Rob ScottonBooksAuthor and artist
Meet Rob
Rob Scotton is the bestselling author and illustrator behind Splat the Cat, Russell the Sheep and Max and Moonbean. He studied Illustration at De Montfort University, and lives and paints in Rutland, England, with his wife Liz, who is also an artist.
Splat began with a neighbour’s cat, a garden fence and a rather undignified landing. Seymour has been along for the ride since the very first book.
The long version
From sketchbook to bookshelf
Rob’s characters have a knack for finding adventure in everyday life, particularly when everyday life isn’t going quite according to plan.
His own adventure in picture books began at a New York licensing show in 2004, when HarperCollins editor Maria Modugno spotted some of his character artwork. A conversation about a collection of images featuring a sheep named Russell, a cat named Splat, a pup called Max and the worlds they might inhabit led to a publishing home for his creations.
The first of those creations to reach the shelves was Russell the Sheep. The idea came on a bike ride through a field near Rob’s home in Rutland, where a flock of sheep sheltering from the sun shuffled along with the shadow of a tree as it moved. An old Easter card design gave Rob his woolly hero, the name stuck despite the pun, and the story arrived with one simple question: what if a sheep could not fall asleep, no matter how hard he tried? Published by HarperCollins in 2005, Russell the Sheep became Rob’s first New York Times bestseller, and Russell went on to star in Russell and the Lost Treasure and Russell’s Christmas Magic. Read Russell’s story.
The inspiration for Splat was most unexpected. While mowing the lawn, Rob watched a neighbour’s cat lose its balance on a fence and land with considerably less elegance than cats generally advertise. The word “Splat” sprang to mind, the lawn was temporarily forgotten, and a character began to take shape. Inspiration, it turns out, is all around.
With expressive faces, wayward fur and a fondness for visual mischief, Rob’s illustrations bring humour to the things that can feel enormous when you’re small: starting school, making friends, finding courage and getting something wrong. His characters may have paws or wool, but their feelings are reassuringly familiar.
Beyond books, Rob’s artwork has appeared on everything from greeting cards to ceramics and textiles. Quite a journey for a cat whose first significant move was falling off a fence.
The story so far
- Art schoolStudied Illustration at De Montfort University.
- 2005: Russell the SheepHis debut picture book, inspired by the sheep in the fields around his studio, and his first New York Times bestseller.
- 2008: Splat the CatSplat’s first day at Cat School, with Seymour hiding in his lunchbox.
- A whole libraryDozens of Splat books since, up to Splat the Cat and the Obstacle Course in 2021. See them all on splatthecat.com
- Max and MoonbeanA shy pup, a shooting star and a small blue astronaut who talks in bubbles. Meet Max
Here for Splat?
He has his own website, and he'd like you to visit.