Little Tiger has acquired The Gumdrops, the first book in a new interactive graphic novel series by award-winning illustrator and author Elissa Elwick.
Art Director Charlie Moyler and Editorial Director Lauren Ace have acquired world rights, all languages, from Jodie Hodges at United Agents. Senior Commissioning Editor Mattie Whitehead and Designer Sophie Bransby are working on the books. The Gumdrops will publish in March 2026.
The books take place in Imagination Land, the place where everything that is imagined lives – from books to imaginary friends, from dreams to nightmares! It is looked after by the Gumdrops – the very first imaginary friends.
The Gumdrops are always up for a challenge – and when they get a letter from a child in need of an imaginary friend, they have their work cut out! They must search the Land of Imagination to find the ingredients for the perfect companion. But their nemesis, the incongruously cute Evilee, is out to thwart them at every turn.
The stories incorporate interactive elements to encourage children to use their imagination and engage with the story.
Charlie Moyler said:
It is rare to find a young series that reads like a publisher’s wish list whilst feeling utterly original and yet reassuringly familiar, but Elissa Elwick has managed just that. In The Gumdrops, expect reader participation, laugh-out-loud humour, and a cute, fluffy, sparkly, bubbly bundle of new friends that will light up readers’ imaginations. This new graphic novel series is an absolute feast for the eyes and a joy to behold – a cross between Care Bears and Inside Out that is utterly irresistible and brilliantly funny. We are extremely excited to launch this new series with such a talented creator.
Elissa Elwick said:
I’m having so much fun working on The Gumdrops, when I sat down to write the script and sketch some roughs it felt like they simply walked straight out of my imagination fully formed, and I have the simple joy of following them around to see what they get up to. With the graphic novel format I sometimes feel like I’m animating the characters, really brining them to life, and I’ve loved the challenge of telling their story via images and dialogue only. Charlie, Lauren, Sophie and Mattie at Little Tiger are a dream to work with. Thanks as always to my agent, Jodie Hodges at United Agents for making this series a reality.
Little Tiger will be publishing The Gumdrops in March 2025, with book two to follow in Autumn 2026.
Elissa Elwick is an award-winning children’s book illustrator and author based in Cardiff. She graduated from Arts University Bournemouth in 2008, published her first self-authored picture book shortly after, and has been illustrating and writing ever since. She co-created the picture book series LITTLE ADVENTURERS with author Philip Ardagh, and has performed at schools and book festivals internationally. Elissa also cohosts the podcast Friends with Pens with illustrator/author Jo Lindley.
Instagram: @elissaelwick
Laura Dockrill is an award-winning writer from Brixton, South London.
Nathanael Lessore was born in Camberwell, South East London, as one of eight children to French and Madagascan parents. Although he spent most of his life in Peckham, Nathanael has also lived in Paris, Strasbourg, and Singapore. Nathanael became a Marketing Executive after graduating from the University of East London, believing at the time that a Creative Writing degree destined him for a career in marketing. His debut Steady For This published in 2023 and is currently longlisted for the Branford Boase and Jhalak Prize, and shortlisted for the Yoto Carnegie Medal for Writing. Writing it gave him the opportunity to show his Southeast London childhood as the funny, warm, adventurous world that wasn’t always represented as such.
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Eric Huang has always been fascinated by legends and lore. As a boy, he was determined to find real-life dragons, so he studied palaeontology at university. Reality didn’t live up to his Jurassic Park dreams, though, and he found himself working as secretary at Disney Publishing, launching a career in children’s books. Since then, Eric has held editor and publisher positions on three continents, including at Penguin Australia and Penguin UK. Eric lives in London with his boyfriend Brian and cat McNulty. He’s a podcaster, writer, and lecturer at City University of London’s Masters in Publishing programme.
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