I don’t have a middle name.
2. What is your nickname?
I don’t have one! I wish I had a nickname… and a middle name!
3. What is your greatest fear?
Creepy crawly creature things that might jump on my head.
4. Describe your writing style in 10 words.
Straightforward, subversive, humorous and from the heart.
5. Tell us five positive words that describe you as a writer.
Motivated, thoughtful, genuine, imaginative, uncomplicated.
6. What book character would you be, and why?
Max, from Where The Wild Things Are, because at times I’ve felt like a misunderstood 'trouble-maker'. Also, I love going on big adventures, but then I’m REALLY happy to come home… especially if my supper is still hot.
7. If you could time travel, what year would you go to and why?
I would travel hundreds of years in to the future. Maybe we’d all be living under the sea? Or in the sky? That would be amazing.
8. What would your 10-year-old self say to you now?
What? My life wasn’t ruined forever because I wasn’t allowed to wear a Michael Jackson ‘Bad’ T-shirt to the school disco?
9. Who is your greatest influence?
My five-year-old daughter, Ava. Her wonderful and refreshing perspective is an endless source of inspiration.
10. What/who made you start writing?
I needed some words to go with my pictures.
11. What is your favourite word and why?
Dazzling. Because it’s pretty to look at, and funny to say.
12. If you could only read one book for the rest of your life, what would it be?
The Complete Illustrated Works of Lewis Carroll. It’s a gigantic-sized book that my mum read to me when I was growing up. The stories are SO weird and wonderful that I’d be quite happy reading and re-reading this book forever.
Heidi McKinnon was born and grew up in Tamworth, NSW. She moved to Melbourne and studied art and design at RMIT. After graduating, she worked lots of weird jobs until she fell in to a career as a graphic designer. Baz and Benz is Heidi's third picture book. Her first, I Just Ate My Friend, was shortlisted for numerous awards, including the Children's Book Council Crichton Award and has been published around the world, including in the USA, France, Japan and Korea. Her second, It's a Long Way to the Shop, has just been long-listed for the CBCA Early Childhood Book of the Year. For more information, see www.heidimckinnon.com.
