It’s the biggest pleasure to welcome R.W.R. McDonald to JWFK as we literally celebrate his extravagantly cheerful picture book release, Happy Millionth Birthday! So much heart, humour and energy has gone into this book, and we couldn’t be happier to join the party and learn more about it! Thanks, Rob! 🙂
Congratulations, Rob, on the release of your fun-tastic picture book, Happy Millionth Birthday! This is a book about living every day like it’s your birthday – literally! Can you tell us a bit more about it?
Jack Wolf is having his 5th birthday and does not want the fun to end. He loves his party, cake and presents, so he makes a wish that every day is his birthday – and his wish comes true! As the story continues, Jack ages a year every birthday, but for everyone else it is another day – and another Jack Wolf birthday party!
Where did the inspiration for this book come from?
I was thinking one day imagine if you used your birthday wish to have another birthday the next day and it came true but you aged a year, like on each of your normal birthdays. What would that mean? As a kid it would be awesome – lots and lots of presents, cake, and parties! But for everyone else and for your parents…
What’s your favourite thing about birthdays?
These days, having survived another lap around the sun! But as a kid they felt so magic, and they still do. I remember finding it hard to sleep the night before, wondering what present you might get, the yummy birthday food – Mum would ask us kids what we would like beforehand – and then if you were having a party as well that was too exciting! Just the best!
How would you personally feel about celebrating a million birthdays?
Personally, 1 million birthdays in a row feels like a lot… I absolutely feel for Jack Wolf’s mum!
What do you hope readers will gain from this book, and do you have a favourite part?
I hope readers have fun and get to experience that magic that comes from birthday wishes. So many favourites! But I love the illustrations of Jack’s house when he is 70, 80, 90… it is a two-page spread of a grinning Jack with his walking stick and the house bursting with presents.
Your illustrator, Alexandra Colombo, absolutely brings the joy, energy and FUN where every page is literally a visual party for the senses! How much did you collaborate, and what do you love most about her work?
When I first saw Alexandra’s samples for Jack Wolf I fell in love. She had captured Jack and his happiness, even as he aged, he was still having a party! Mary Anastasiou at Larrikin House was our go-between. Mary was fantastic and had picked the type of animals I had picture first pop, which she shared with Alexandra. I got to have some costume input which I loved, and also what records were in the house (threw in a sneaky Liza and a Kenny G in there). As you mentioned, I love how Alexandra Colombo captured the excitement and atmosphere of birthdays and birthday parties and the feelings of all the characters. She is a super star!
What has been your greatest feedback on the book so far?
From booksellers who have told me about kids who make a beeline for the book and then refuse to leave the store without it. Sorry to the parents out there – that sounds like a nightmare! But huge thanks booksellers and kids!
You’re also a crime writer, with books including The Nancys series. How do you find switching from picture books to writing crime? Do you prefer one genre over the other?
I love both for different reasons, working on a manuscript for a novel is a marathon, and the challenge of 70,000 words plus. Crime fiction is dark, whereas with picture book writing you are playing in a space of such hope and unbridled imagination, I absolutely love that and the challenge of 500 words. So, I do love both but yes the switch can be tricky at the beginning. For your readers I will admit that the first draft of my picture books can be a little dark, more like picture book noir, or those old German cautionary tales, rather than Miffy in the Snow. But I have found for me it is good to write it out as much as I can and then I can edit back. It is definitely the worst draft!
What are your best writing tips for aspiring writers?
To follow your story. Focus on being the best writer you can be, don’t worry about what every else is doing. Your voice is unique, lean into that. Feedback is critical, if you don’t know any other writers look at joining a writing group, these can be online as well. But my caveat with feedback is best summed up by that Neil Gaiman quote, “When people tell you something’s wrong or doesn’t work for them, they are almost always right. When they tell you exactly what they think is wrong and how to fix it, they are almost always wrong.”
You are the expert of your story, remember that.
Anything else you’d like to share about yourself or the celebration of your FABULOUS Happy Millionth Birthday?
A huge thank you to Larrikin House, they have been incredible to work with, and I can’t wait to see the paperback version out in the world. Thanks for having me!
Thanks so much for sharing your HAPPY story with us, Rob! It’s been truly special! 😊
About the Author
R.W.R. McDonald (Rob) is an award-winning Kiwi author, living in Melbourne, with his two daughters and one HarryCat. Author of the award-winning Nancys series, The Nancys and Nancy Business, published by Allen and Unwin, and a contributor to crime anthology, Dark Deeds Down Under edited by Craig Sisterson, published by ClanDestine Press. Rob is also a creative writing tutor and host of Queer Writes Sessions (QWS) Podcast. Rob’s first picture book, Happy Millionth Birthday, was published in September 2023 by Larrikin House.
Find Rob at his website: R.W.R McDonald – Author of ‘The Nancys’ – Adult Crime Fiction (rwrmcdonald.com) and on Instagram.
Happy Millionth Birthday is available for purchase from Larrikin House and your local bookstore or library.
Join in this fun celebration with R.W.R. McDonald and his vivacious picture book, Happy Millionth Birthday, cheering up readers across the blogosphere!
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