This was not the first story I ever wrote, but the second, after a balletic stage production. When I was in my late teens, I was a performing arts student and it gave me a theatrical vision. I found it hard, though, to choose between my dedication as a performer and my dedication as a creative artist and writer. I wondered what a fantasy-based situation comedy would be like and, at 19, I wrote the first few scripts for a series which I called Family Tree. But it eventually occurred to me that it would do better as a book. So I narrowed down what was in each episode, turned the episodes into chapters and renamed the story, Family in a Tree. The reason I chose this particular story to adapt into a book was because I was fascinated by the thought of an entire world that could never exist, only in people's hearts. It has changed so much from what I initially had in mind which is nonetheless the nature of imaginative storytelling.
Initially, I considered giving the book a tagline: ‘All stories have an end, but some never stop happening.’ This idea I abandoned, but it may be applied to copies in later years. I have to admit that from the start, I was a little concerned that this story may be complicated given the fact that much of it is taken up by a technical lesson about animals and the world they live in. One might suppose that it slows down the plot, that I should have saved it for a separate book. On the other hand, the characters are meant to feel like animals after a lesson has been learnt, and I had to make this clear in some way. They're similar to the personified characters of Beatrix Potter, only having been taken to another level. The other aspect I had to achieve was to give the book a family appeal, to give some sentiment to which adults can relate. I’ve previously described it as taking all the fun-for-the-whole-family concepts and combining them into one adventurous novel. To start with, everything I wrote had a family appeal. Those at least were my intentions. Over the years, however I’ve taken it a bit further and written stories intended for families with older children and others intended for those with younger children. Walt Disney once said that he didn’t make films for children, but films which children would be happy to take their parents to see. I have set my heart on family appeal and all its levels. There will be something for everyone in most of my stories.
CREATING THE WORLD OF FAMILY IN A TREE
In truth, I’ve always been more of an artist than a writer. For a short period of time, I even dreamt of one day joining a concept art department. But as fate would have it, I’ve been able to provide some concept artwork for my own stories. Taking advantage of the amount of time I had during the nationwide lockdown, I got down to business with portraying the world of Family in a Tree. This is not necessarily the final production design, but it does give an indication of the kind of scenery and architecture I’m thinking of. Characters, though, I tend to leave to the imagination. The drawings are also in closeup, having been drawn on A5 paper. In old fairy tale style, I’ve studied much of the architecture of Europe for inspiration. You can use the images to accompany the book if you wish, or you can just use your imagination.
The two drawings here are the original front and back cover illustrations I drew, before the images were produced digitally for the final print.
The Family in a Tree map is where the entire story takes place. The only exception is in chapter 10 when our characters venture down to the pages of time. The frozen forest islands were the basis for the illustration for chapter 5, the castle in the Western Mountains for chapter 7, and the harbour for chapter 9. Throughout the rest of this page, you will explore further into Cyril's home, Matthias' home, the city, the Royal Sailing Ship, Acrodryohydrus island, the opera house and the North West-Forest Town.
Cyril's Home
The majestic tree was a surprising challenge to design. There were several basic drawings I did here which show the stages it went through.
A hilltop is a common location on which to find a fairy tale castle. Place a civilisation at the bottom of the hill and it is very symbolic. This royal family had other ideas, having decided to make their home in the countryside miles from anywhere. The concrete structure and towers were based on the distinctive, cylindrical castles in France.
This overhead view of Cyril’s home shows a walkway around the bottom of the hill. There’s also a pond round the back and the rear of the property line is made of concrete rather than fencing. On the left there are the soldiers' quarters, and on the right, a patio with a romantic swing, along with the royal flagpole. A tile walkway can be seen between the tree trunk and the balcony.
Directly beyond the back garden is the forest, therefore two watchtowers are on either side of the gates. For occupants to make their way around the pond, there’s a pathway leading up and around the hill. The other route from the walkway junction leads to the door to the greenhouse. Clearly visible at the castle rear is the horse stable, from which the horses can depart and make their way down the hill.
The windows behind the King and Queen’s thrones (one big one in the centre and two small ones on the sides) are actually the windows at the front of the tree. In other words, they have rear-facing thrones. Since they have a very small family, the table does not need to be very large, only for the occasional banquet. Even though these drawings are mostly in black & white, it was necessary to colour-coordinate the greenery inside the tree, or else it would have been unnoticeable. I’ve done the same with water, making it blue when appropriate.
Matthias' Home
The home of Cyril's uncle is the only other tree in the Kingdom to house royal accommodation. Like Cyril’s home, it sits on top of a small hill, and is surrounded by a fence with beacons around it. Unlike Cyril’s home however, the towers are linked by wooden bridges, the horse stable is at the front, and the estate includes a lake at the rear, the lake in which Cyril learned to swim and swam in each summer.
If in any doubt, the illustration for chapter 8 is a picture of the gateway to the city. With the wall having an opening at the front and extending all the way round the city, the military headquarters closes the gap at the back (that’s where it’s located). The wall resembles the City of a Hundred Spires, namely Prague, which is where the inspiration for it came from.
Much of the architecture in the city has a Tudor or Swiss look. Cruel though history may be, its architecture can give a sense of charm.
Hugo & Henry's Hall
Here is a view of Hugo & Henry’s Hall from above. Observe the moat surrounding it and the main road at the front. Note the centre structure with a bell at the top and the garden accommodation on the roof.
The roof has a walkway extending all the way around the edge, and separating it from the gardens, a long and beautifully crafted iron fence with lanterns on each corner. On top of the arch leading to the front garden is a beacon. In the back garden, or the ‘activity garden’, there are two patches of grass. On one patch, there are croquet hoops and archery targets, and on the other, a wooden dance floor. In hindsight though, that’s a rather unsuitable place to put the targets if the archery and dancing are to happen at the same time!
The restaurant has a string quartet stand in the middle, and arches and pillars split the room into three. The ground floor of the building’s centre concrete structure is visible in the restaurant. A circular rug with a chandelier above it introduces a warm welcome to any customer who walks through the main doors. The interior on each side of the concrete structure, like many things in the restaurant, is made of wood.
Round the back of the hall are a ballroom and banquet room. The ballroom can be turned into a theatre with chairs which are stacked away in the cupboard. The backstage curtains are drawn during performances, so that light can only break through the flower-shaped windows beneath the coving. On the floor above are the guest rooms. Within the centre concrete structure are the grand staircases, where the guests may set a good impression for the evening.
The Royal Sailing Ship
Although drawn in sepia for the book, the Royal Sailing Ship is meant to be purple, which is a colour traditionally associated with royalty. Needless to say, the ship would have to be considerably broad to house the facilities mentioned in the book. It doesn’t appear to have an anchor either. Ideally, it should be located where the flag is, and I thought if anything, the flag should be at the anchor hatch which remains closed until the anchor is dropped from behind.
What appear to be bobbly, yellow stripes on the ship are actually carvings of seashells. The ship has an ocean theme as shown by the seahorse and jellyfish carvings. There are starfish carvings beneath the portholes and windows, with two cannon hatches on either side of the boarding doors. The door on the portside of the rear accommodation leads to the restaurant.
The main deck of the ship has a walkway from the doors for grand entrances, with metal balustrades on both sides. The doors are between two guard boxes, and next to them, wood carvings of the King and Queen.
Despite being inspired by those in stately homes, the sailing ship ballroom is made almost entirely of wood. This includes the ceiling which has been crafted three-dimensionally. Mermaids are carved out of the wall with the windows, and the wall with the candelabra on it is where the musicians play.
The restaurant chandelier may look a bit modern, but all it would need is a candle in each bulb. The main doors are on the right, the door on the left leads to the balcony, and the two doors in the middle lead to the galley. To the left of them is a mirror. The galley is quite narrow, and doesn’t leave much space for the cooks to move around. To reduce the risk of fire, the cauldrons would have to be placed on a reinforced surface rather than a wooden one.
The observation chamber is located in the hull of the ship and has a huge drape to cover up the glass when it is not being used. There are two panels of observation glass facing each other, and benches in the middle of the floor. This resembles the pods aboard the London Eye. Lanterns are on the walls of the chamber in case they are needed.
Acrodryohydrus Island
The Acrodryohydrus resort is a holidaymaker’s paradise. All the way around the coasts are houses where the upper classes live, but only a few things are visible from the front. On top of the centre hill is a park with a memorial hall and a monument dedicated to the people who colonized the island, and beside that, the Acrodryohydrus flag. On the left hill, the island’s own opera house and on the right hill, the old castle. A grand hotel is situated on the left-hand side of the beach, and the pier and harbour are on the right.
A large wooden house resembling those in the Alps has been built on the beach, and a concrete pier with Norman-type architecture has been connected to it, so that it can overlap the tide. Sometimes, aristocratic personnel are welcomed into the pier tower direct from their vessel.
The Opera House
At first glance, the opera house may look like the Brighton Pavilion, and I did have it in mind when designing it. However, I based it more on the Parliament Building in Budapest. The spire contains a greenhouse; music helps plants grow more effectively.
The view of the opera house rear shows two shelters on top of each other, where performers hang out during intermissions, a wooden staircase leading down to the beach, and two ventilation chimneys atop the restaurant wing.
In closeup, windows and statues can be seen in the wing buildings, along with a wooden door for a quick exit. Circular windows are placed into the sides.
The opera house foyer has a grand staircase, and, on the sides of it, entrances to the auditorium. The murals on the floor that welcome the audience into the theatre are carpets, which will be taken away before the destruction of the building and used for another purpose.
The wing buildings are similar on the inside as they are on the outside. Balconies extend around the room from above, and with space needed for the kitchen, the room for the banquet table is quite narrow. The ballroom on the other hand has been fitted between two lounging facilities, one of which provides a view of the sea.
A clay sculpture can be seen in a small box in the wall, when the top of the stairs is reached. Ahead lie the doors leading to the roof, which has narrow and majestic marble arches all around the edge. The roof is almost like a garden, having tiles, plants and a fountain, even though the building’s real plantation facility is behind the door.
The North-West Forest Town
Lastly, the small town in the forest is home to a large portion of the Kingdom’s country folk, including Cyril’s cousin Fergus who is a carpenter, and who therefore requires a house near the woods. The town has quaint little flint bungalows, the kind of community in which you might find the characters of Mother Goose. A brick road runs all through the neighbourhood and expands as it takes up most of the town square. In the centre of the square is a fountain, and behind it in view is the town hall.
