Luna Lily: Origin Story
As you may know, I am working on a graphic novel called LUNA LILY. Ever wonder how much time it takes for an author/illustrator to arrive at their final story and what it took to get there? I decided to give a short history of my ever-changing story about a nature-loving girl and her dog, and the unusual directions life takes them.
It all started with a doodle. My daughter Lily was four at the time. Below is a drawing I made at the end of December 2004. Nothing became of it at the time, but the image stuck in the back of my mind.
Time passed, and my daughter was now seven. I still wanted to make a story for her and felt stressed. I struggled to come up with something. I wrote a rough draft and storyboarded all the pages about a girl who lived all alone on the moon and studied nature on earth with the use of a giant telescope to observe the earth's natural wonders in an attempt to bring life to the moon. I tried to make it rhyme like a Dr. Seuss book, but it did not succeed. The text will forever be on paper in a folder.
I decided to drop the rhyme and wrote a thirty-two-page picture book. It went through many revisions and eventually was filed away, but I didn't give up! The concept kept growing and eventually, Lily's world expanded beyond a picture book. Then I got sidetracked with another idea, and for a short period, I thought it would be a great TV series.
I changed the story to meet a very young audience (ages 2-5). That did not work out for many reasons, and so I moved on. As a creator, you search for the right place for your story, and when you can write, draw, and animate, you explore the possibility. I was good at storyboards so, I thought I would create a cartoon pitch. I did it, and it did not feel right. I had changed the heart of the story. Lily was a know-it-all do-gooder who was invincible with a group of quirky friends to take on adventures with. I felt like I went way off course and I dropped the project and never looked back. I learned never to try to write stories you think people will like. You have to write stories you should love.
After the TV show distraction, I went back to writing again. I decided all the detail I crammed into the original picture book would be expanded into a chapter book! The story grew fast, and I felt I was on the right track again. It took little bits of my spare time to get it done but, I finished. I ended up with twenty chapters which came to 200 pages, at 47,000 words. I had it professionally edited, and it felt like I was finally going to get something printed!
In 2017 I decided to join a writer's group. I went to my first meeting, where I introduced my story. It was a real eye-opener. I still had further to go. I received a lot of positive feedback on my drawings, but the story prompted many good questions and comments. When I left, I felt discouraged, but they were a good group. I knew I had a good story. I knew I needed to continue working on it and read more. I decided to create a graphic novel, something I should have done from the start.
Cast of Luna Lily
Now you are all caught up with the origins of LUNA LILY. Thanks for reading and I hope to see you next time! -Bob :)
What I have learned throughout this process:
• Always be honest with yourself.
• Your creative ideas matter A LOT!
• NEVER beat yourself up for trying and failing!
• Doubt and self-criticism are part of the process. Go for a walk!
• You are NOT alone!
