• the217
• Blogs
• Capes & Cowls
• The Spiderwick Chronicles, the interview

• RSS

The Spiderwick Chronicles, the interview

posted by Matt Knicl at 7:41 pm.

• Bookmark & Share
• Comments (1)

Today’s children lit market has seen some of fiction’s most innovative and fantastical ideas in the past few years. While many of these series are pale comparisons of Harry Potter, there are some that have used the surge of new readers to create unique series that focus on the main purpose of children’s lit - escapism.

The Spiderwick Chronicles is one of my favorite kid’s series out today, not just because of the writing, but because of the wonderfully illustrated creatures and the world they suppose. The series was created by Holly Black and Tony Diterlizzi, and I was fortunate enough to talk to Holly Black about these wonderful books.

Matt Knicl: What is it about fairies that fascinates you?

Holly Black: People often think of faeries as little girls with wings that sparkle, but according to folklore, faeries are capricious and dangerous creatures. A smart person wouldn’t even say the word “faery” for fear of getting their attention, but instead call them by placating names like “the good neighbors,” “the little people,” or “the people of peace.” Not because they were good or little or peaceful, but in the hope that faeries wouldn’t steal their children away and replace them with changelings or blight their crops and cause the cow’s milk to go sour. Unlike most other creatures from folklore (vampires and werewolves, for example), faeries were never human and it is their very alienness that fascinates me.

Matt: Why do you think fairies and the unseen captivate readers?

Holly: I think we all like the idea that the world is bigger and stranger and more interesting, even if it’s also more dangerous. We like the idea that we might see something out of the corner of our eye.

Matt: Do you find writing for children/young adult presents unique challenges compared to writing adult books?

Holly: I have yet to write a book for adults, so I don’t really know, but I think that whenever you write for a particular age, the primary thing is to try and remember what it was really like to be that age and not to flinch from it.

Matt: How did you come up with the Spiderwick Chronicles?

Holly: Tony Diterlizzi and I have been friends for many years and one of the things we often talked about was our interest in faery folklore. We wanted to do a project together and I really wanted Tony to work on a faery field guide that he’d done versions of many times. When we met three kids who told us about how they’d seen faeries, it seemed like the perfect project for both of us.

Matt: Why do you think many youth books focus on non-traditional family structures today?

Holly: I think literature does (and should) reflect the reality of how people live today and sadly divorce has become very common. As a writer, what I want most of all is to tell the truth.

Matt: What did you think about the movie adaptation of the series?

Holly: I thought it was really well done. I loved it. The film really captured the characters and made the faeries seem like they came out of the landscape. Plus it was a lot of fun to watch.

Matt: What are the future plans for the franchise?

Holly: After the five chapter books and the field guide that make up the original Spiderwick Chronicles, Tony and I started working on a second series of three chapter books called Beyond The Spiderwick Chronicles. We wanted to focus on a different area with a different climate, so we picked Florida, around where Tony grew up. He was interested in how the faeries in a different location would visually reflect that landscape and I was really interested in reversing some of the expectations of the original series. For example, we both wanted the kids to have purchased the Field Guide at a bookstore rather than find one–we wanted to show that it’s the knowledge that’s important and that anyone, anywhere can have adventures.

The first book in Beyond the Spiderwick Chronicles came out in September of 2007, titled The Nixie’s Song. The second book, A Giant Problem, comes out this September and the third and final book, The Wyrm King will come out in September of 2009.

Matt: What is your favorite fairy from the series so far?

Holly: My favorite faery is probably the Phooka. Writing that riddling, looping language was tough (I looked at Lewis Carroll for inspiration many times), but very rewarding.

Matt: What can readers look forward to in A Giant Problem (Beyond The Spiderwick Chronicles #2)?

Holly: Well, the stakes are pretty high in this book–Nick has to make a hard choice about risking everything to save the people he loves or continuing to not bother. We meet some new and strange creatures and, I hope, get some surprises.

Matt Knicl: My name is Matt Knicl. I'm a U of I alumn and one of those unemployed English majors Garrison Keillor likes to make fun of. I've been reading comics since high school and one day I would like to write them. My goal is to expose readers to what is out there in the world of comics and using my English powers, show what is worth reading or not. I can be reached at buzz.comics@gmail.com.