Stellarphant – James Foley

Stellarphant, the show: tickets on sale now!

The amazing team at Barking Gecko Arts have adapted my picture book Stelllarphant for the stage. I am so excited for everyone to see this … I’ve been checking out the rehearsals and it’s going to be epic!

From the official blurb:

Join Stella, an elephant who dreams of becoming an astronaut, as she builds her own spaceship and proves that anyone can reach for the stars … this uplifting 55-minute production for children aged 6-12 and their families is packed with heart, humour, and imagination. Perfect for the April school holidays.

The run opens with general public shows at Subiaco Arts Centre, followed by school group shows around the metro area and regional WA. Full dates below.

TOUR SCHEDULE

15–18 April 2026 | GENERAL PUBLIC SHOWS | Subiaco
21-24 April 2026 | SCHOOL SHOWS | Subiaco
29 April – 1 May 2026 | SCHOOL SHOWS | Kwinana
5-8 May 2026 | SCHOOL SHOWS | Thornlie
12-15 May 2026 | SCHOOL SHOWS | Kalamunda
20-21 May 2026 | SCHOOL SHOWS | Karratha
22 May 2026 | GENERAL PUBLIC SHOW | Port Hedland
29 May 2026 | SCHOOL SHOW | Esperance

BOOK NOW

Huge thanks to the cast and crew at Barking Gecko – you’re absolute superstars!

New books for 2026

I’ve got four new titles coming out next year!

Happy Barry Capybara: Gone Bananas

First cab off the rank – the sequel to my very silly picture book about a super chill capybara. It’s out in February through Scholastic.

Pre-order now:

🌏 SIGNED COPIES (PAPER BIRD)

🇦🇺🇳🇿 LOCAL INDIE BOOKSHOPS

🇦🇺🇳🇿 Booktopia

🌏 Dymocks

🇦🇺 QBD

Paw Prints: Fuzzball

This one is part of Walker Books’ Paw Prints series – junior fiction books by funny authors and illustrators. Fuzzball is written by Nathan Luff, illustrated by me! Out in April.

Pre-order now:

🌏 SIGNED COPIES (PAPER BIRD)

🇦🇺🇳🇿 local indie bookshops

🇦🇺🇳🇿 BOOKTOPIA

🌏 Dymocks

🇦🇺 QBD

Oh No!

This is something different for me – a funny picture book about onomatopoeia (i.e sound effects)! Out in May through Penguin.

Pre-order now:

🌏 SIGNED COPIES (PAPER BIRD)

🇦🇺🇳🇿 LOCAL INDIE BOOKSHOPS

New book #4

I don’t have a cover to share with you yet, but I can tell you it’s a non-fiction follow up to my most popular book, Stellarphant. It will be my very first non-fiction book! More news on that soon.

Stellarphant headed to the stage

This is fantastic news … Barking Gecko Arts is adapting my picture book Stellarphant for theatre!

Having seen their incredible show House, I’m beyond excited to see how Barking Gecko Arts brings Stella’s story to the stage.

Artistic Director Sam Longley will lead the Barking Gecko team in bringing the production to life. It’s currently scheduled for January 2026.

New interview on the Good Reading podcast

Earlier in Feb I got to chat with Gregory Dobbs from the Good Reading podcast, all about my picture book Stellarphant and the upcoming colour rereleases of Brobot and Gastonauts.

As Greg puts it, we chat about “the great characters [James] has created – Sally Tinker (the world’s foremost inventor under the age of twelve), Joe Tinker (full-time baby) and Charli Stevenson (foremost biologist under the age of eleven). We explore the hilarious and often quite smelly adventures they get up to, along with Sally’s amazing range of inventions. There’s also a few Dad jokes along the way.”

INTERVIEW
Stellarphant, Brobot and Gastronauts
Good Reading Podcast
with Gregory Dobbs

Stellarphant around the world

It’s never not a thrill to see one of my books travelling overseas! I love seeing how the translators and graphic designers adapt the titles and covers.

Here’s some of the international covers Stellarphant has collected so far.

Hear me read Stellarphant on Nova with Nathan, Nat and Shaun

Yesterday I got to hang out with Nova Perth’s breakfast team and talk about my favourite part of the year, Children’s Book Week! I also got to chat a bit about the making of Secret Agent Mole, and read Stellarphant aloud on air (with running commentary from the team – you won’t find that in an audiobook).

Thanks heaps for having me in the studio, Nathan, Nat and Shaun! And huge thanks to Chasze the tradie for helping me out when I’d left my phone at home. Champion.

Click the link below to listen to the chat.

INTERVIEW
Book Week 2023 (mp3 file)
Nova 93.7 Perth Breakfast show
with Nathan, Nat and Shaun

Supanova Comic Con Perth

I’ve just finished up an awesome weekend at Perth Supanova Comic Con!

I got to see some incredible cosplay, chat with Kevin Eastman (co-creator of the Ninja Turtles!!), catch up with my bud Brenton McKenna, get a hand-delivered fan letter from Super Mario and hang out with the wonderful authors Meg Caddy and Renae Hayward (my gorgeous wife)!

Sydney Writers (and Secret Agents) Festival

I recently spent a packed couple of days at the Sydney Writers Festival Family Day! Here’s a couple of highlights.

A spy infiltrates the Festival…

As part of a panel on Junior Fiction, Adrian Beck and I had a spy-off. The objective? Blend in and make your way to the stage without being seen, using any means necessary.

This here hombre was served humble pie as his last meal, with bullets for dessert, as I went up against Serena Geddes, Heath McKenzie and Charmaine Ledden-Lewis in an Illustrator Battle. Congrats to Charmaine (AKA Lead-Pencil Lewis) for being the quickest draw in the inner-west. Special thanks to our excellent MC (and chief cat wrangler) Adrian Beck.

James’ Big Bookshop Tour – the sequel

I managed to spend some free time on my recent Sydney trip visiting bookshops with my friend (& carpool bud), author Cristy Burne. We managed to get to 12 bookshops in one day, and I visited 21 in total.