Today we are excited to welcome award winning author-illustrator Nidhi Chanani to Cynsations. I thoroughly enjoyed Nidhi’s debut Pashmina (First Second, 2017) for it was the first time that I encountered an Indian-American teen protagonist centered in a graphic novel for children.
Nidhi’s Super Boba Café #2 Home Sea Home (Abrams Kids, September 2025) is second in a series of magical middle-grade graphic novels. In this sequel, set in contemporary San Francisco, the protagonist Aria, her grandma Nainai, her friend Jay, and two talking animals help an ancient monster return home to the sea.
In the Super Boba series, the protagonist Aria and her friend Jay are great foil characters and relatable for young readers. How did you develop and flesh out the human and anthropomorphic animal cast for your story?
Many of my characters are based on real people I observe. Aria is loosely based on my daughter. Jay is a combo of her friends. Once I have a base of their character, I work to understand them separately from their real-life counterparts. I ask myself what their motivations are, their likes and dislikes, and when I understand them, they come alive on the page.
For the animals, I write them as moments of comedy, levity, and insight that the human characters cannot achieve on their own. For me, animals are cleaner characters, meaning their drive and traits are honed in. They’re closer to the earth and their own wants. Therefore, they can see through a lot of noise, unlike the human characters.
As a history buff, I love the reference to the buried ships of San Francisco in Super Boba #2. The use of flashback pages in different colors and panel shapes with historically relevant information grounds the reader and authenticates the setting of this fantastical tale. What inspired you to integrate these nonfiction elements into your story?
I love San Francisco, and its history is fascinating to me. I learned about the buried ships from a random conversation, and a friend told me about the MUNI tunnel that resulted in an excavation of a ship. There are so many photos of it, and the more I looked into it, the more I wanted to incorporate it into the book. Plus, history that’s told through story has more memory stickiness than straight nonfiction.
What are your preferred digital or analog tools for maintaining character consistency in a graphic novel that averages 200 pages of illustrations? How do you build a reference sheet of character turnarounds and expressions before delving into final illustrations?
I draw in clip studio paint. I create character sheets like you find in animation, but the longer I spend with characters, the easier it is to draw them. I often have a messy collection of my characters in front, profile and ¾ turns so that I can reference or draw over them to maintain consistency. With Super Boba Cafe and Shark Princess (Viking Books, 2022)—which is shorter, but it’s three books—I rely on these collections to ensure there’s no deviations. At the point that I finished Super Boba Cafe 2, I’d drawn Nainai and Aria hundreds of times so there’s some muscle memory operating, too.
As a reader, I found the dialogue in Super Boba #2 minimal and spot on. What was your approach to crafting dialogue for this story? How did it compare to Book #1?
My approach to dialogue is two fold—one: the conversations should feel real, but two: I recognize that I’m writing a book. In real conversations we stammer, fumble, and our speech is cluttered. In a book, I remove the messiness and focus on concise communication; this allows the characters speech to be highly relatable and readable.
What is the editorial process like when developing a graphic novel series as opposed to a standalone book? Was there an editorial moment that helped you envision your story—Super Boba #1 and #2—differently?
I originally pitched Super Boba Cafe as a stand-alone graphic novel. My editor, Maggie Lehrman, had the vision of a longer story. I recall chatting with her back in 2021, and although neither of us knew then how the story would evolve, she said “There’s more to this world,” and I agreed. We built up and on from there.
Shark Princess series of graphic novels.
A graphic novel is many months of repetitive work—page and panel layouts, drawing, inking, coloring, etc. How do you pace yourself to produce consistent quality, sustain momentum, and track progress during this journey?
After years of making comics, I know the amazing feeling of finishing. The beginning is joyous but the long middle is where I need sustenance. I find that with zoom calls with cartoonist friends like Aron Nels Steinke, Breena Bard and Jonathan Hill, productivity sessions with my kidlit friends Marcus Ewert and Suzanne Kaufman, and a visual countdown of pages. I race to the end as best as I can, but now, I have soul filling connections along the journey.
The last page of Super Boba #2 makes a lasting visual impression—full page bleed with two unlit subjects silhouetted in NaiNai’s doorway seek help just before Aria is about to leave town—this ending evokes suspense and signals the start of another adventure. Can readers hope for a third Super Boba book sometime soon?
Yes! There will be a third Super Boba Cafe!
I am intrigued by your website portfolio pieces titled—wood burnings— art reminiscent of old sepia tone etchings. How did you create these? Do you anticipate using this technique / medium to illustrate books in the future?
I use a professional wood burning tool and burn into slices of wood. It’s very meditative and also very hot! I singe my hair a lot while working. I haven’t done them in awhile and I may return to them or not. I continually challenge myself as an artist and wood burning expanded my use and understanding of line and balance.
Fourteen books in eight years is a pretty impressive track record. How do you balance time for crafting work with the demands of marketing and promotion required for new books? Any activities or hobbies that fill your creative well?
I have a curious mind. Anything that satisfies my curiosity fills me with energy. Sometimes it’s as simple as trying a new restaurant. I also enjoy spending time with my friends, travelling, the beach, hikes, snorkeling, cooking and reading.
Cynsational Notes
Nidhi Chanani is an award-winning author and illustrator. Her graphic novels include Pashmina, Jukebox the Shark Princess series and the Super Boba Cafe series.
She also creates picture books. Some of her titles are I will be fierce, Strong, Binny’s Diwali, What Will My Story Be and Quiet Karima. When she’s not drawing, Nidhi loves to travel and has visited 20 countries. She lives in the San Francisco Bay Area.
Mitu Malhotra holds an MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults from the Vermont College of Fine Arts. A finalist for the 2024 Lee & Low New Visions Award and the winner of the 2021 Katherine Paterson Prize for Literature for Young Adults and Children, Mitu has won scholarships from the Highlights Foundation, Tin House, and a writing residency at the Djerassi Program. Her short story “Toxins” is part of ELA curriculum. Her writing has appeared in Hunger Mountain, Thin Air Magazine and elsewhere. In previous avatars, Mitu was a textile and fashion designer, and has taught in India, the Middle East and the US. Mitu is an active member of CBIG: Children’s Book Illustrators Group, NYC and NJ SCBWI. More on www.mitumalhotra.com. Follow her on Instagram @mituart or Bluesky @mitumalhotra.