Meet Kate Mildenhall

Meet Kate Mildenhall, the incredible author, mother and creative behind books like Skylarking and The Mother Fault.

Her latest book, To Stir With Love, is her first children's book and it introduces the ideas of ageing, sharing traditions and the power of family love.

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You're an acclaimed writer. What was it like penning a children's book?

It definitely involved just as many drafts as an 80k-word novel! It's just not quite as time-consuming!

There is so much to perfect in the language, pacing and rhythm of a picture book, so there's lots of reading aloud during the process. The very best part of writing a children's book is the opportunity to collaborate with an illustrator⎯especially one as incredible as Jess Racklyeft! Illustrators can help writers see which words can be dropped from the text because pictures, of course, can tell a thousand words!

Your new book, To Stir With Love, celebrates the special connection between grandmothers and their grandchildren. Was this story inspired by your own family relationships, or a particular memory of your grandmother?

I was very close to my grandmother, who died in 2022. We have been preparing and cooking our family Christmas pudding for many years.

Once my two daughters were born, they joined our 'pudding keeper' tradition. From sitting on the bench as babies to standing on stools, including different friends on pudding day, and growing nearly as tall as my Grandmama⎯they have these incredibly special memories of cooking with their great-grandma. We are carrying on the tradition now that she is gone.

What did your kids think about the book?

They love it! They did lots of practice reads with me!

Jess also included some of our family photographs and my grandmother's handwritten recipes in the illustrations' collages so they can see themselves in the book's pages. It's an incredible gift for our whole family.

We love how the 'everything cake' in the book is such a heartwarming symbol of family and tradition. Do you have a favourite recipe from your family that inspired the story?

The pudding recipe is undoubtedly a family heirloom (but we decided we should keep it a family secret!). On my husband's side, we have his Nan's handwritten recipe for lemon slice which we follow to the letter multiple times a year!

Is this the first time you have collaborated with an illustrator? What was it like working with Jess Racklyeft on this project? 

I was already a huge fan of Jess's work, so I was thrilled when she agreed to join the project. Authors and illustrators don't often get to work so closely together. Jess was incredibly generous in communicating ideas in progress and incorporating so many special family mementos, including photographing Grandmama's sifter, to include in the illustrations!

Why do you think food, and specifically recipes, play such an important role in family traditions and memories?

Kitchens are so often the heart of the family home⎯where the mess and magic happen! And when I remember our extended family gathering, it is always around tables laden with food: the special sweets or salads or dishes that particular family members are known for, always something traditional and always a few new dishes thrown in to spice things up! Sharing food is a generous act that connects us. Passing recipes down through generations means certain special dishes continue to be enjoyed, and the stories, people, and memories connected to those dishes are also passed down. Plus food engages so many of our senses! And everyone can get involved!

What are some of your own childhood memories tied to food? Is there a dish that always reminds you of home?

We are a big camping family, and so I have many wonderful food memories connected to campfires, both from when I was growing up and now with my own kids and friends. There's nothing quite like a couple of fish straight from the sea fried up over a fire or opening a camp oven to a perfectly risen loaf of bread.

Grandmama's Christmas trifle was one of my most requested Christmas foods!

Writing and parenting can be challenging to balance. How do you find time for creative work, and do your own children ever influence your stories?

I started writing my first novel when my kids were really little so they have absolutely influenced both the content of my books and also the way I've had to manage writing as a career.

My second novel The Mother Fault is about a mum on the run with her kids who has to leave Australia by boat to keep them safe. My latest novel The Hummingbird Effect involves a story of two young sisters living in a far-future Australia and doing everything they can to keep each other safe.

The book I've gifted to writing friends with new babies the most is The Divided Heart by Racheal Powers. It is a magnificent book of interviews with Australian mothers and creatives of all kinds, which helped me recognise the practicalities, challenges, and joys of combining parenting and creative life.

What did you learn about yourself during the process of creating this book?

That I have so much fun when I collaborate creatively! As an ex-high school teacher and total extrovert, I can find the writing life a little isolating and lonely during the long periods when I'm head down on an adult book. The chance to throw around ideas, learn, and dream with another creative in Jess Racklyeft and the whole publishing team was such a dream. I wanna do more of that! (Shhhh don't tell my next adult manuscript!)

Bonus: You can download To Stir With Love activity sheets here.

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Meet Kate Mildenhall is a post supported by Simon and Schuster publishing.

Buy To Stir With Love for your family, and follow Kate or Simon and Schuster on Instagram.

Read more great Lunch Lady interviews here.