Bethanie Murguia

I met Bethanie a couple years ago at Kid Comics Unite where we were in a writer’s group together. Bethanie was a seasoned children’s book author but was working on her first graphic novel. It was about a little girl and the bond she has with her dog. But it’s told from the perspective of the dog. It was fascinating to have a behind the scenes look at the evolution of the story and Bethanie’s skill as a storyteller. 

I’ve also enjoyed following her Instagram where she shares comics about her own dogs in Dogumentary. The real life inspiration for her graphic novel. There were 5 of us in that writing group and Bethanie is the first to cross the finish line. Her book Wagnificent: The Adventures of Thunder and Sage comes out next week.

Why comics? (What compels you to create in this medium?) 

I have to confess that I wasn’t a kid who read comics, aside from Calvin and Hobbes and Snoopy and The Far Side (I mean, I’m not a total philistine). I discovered graphic novels as an adult, at a time when I was itching to create longer stories and more in-depth characters than picture books would allow. My gateway graphic novels were the Phoebe and Her Unicorn series (Dana Simpson) and Be Prepared (Vera Brosgol). They opened my eyes to the power of comics and graphic novels.

 Even though I came to graphic novels late in life, I’ve always adored books—the way they hold self-contained worlds and the fact that anyone can make them. I was taping pages together, writing stories, and drawing illustrations as soon as I could read. Words + pictures = magic. And I’ve spent a lot of my life putting words and pictures together in various ways, working as an art director for magazines and then writing and illustrating picture books.

What is it that you want people to take away from your work? 

 Wagnificent is a friendship adventure about the wonder of a human and dog bond. It’s filled with goofy moments and plenty of humor and shenanigans, but at its core, this is a book about care and love, told from the dog’s perspective. My hope is that readers connect with Thunder the dog and are inspired to be more curious and empathetic in their own animal (and human!) friendships. I also hope they’re fascinated by some of the dog and wolf facts in the book—I learned so many incredible things doing research for this series.

What are you currently working on?

 I’m working on Books 2 and 3 of the Wagnificent series—more dogs, more wolves, a cat (gasp!), and fascinating facts about various canines—all continuing to explore what it means for a dog to thrive in a human world.

 Also, I’m working on a middle-grade graphic novel about puberty and ghosts, which means I’m voluntarily revisiting middle-school feelings and drama. (What was I thinking?!)

You can find Bethanie online at:

 Aquapup.com 

 Instagram 

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