Brian McPhee has spent his life working with words. From product marketing at Lotus to running a software company in Maryland to writing historical fiction in retirement, storytelling has always been at the center. When he decided to create a personalized storybook for his granddaughter, he brought that same craftsmanship to every page.
A Book for His Grandson Started It All
About a year ago, Brian created a storybook for his grandson. He wrote the story, then went looking for a way to bring the characters to life visually. The AI tools he tried at the time couldn't maintain character consistency. The same child would look completely different from one page to the next.
He ended up commissioning a professional illustrator for several hundred pounds and got 7 or 8 beautifully crafted images. The book was a hit. But the experience left Brian wondering: what if there were a way to match the ambition of his stories with illustrations he could create himself?
"Sparky the Magical Dragon"
When it came time to make a book for his 2-year-old granddaughter, Brian wasn't interested in doing something small. He wrote "Sparky the Magical Dragon," an 83-page adventure following a little girl named Josie who befriends a dragon and earns the title of "Dragon Friend" by demonstrating imagination, kindness, bravery, and cleverness across 12 stories.
The book has depth to it. Josie builds a pillow fort that transforms into a castle. She rescues a lost fairy. She catches a falling bird's egg after tripping and hurting her knee but getting right back up. She flies to the moon for hot chocolate with a queen. And when the adventure seems to end, she wakes up thinking it was all a dream, until her Dragon Friend badge starts glowing and Sparky returns with a real emergency at the North Pole.
There are 13 defined characters, 6 reused backgrounds, three complete wardrobe changes for the main character, and games, puzzles, and discussion questions at the back. This is a real book.
Learning the Craft
Brian found Neolemon and dove in. From his file timestamps, the entire project, writing and illustration combined, took around 23 hours spread over two weeks. He estimates 4 to 6 of those hours were spent learning the software, since it was his first time using it.
He used 528 credits to produce 47 unique illustrations. About 20 to 30 of those credits went to early experiments as he figured out what worked.
Along the way, Brian developed techniques that any creator could learn from. He discovered that multi-character scenes with three or more defined characters produced the most unpredictable results, so he adjusted his compositions accordingly. He built and reused a library of backgrounds for visual continuity. And he found a detail that brought the whole project to life.
The T-Shirt Trick
Josie, the main character, is inspired by Brian's granddaughter. The character's face and features capture the likeness, but Brian found that what truly sells a cartoon as that specific child is something smaller.
He designed Josie's t-shirts with the actual words printed on his granddaughter's real clothes: "Awesome" and "It's cool to be kind."
That's the kind of storyteller's instinct you can't teach. The big picture gets you close. The precise, personal detail is what makes a child point at the page and see herself.
What the Numbers Tell You
Brian's first book for his grandson: several hundred pounds for 7 or 8 professional illustrations.
Brian's second book for his granddaughter: 47 illustrations across 83 pages, printed as a 9x7 paperback for under £10. Even including the cost of Neolemon credits, the total was a fraction of what the first book cost.
But the numbers only tell part of the story. What changed between the two books wasn't just the price. It was the scale of what Brian could attempt. With his grandson's book, the illustration budget dictated the scope. With his granddaughter's book, the story dictated the scope. Brian wrote the adventure he wanted to write, and the illustrations kept pace.
As Brian put it: "Even when you factor in the cost of 600 credits, it is an incredible price to create a wonderful keepsake."
A Storyteller's Full Vision
Brian McPhee has been telling stories his entire career. At Lotus, he shaped how products were understood. In historical fiction, he brings the past to life with research and narrative precision. And now, with "Sparky the Magical Dragon," he's created something entirely different: a world built from scratch for an audience of one.
He's heading to London soon to put the book in his granddaughter's hands.
Forty-seven illustrations. Eighty-three pages. Thirteen characters. Twelve stories about a little girl who proves she is imaginative, kind, brave, and clever.
Written and illustrated by her grandfather.
Want to create your own illustrated story? Try Neolemon with 20 free credits. No card required.