Every treat has a trick. Every book has a story.
From the first pencil scribbles to the final spooky splash of color, here is how Beware of the Treat came to life: one sketch, one note and one delicious mistake at a time.
Hello, Dago
It started with one message on Fiverr: a dad, a son, a 26-page story about a boy who can't read signs, and an illustrator in Colombia who said yes.
The briefLiam loves to eat. Reading? Not so much.
Meet the troublemakers
Before a single page was drawn, Dago filled a sketch sheet with Liam, a hat-wearing witch, her grumpy cat and one very important donut. His note to us: keep it fun, to contrast with the dark part of the story.
First sketch sheetNov 24, 2024. The little color swatches are style references from Dago's earlier books.
Liam
Liam gets his first face.
The Witch
Big hat. Bigger attitude.
The Cat
Not impressed. Ever.
The Donut
The real villain of the story.
Uh-oh Liam
Someone just read the sign.
Rough pages & a little red ink
Next came the rough pencils for every page. Dago tried the opening spread several ways, then sent the full sketch set. We marked it up in red so the art would flow with the story.
Option ALiam meets the sign.
Option BDaydreaming of treats.
Option CA slower walk into the story.
Merge these two!Red-line notesWe asked to join two pages into one scene.
Value sketchLight, shadow and one nervous boy.
Color me spooky
Then the pencils got their paint. Drag the donut to cast the spell and watch the opening spread go from rough sketch to finished page.
Pencil · Dec 2024Color · Jan 2025
The final spell
The cover idea: Liam scratching his head at a sign that says DO NOT ENTER, while in his mind it reads DONUTS IN HERE. Far away on the hill, the tiny shadow of the witch is watching. Dago sketched it, added donuts swirling around Liam's head, then painted the whole wraparound.
Cover sketchMarch 2025. The witch? Only a silhouette, for mystery.
Dago's own process recording of the cover, from first lines to final color, shared with us on March 12, 2025.
Meet Dago
Dago is a children's book illustrator from Colombia who discovered drawing as a kid and made it his way of life. Over more than 30 years he has worked with publishers and independent authors, taking books from a blank page to a full visual world. His specialty is digital painting, drawn by hand, in whatever style a story needs.
"My work encompasses the comprehensive visual direction of a book from scratch (NO AI)."
Now go read the signs.
Beware of the Treat is out now. And Dago is already back at the drawing table for Liam's next adventure, Liam's Zombie Parade.