DOG BEACH by Julie Murphy & Annie White
NLA Publishing
Guest Author Post by Julie Murphy about Dog Beach
Thank you for speaking to Joy in Books at PaperbarkWords blog, Julie.
The Story Behind the Story of DOG BEACH
DOG BEACH is a short, rhyming picture book for ages 3 – 6. It features a range of dogs running amuck on an Aussie beach.
Look who’s at the dog beach!
Strong dogs, looong dogs,
Playing dogs, staying dogs,
Black dogs, brown dogs, go-to-town dogs,
Bit-of-a-clown dogs, upside-down dogs…
The idea for this story began in 2020. I was walking home from the local dog park with my kelpie-cross rescue dog, Banjo, thinking about all the different dogs and how well they got along together, when two rhymes popped into my head – long dogs and strong dogs. I liked their fun, Hairy Maclary-ish feel, and went to work.
Months later, with a manuscript called Dog Park ready to submit, I spotted a new-release picture book sharing a few similarities to my work; including the title. I was disappointed but not surprised – after all, we were in the midst of a pandemic where visiting dog parks was one of the few joys left to many of us. Trying to make my manuscript more unique, I considered changing to a beach setting…and got excited. As I later pitched to the publisher (and stated in the book’s blurb) going to the beach is a big part of Australian culture and, for many people, so are dogs. This book doubles the fun!
Around that time, I read Katherine Kovacic’s blog post on the NLA Publishing website, promoting her new book for adults, AUSTRALIA’S DOGS. * Noting that it shared a similar celebratory feel to my manuscript, but for a different audience, I submitted DOG BEACH to NLA. To my delight, the enthusiastic reply I received told me that my manuscript had found a home.
Next, Annie White came on board as illustrator. It was a perfect choice. In addition to being a wonderful artist, Annie is a keen dog lover and lives in a Melbourne beachside suburb. Dogs and beaches are in her DNA! It turns out that Annie is also a lovely person who I’ve enjoyed getting to know over our subsequent book promotion events, including an incredible launch at the National Library of Australia in Canberra (involving a cast of gorgeous Story Dogs that children read to), and bookshop signings and readings. Annie gives a fascinating insight into her illustration process for DOG BEACH on her website. **
Making a picture book is truly a team effort. Editors, designers, and sales and marketing staff have all played their part in making our story a joyful celebration of dogs and the beach. We couldn’t be more pleased with how DOG BEACH has been received by readers and reviewers, and that it is currently being reprinted.
* https://www.library.gov.au/news-media/katherine-kovacic-australias-dogs
** https://www.anniewhite.com/new-blog
Julie Murphy has been a children’s book author for over 20 years. Inspired by animals and nature, she first trained as a zoologist and zookeeper. Julie’s books have been recognised for awards, had foreign language editions and been published in the USA. Her website is https://juliemurphybooks.com/
DOG BEACH by Julie Murphy & Annie White (NLA Publishing, 2024)
Julie Murphy and Tiny Possum and the Migrating Moths at Paperbark Words blog
Annie White at Paperbark Words blog
paperbarkwords.blog 