"Delicious and Illicit": An Interview With Artist Sarah Cathcart Anderson
Sarah Cathcart Anderson is a writer and illustrator drawn to the "delicious and illicit" -- I love the swings between whimsy and eerieness in her work. Learn more about her in the interview below (and check out her beautiful art!)
What books did you especially love as a kid? Why do you think you loved them so much?
I learned to read very early, and there were so many books that I loved. Alexander and the Magic Mouse was one favorite. The illustrations and characters were so vivid for me, and I loved the idea of reading sea stories and drinking tea with talking animals during a raging storm (I still do).
When I was in kindergarten there was a book in my classroom that I’ve never been able to find again, but I was riveted by it. I think it was called Misery Is… and on every page was a kid having an embarrassing moment - like “Misery is…when your overall strap falls in the toilet and you have to go back to class.” It gave me this feeling of dread that was somehow really delicious and felt illicit. I’m still drawn to that vibe.
I could go on and on about my favorite books: D’Aulaires Mythology was a big one, and all the kid lit classics. I also loved a book called The Way to Start a Day about different ways people all over the world throughout history have welcomed the morning. It was really magical and very 70s in spirit.
When did you make the decision to break into children's books, and what's helped you so far on this journey?
When Covid arrived my son was in kindergarten and just barely beginning to read. I knew he was never going to connect to learning over Zoom so I decided to homeschool him during that time instead. I didn’t know anything about teaching early reading, and I was a bit terrified, but I’m so glad I made that choice because it turned out to be such a gift for both of us.
Helping him learn and discover joy in reading was incredible, and as a writer and artist it really sharpened my focus on my love of children’s literature and how important it is to give kids books that are worthy of their attention.
Before getting into the children's book field, you had a very different professional background! What did you used to do, and how does that show up in your creative work now?
I did! I was a theater major at Stanford, and after a brief stint as a struggling actor after college, I joined the advertising program at Art Center College of Design. After that I had a career as a writer and then creative director in advertising, and was the chief creative officer of an ad agency in Los Angeles for quite some time.
I led teams of writers and art directors and worked with big and small brands across all media (including Microsoft, Walmart, HBO, the Gates Foundation, Google and many more). All along, my art and illustration work was something I did mostly for myself, though sometimes also in the context of my ad work. My advertising career really took the mystery out of creative ideation and the work it takes to hammer out a concept on deadline.
It taught me to dive full force into my idea, fall in love with it, and then be able to hold it loosely and let it go. Working collaboratively and responding to feedback can seem intense when you first start out, but once it’s your rhythm and you understand how to show up in that process in a constructive way it makes it fun for everyone and gets you to better work in the end.
Who or what inspires you?
Definitely my kid. He is so magical and wild and brilliant and insightful and he inspires me every day. I’m also really drawn to the unknown - sometimes it feels like we’ve lost a sense of mystery in the world, like everything is known and mapped and understood. Wherever there’s still mystery, there’s still the possibility of magic, and I’m always pulled toward that idea.
What type of projects would you really love to work on? What would be a dream assignment for you?
Anything darkly funny and a bit magical or mysterious! I’d also love to work on picture book or graphic novel adaptations of classic texts, myths, or plays.
You're not just an artist; you're an author-illustrator. What original stories are you working on now?
I’ve got a lot cooking, but close to the front burner I’m working on a story about a boy whose hair is the object of too much attention, another about an accident-prone poodle who’s really really trying to do it right, and I'm also developing a company of delightfully dreadful Improper Beasts (who have completely taken over my sketchbook). On a very slow simmer (too much stovetop metaphor?) are a couple of graphic novel ideas, including a biography that brings together ancient magic and modern science.
Connect with Sarah on her website.
Connect with Sarah on her Substack.
