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Michelle Robinson is the best-selling author of more than 50 children’s books, and she’s doing something brand-new for her latest: she’s publishing it directly in Canada! We caught up with the English ex-pat at her newish home in Tatamagouche, Nova Scotia, to ask her how becoming Canadian has influenced her literary output.

ABT: You’ve written books starring jelly, a dinosaur, a banana, and two lorries, among other things. Do you find your character first, and then squeeze them into a banana peel? Or does the banana come first and tell you who they are?

MR: I tend to start with something I’m interested in — a dog, a llama, a cake, a kayak or whatever — then my curiosity kicks in. My brain tends to look at things in a slightly kooky way. I tend to anthropomorphize just about everything and emphasize with inanimate objects. I guess it would be a pretty annoying and useless habit if I hadn’t managed to turn it into a job.

ABT: You’ve published a lot of books in the U.K. Can you recommend a few for your new Canadian fans?

MR: One of my most popular books, How to Wash a Woolly Mammoth, was inspired by the model at Mastodon Ridge in Nova Scotia. It’s about how difficult it would be to keep a mammoth as a pet. Similarly, A Beginner’s Guide to Bear Spotting was written while trying to make sense of the conflicting advice local friends gave me on how to deal with bear encounters. Like most of my stories, these books are both very fun and very silly.

ABT: How does the different landscape of Tatamagouche affect your very visual books?

MR: Having so much space and beautiful nature around me is an incredible privilege that, coming from a squeezed and overpopulated U.K. town, I will never take for granted. It really helps my imagination relax and expand.

ABT: When you compare the book worlds of Somerset, England, to Atlantic Canada, what seems similar and what seems different to you?

MR: There’s definitely a lot of support for local creators here. That’s possibly true in the U.K. too — certainly within smaller communities — but it’s harder for small books to stand out on shelves that are just so busy and loud. It’s good to see underrepresented voices being amplified everywhere — and dispiriting to see the same small handful of authors getting a disproportionate amount of shelf space both sides of the pond.

ABT: In your new book, Lobster’s Vacation, we learn that even as he enjoys travelling around Nova Scotia, Lobster feels homesick for the ocean. He wonders if he can ever be a true Bluenoser. Authors are not their protagonists … but is there any of you in Lobster?

MR: Well spotted. I am a lot like Lobster, but certainly not because I want to go back where I came from! We’re both introverts. Lobster likes to see and experience new things, but he’s most comfortable sitting quietly at home, minding his own business.

ABT: You worked with Halifax illustrator Paul G. Hammond for this book. What did he bring to Lobster’s Vacation?

MR: I was thrilled when Nimbus told me Paul was going to be breathing life into Lobster. I love his colour palette and I’m always a huge fan of hand-drawn lettering, which is one of the many things Paul excels at. He’s managed to give our book a nostalgic vibe, which is really fun. It’s great that the book is the product of both a Bluenoser and a Come From Away. Different perspectives in books are fun and valuable.

ABT: We have moose, ospreys, coyotes and black bears. Do any of them appeal to you as potential stars of new books?

MR: You bet. In fact, that reads like a To Do List. I might be tempted to write about a moose next, or maybe a chickadee. The wildlife here is varied, fascinating, charming and occasionally terrifying. How can I not feel inspired?