An Interview With ‘The Loud House: Loudest And Proudest’ Editor Stephanie Brooks

The Loud family have always been loud. They’ve also always included members of the LGBTQIA+ community, but for Pride month this year, Papercutz have released a special anthology called The Loud House: Loudest and Proudest, and here’s what editor Stephanie Brooks had to say:

Rachel Bellwoar: How would you describe The Loud House to someone who’s never seen the show before?

Stephanie Brooks: The Loud House and its spin-off, The Casagrandes, features large families and zaniness. For The Loud House, you have Lincoln Loud who is the middle child in a family of eleven kids — and he’s the only boy/son! The Casagrandes features Lincoln’s pal, Ronnie Anne Santiago, when she moves to the city to live in an apartment building above her family mercado. While her last name is Santiago, the show name refers to the family name, the Casagrandes. The wide cast of characters features a lot of personalities, characters, and comic zaniness, so there’s really something for everyone.

Bellwoar: About how many Loud House books have you worked on at this point and were you already a fan of the series when you came on as editor?

Brooks: I started working on The Loud House with vol. 16 and the Summer Special (and then vol. 3 of The Casagrandes). I stepped away from the series, and handed it off to my fantastic coworker, Sarah Brunstad, with The Loud House vol. 25, The Casagrandes Vol. 8 and The Casagrandes: Freezing and Frio special. That means I’ve worked on … ten volumes of The Loud House (mainline), six volumes of The Casagrandes (again mainline), several specials, one variant cover for a book fair, some 3-in-1s, and one boxed set. That’s not a hard number, but I think it covers the question. I hope!

Bellwoar: At this point, do you pretty much have a regular roster of creators that you turn to when putting these books together or does it vary, and how important is having experience working on the animated show and being familiar with the house style for the characters?

Brooks: I have worked with a lot of incredible creators. I do have a roster of reliable people that really know the show and the character voices. But I always try to be open — I generally brought in new people (new to the series/new to me) pretty regularly. While some people have worked on the animated show, it is not a prerequisite. Some people have worked on Nickelodeon shows, but did not work on The Loud House specifically. And some people have no experience working on Nick shows. We do want creators that are familiar with the series though — because we want to emulate the original voice that fans know and love. But! We definitely want the comics to be fresh, so it has to be a great mix that changes a bit book to book.

Bellwoar: Loudest and Proudest includes stories featuring characters from the show who are part of the LGBTQIA+ community. Were there any characters you were especially excited to see again?

Brooks: So as an editor, I talked to the contributors about the project and what we wanted to see. I had a lot of fun behind the scenes, and I took a lot of time to study characters and discuss how to spotlight them authentically. Luna is a definite favorite and had to be included. She’s on the cover! But it was so special to talk about Dana Dufresne with Kiernan Sjursen-Lien. Dana is the lead in the comic “Lipschtick” (written by Kiernan) — Dana is trans and transitioned along with the voice actor. The show team really went the extra mile to make characters and to cast characters, and to always work with the talent to create a show (and a graphic novel series) that really resonates. Anyway, reading that one page comic, about make-up and not dulling your sparkle, being a role model for the next generation … it was really awesome. I can’t believe I have this job — it’s a literal dream.

Bellwoar: How long did it take to land on the cover image by Tyler Koberstein?

Brooks: We worked on the cover for probably about two months. It takes a lot of time to come up with sketches, adjust, and get things on model, ink, color, add design elements, etc. Tyler was so patient and so fun though and the cover really sings. (Get it?)

Bellwoar: From fans who have been watching the show since it debuted in 2016 to new fans, The Loud House has a massive audience. How important do you think it is that kids have access to books like this that celebrate pride and families of all shapes and sizes?

Brooks: It is the most important thing. I hope that’s not dramatic! But representation shows you the world as it is, but also the world as it should be. The characters in The Loud House are so diverse and so fun and they all live authentically to their interests and identities. When I was growing up, I found it really hard to see myself in media. Working on kids’ media now and getting to develop stories that are authentic, that are varied, that are fun — it really almost makes you cry. Every kid should see themselves in the pages, and every kid should know that there is a community that will be there for you. Fandom, books, TV and movies are great ways to connect. But I am and always have been partial to books — reading really takes time and actively engages you to imagine yourself in situations, with other people. Comics are such a fun and interactive and accessible medium. Not to ramble too much … the point is only that this was genuinely an incredible opportunity and I’m so grateful to all of the creators and all of the folx at Nickelodeon for working on this book.

Bellwoar: Couldn’t agree more and thanks for your time, Stephanie!

The Loud House: Loudest and Proudest is available now from Papercutz.