrations by Jax Chow and will be out next year.

Congrats. We'll have to keep our eyes out for it. Last question, what animal or natural feature (place) do you want to learn more about? Why?

What I’m obsessed about at the moment is something I learned in the birding class I’m taking: a species of bird called a veery appears to cut its breeding season short in years where the Atlantic hurricane season will be especially bad. It’s a small dataset, but these birds appear to predict an upcoming bad hurricane season months in advance, and more reliably than computer models. How can you not be fascinated by that?

For the reader, a veery is a medium-sized, brown and white thrush. And that is a really cool ability. Especially when it's more accurate than the computer models! Oh great, now you've given me another 'rabbit-hole'! But. . . . it is so . . . fascinating.

Thank you, Deborah, for stopping by and sharing The Fairy-Tale Fixers with us. It was wonderful to chat with you again.

Thank you, Maria!

Be sure to come back on Friday for a review of this wonderful book!

To find out more about Deborah Underwood, or contact her:

Website:  https://www.deborahunderwoodbooks.com/

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