Katie the Catsitter: Secrets and Sidekicks, the third e book in the Katie the Catsitter collection from RH Graphic, is obtainable at your native e book retailer and/or public library now! To rejoice the launch of the most up-to-date launch in the ongoing collection, The Beat caught up with author Colleen AF Venable and illustrator Stephanie Yue over Zoom.
We requested all about the improvement of the ongoing center grade graphic novel collection, discovered extra about designing a brand new superhero costume, and requested about persevering with to incorporate the primary themes of the collection. Please word that this interview could embody slight spoilers for Secrets and Sidekicks.
This interview has been edited for size and readability.
AVERY KAPLAN: How did you method the third quantity in the Katie the Catsitter collection, each as a sequel and an ongoing continuation?
COLLEEN AF VENABLE: We set it up in Katie the Catsitter: Best Friends for Never that Katie was skilled to be a sidekick, however it was none of the enjoyable elements of being a sidekick. So in Secrets and Sidekicks, now it’s the enjoyable elements. Now it’s studying the bodily issues, studying all the cool issues, studying the place all the devices come from, studying all these items. Learning the place the coaching occurs – I like the montage of the coaching space.
But, what occurs in the event you’re not good at it? That’s so much of it too. In so much of these items, the montage occurs in 5 minutes and they’ve misplaced fifty kilos and they’re immediately nice at all the things. Which, I additionally hate montages the place anybody loses weight, for the file. But, what if Katie struggles with these items? What if it’s not fully pure for her to do a push-up, like most individuals on the market?
I began with that, and I additionally wished the concept of different heroes and villains in the metropolis, and actually beginning to grey that line with the Moustress. The indisputable fact that she saves the metropolis… I don’t know what number of occasions in the e book, and they react by saying, “Oh my gosh, did you see, the Moustress destroyed the city again!”
Also, secret identities being discovered, I believe is a very fascinating concept. And Katie is a child, she’s obtained a guardian. The guardian doesn’t know she’s doing this, and immediately, her guardian is round extra. I wished it to be the one-upping of stepping into this world of side-kickery.
AVERY: Can you inform us extra about designing the Cheesy Justice costume?
STEPHANIE YUE: I did an entire line-up of slight variations. Some of them had a giant collar, and some of them had a bob wig. I had some that have been a play on “Justice.” One of the iterations earlier than we went with the present Cheesy Justice outfit, which can also be ridiculous, had a Ruth Bader Ginsburg collar.
I don’t understand how the remaining costume would really work. In my thoughts, I’m wondering, “What if someone actually wanted to cosplay this?” I don’t understand how this cape/shoulder factor would exist in three-dimensional area. It’s like an Astroboy deal, the place you simply flip a sure means and it appears a sure means.
COLLEEN: Or the means Mickey’s ears at all times excellent circles, regardless of which means he turns his head.
AVERY: What was the course of of increasing on Madeline’s story like?
COLLEEN: We hadn’t actually defined any of her backstory. We knew that she ran a collection of eating places, and we knew that she had points from having been caught in the first e book. I believe she had a giant character arc in the second e book, the place it was the first time that individuals have been relying on her, and she was letting them in.
In Secrets and Sidekicks, her realizing she’s by no means been truthful along with her household about it, that’s a tough scene for me to re-read, regardless that I wrote it. Everything’s not excellent simply because she’s this secret hero. There are nonetheless so much of different issues in her life that she’s neglecting. And I believe she uncared for friendship in the earlier e book, and now I believe she’s embraced that half of it, however it’s nonetheless actually laborious to be herself round all people in her life.
STEPHANIE: It’s good to see Madeline extra humanized.
COLLEEN: Like the reveal of the place she will get the cats. And if anybody asks, there are nonetheless solely 217. Some of them graduate, so that they go off to stay with different folks. I simply wished there to be room to elucidate the place she will get the cats as a result of this must be a practical e book.
STEPHANIE: In my thoughts, there’s a possible spin-off collection in the cats that graduate, and no matter cluster of expertise they’ve.
AVERY: I appreciated the continuation of the sexism theme (+ return of Cold Hands) from Best Friends for Never. How essential was it to proceed together with this theme?
COLLEEN: Really essential. There are so many horrible gender assumptions, in a thousand other ways, from so much of folks. And the extra we will get superior illustration of all completely different folks doing superior issues.
And the indisputable fact that it’s nonetheless a world that may be very a lot run by white cis males. Madeline has a line the place she says, “I came out and I thought I was a hero, and everybody took one look at me and saw I was a Black woman and assumed I was a villain.” And I really feel like that line was far more true than I wished it to be. I really feel prefer it’s a theme that’s by no means going to go away as a result of the world isn’t going to get excellent.
But any likelihood we get to have an superior hero in any type… Whether it’s a bit of child that I’d suppose is ace, or simply ensuring that Madeline and Stainless Steel and all these highly effective girls of all completely different physique sorts are represented.
STEPHANIE: That’s additionally a enjoyable factor to attract. I wish to draw completely different physique sorts; I wish to draw completely different folks. I need everybody to have a bit of bit of illustration.
AVERY: Is there anything you’d like me to make certain and embody?
COLLEEN: This is my favourite Katie. Maybe it’s simply because it’s the latest, is that the way it works? I’m kidding; as the youngest, I shouldn’t be saying that out loud. But actually, I really feel like we obtained into such groove on this e book. I really feel like the jokes actually land, and the heartwarming elements actually land.
Katie’s mother is nice. I like that you simply discover out a bit of bit extra – issues I at all times assumed youngsters would discover are stated flat-out on this one. Like I at all times thought folks would discover that Katie’s mother doesn’t have a bed room. But I suppose in the event you by no means knew anyone who had a guardian who needed to sleep in the front room as a result of they didn’t have the additional room, you wouldn’t go there mentally.
So I wished to flat-out say, “Her mom is working these ridiculous hours; she’s falling asleep all the time. She sleeps on the couch because they don’t have enough money.” And then to have her mother sort of determine her life out at the identical time as Katie figuring it out… I simply love that sort of secondary character development. That’s one thing I actually like doing, is making the aspect characters have development.
STEPHANIE: I believe half of that’s as a result of it’s the third e book, so you’ll be able to sort of lean in and discover the characters a bit of bit extra. Even if it’s just a bit quip in the background that provides the character extra dimension… I really feel such as you’re actually good at doing that for all of the forged.
COLLEEN: I’ll say, I at all times have books with too many forged members, although. I like recurring characters, I like recurring gags, and I like folks coming again that had a small, one-panel cameo in one other e book. Knowing that hardly any readers will notice that’s the identical character, however the ones that do will likely be so excited.
STEPHANIE: I believe readers will discover once they come again. Just based mostly on the cat continuity errors which were identified to us. Readers will discover, so it is going to be appreciated! “Is that a different cat?”
COLLEEN: We positively have some youngsters that decision us out. And now now we have one other go that we do for each e book that’s all cat continuity.
STEPHANIE: The cat continuity go.
COLLEEN: It’s so much.
STEPHANIE: It’s 217!
Secrets and Sidekicks is obtainable now.
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