The delightful dog mayor is back for a third adventure!
Hello lovely WWAC readers and welcome to my new column Rosie Reads. If you’re coming over from my now defunct Substack thank you so much for your support and if you’re just a regular WWAC visitor then welcome. I began my career as a writer at WWAC seven years ago and have always worked hard to continue to be part of this incredible community. That’s why I am so honored and happy to be establishing this column here where I’ll be recommending books, comics, and chatting to some of my favorite creators! I’m extremely excited that the inaugural is a delightful chat with my pal and fellow writer Dave Scheidt. Enjoy!!
Mayor Good Boy has been bringing joy to readers of all ages with his sweet stories of friendship, kindness, and generosity since 2021 when artist Miranda Harmon and writer Dave Scheidt first introduced us to the dog who would be mayor. The delightful graphic novels series has now reached the impressive third book in the series which sees Mayor Good Boy…turn bad!! To celebrate the book being out in the world I chatted to Dave about bringing the book to light and making a trilogy.
This is the third Mayor Good Boy book. That’s a huge achievement, how does it feel to have unleashed the goodest boy on readers everywhere once again?
It’s been so great because we’ve built a pretty loyal fanbase so far in the small amount of time these hooks have been out. We’ve been so lucky to have our own little crew of kids going nuts for these books. Kids have been so excited about the idea of our furry little guy going bad. They’d be like “Wait…what happens? He’s supposed to be a good! Why would be turn bad?” Kids are kind of entranced by the idea of being bad in a way where we didn’t really expect. It’s been so fun!
Kindness and generosity are so key to the Mayor Good Boy books, when did you decide that you’d introduce Bad Boy to stir things up?
Each book has its own kind of theme. Book one was more about community and book two was about fame and forgiveness and our love of the movies so for book three it was really important for us to make this one about complicated family dynamics and what a secret can do to people.
Kids need to see themselves and their family represented in stories and we wanted to kind of show how messy family history can be. We wanted kids to know that there really was no real “perfect” person or family and using Mayor Good Boy to show that worked out great cuz kids love and trust him. So to show him kind of vulnerable and maybe not making the best decisions was something that came pretty natural from the story Miranda and I have been telling.
Miranda Harmon is such a fantastic artist! What’s the collaborative process been like in crafting and expanding the world of Mayor Good Boy?
I don’t say this enough but Miranda is such a massive talent and she really brought this world to life in a way I could have never imagined. There is just so much love and light in her cartooning. The way she’s able to make these outrageous characters feel like real people is just such a thrill. There’s so much heart in her line work that really speaks to people. The secret formula of Mayor Good Boy is that it’s this multi-faceted series that wouldn’t work nearly as well if someone else was drawing these. These books are sugary sweet and cute but also full of gross jokes and ridiculous gags and tonally I feel like that shouldn’t work but Miranda makes it look easy. I cannot overstate how lucky I am to be able to work with someone as talented and amazing as Miranda. I’m so proud of the work we’ve created together and I’m still pinching myself every time I page through our books.
How early on did you know that everyone’s favorite good boy was going to turn bad?
When we pitched the series to Random House that was always going to be one of the books. I think sequels are fun because you can kind of just jump right into the next adventure and the idea of getting to show a side of MGB and introduce his family just felt so right and I’m glad we went that route.
What’s your ideal setting / vibe for getting some writing done?
I’m one of those obnoxious coffee shop guys mainly because I get so distracted at home. I’ll supposed to be writing a book and suddenly I’m playing with my Godzilla toys or playing a video game or watching people eat Dominos on YouTube so I absolutely need to leave my house and get busy. These past few years I’ve been able to teach myself to work at home but think I get the best momentum when I’m anywhere but my house.
What’s the perfect snack for someone to eat while they’re reading Mayor Good Boy Turns Bad?
Pizza is always the right answer or any kind of cheese since that’s MGB’s favorite food. I take snaking very seriously and there are a million food jokes in these books mainly cuz I’m probably hungry when I’m writing. I wonder if I eat lunch before I started writing, maybe I’d be writing serious emotional dramas and not comics about talking dogs.
Mayor Good Boy Turns Bad is out now!!
If you’re a cartoonist, author, or artist (or someone who reps them) and want to be featured on Rosie Reads or just want to say hi feel free to email me at info@rosieoliviaknight.com.
