The Homesick Willow

August 20th, 2009

Fantasy Faery Tale Illustration

This is the story of a man who got stuck between two worlds and his heart could never be fulfilled. It’s the story of an English poet who became bored of his monotonous life and his comfortable little world. So he dreamed of running away, become a sailor and sailing the four corners of the world. And he dreamed he was a Pharaoh and knew the secrets of ancient Egypt. And he wondered how it would be to be a lark and fly far away in the summers. And then , one day while having a walk in the woods, he wished he was a tall willow tree. But what he didn’t notice is that when making his wish he was standing inside of a magic fairy circle of mushrooms. And everyone knows that when you make a wish inside of a magic fairy circle your wishes come true! So he truly became a tall willow tree.

The years passed by and the willow started feeling homesick. Day after day from a lonely hill watching his wife and children growing old. He felt helpless for not having been able to say a kind word of consolation to his loved ones, who kept wondering if he was dead or alive for all those years. So he felt like the loneliest tree in the world and he cried like only a human being can.

Of course, you know, every magic spell has an antidote and his was to cry non stop until he would recover his original human shape. But the homesick willow never did so because as soon as he’d recover part of his human shape he would start missing again the feeling of being a tree. Then he would stop crying and he would return to his arbor-like condition. He was trapped between two worlds.

  • The Homesick Willow’s Signed 50 Limited Print is now available at the Store.

This character is a re-post from an illustration that I first published in this blog in November last year. For some reason, I believe is the most popular illustration I’ve ever done so far, but I still haven’t completed the original story.

At this moment, as I have told you before in this blog, I’m making a decision about a story/character to develop a whole book, which I’d like to see completed and self-published by late Autumn this year. So I’m looking at the choices from some of the characters that you already know from this Character Workshop and others that I haven’t posted here. My favorite options so far are Boyhands Smoork and The Homesick Willow. The first one is more children’s oriented (8+ y.o.) and this Willow one is more of a modern fairy tale for older people (14+ y.o.). During the next few weeks, I’ll make up my mind about this, so now your feedback will be very welcomed!

On the other hand, I won’t be posting at the Character Workshop unless there’s a particular new character that I want to share with you. This Workshop has been a very important experiment for me so I could have an idea about which characters and stories are more interesting for you. I feel really really grateful with all of you for participating with your ideas and opinions. Now, it’s time to concentrate on a single one and see it developed!

Posted in: Character Workshop


6 Responses to “The Homesick Willow”

  1. zoe says:

    i would love to see the willow story :)
    will we hear more about candela?

  2. Carolyn says:

    I think the Homesick Willow would be a wonderful story for you to see to fruition.

    Best of luck in your decision.

  3. Koldo Barroso says:

    Thanks for the feedback Zoe & Carolyne!

    I think the Willow will do a nice -full of surprises- story and, sooner or later, I will see it published. It’s just that, at this point in my career, I need to be very selective with my self-published book.The book industry is really bad now, it’s going to be a lot of work and logically I’d like to put out something that will reach as much people as possible.

    Candela… this is a story that will be eventually developed, definitely, because it’s very important for me on a personal level. But commercialwise I think is not what I need in this moment. Sorry that you’ll have to wait, Zoe.

  4. Chere says:

    I love this character and have in my mind a lovely story arc. S I hope you develop the story, can’t wait to see how you solve his dilemma and publish a book!!

    All the best
    Chere

  5. Yelena says:

    The Homesick Willow is one of my favorite characters, Koldo. It’s wonderful that he will now have his own story. Best of luck with the book!

  6. Thanks for the feedback, Chere and Yelena. I haven’t decided if this story will be published the next, though. There’s other possibilities.

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Words from the readers...

In his own unique way and with this unique and perceptive vision (mixed with a generous dollop of gentle humour), Koldo has created a book that is, at its core, about love, honesty, acceptance and a generosity of spirit. The delightful optimism of childhood is alive in these pages.

Lorell Lehman
This is a book for twilight, to read by the light from a jar of fireflies. It draws you into a fantastical part of our world that’s there if you just look for it hard enough. It’s fantastical creatures are brimming with personality and each one is looking for friendship. They say that each of us has our own Kooky Pet just waiting to find us.

Wendy Edsall-Kerwin
I love everything about the book: the wonderful illustrations (obviously), the layout that compliments them so well, all those awesome black and white decorations, the fonts, the text itself, the handwritten notes surrounding every pet, the… everything.

Yelena Shabrova
Kooky Pets is a beautifully illustrated book, full of characters that will make you laugh and wonder about your own Kooky Pet. If I had children, I would buy a copy and share it with them every night. I don’t have children, so I can’t share it with them. But you know, reading through this reminds me how much fun it was to play with the Kooky Pets of my childhood. It brings me so much joy to read and look at, I just might have to buy a copy to share with myself every night!

Heidi Dobbs
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The Homesick Willow

Signed Limited Print

Lady Zakharova

Signed Limited Print

Woonkee Di Woonkee

Signed Glicee Print