Hi Li! Who or what inspired you to become an artist?
L: I was inspired by lots of amazing books from my childhood. In particular, I really enjoyed Quentin Blake's illustrations in all of Roald Dahl's books, The Sign of the Seahorse by the Australian author and artist Graeme Base, and every Where's Wally book I could get my paws on. However, my biggest inspiration is a comic series called Yotsuba&! by the Japanese cartoonist Kiyohiko Azuma.

Tell us about the first comic you ever created.
L: Shh don't tell anyone this but I didn't start making comics until I was waaaay older - when I was in my mid-20s! I was working at a desk job and doodling silly comics in my spare time. That comic is called Extra Ordinary and it's about me, my cat and a gang of silly animals (plus a robot). I still make them now, sixteen years later.

Cool! How did you feel when you first received a copy of the first Detective Beans book?
L: I was SO excited when I finally got a copy of my book and I still feel really happy whenever I see Detective Beans in a bookshop. I always think to myself "Look! He's there next to all the real books!"

Which of Detective Beans’ hobbies are based off your own? Are there any cases that are inspired by things that happened to you in real life?
L: Small parts of Beans' adventures are inspired by my own experiences but his stories are definitely a lot more exciting than mine! Many of the locations in Cat Town are inspired by real places I've visited too.

Beans and I both love drawing and we're both just really silly. Oh, and Beans' love of chips is definitely based on me. I love chips (Do you have any chips? Do I get chips if I answer all these questions?).

Haha! Any advice for TGs who dream of creating comics or graphic novels one day?
L: Don't wait, just start now! The best thing about drawing and writing is that you don't need lots of expensive gear to do it. As long as you have a pencil and some paper, you can make your own comics and the more you practice, the better you'll be!

You can check out more of our interview with Li in the July 2025 'Curious Creatures' issue of Total Girl, out now.

Li's new book, Detective Beans: Adventures in Cat Town is also our latest TG Book Club read! Join in on the fun and take a sneak peek of it HERE.

What's your fave Detective Beans case? Who else would you like us to chat for Creator Corner? Let us know in the comments!