We caught up with Cindy to chat about her latest picture book, The Gardening Dog (Macmillan Children’s Books, £7.99).
Planting the story seeds
Most of my story ideas are reflections of daily life. When I started developing this new story idea, I had just moved into a new apartment with a huge balcony. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, I stayed home most of the time and decided to make good use of the space. I began growing plants and being obsessed with gardening. Every morning before work, I would walk around my little garden, sometimes spending the whole afternoon sketching the beautiful plants. I enjoyed creating images related to botanical topics, and my sketchbook was filled with foliage and little animals engaged in gardening.
Alongside the gardening theme, I also started developing the character of the dog. I began by sketching different breeds of dogs and explored various dog characters working in different places. Although most of them didn't make it as the main character in the final story, I kept some of them as side characters.
After considering a few story ideas, I chose one dog character from the initial sketches and decided to create a story about her as a 'gardening dog'. While brainstorming the main idea of the story, I initially wanted to address environmental issues. But, after discussions with the editors, we decided to focus on the gardening aspect and the lovely relationship between the little dog and a little boy.
The process of writing the story was challenging yet lots of fun, and it was fascinating to see how it gradually evolved into the final version. Both my agent, Helen, and the editors, Grace and Emily, provided valuable insights to help develop the story. For example, I initially wrote the story from the perspective of the little boy, but we found that it worked better when the voice was changed back to the gardening dog. We also had many discussions about the main message of the story, which evolved from being about nature to the idea that if you wait patiently, something wonderful will happen.
The process of writing the story was challenging yet lots of fun, and it was fascinating to see how it gradually evolved into the final version. Both my agent, Helen, and the editors, Grace and Emily, provided valuable insights to help develop the story. For example, I initially wrote the story from the perspective of the little boy, but we found that it worked better when the voice was changed back to the gardening dog. We also had many discussions about the main message of the story, which evolved from being about nature to the idea that if you wait patiently, something wonderful will happen.
Letting the characters bloom
Among all the processes involved in creating this story, I enjoy the character development the most. Since I hadn't drawn many dogs before, I made several sketches of dogs in different poses before working on the layouts.
As I didn't have a dog of my own, I used YouTube videos of dogs as references for my sketches. Once I had a better understanding of their movements, I focused on the details and appearance of the main characters. With helpful suggestions from the art director, Lorna, I changed the initial see-through hat of the character to a brown cowboy hat and added more colours to the character's body.
As I didn't have a dog of my own, I used YouTube videos of dogs as references for my sketches. Once I had a better understanding of their movements, I focused on the details and appearance of the main characters. With helpful suggestions from the art director, Lorna, I changed the initial see-through hat of the character to a brown cowboy hat and added more colours to the character's body.
For the other main character, the little boy Lewis, I experimented with several possible appearances and outfits. While working on it, I imagined how a shy and artistic boy would look, and it was a lot of fun to explore different versions of him. The most challenging aspect was deciding on the colors of his clothing because there were already multiple shades of green throughout the book. It was important for the main characters to be easily recognizable on every page, so I finally settled on a light blue overall for Lewis because it would be eye-catching against the green background.
Weeding, watering and planning my story
Before working on the actual layouts, I like to brainstorm possible composition ideas and interesting elements in my sketchbook. I initially designed the appearance of Lewis and his mother's house, the paintings they would hang on their walls, and any plant-related items that would work well in the final versions of the drafts.
The development of the first title page in this book was both challenging and interesting. Usually, the illustration on this page conveys the overall message of the whole book and serves as a learning page before the story begins. My original idea was to create an image of the gardening dog hugging plants or holding blooming flowers. However, after discussing with the art director, she suggested focusing on the story's message about "waiting." I decided not to limit the illustration to the story alone and added some creative ideas. Eventually, I thought it would be great to depict the gardening dog looking through a telescope, implying the message that she was "expecting something wonderful to happen" and leading us to the next page. Instead of having her hold plants, I changed the composition into the scene that she was standing on a huge flower!
I personally love the final version of this picture, as it reminds me that there are always wonderful things waiting for us in the future.
I personally love the final version of this picture, as it reminds me that there are always wonderful things waiting for us in the future.
Allowing the colour to blossom
Due to the story's topic, there were many greenish colours used in this project. Green has always been one of my favourite colours, so I had a lot of fun working with the colours throughout the book.
The first challenge was creating a variety of green tones throughout the pages. Initially, I preferred the cooler green tones, but I realised they looked quite similar on each page. So later I added more yellowish green or lighter green shades in different scenes.
The first challenge was creating a variety of green tones throughout the pages. Initially, I preferred the cooler green tones, but I realised they looked quite similar on each page. So later I added more yellowish green or lighter green shades in different scenes.
Another issue that concerned me was how to ensure a cohesive color palette between the backgrounds and the two main characters. Since the colours of the gardening dog and Lewis were contrasting, there weren't too many options.
I decided to draw the background and characters separately to make it easier to test the colours. This helped expedite the process when making adjustments.
I decided to draw the background and characters separately to make it easier to test the colours. This helped expedite the process when making adjustments.
To be honest, I mostly followed my instincts when working with the colours. This approach was riskier because it sometimes required me to redraw the same page multiple times. However, I enjoyed the experimental process.
The first page I worked on in this book was the image of the characters gathering together (shown above). Initially, I planned to use a light green background as a contrast to the characters, but I found it didn't work well. It occurred to me that leaving the background white would create breathing space in the image. So, in the end, I decided to add only a few lines to show the grass in the background, and it turned out much better than my first attempt.
The first page I worked on in this book was the image of the characters gathering together (shown above). Initially, I planned to use a light green background as a contrast to the characters, but I found it didn't work well. It occurred to me that leaving the background white would create breathing space in the image. So, in the end, I decided to add only a few lines to show the grass in the background, and it turned out much better than my first attempt.
Planting things to spot within the story
One interesting aspect of picture books is that the illustrations can convey additional messages that the text doesn't mention. So, while working on the illustrations, I enjoyed creating some hidden sub-plots in the story.
While working on the nature scenes, I thought it would be lovely to include additional little characters in the garden. Rather than simply having them appear on every page, I created a storyline for them throughout the book.
For example, if you look closely, you'll notice a pink caterpillar with a hat in the previous pages. As time passes, the caterpillar starts forming a chrysalis outside the window. In the end, we see the caterpillar transform into a beautiful butterfly, gathering nectar in Lewis and Daisy's garden. The hat always makes the caterpillar easy to spot.
While working on the nature scenes, I thought it would be lovely to include additional little characters in the garden. Rather than simply having them appear on every page, I created a storyline for them throughout the book.
For example, if you look closely, you'll notice a pink caterpillar with a hat in the previous pages. As time passes, the caterpillar starts forming a chrysalis outside the window. In the end, we see the caterpillar transform into a beautiful butterfly, gathering nectar in Lewis and Daisy's garden. The hat always makes the caterpillar easy to spot.
Another fun addition to the book is the birds. They are always around Lewis and Daisy throughout the story, and I wanted to establish a connection between them and the main characters.
So, we can see the birds gradually getting to know each other while the two characters meet in the garden of the rescue center. One bird prepares a bunch of flowers as a first-meeting gift and invites another little bird to see the beautiful plant pots Daisy has grown.
So, we can see the birds gradually getting to know each other while the two characters meet in the garden of the rescue center. One bird prepares a bunch of flowers as a first-meeting gift and invites another little bird to see the beautiful plant pots Daisy has grown.
Later in the story, they become a sweet bird family and have a lovely birdhouse created by Lewis in the garden. Even during winter, they are invited to celebrate Christmas in the house.
Although these sub-plots may not be the main focus of the story, I believe they bring joy to kids who don't know how to read yet. They can simply "read" the pictures and still have a lot of fun!
A Garden Visitor – did you spot him?
It’s a privilege’ for an author or illustrator to include personal memories and pets in the story.
While working on the book, I often thought of my childhood. I was very shy and found it hard to relax in unfamiliar environments. I was greatly encouraged when I read a story about a shy kid finding a way to show his inner world to others. So, I thought it would be nice to create a story with two main characters who share introverted personalities. As the story unfolds, their courage grows, and a heartwarming message is delivered directly to each other's hearts.
While working on the book, I often thought of my childhood. I was very shy and found it hard to relax in unfamiliar environments. I was greatly encouraged when I read a story about a shy kid finding a way to show his inner world to others. So, I thought it would be nice to create a story with two main characters who share introverted personalities. As the story unfolds, their courage grows, and a heartwarming message is delivered directly to each other's hearts.
Being a cat person, it's a must for me to include cats in every story. Even though this particular story is about dogs, I still added some cute cats. One spotlight cat in the book is the Bookshop Cat - who was the main character in another of my book. He and Violet visit the dog town in this story, and he can be seen in various scenes doing his favourite thing — reading! Another important cat depicted in the illustrations is my own cat, Bao. I adopted her while working on this book. One interesting fact about her is that she is shown as being very helpful, which is not always the case in real life!
Another interesting item illustrated in the book is the elephant slide. This is a common facility in almost every elementary school in Taiwan. I remember being told that these elephant slides would "blink" or even "move" at night, so I used to avoid looking into their eyes as a kid! As I grew up, I started to feel the cuteness of it, and I felt it would be great to include this iconic item in the playground scene! |
The last fact I would love to share is about our dog from my childhood. She was born on Christmas, and we were super excited because I had always wanted a dog back then. We enjoyed her company a lot and would often wake up early just to see or play with her. But, one night, she ran out of the house and went missing. We couldn't find her, and sadly she never came back. Since then, every time I see a dog with similar features on the street, I wonder if it might be her. So, I included her in the book as a way to remember her. Even though I don't know what happened to her after she went missing, I wish she could have a happy ending like Daisy, who finds a sweet home at last. |