Behind the Book: My Body, My Rules with Andy Passchier

We sat down with Andy Passchier to ask them all about their process in creating their third author/illustrated book My Body, My Rules published with Little Bee Books in collaboration with GLAAD.

When we last spoke about the first book in this series My Gender, My Rules, you mentioned My Body, My Rules would be the sequel, now it’s here!

How did the two books end up informing each other during the creative process?

The two topics are so intertwined, but this book was actually harder for me to write as the subject matter is so much broader and more complex. Having written and illustrated multiple books about gender identity before, I kind of knew what I needed and wanted to cover in that title. When it came to My Body, My Rules, I knew I wanted to include body diversity and accepting each other’s differences, disability rights, consent (both in terms of asking others and standing up for yourself), and listening to your body. That’s a lot to cover in just 20 pages that are mostly illustrations! Luckily I knew the format of this book was going to be the same as My Gender, My Rules, and a lot of the storytelling and nuance happens through the character’s interactions and speech bubbles. In the writing process, it also helped to adopt a similar approach to My Gender, My Rules and use each spread to focus on a singular aspect of the wider topic.

Bodily autonomy and consent can feel like big topics. How did you keep the tone joyful and empowering rather than scary for young readers?

They are really big topics! I think the brightness and cheerfulness of the illustrations helps a lot, along with adapting the subject matter to scenarios kids would experience. Throughout the book we see kids encounter examples of body diversity, bodily autonomy, and consent while attending a birthday party, playing together, doing sports, hanging out at the pool, or picking clothes and enjoying hobbies. All things that should be recognizable and easy to relate to!

What was your favourite spread in My Body, My Rules to illustrate?

My favorite spread depicts a row of people each narrating their personal choices and experiences when it comes to their disability tools. The illustration itself is a lot simpler, but the message is one I haven’t seen in many other books before. I wanted to show that people can choose to use or not use tools if they have a disability, and that these tools can also be a source of joy and personal expression. Fun fact, the person with the white cane is based on my mom! Obviously they look different, but she’s had limited vision ever since I was a little kid. She carries a cane in crowded areas or places where there’s a lot going on, mostly as a signal to others so they know to pay attention and give us some room. She’s always wanted to see her experiences reflected in a book, and we were finally able to make it happen!

Since our last interview, the landscape around book banning and LGBTQIA+ representation has only intensified. How do you stay motivated to keep creating affirming books for children in this climate?

It’s really hard! It helps a lot to post online and notice that there is still a lot of support for these types of books. This latest one especially has been getting a lot of positive attention and feedback on social media. It’s encouraging that despite all the efforts and propaganda from conservative agendas to hide these books away, they’re still managing to find the right people and facilitate the conversations they were meant for. I especially love hearing stories from parents and teachers about how my books have helped them break down ideas around gender identity and body acceptance to the kids in their environment.

I’ve also found a pretty fantastic community of other authors and illustrators affected by these bans, and their support has meant a lot. Of course ultimately I hope that the current situation shifts, that we’re all able to read and express our ideas and identities freely once again, as well as get our livelihoods back. Until that time, it feels good to know that we can help each other through this.

If a child could only take one message away from reading both books together, what would you want it to be?

Looking at both books together, I think the ultimate message is that every person should be celebrated for their unique qualities, and that everyone is deserving of respect and understanding, including yourself!

We also spoke to Andy last year about their previous book My Gender, My Rules, take a look at the interview here.

Get your copy of My Body, My Rules here.

To work with Andy, get in touch with their agent Alex Gehringer here.