Today, Hairy Maclary is one of the most beloved characters in children's literature, the protagonist of 10 books, with a further 10 about his various canine friends.

The scrappy little dog from Donaldson's Dairy is also a global publishing phenomenon, having sold 5 million books worldwide, as well as merchandise and even a stage show.

His creator, the New Zealand writer and illustrator Dame Lynley Dodd, said she was still gobsmacked at the books' enduring popularity, and recalled being astonished when, after the success of the first Hairy Maclary book in 1983, her publisher suggested she write another.

"What is lovely with the Hairy Maclary series is that everyone puts him in their own landscape, wherever they are," she said.

"I've had Hairy Maclary hobnobbing with kangaroos in Australia, and he trots down the sidewalk in America. Dogs are universal and they can be anywhere."

Dodd said because she was based in New Zealand, she had to make the content as universal as possible, although some concepts translated differently from country to country.

"With the dairy for example, I had to be very conscious of the fact that dairies are not the same thing in different countries; they're not the little corner shops that we call them here," she said.

"In New Zealand dairies are what was originally a milk bar … They're where you go to get your ice-creams or perhaps a loaf of bread, and maybe you've forgotten to buy a tin of something so you can get that too, and your newspapers."

Dodd will appear at the Goulburn Regional Art Gallery next month as part of a major retrospective of her work that is currently touring the country.

The show features original drawings from Dodd's books, including the original sketch of Hairy Maclary created in the 1970s "on a bit of shopping notepaper".

She said she was always ashamed to admit that she had never actually owned a dog.

"I just did a drawing of this scruffy little dog one day and wrote underneath, 'One morning at nine, on his way to the park, went Hairy Maclary from Donaldson's Dairy', and it sat in my ideas book for several years before it fell out one day when I needed a new idea," Dodd said.

She said other characters – including dogs Schnitzel von Krumm and Muffin McClay, and cats Slinky Malinki and Scarface Claw – formed once she decided to create the story.

Speaking from her home in New Zealand, she admitted that she always had enormous fun when writing and illustrating her books.

Now 73, she said she had every intention of writing another book, but the success of the mischievous Hairy Maclary kept getting in the way of things.

She began illustrating children's books in 1973, when her own children were toddlers, and soon began writing them as well. Dodd said the writing process was much harder than people imagined.

She had to be especially conscious of the person who would be tasked with reading the book aloud, probably multiple times.

"When you're reading to your child, there's so much that goes into that reading, and yes, anybody who writes a picture book has got to picture that, and if it means reading things out loud to myself, I do," she said.

Dodd said it was especially thrilling when she was approached at shows by "a six-foot-something-tall young chap coming to the table for signing, and he even brings the books with him very often that he had as a child".

"It makes me feel ancient, but at the same time it's very satisfying," she said.

Lynley Dodd: A Retrospective will be showing at the Goulburn Regional Art Gallery from June 6 until July 19. On Saturday, June 7, the gallery is holding a gala opening and family day, with a talk and signings by Dame Lynley Dodd. There will also be merchandise, children's craft activities and a dog look-alike contest.

Visit www.grag.com.au for more details.