Ryan Hammond
Ryan Hammond grew up in leafy Sheffield, surrounded by nature and bad influences. By day he is a children’s book designer and by night he is a secret villain, hiding snacks and defeating his nemesis' one at a time. Either that, or busy being an author-illustrator. He currently lives in a haunted house, surrounded by lots and LOTS of books and identifies as part of the LGBTQ+ community.
He likes cute animals, quirky characters and representing everyone that feels like they are different or weird. He has a keen eye for detail and often channels his passion for fun and mischievousness into his work. He works in a mixture of traditional and digital art forms, and has a particular proclivity for black and white interiors.
His aim is to make sure children enjoy reading for the fun of it and that his characters are reflective of the world we live in – even those with villainous streaks. He is yet to be convinced that bad characters are not the best.
Villains Academy
Welcome to Villains Academy – the most prestigious villain school in the ENTIRE land. You will either leave here as a fully-formed villain . . . or in tatters.
It's werewolf Bram’s first day at Villains Academy. He really doesn’t feel like a villain at all, but the coveted Villain of the Week trophy is up for grabs, and Bram knows he’ll have to dig deep. With the help of new friends Mona the elf-witch, Bryan the lion, Shelia the ghost and Tony the skeleton, can Bram find his inner badness and become the villain he's always dreamed of being?
| Territory | Publisher/Agent |
|---|---|
| World | Simon & Schuster Children's |
| North America | Simon & Schuster |
| Czech Republic | Euromedia |
| France | Albin Michel |
| Germany | Dressler |
| Italy | Mondadori |
| Spain | RBA |