Interview: Elaine Bickell talks about Keith and the Kitten

Elaine Bickell was born and grew up in the UK. Her love of books led to her studying English Literature at Bristol University. After moving to New Zealand in 2005, she worked in advertising. Her first book with Scholastic, The Little Ghost Who Lost Her Boo! was the recipient of the 2018 Storylines Joy Cowley Award, a 2020 Storylines Notable Book Award, and went on to become a New York Times bestseller and spurned a sequel The Little Witch Who Lost Her Broom. She lives in New Zealand now and talks to NZ Booklovers.

Tell us a little about Keith and the Kitten

Keith and the Kitten is book 1 in a series of books about a Chihuahua called Keith and his cat sister Queenie. The first book is about when Queenie is introduced into the perfect world that Keith inhabits with his Mama, who adores him. Let’s just say there’s some adjusting to do, and Keith isn’t very good at it!

In the next book, Queenie has grown up, and she really is a match for Keith and his antics, but I won’t give too much away.  

What inspired you to write this book?

A lot of things. Lynette Evans at Scholastic was the main inspiration - well, she laid down the challenge anyway! I had written a completely different series about a Pigeon and a Sparrow, it had the same snarky tone of voice, and Lynette challenged me to write a series in that same tone but without any birds! 

My sister Katie is also my inspiration. We are very close in age, less than a year, so she’s just always been there. We had a tough childhood in many ways and have been through a lot together, we used to fight like cats and dogs (haha) but my relationship with her is central to who I am and she is the one person in this world who always makes me laugh until I cannot breathe. 

My other inspiration was my dog Molly. She is not a Chihuahua, she’s a Fox Terrier, but I have a feeling she has Chihuahua ancestry, she certainly has the temperament! I was at the park years ago with Molly and the kids and this random little boy about 4 years old came up to us, he pointed at Molly and said Chihuahua in a very loud voice, I swear to this day that Molly shot him a disgusted look and it was in that moment that the idea of writing about a feisty Chihuahua was born. It was then cemented when my darling friends Karen and Minnie became “pawrents” to an elderly, overweight, man hating Chihuahua called Buddy - the stories they told, hilarious! So I had Chihuahuas in my head for about 8 years before Lynette’s challenge brought it to the surface and then even as I was writing I kept thinking I’m never going to get away with this, a story about a dog and a cat, surely not. But here we are, I well and truly got away with it. 

How did you work with the illustrator, Minky Stapleton?

I didn’t work directly with Minky but I did know very early on that she was the illustrator. I did a lot of whooping when I found out she was working on it as I have been a big fan of her work for many years. I kept thinking how double lucky I had been to get away with a cat and dog story and then get Minky too. 

If a soundtrack was made to accompany this book, name a song or two you would include.

I love this question about a soundtrack. I’d start with “Who let the dogs out,” then "What’s new Pussycat," followed by Charlie Puth's “You just want attention” which plays a lot in my car these days thanks to my 11 year old DJ. Then I’d close out with ABBA “The Winner takes it all” for the last page where Queenie gives Keith the side eye as she really is the cat that got the cream. 

What did you enjoy the most about writing this children’s picture book?

What I enjoyed most was undoubtedly how much fun this series was to write. I laughed so much and I felt such a freedom while writing them because they are character driven and because I knew the characters so well I never had to angst over the plot, it was all just so easy and enjoyable.

What do you hope children will take away from reading?

Mostly I hope that children will laugh. I would like to think that these books will be the lighthearted end to a long day and send our little readers off to bed with happy thoughts and having just had a right good giggle with their caregiver. I think the adults reading them will have a right laugh too. In terms of any deeper meaning, the only “lessons” in these books are that siblings are sent to try us and you can’t get rid of them, so you have to learn to live with them. 

What did you do to celebrate finishing this book?

I celebrated by writing five more! I couldn’t stop. Four are currently contracted so I am thrilled that these characters get to develop over time. We’re having a launch at Unity books on 17th October. Minky is coming down, so I’m really looking forward to that. We will celebrate in style! I even have a cake on order and music planned and Unity always puts on a good bash. 

What is the favourite book you have read so far this year and why?

My favourite, hands down, without a doubt, is "The Book of Guilt” by Catherine Chidgey. I could not put this down and was utterly absorbed in the world of the book. I still think of Vincent often even though I read it months ago. In the kid book world, I loved "The Terrible Trio” by Swapna Haddow and illustrated by Minky Stapleton, so funny. Swapna is such a hoot. 

What’s next on the agenda for you?

 Next for me is looking forward to proofs for book 2 in the Keith vs Queenie series. I have also been working on a Christmas book for 2026, and I am about to give some middle grade a go, gulp. 

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