Interview: John Claude Bemis on RODEO HAWKINS AND THE DAUGHTERS OF MAYHEM

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Rodeo Hawkins and The Daughters of Mayhem, written by John Claude Bemis and illustrated by Nicole Miles, is a beautiful tale of friendship, acceptance, and what it means to be a hero. In the book, Sidney Poblocki is a kid who stumbles into something way bigger than him and now must save the multiverse.

Rodeo Hawkins and The Daughters of Mayhem recently earned a nod as Junior Library Guild Selection for 2025. Bemis caught up with The Beat about the new book, our multiversal hero, and what’s next for Sidney.

This interview was edited.

JAVIER PEREZ: How are you finding the switch between prose and sequential art?

JOHN CLAUDE BEMIS: I love it! I don’t know why I haven’t been writing this way before. It’s a whole new adventure — and challenge. Anytime you’re telling a story, you’re taking an idea from your imagination and trying to transfer it into the imagination of the reader. With prose and traditional novels, you do that with words only, so it’s thrilling to tell a story where words and images work in concert.

Also, I like the collaborative aspect. I play music in my other creative life, and while I like to do a solo show sometimes, I prefer playing in a band. Writing a novel is more of a solo endeavor. With graphic novels, storytelling is a team effort.

PEREZ: Do you find yourself constrained or freer to explore things because of the visual part of comics?

BEMIS: There are certainly constraints. With comics, there’s less opportunity for giving readers direct access into the heads of characters. I suppose I could do thought bubbles, but I’ve never liked those. They can be a bit clunky. I prefer approaching the interior life of the characters like you would with a movie or a play. The illustrations are the actors. The audience has to figure out what the characters are thinking or feeling through their gestures, expressions, dialogue, and choices.

While that might seem like a constraint, I find limitations exciting. All art forms have constraints. If everything was possible, the limitless choices would be stifling. Limitations have a way of opening up your creativity, forcing you to find new solutions and possibilities.

Also, a graphic novel script is much sparser than a novel. It’s just the essential elements to tell the story: what the characters say, what they do, the set-pieces and locations. I think of myself more as a storyteller than as a writer. My stories have always manifested themselves in my imagination in cinematic ways. The comic format frees me up to focus more on what I like with storytelling: high-octane action, bizarre worlds, and playful dialogue between the characters.

PEREZ: How did the story come about? I read the story had its start as a quick story back in 2017, and I wonder what the process was like.

BEMIS: I began this project expecting it to become a novel. But with the early ideas filling my head so quickly, I had to get them down in some format as fast as humanly possible before I lost them. More typically, I might take my time and turn those ideas into notes before drafting. But I was already envisioning full scenes that were best captured right away.

So, I decided to start with a barebones draft in script format. I was thinking of this first draft like a screenplay, just the dialogue and simple stage directions. Something very simple and raw. The plan then was that I’d turn the script into a novel by fleshing out the basics into prose.

But as I reread the draft, I quickly saw how this story wanted—needed!—to be a graphic novel. It was highly visual. And the dialogue was the engine driving the storytelling. Luckily, when I showed it to my agent, he agreed. And the rest is history.

PEREZ: Can I ask about the choice of villains in Rodeo Hawkins & the Daughters of Mayhem? Is it a don’t meet your heroes kind of situation?

BEMIS: Yeah, funny…but true! I’ve been disappointed by some of my heroes over the years.

I like a psychologically complicated villain. The Paladins — as protectors of the multiverse — really are good and heroic in many ways. They have the right intentions, thinking that one of these kids named Sidney Poblocki is a legitimate threat to untold bajillions of people. But yikes, their methods are reprehensible!

PEREZ: I like Sidney (or our version of Sidney), and while the story can get out there with multiple dimensions, the core of the story is him coming into his own and gaining confidence in himself. I think that’s what makes him so easy to cheer for. How did he come about as a character?

BEMIS: I’m thrilled you feel that way about him! Sidney is a sweet guy, and I think, easy to root for. The Daughters of Mayhem are pretty mischievous, so even though they’re likeable, they’re not always all that sweet. Especially Rodeo! She has an intense personality to say the least. Rodeo can get so caught up in mischief-making that she doesn’t always consider how others feel. I needed that yin-yang, sweet-and-salty balance between Sidney and Rodeo.

Besides, when you’re creating a story where there are so many eccentrics and wonderful weirdos, somebody needs to be the relatable “everyman” character. The audience identifies with Sidney. They get why he’d be freaking out that all this bizarre stuff keeps happening to him and why he’s overwhelmed by all the threats he’s facing. I wanted to challenge Sidney to grow, to overcome the hardships he’s faced in life to become a more confident person and find a sense of belonging.

PEREZ: What’s it like working with Nicole Miles? I love how expressive the characters are, despite the art style being simple lines.

BEMIS: You know, if you’re the writer for a comedy show, you need a talented comedian to pull off the material. That was Nicole. She knew how to deliver the humor through the facial expressions and reactions, as well as the pacing and composition of the panels. And she knew how to create the thrills and suspense and all the fantasy worldbuilding. Nicole intuitively got what I was going for with the story.

Even though I had vivid images in my head when writing the script, I intentionally had very few notes or suggestions on the design for the characters and settings. Only what was essential to the story. I wanted to empower her to bring her personality and ideas to the project. So much of what she did with the art was exactly as I was imagining. And just as often, she’d surprise me. The end result benefited so much from it being a true collaboration.

There was a lot of back and forth over multiple years to get Rodeo Hawkins and the Daughters of Mayhem just right. She was dream collaborator every step of the way, bringing so much enthusiasm and extraordinary ideas to the project.

PEREZ: Anything you would like to add? Maybe future appearances?

BEMIS: I’ll be visiting bookstores, festivals, and conferences. Check out my website, Instagram, or Facebook for dates. I have a short break from Rodeo events later in October when I head off to France to lead a writer’s retreat in Provence. I love teaching and working with up-and-coming writers. And writing in France isn’t half bad. Otherwise, I’m excited for readers to get their hands on the sequel Rodeo Hawkins and the Sons of Disaster in 2026.

Find Rodeo Hawkins and The Daughters of Mayhem at you local comic store or bookstore or order through Penguin here.

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