Behind the Book Jennie Poh: The Witches of Anderson House

We sat down with Jennie Poh to chat about their inspiration for setting a story in a retirement home for witches, the creative process behind bringing Myrtle to life, and the magic of rediscovering confidence at any age.

Firstly, the setting is so fun! What first drew you to the idea of a retirement home for witches?

I actually got the idea a few years ago on a walk where I passed this house that was quite ordinary looking, fairly large, the kind that had probably been renovated into flats. I walked past it nearly every day whilst taking my children to school and was always intrigued by it. One particular day I found myself looking in again and I thought wouldn’t it make for a lovely retirement home? And as the wind started to pick up and the skies were darkening a bit I thought wouldn’t it be funny to peer in and actually see witches sitting in their retirement home in their dressing gowns and slippers, knitting, tending their gardens or having tea and then hopping onto their broomsticks and whooshing right past me. Ordinary women living together and leading very ordinary lives, but deep down the magic is still very much alive in them, and each of them has had their own successful careers, specialising in a certain area of magic.

Tell me a little about your creative process

I definitely have to set the scene before I do any work. The lighting, the right kind of inspirational music soundtrack playing in the background is vital! I may do some warm up sketches and write notes by the side, and I find that the illustrating and writing bounce off one another that way, before you know it a story starts to form and if I feel it has any legs I’ll send it over to my agent for feedback.

Myrtle is such a fun character. How did you go about bringing her to life, both in the text and through illustration?

Myrtle was the very first character I started to develop in the series, and I had so much fun illustrating her. The original illustrations of her character started out as a small, stout witch, a bit toad-like in appearance and I wanted her to be funny, clumsy and loveable (and a little bit grumpy at times!) but a character that we would want to spend time with. I visualised early on that she would have two familiars, James the gassy toad and her cat Panglossian. I also wanted to develop the idea of her having had quite an extraordinary career before she retired. So I started to write a little backstory for her - For example in her prime, Myrtle Stormwhisper was the most skilled witch on her broomstick, she soared the night skies, found the rarest herbs in mosquito infested jungles, and was a member of Her Majesty’s Elite Secret Service during the great war. She won silver for her double somersault and triple loop in a thunderstorm without so much as a flicker of fear. Her broom skills were unmatched and could easily whizz around the entire globe and be back in time for tea.

Myrtle Stormwhisper facts:

• Myrtle is a gray witch, and was born during a thunderstorm
• Won silver at the Witch Olympics
• Part of Her Majesty’s Elite Secret Service during the great war
• Her familiars are Panglossian and James the toad
• She loves colorful patterned tights, the brighter the better!
• Can be a little forgetful
• Her broomstick is the Flaming Nora, made from hazel and eucalyptus twigs, and coated with a lightning bolt. Quite tricky to handle at times but super speedy
• Her flying jacket is made from a lightweight oilskin material, flexible and strong. Perfect for all flying weathers! (think of a Barbour jacket but a flying one for witches!)

Were there any quirky details or background characters you especially enjoyed sneaking into the artwork?

There are a few little ‘easter eggs’ throughout the book, the most fun thing about illustrating it has to be the witches’ familiars. There are a variety of characters - cats, owls, fish, bats, moths, a gecko, birds, mice and a very gassy toad.

What was your favourite spread to illustrate, and why?

All the night time scenes when Myrtle is flying, the stars whizzing past her. I actually felt the excitement on her behalf as she took flight out of retirement! There is one particular spread where it is a ‘lift off’ moment which is very high on my list of favourites.

How different did this project feel from your other projects?

The format is unlike any other format I have worked with before. It’s a square format, highly illustrated young fiction book. I’m used to working on a slightly larger scale and format. I also did a lot of world building and development of each character which took time. I’ve poured a lot of love into each character and the world of the witches and co!

Other than Myrtle, do you have a favourite character among the witches of Anderson House?

It has to be James the gassy toad!

What was the biggest challenge?

The volume of illustrations. This book is a highly illustrated book with approximately 144 pages. So unlike your standard 12-14 spread picture book there are just over 70 spreads to conquer. What was fun though was being really creative with the layouts of each spread/page. It really felt like a huge achievement once all final illustrations were in!

This book is about rediscovering magic and finding confidence again. Why do you think that’s an important message for children?

I wanted to write a story which showed that sometimes we may find things in life difficult, and to be brave enough to persevere. It was also important to show how women uplift one another, cheerleading each other on. Book one sees Myrtle coming out of retirement and witching again. Myrtle is a little out of practice and needs a little help from her friends. And of course, when you have a group of powerful women living together, great things can happen.

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To work with Jennie, get in contact with her agent Nicky Lander here.