How they were written and illustrated
The Goldcrest Gallery collection of original children’s picture books was created in the 1980s by an art therapist/former textile design teacher. But the lovely stories remained hidden away in a drawer until 2020. When the stories and paintings were re-discovered, we could see their wonderful potential in this current digital age! Desktop publishing is a modern reality and, with the introduction of Affinity’s image editing and publishing software, we could carry out the kind of art editing that the books needed.
The author illustrated each story with a complete series of finished paintings, and designed the main layout for the books. The stories were ideal for the under-5s age group. Our art editor had been a nursery teacher for many years, and was very experienced at reading stories to young children. This knowledge helped us to develop a modern picture book from the vintage 1980s pictures and rhyming text.
However, there were some illustrations which needed digital repair work, and other places in the stories where more pictures were required! So our archivist/conservator and our art editor went to work, beginning with ‘A Dragon for Christmas‘.
How they were produced: editing & remastering
The first job was to scan all the paintings and digitise the images, which went smoothly. Next came the design of the book’s layout. The number of pages had to be in multiples of four, for the printing and binding process. The author provided some further text to increase the number of pages. There was already an illustration set aside for the front cover design, and we added the title and author’s name. The back cover had to be designed freshly by the whole team.
It took a long while to choose the right font for the book but, in the end, we went for a lightweight style which balanced the delicate watercolour illustrations. The curly ‘g’ had a slightly medieval look, which we felt was very suitable for a book about a dragon! It also echoed the ornate ‘g’ of the front cover and title page.
How they were published
We were finally ready to find a printer. Providentially, a local printer whom we knew and had previously worked with, offered to print some samples for us. When the samples arrived, we were amazed at the quality and accuracy of all the colours! The printer helped us to choose a substantial, glossy white paper for the pages and strong card for the soft cover. We were very exacting, but he was ultra-patient and provided many samples, mock-ups and revisions for us, until we were all completely happy with the result.
We particularly hoped to have the book thread sewn. As there were relatively few pages, our printer suggested trying a UK company that could stitch the books down the centre. This method was very child-friendly and durable. The printer then glued all the book blocks into the covers, and his skill and expertise resulted in a wonderfully professional, high-quality product.
Published by LRM Books and printed in the UK. Available from Goldcrest Gallery.