Peek behind the scenes at Hotel Flamingo

Alex Millway shared with Armadillo Editor, Louise Ellis-Barrett, some of the behind-the-scenes stories from Hotel Flamingo, including the inspiration for the series! If you'd like to win a set of Hotel Flamingo books make sure to follow Armadillo Magazine on Instagram!

I remember attending the launch event for book 1. At that point did you imagine how many books the series would extend in to and how does it feel to be on book 5?

Aha! The launch was so wonderful, thank you for coming.

We had originally planned for there to be four books – I imagined one for each season as that would allow for differences in both guests and the weather on Animal Boulevard. It feels terrific to have gone back and written a fifth, and to be honest, I love the characters so much I could write many more! I just like spending time with them. You always hope a book series continues to find readers into the future, but the love for Hotel Flamingo has totally surprised me! It’s such a happy place to be, I think that must be the reason.

It’s one of many book series you’ve published. You write for TV too – how do you manage it without getting in a muddle?

This is actually one of five series I’ve made! Two are now out of print sadly, but yes, you do find yourself burning through ideas and characters, and it is so easy to forget names and start thinking you’re writing one character when you’re supposed to be doing another.

How did the idea of an animal hotel first come to mind?

I chanced upon my youngest daughter playing with her cuddly toys one day. She was teaching them, putting them to bed, giving them orders… I was really taken with the scene, and it inspired me to write a story about a girl caring for creatures. It was just a short hop to reach the idea of an hotel.

The books follow the seasons of the year. Was that intentional to help focus on different animals as guests and help children learn about their natures and habitats – e.g. penguins in the snow.

Yes! Absolutely! We had a bit of a delay in the making of the fourth book, so I completely rewrote it to not be so wintry. It would have come out in Easter, so it couldn’t be about snow. The ideas from that fourth book then became the basis for Frosty Fiesta.

Anna, the hotel owner, is human. Do you find it easier to write animal characters if you have some human interaction or is it easier to write one or the other?

It’s funny, but I don’t really differentiate between the human and animal element. Just as with Big Sky Mountain, I like to think we’re all on a par and write them so. Obviously the guests to the hotel will have different needs to humans, but otherwise I treat them as very similar. I suppose Anna doesn’t patronise them, she treats them as equals deserving of respect, which I think is exactly right.

You write and illustrate your work. Are these skills self- taught? Do you prefer one over the other or simply enjoy being able to put your vision to paper?

I think I probably get more joy from seeing a finished drawing to reading a finished bit of writing, but I do love both. I trained in the arts – I studied fine art painting – so that’s why the illustration side is probably more in my comfort zone. I do really get a thrill to see a finished book, however. Words and pictures work so well together, in the same was as music and film combine to make something greater than the sum of their parts!

What, for you, is the key to making a book funny and accessible to readers?

For me, it’s really about trying to make good characters that people will go anywhere with. Both the drawing and writing of the character is important in this aspect. I like the humour to come from a situation being funny, rather than sassy, witty one-liners.

What was your own favourite book, or even series, when you were a young reader and is it something you would still recommend?

The thing I remember most about being young was that there was so little choice in children’s books. I’d read and re-read all the Asterix comics (and many comics in general.) I did read books by Roald Dahl, also The Secret Seven and those sort of series. I would always recommend Asterix, although it’s a little dated in places, but I’d find it hard to give kids Dahl or Blyton. There are so many better books out there these days. One that I absolutely loved and would definitely still recommend was Why the Whales Came, by Michael Morpurgo.

Have you featured everything you imagined for Hotel Flamingo or are there more stories waiting to be told?

I have so many little ideas for Hotel Flamingo! I always wonder what they’re up to. It was why I wrote a short story of them dealing with lockdown during the pandemic. I always worry about how the Hotel is faring!

Is your own home an animal hotel? Would you like to run one just like Anna? Who would your first guest be?

I have a dog and two daughters and that’s enough (although my daughters are teens now and very good at looking after themselves.) However, I really like working in customer service and would happily run a hotel like Anna! I’d definitely have a bear on the door, although I may draw the line at employing Madame Le Pig. My first guest would have to be my dog Aggy, who is the loveliest soul.