“Oh Deer!” An Interview with Phaea Crede

Hello again, readers. It is my great pleasure to share an interview with Phaea Crede. Unlike an elusive bigfoot, Phaea spottings have been logged all over New England and beyond – the not so camouflaged author is often seen at book festivals and story times wearing a pizza jumpsuit and a smile while introducing readers to previous works such as Jet the Cat: Is Not a Cat, Stitch Crashes Disney, and Super Pizza and Kid Kale.

On April 1^st, Oh Deer! hit bookshelves, authored by Phaea Crede and illustrated by Erica J. Chen.

Phaea, can you give us a run down of what to expect in this picture book?

This picture book has everything. Turnips. Deer fashion shows. Positive introvert representation. Cat eye glasses. Gardening. The cutest cryptid this side of Mothman. All that, and a fun refrain that the kids love yelling out loud: OH DEER!

Sasquatch turnip farmer sounds like three words randomly thrown together and yet it works! (Really well!) Where did this idea come from? Was it fully formed or did it go through iterations to get where it is now?

My favorite thing about this book is that it was built from random memories and inside jokes from the depths of my brain. I was inspired at first by deer-proofing my vegetable garden at home and learning that absurd-sounding actions like hanging CDs and sprinkling coyote pee are highly recommended. That put the concept unstoppable deer in my head. My villains!

Then I needed a protagonist. I quickly thought of forest dwelling/deer neighbor/American hero Bigfoot–mysterious, handsome, regal. And always alone! Every blurry (but totally real) photo shows a Sasquatch on their own. I choose to believe that bigfeet are not lonely, but rather, prefer their own company. An introvert! That was my character.

Now he needed a name. But there was really on one choice. At Canobie Lake Park, an amusement park in New Hampshire, there is a ride called Mine of Lost Souls. While waiting in line to get in your little minecart, a creepy animatronic man warns you about the terrors you will soon experience, finishing his monologue with “…and don’t play chess with Jasper!” For my entire life, I have tried to understand WHY we shouldn’t play chess with Jasper???? Ultimately, I decided that Jasper just wanted to be left alone. Just like my cryptid character!

Now I just needed to set up something for Jasper to grow in his garden that the unstoppable deer could destroy. I picked turnips because I spent my youth watching the BBC series Black Adder, which I credit with my sense of humor and love of wordplay. One of the characters is obsessed with turnips and, in one episode, ends up with a giant turnip squashed over his head. Because of that, turnips have always been the funniest vegetable to me, and they had to be in this book.

The story did go through a few iterations leaning more heavily into the introvert story line, but the general outline was there since I had the idea in 2020. As well as the title.

Jasper is such a great character with a lot of depth. I personally connected to Jasper because I have a child who is very comfortable with her own company and can feel drained during larger gatherings. I am grateful to you for creating a character that reflects who she is. As writers we want our characters to grow, but authentically, and I really think you nailed that with Jasper’s character arc. Can you speak to how you found the balance between character growth and honoring who Jasper is/what Jasper needs?

Just like your daughter, I am Jasper. I get overwhelmed in groups of people and need a lot of downtime to recharge. But I’ve learned that if I isolate too much, I get sad. I knew Jasper needed to find a balance to allow himself to find those friends who bring him joy and are equally ok with him saying he needs to go be by himself for a while. I have that, and I wanted that for him, too.

I also have found that sometimes the best way to fight isolation is to go do a good deed, volunteer, or get involved with your community. That’s a hot tip for anyone who struggles to find the balance of wanting to hide but feeling lonely sometimes.

The illustrations by Erica J. Chen really bring the text to life. Jasper is portrayed a bit adult like as he lives in the woods and wears reading glasses, yet he captures the essence of a child. Similarly, the text marries some humor for the adult who may be reading it to a child. What is your secret sauce for reaching all readers from 3 to 93?

I credit all of this with the classic comedies that I grew up watching like the aforementioned Black Adder and the Simpsons. As a kid I sensed some jokes were over my head, but the absurdity of the characters, the physical comedy, and even the one-liners that I didn’t fully understand kept me engaged.

I always attempt to capture that balance in my books, knowing that an adult or older kid will be reading it to a younger kid and have their own fun experience in parallel. I also want to give the younger reader the chance to reread the book when they are older and understand some of the more adult-coded jokes.

And thank you for calling out Jasper’s blue glasses. Erica added those and I am truly obsessed. Although in my head canon, Jasper just wears them to feel fancy and smart. They don’t have any magnification at all.

There are some similarities between the solitary life of a sasquatch and the solitary life of a writer. Do you have any tips on how to embrace the solitude or conversely, how to keep loneliness at bay?

Writers need writers. We lift each other up and help each other grow. My advice is to go to book launches, join critique groups, go to conferences when you can, and build that network of other authors. You can still be in bed under a blanket for the rest of the week! I know I will be.

Lastly, what do you hope readers will take away from reading Oh Deer! (and what costumes do you have in store)?

I hope readers takeaway the understanding that introverts are perfect as they are and don’t need to change, that deer can steal a truck if they want, and that cryptids like Jasper are awesome. We need more kids getting into cryptids!

Costume wise…you may just have to come to one of my events or follow me on Instagram to see. But I will say, my collection of antlers is already out of control.

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