New from Librio: “The Sneezing Dragon” – a personalised Christmas book for children
6 minute readIt’s here! Our new personalised children’s book “The Sneezing Dragon” is available now – just in time for Christmas. In it, your child becomes the hero of a heart-warming story full of snow, courage and true friendship.
And because we were curious how a book like this is made, we caught up with Nick: our Art Director and the artist who brought the Enchanted Forest to life.
The Storyline
Something’s not right in the Enchanted Forest: the dragon’s caught a cold. Instead of fire, he sneezes ice – and with every sneeze, a little more of the forest freezes over. Soon, even Christmas is at stake.
Luckily, your child is there to help. Together with Bear, Squirrel, Rabbit, and the other forest animals, they set off to gather the ingredients for a healing potion. So begins a winter adventure where teamwork, quick thinking, and a brave heart are what matter most.
A new adventure from the Enchanted Forest
“The Sneezing Dragon” is set in the same world as our much-loved forest fairy tale, “The Tree, the Key & Me.” It isn’t a sequel, though – this is a stand-alone story that works perfectly on its own.
If you already know the Enchanted Forest, you’re in for a happy reunion with the forest animals. And if you’re new here, just dive right in.
Behind the scenes: an interview with illustrator Nick
Nick is Librio’s Art Director and the creative mind behind most of our books. We wanted to know how a dragon’s cold turns into a Christmas adventure.
How do you draw a dragon who’s clearly unwell – but still magical and lovable?
The trick was to make the dragon feel friendly and almost a bit docile. That takes the edge off him and makes him feel more vulnerable, a little more human somehow, and therefore much less frightening. He’s still very much a dragon, and still magical, but you hopefully want to look after him rather than run away from him!
The forest is frozen for almost the entire story. How did you still make it feel inviting?
The frozen forest was a bit of a challenge, because icy scenes naturally want to be cold – lots of greys and blues and not much warmth. When I started sketching, I began sneaking in some pinks and purples, with little touches of yellow and orange here and there, which helped make the forest feel warmer and a bit more magical.
And then there were the animals. Dressing them up in woolly hats and scarves gave me a good excuse to bring in some brighter colours, which really helped lift the icy landscape and stop everything feeling too cold and serious.
Every animal has its own personality. How did the animal cast come together?
The animals actually stayed pretty close to the original book. I wanted to keep them simple and friendly, and let their expressions and little details like the hats and scarves do most of the work. They came together quite naturally as I worked through the book. A lot of it comes from quite small things – their expressions, the way they move or stand, their proportions, or what they’re wearing.
Which scene did you most enjoy illustrating?
I really enjoyed creating the entire book, but if I had to pick just one scene, it would be the one where they all climb the mountain. I had the image in my head pretty much the second I read the line. It was also a great chance to show just how huge the mountain is compared to the animals and the child. And it gave me the perfect excuse to add a magical, Northern Lights-style sky, which was a lot of fun to create with my digital splatter brushes 😉
How does the personalised child fit so naturally into every scene?
I see it a little differently. In a personalised book, the child is the main character, so really the story and the illustrations have to work around them.
Once we’re happy with the story and I start sketching out the book, I usually just draw one child into every spread. And actually, it’s nearly always the same kid, Henry, from our very first book, The Key, the Tree and Me. He’s somehow become my stand-in child for pretty much everything!
Once Henry has made his way through the whole book and everything is working -the compositions, the action and how he fits into each scene – I can start on the final artwork. The important bit is making sure that when Henry is swapped out for any of our personalised characters, that child still looks completely at home in the picture. It should feel like they were always meant to be there.
What’s different about illustrating a Christmas book?
To be honest, I don’t think I approach a Christmas book that differently from any other book. The story and the characters still come first. Christmas does give you a few extra things to play with though – snow, twinkling lights, cosy little details and a bit more magic – which, as an illustrator, is always nice!
If readers could only see one page before buying, which should it be?
That’s a good question. I suppose the obvious answer would usually be the illustrator’s favourite spread, but that might not necessarily be the one that sparks your interest or gives you that little feeling of magic. I think I’d choose the scene where the child climbs out of the other side of the tree and into the frozen forest, greeted by all the animals in their despair. It had to feel happy and sad at the same time – the excitement and magic of seeing their animal friends again, but also the feeling that something is very wrong and that they need their help.
My favourite spread, though, is the one where the child and the animals finally get to the tree and realise they can’t reach the mistletoe. With some quick thinking, they decide that if the bear holds the kid above his head, and the child holds the squirrel above their head… they might just be able to reach it. I loved illustrating that slightly ridiculous little tower of characters!
Ready for an adventure in the Enchanted Forest?
With “The Sneezing Dragon,” you’re giving a Christmas story where your child saves the day — hand-drawn and printed on 100% recycled paper.
You design the main character to look just like your child: choose their name, skin colour, hair colour, hairstyle, hat and, if you like, glasses. A personal dedication makes it a truly unique Christmas gift. And as a Premium Hardcover, the book even comes with sparkling silver details.
