Written by John Claude Bemis and depicted by Nicole Miles, Rodeo Hawkins and his daughter’s daughter are beautiful stories of friendship, acceptance and the meaning of being a hero. In the book, Sidney Poblokki is a child who stumbles on something much bigger than him, and now he has to save the multiverse.
The daughters of Rodeo Hawkins and her daughter Mayhem recently nodded as a 2025 Junior Library Guild Selection. Bemis caught up with a beat about our new book, our multiversal heroes and what’s next for Sydney.
This interview has been edited.
Javier Perez: How do you find the switch between prose and sequential art?
John Claude Bemis: I love it! I don’t understand why I didn’t write this before. It’s a whole new adventure and a challenge. Whenever you are telling a story, you are trying to take an idea from your imagination and transfer it to the reader’s imagination. In prose and traditional novels, it does it with words alone, so it’s thrilling to tell stories where words and images work in concerts.
I also like the collaborative side. I play music in other creative lives and although I like to do solo shows from time to time, I prefer to play in bands. Writing a novel is a more solo effort. In graphic novels, storytelling is a team effort.
Perez: Are there restrictions to exploring things because of the visual part of the comic, or do you become free?
Bemis: There are certainly restrictions. Comics give readers less opportunity to have direct access to the character’s head. I think I could have thought of bubbles, but I didn’t like them. They can be a little clunky. I like to get closer to the character’s internal life as you do in movies and plays. The illustrations are by actors. Audiences need to understand what the character is thinking and feeling through gestures, expressions, dialogues and choices.
That may seem like a constraint, but I find the limitations exciting. All art forms have restrictions. If everything is possible, endless choices can be suffocating. Limitations have a way to open up creativity, forcing you to find new solutions and possibilities.
Also, graphic novel scripts are far more sparse than novels. Telling a story is an important factor. It’s the set pieces and the place where the characters say, what they’re doing. I consider myself a storyteller more than a writer. My stories have always appeared in my imagination. The comic format frees me to focus more on what I like in storytelling: high octane actions, strange worlds, playful dialogue between characters.
John Claude Bemis
Gabrielle Col Photo Credits
Perez: How did the story come about? I read that this story began as a quick story in 2017, and I wonder what the process was like.
Bemis: I started this project with the hope that it would become a novel. But as early ideas quickly fill my mind, I had to somehow get them down as quickly as possible, humanly possible, before losing them. More typically, you may take the time to turn those ideas into notes before you draft them. But I was already imagining the perfect scene that was captured immediately.
So I decided to start with a scripted barebone draft. I was thinking of this first draft like a script. Something very simple and raw. The plan was to turn the script into a novel by embodying the basics into prose.
But once I reread the draft, I quickly saw how this story wanted. It was very visual. And dialogue was the engine that powered storytelling. Luckily, when I showed it to my agent, he agreed. And the rest is history.
Nicole Hawkins’ interior with Rodeo Hawkins and his daughter by John Claude Bemis. Text Copyright©2025 by John Claude Bemis. Illustration Copyright©2025 by Nicole Miles. Holiday House Publishing, Inc. Reproduction with permission.
Perez: Can I ask you about the choice of the Villain of Rodeo Hawkins and Mayhem’s daughters? Isn’t it meeting your hero situation?
Bemis: Yes, that’s weird… but it’s true! I have been disappointed with some of my heroes over the years.
I like psychologically complicated villains. Paladins as guardians of the multiverse are truly excellent and heroic in many ways. They have the right intentions. One of these children, named Sydney Poblocki, considers them a legitimate threat to convert the number of Basilionists. But Yikes, those methods are condemned!
Perez: I like Sydney (or Sydney’s version) and the story can come out there in multiple dimensions, but the heart of the story is that he comes to himself and has confidence in himself. I think that’s what makes it easier to support him. How did he come as a character?
Bemis: I’m excited to feel that way about him! Sydney is a sweet guy and I think I’m easily rooted. Mayhem’s daughters are quite naughty, so they are likable, but not necessarily so sweet. Especially the rodeo! She has a strong personality to say the least. Rodeos get caught up in mischief so they don’t always think about how others feel. The yin and yang between Sydney and the rodeo needed a sweet and gentle balance.
What’s more, when you’re creating a story with so many eccentrics and great weirdos, someone has to be a friendly “everyone” character. The audience equates with Sydney. They understand that all this strange thing is happening to him, and why he gets crazy why he’s overwhelmed by all the threats he’s facing. I wanted Sydney to challenge him to grow, overcome the difficulties he faced in life, become a more confident person and find a sense of belonging.
Nicole Hawkins’ interior with Rodeo Hawkins and his daughter by John Claude Bemis. Text Copyright©2025 by John Claude Bemis. Illustration Copyright©2025 by Nicole Miles. Holiday House Publishing, Inc. Reproduction with permission.
Perez: How about working with Nicole Miles? I love how expressive the characters are, despite their simple lines of art style.
Bemis: If you’re a comedy show writer, you need a talented comedian to separate the material. It was Nicole. She knew how to deliver humor through facial expressions and reactions, and panel pacing and composition. And she knew how to create a world building for thrills and suspense, and all fantasy. Nicole intuitively got what I was aiming for in the story.
I had clear images in my head when I wrote the script, but there were few notes or suggestions on character and setting design. Only essential to the story. I wanted to give her the power to bring her personality and ideas to the project. Much of what she did with art was just as I imagined. And just as often, she would surprise me. The end result was a huge benefit from it being a true collaboration.
There was a lot of back and forth over the years just to welcome Rodeo Hawkins and his daughter. She was a dream collaborator at every stage, bringing so much enthusiasm and extraordinary ideas to the project.
Nicole Hawkins’ interior with Rodeo Hawkins and his daughter by John Claude Bemis. Text Copyright©2025 by John Claude Bemis. Illustration Copyright©2025 by Nicole Miles. Holiday House Publishing, Inc. Reproduction with permission.
Perez: Is there anything you would like to add? Maybe a future appearance?
BEMIS: Visit bookstores, festivals and meetings. Please visit my website, Instagram or Facebook for dates. I take a short break from the rodeo event in the second half of October and head to France to lead the writer’s hideout in Provence. I love teaching and working with promising authors. Writing in France isn’t half bad. Otherwise, we look forward to 2026 when readers get their sequels, Rodeo Hawkins and the Sons of Disaster.
Rodeo Hawkins and his daughters order through your local comic store or bookstore or Penguin.
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