Rachel Tribout, a local children’s author and illustrator, shares her story and an exciting new conservation project that she has been involved with in this interview. Aimed at inspiring and educating children to care for our waterways, Rachel has been instrumental in illustrating three picture books for TasWater as part of comprehensive Water Literacy Program. Read on to discover The Water Guardians.
Rachel, it is a while since you have written for the blog – can you give us a brief bio and an overview of some of your previous projects?
Sure! I’m a French-born illustrator and designer who somehow washed up in Tasmania after a round-the-world trip… and I never quite left. I lived there full-time for over 15 years (with an annual winter escape as I never quite adapted. My friends think of me whenever they feel cold, because my whinging about Tasmanian winters is now permanently imprinted in their brains. You’re welcome, guys!).
These days I split my time between Hobart and Brisbane. I’m still deeply attached to Tasmania and hope to return permanently one day, but for now I’ve found love and work in Brisbane, so I have slowly settled there more.
Although I do a lot of commercial design and illustration, my true passion is children’s books. I’ve worked on quite a few, both fiction and nonfiction, everything from Kate Gordon’s gorgeous novels (The Heartsong of Wonder Quinn, The Ballad of Melodie Rose, The Calling of Jackdaw Hollow) to narrative-driven science books with CSIRO like Hold On! Saving the Spotted Handfish, and nonfiction like Poo, Spew, and Other Gross Things Animals Do. My latest book to date is called “Cheer Up, Blobfish” written by Julie Murphy and published by Affirm Press.
I’ve also made my own books from scratch (originally to teach myself visual storytelling), like The Monsters of Tasmania and The Journey of Admiral Bolognaise, which I crowdfunded and self-published… a bit of an adventure in itself!
How did you become involved with TasWater’s water literacy program and the development of The Water Guardians?
TasWater reached out to me, and I didn’t need much convincing. Drawing Tasmanian landscapes is always a treat, anything to connect me and remind me of their beauty and how special they are is considered a privilege for me. I also loved the idea of helping kids (and adults) understand water in a fun, story-driven way. I think it’s important for us to know where water comes from, how it is used, treated, our impact on the environment and how to protect it. That knowledge is priceless and education about it vital.
Can you describe the brief you were given and the process you undertook in choosing the style and medium.
The brief was to make something engaging for kids, but also appealing to grown-ups. So I aimed for that in-between space and created the characters to be playful without being babyish. I also loved how Kate Beard took this project at heart and had thought so much about the characters already. It was easy to bring them to life because they already felt so real to her.
Technically, I worked digitally, which made sense because the characters were going to be animated. That meant drawing them with multiple mouths and arms that could be moved around; a bit like a paper-doll kit, but digital.
For the landscapes, I wanted to create a true sense of place. I focused not just on landmarks, but also on the light and mood of each location. Tasmania is so diverse and atmospheric, and I wanted to capture that feeling as much as possible.
The illustrations also had to work across many formats (books, animations, promotional material, and educational resources) which added an extra challenge. I separated all the background layers so Kimberlin Education, who were producing the resources, could adapt and reuse them. They took this process further than I imagined. I was really impressed with how Tania, their creative manager, used my elements not only for animation but also to build the books. I often separate elements when illustrating for branding or marketing, so they can be reused, but Tania took it to the next level. She shuffled and repurposed the background pieces in clever ways, and I loved seeing how that resourcefulness brought even more out of the artwork.
City River Rescue | Book 3 | The Water Guardians
You have a gift for giving your animals personalities – I just loved the cheeky Spotted Handfish. How did you achieve this with the six creatures in this series? Did you have a favourite animal?
Thank you! To be fair, the characters had already been given a lot of thought by Kate Beard at TasWater, so it was easy to imagine them. I just had to give them the right facial expressions and body language so they could work in different situations.
My personal favourite is the quoll: he’s cheeky, and I always enjoy drawing cheeky.
What aspect of book illustration do you enjoy the most and do you have a preferred media to work in?
I love the storyboarding stage, when you’re figuring out the visual storytelling. For me, that’s where the most important part of the work happens. I like thinking about how composition and flow can change the mood and shape the story.
I also really enjoy the sketch phase, when more details start coming in and I think about how to shape the illustration. You can add so much by layering in little elements, and I truly believe the story can be told in the details too. The hat someone wears can tell you as much about them as their posture, or the size of the bag they’re carrying. Adding and thinking about those touches is such a fun part of the process, because they deepen the story and make the world feel more alive. I have so much fun when adding easter eggs to illustrations, and I hope that that joy flows through to the reader and make them slow down, enjoy and stay on the page a little longer.
In terms of media, I mostly work digitally and have for the past 15 years, but lately I’ve been craving a return to more traditional mediums: paints, pencils, all the messy stuff. The world is buzzing about AI and how everything should be streamlined, faster, more efficient… but honestly, I think creativity should be the opposite. It should take the time it needs without cutting corners just for productivity’s sake.
For me, the magic often comes from the mess and the mistakes and that’s where the gold hides. Back in my early days, when I was really thinking about the creative process, I realised it felt like a cycle. You start like a child, excited and full of ideas. Then comes the teenager stage, when everything feels difficult: nothing works, I feel stuck, or like I suck and the world sucks too (I am dramatic). Then, somehow, there’s a breakthrough. I still don’t really know how it happens and it’s never quite the same… maybe from thinking hard and then finally letting go (while on a walk or in the shower) or just waiting long enough to see things with fresh eyes. And then there’s the adult stage, where you finish the work. It’s not perfect, but you feel accomplished because you know you’ve done your best.
That cycle is what makes creativity so deeply human. It helps us grow, understand ourselves better, and maybe even inspire others (while being inspired in return). I don’t want to streamline that… what would be the point? I don’t want to just make content to consume. I want to tell stories from the heart, with my flawed human brain, eyes, and voice. That’s what gives my work purpose, helps me grow, and makes both me and my work feel alive.
How do you tackle a new commission – any advice?
It always starts with scoping properly: how long will this actually take, and what’s really involved? Once that’s clear, I dive into research. I look at other books, Pinterest, artworks, photography, I read about the topic… of course, but I also try to draw inspiration from unexpected places and anything that might give me a fresh angle.
I also like to sneak in something new for myself, so each project helps me grow or experiment with something different. At the moment I am working on a book with Queensland Parliament on a true story about a schoolgirl who campaigned for more statues of women in Queensland… because she noticed there were more statues of animals than of women!
For me, it’s important to tell a story that matters to me and to the world. We pour so much of ourselves into a book, and that time and energy should feel like it’s going toward something meaningful.
If I had one piece of advice, it would be: don’t be afraid of the messy middle. The creative process rarely goes exactly to plan, but that’s often where the most interesting ideas appear. Stay curious, ask lots of questions, and leave room for play, take a break when you feel stuck, that’s usually where the magic comes in. And most importantly, tell the kind of story you’d want to see in the world.
A big thank you to Rachel for sharing some images of her studio!
Photo credits: Janna Imperial and Colin Fong
Visit the TasWater website for more information about The Water Guardians Water Literacy Program to access digital versions of the books and supporting Teacher Resources.
Discover more about
Rachel Tribout at
FB: https://www.facebook.com/RachelTriboutillustration/
I: https://www.instagram.com/captainblueberry/
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