Interview with an Author

This month, we spoke to the team behind ‘What Makes a Family?’ – author, C-Jay Quigley; illustrator, Wiktoria Orlicka; and Emily Harle, editor.

What was the inspiration behind the book and how did it come to be?

C-JQ: I initially wanted to write a book about LGBTQIA+ families, as there aren’t a lot of books out there that showcase that family dynamic, but I realised there were other family situations that lacked representation. So, I decided to write about more than LGBTQIA+ families as well. Wiktoria had previously told me that she was interested in illustrating a children’s book. So, I asked her if she’d like to be up for illustrating ‘What Makes a Family’, and she jumped at the idea. I knew if I was going to do this properly I’d need an amazing editor to make sure it sounded professional. I asked Emily and not only did she edit the book, she also gave me so many ideas for characters and types of families to include.

We applied for Creative Scotland and Young Scots ‘Time to Shine’ fund, and we got the funding to self-publish the book. It was a quick turnaround, we worked on the book for 2 months and released it in February 2021.

Where does the money for the book go?

After printing costs, all profits are donated after printing costs to ‘LGBT Youth Scotland’, which is a Scottish charity working with young people to ensure their voices are heard, and that they have a safe space to be themselves. £5 per book is donated, and so far we’ve raised over £400!

What do you hope someone will learn from reading the book?

We all hope that children will learn that no matter what their family looks like, it’s still as amazing as anyone else’s family, and that love is the key to a happy family. We want to teach children that not everyone’s families are the same, and that should be normalised and even celebrated! We also hope to bring highlight to families that children don’t get to always see in their books, such as same-sex parent families, young carer families, and so on. It’s so important because lots of children grow up only seeing the ‘typical’ family of a dad, mum and children. When children only see that on TV and in books, they automatically think the ‘nuclear family’ is perfect, and if their family doesn’t look that way, they may feel that their family is not normal or as loving as others. We want to highlight and show that other families, whether they have a single parent, same-sex parents, mixed-race parents, or are adopted, mixedrace or, same-sex families, should be celebrated. It is so important that children be able to see their family reflected through one of the families so they can relate to the people in the media they consume.

What was your favourite part about making this book?

WO: As the illustrator, I loved seeing the characters and the story come to life. I absolutely loved seeing it all come together, and seeing the story basically become real. The characters’ names on a piece of paper were now real colourful characters illustrated amongst the pages. The excitement that we had when we got the funding and when we finally saw the books in our hands was truly amazing.

C-JQ: Writing the book was a bit stressful, but my favourite thing was seeing Wiktoria’s drawings come in and seeing the final book because we were seeing our vision finally realised.

EH: My favourite part has absolutely been the reception the book received! We ordered masses of copies for printing, and I didn’t expect to sell as many of them as we have, it’s been incredible. And seeing people leave such positive reviews and tweet out pictures of them reading the book to their young children is amazing, because it really feels like what we made is being used, and is actively teaching children to be more accepting of all types of families.

Is there something you would like to continue the voice on?

We’d love to spread the message that no matter who you are, what your race is, what your sexuality or gender is, or what your family looks like, that you are still normal and perfect and deserve acceptance. That no matter what your family looks like, if there is love and compassion, it is still as amazing as anyone else’s. We would love for parents to keep purchasing the book and read it to their children, so it can continue to teach children to be more open, inclusive, and accepting of other people’s lives.

How do you celebrate pride?

WO: I have never had a chance to go to Pride, which is sad to say the least. However, when it does come around, I make sure to be a strong ally as always. Sometimes, I even like to wear rainbow clothes, and hang my mini Pride flag, so that I am still celebrating even if I am not there with everyone else. I also make content for social media. Once I drew some of my friends with their LGBTQIA+ flags to celebrate them.

C-JQ: Normally, I go to the Pride March and events in Glasgow. I love Pride so much because I had 18 years of feeling like I was alone and then suddenly being surrounded by thousands of allies and people like me. It made me feel that who I am is normal, and I’m sure the more we publicise Pride, the fewer young people will grow up feeling weird or like a freak like I did.

EH: I’ve only attended a Pride March once before, and it was so amazing and empowering. This was when I was just beginning to talk about my sexuality more, and realising that it’s okay to be loud and proud! However, I believe it’s important that we don’t only celebrate our Pride once a year. The conversations don’t end after the marches, because there are still violations of the rights of LGBTQIA+ people every day. Though the legal protections for LGBTQIA+ people have improved in Scotland, there are still many societal biases that inhabit our everyday lives, and particularly for trans and non-binary people – instances of hate crime are still painfully prevalent. The world can still be a scary place for members of the LGBTQIA+ community, so it’s important that we stay loud and proud, because too often, the world silences us.

By Grace Balfour-Harle