Behind the Book: Supersized Squirrel: Attack of the Zombears

We’re celebrating the release of Supersized Squirrel: Attack of the Zombears, by chatting with author/illustrator Luke Seguin-Magee about his experience in creating this fantastic graphic novel series full of suspersized heart, adventure, and laughs!

This series was kicked off with Supersized Squirrel and the Great Wham-o-Kablam-o!, originally published in 2024 through Oxford Univeristy Press. Attack of the Zombears is the newest addition to this supersized series. Read on to learn more about Luke’s process in creating this series.

What first drew you to the Supersized Squirrel series, and how did you get involved as the illustrator? What was your inspiration, and how did you land on a squirrel as the main character?

I was approached by OUP to design some characters for a series idea they had. Drawing the characters definitely sparked my interest in the series. I let myself draw characters I wanted to read about on adventures, and have fun with it. Luckily, OUP liked my versions of Blaze and Sonny! The chance to illustrate a graphic novel was also something I was keen to try. I have some ideas for my own stories, and this was an opportunity to gain hands-on experience with the technical aspects of it,producing numerous pages of comics.

When they asked if I would also consider writing the novels, I was shocked.

I had to test for the job, along with a handful of professional writers. I figured I didn’t stand a chance, so I approached the writing in the same way I did creating the characters. I had nothing to lose- so why not?

I was flabbergasted when they let me know they wanted me to write and illustrate the series!

The squirrel-superhero idea was OUP’s. But, I grew up in Montreal and there are tons of squirrels in that city. I was on board from the get-go. I have many fond memories of summer days watching squirrels do their thing. When they jump from branch to branch, and tree to tree—it really is amazing. Also! I grew up watching Rocky and Bullwinkle. Rocky is a superhero squirrel. So, it wasn’t unfamilar territory!

Was there a particular scene or spread that was especially fun—or challenging—to illustrate?

The full-spread action scenes are the most challenging. Getting the action to read across the gutter and make sense when reading it—both visually and literally—is a problem that takes me a lot of tweaking and adjusting until it feels right. When it works, then it’s a lot of fun to draw and colour to make the illustration feel dynamic. It feels a lot like a mini-playground. I get to experiment with colour and line in a very loose way.

In Attack of the Zombears, I think the most fun I had was the scene where Blaze tries to corral the zombears by using her powers, and finally, through interpretive dance. Blending action with a bit of absurdity is a lot of fun. It was also especially challenging mixing Blaze’s action with drawing SO MANY zombears in each frame!

How do you approach balancing humor and action in your illustrations, especially in a fast-paced, wacky story like this?

Action and humour are, for me as a reader (or movie viewer), a much more exciting thing to experience than straight action. Action that takes itself too seriously feels boring very quickly. Humour adds a special element that helps pump it up in a great way. It doesn’t take itself so seriously. I also like that Supersized Squirrel and Blaze don’t have all the answers. They aren’t superheroes in that way. But they are brave enough to try their best with what they have. Sometimes they bungle and fumble their way to success, and that’s—to me—more satisfying than some invincible hero beating a villain. They are an odd couple, and having them play off each other is great fun. Sometimes, Blaze is a bit too serious, while at different times, Sonny is way too distracted or oblivious to danger. They balance each other in a goofy way.

Describe your process you went through when pitching this story. What is it like working as both author and illustrator?

It’s honestly the most fun I’ve had making books. Gillian, at OUP, gives me an outline for the story, and I flesh out the manuscript with dialogue and action. I haven’t quite gotten a process down for this yet, but it can start with writing scenes—getting from point A to point B in a fun or engaging way. Sometimes I’ll try to get there by sketching pages, especially if I picture the scene in my head before finding the words.

I really enjoy the canvas of the graphic novel. I like that it has eight chapters and 100-something pages. That gives me some real estate to fill. It also keeps me in line. If I run on for too many pages, I know I have to tighten something up. If I have too few pages, I have to add something to keep the story going and make sense.

Working as an illustrator and author is very satisfying. I recently met a friend, whom I have known for nearly 40 years, who noted that I am doing the exact same thing I was doing back then—sitting on a sofa, writing and drawing. I guess I’m living the dream!

Do you have a favorite character or creature from the book? Why that one?

I love Sonny and Blaze, of course, but The Professor is a character I feel is the most enigmatic. I mean: a lab rabbit in the woods!? And she’s purple! I gave her some sun-yellow coloured glasses so she’d look a bit freaky—like a tin-foil-hat-wearing-type-scientist—but she’s thoroughly practical and no-nonsensical. She’s also cute and cuddly.

What advice would you give to aspiring illustrators who want to work on graphic novels or illustrated series like this one?

Visiting my Mum, in Canada, recently, I met a superfan of Supersized Squirrel—Olive—in person. She presented me with a comic, a poster for an up-coming movie and cartoon series—all for her own comic duo adventures. Olive is a real character, herself—and her comics are just as quirky, fun and charming as she is!

All she had was the inspiration from my books—she says I’m her favourite author;)—and these books about how to make comics. They come with templates of paneled pages you can fill in with your drawings.

My advice is to do what Olive did—just start!

The more you make comics, the more you’ll be curious about how to make them—and how to make them better. It’s a medium rich with inspiration, and I’m sure you’ll find everything you need to know just by reading (and copying) the ones you are drawn to.

I think that advice goes for most everything creative. But—please don’t just start doing surgery. That would not be good.

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Supersized Squirrels: Attack of the Zombears, was published on July 3rd, 2025 by Oxford University Press. Get your copy here. To work with Luke, please get in contact and we will connect you to the relevant agent.