26 Characters, One of them Elusive…
At last! The Story Museum has officially launched its 26 characters exhibition, and I can talk about it!
Last March, I was invited to Oxford’s Story Museum for a secret photoshoot. I’m not generally a great fan of cameras, since I’m about as photogenic as a mousetrap. However, I wouldn’t be attending this shoot as Frances Hardinge, but as the book character of my choice.
This threw me into wild indecision. I don’t have a single favourite book character, I have hundreds. I was tempted by the Cheshire Cat, but wasn’t sure how to disguise myself as a disembodied smile. In the end I chose one of my favourite tricksters – The Scarlet Pimpernel.
On the day of the shoot, the wonderful Ginny Battcock presented me with a complete outfit in my size, including a powdered wig and a beautiful red frock coat, all borrowed from the National Theatre Company’s wardrobe. Then the makeup expert Sue gave me a powdery, courtly pallor, and drew a tiny black heart on my cheek.
Sue, with her impressive armoury of makeup implements
I then spent a happy hour play-acting, flourishing handkerchiefs, brandishing masks and generally being larger than life, while the excellent photographer Cambridge Jones took pictures.
And when I saw all the photographs later, they were brilliant.
I became even more excited when I learnt the names of the other authors involved: Terry Pratchett, Neil Gaiman, Malorie Blackman, Philip Pullman, Julia Donaldson, Anthony Horowitz, Michael Morpurgo, Jamila Gavin, Shirley Hughes and her daughter Clara Vulliamy, Francesca Simon, Charlie Higson, Benjamin Zephaniah, Geraldine McCaughrean, Terry Jones (from Monty Python), Cressida Cowell, Holly Smale, Katrice Horsley, Kevin Crossley Holland, Steven Butler, Ted Dewan, Michael Rosen and Katherine Rundell.
Nonetheless, I still imagined that the exhibition would be nothing more than a photo gallery. I was beautifully wrong.
26 Characters has taken over two floors of the museum. Each of the photos nestles at the heart of a carefully created set-piece, often filling a room. As Charlie Higson put it: “You can step inside twenty-six great books.”
Francesca Simon and Steven Butler
You can sit in Badger’s parlour from The Wind in the Willows, and hear the crackle of the fire. You can stand on the deck of Treasure Island‘s Hispaniola, or even swab it if you like. You can try to steal the One Ring (though you might regret that). You can push through a wardrobe full of fur coats, into Narnia.
I don’t care how old you are. If you love books and can reach Oxford, you should drop in at the Story Museum and see 26 characters.
Long John Pullman lurks on the Hispaniola
At the launch party, with the Pimpernel portrait
While you’re there, stop in at the Talking Throne. Grab a board, choose some word tiles to give yourself a pick ‘n’ mix title, then proceed grandly up the red carpet and sit on the throne. It will announce you by your chosen title, with fanfare.
Macmillan’s Beatrice Cross, AKA “The Magical Lettuce of the Hills”
I had myself announced as “The Devastating Cheese of the Underworld” before thinking, hmm, didn’t I write a book about that?
There is also the Story Loom, demonstrated to us by Ted Dewan (in a splendid Victorian outfit). He regaled us with the sad tale of its lovelorn inventor, while the machine filled the room with sedate music and smoke. (The little buttons on the front say things like, “Foreshadowing”, “Past” and “Dream”.)
The Story Loom, with ‘dressing up’ rail behind.
Now I just need to find an excuse to go back…
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The Song of the Cuckoo Grows Louder…
On the 8th May, Cuckoo Song will be published. To celebrate this, next week I will take part in my first ever blog tour.
Given the cuckoo in the title, embarking upon a series of guest blog posts seems pretty appropriate. Feel free to imagine me as a hatted cuckoo, flying between other birds’ orderly, well-designed blog-nests, and dropping in my posts like misbegotten little offspring.
Here is the schedule:
5th May 2014
Dark Readers: ‘Looks on Books’ Vlog
I don’t have to do any work for this. I just need to marvel as Casey Ann devises some face art based on the book’s cover. I can’t wait to see what she creates!
6th May 2014
The Book Smugglers: ‘Inspiration and Influences’
I will be talking about the direct and indirect inspirations for Cuckoo Song, including some of my childhood fears…
7th May 2014
Serendipity Revews: ‘Serendipity Secret Seven’
Seven facts about the writing of Cuckoo Song will be revealed. Sadly none of them involve time travel to the 1920s.
8th May 2014
Fiction Fascination: ‘Childhood Reads’
Nostalgic memories of the books I read when I was young: totalitarian rabbit states, child thieves, murders, malevolent boulders – everything a growing child needs.
9th May 2014
Fluttering Butterflies: ‘Awesome Women’
I will be answering interview questions about my writing, my rolemodels and women in my life that have influenced me.
I hope some of you will visit these blog-nests to watch my egg-posts hatch. In the meanwhile, here is a picture of a young cuckoo impersonating a baby sedge warbler.
It’s not your child, and it’s hunnggrryyyyy…
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Fashionable Lateness at the FAB Cafe
On Thursday 24th, I could be found in Manchester’s FAB Cafe for a World Book Night event. (The alert amongst you may recall that World Book Night was actually on the 23rd. This, however, was a Fashionably Late World Book Night celebration.)
I had never been to the FAB Cafe before, and it turned out to be beautifully-appointed underground geek lair, complete with Daleks, Cybermen and sci-fi memorabilia. Indeed, my first reaction upon seeing it was to remark “Eeeheeheehee!” or something similarly eloquent, then run around like a madwoman photographing everything. I would defy anyone not to do the same.
Cyberman!
Ed Fortune and D A Lascelles, plus TARDIS
The high point was the readings given by local authors and poets, including R A Smith, D A Lascelles, Tony Curry, Sarah Grace Logan, Anna Percy, Dermot Glennon, Zach Roddis and Jackie O’Hagan. There was a lovely mix of tones and subjects – gritty cynicism, macabre humour, dryly witty and subversive feminism, historical fantasy, and sheer chutzpah. I pitched in as well, giving a reading from the soon-to-be-published Cuckoo Song for the first time.
A far better and more detailed account of the evening can be found here, on D A Lascelles’ blog.
With R A Smith, both of us oblivious to the encroaching Dalek. Photo taken by DA Lascelles.
Ed Fortune (columnist and correspondent for Starburst Magazine) suggested that he record an interview with me, to be transmitted for FAB Radio International‘s The Bookworm programme, which he co-hosts with Ninfa Hayes. I agreed, and we found a small, quiet-ish cloakroom at the back of the bar in which to conduct the interview.
I couldn’t help noticing that the door clicked to behind us with a disturbing air of finality. Sure enough, it was an auto-lock. We were trapped in the cloakroom.
We gamely went ahead with the interview, ignoring the possibility that it might only be broadcast posthumously, after the discovery of the dictaphone with our skeletons months hence. In the interview (which can be found here) you may notice a slight hint of panic in our voices.
Fortunately the FAB Cafe staff were on the ball, and came to let us out…
Many thanks to everybody involved for letting me come and play. It was lovely meeting you all!
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Deadlier than the Male…
Another of my stories has escaped into the world! Today sees the official launch of twinned anthologies Noir and La Femme, edited by Ian Whates. Both contain fantasy, horror and SF tales that explore the dark, cynical, heady world of noir, but the latter focusses upon that most dangerous and ambiguous of creatures, the femme fatale.
My story, “Slink-Thinking” can be found in La Femme. It’s noir, but of a slightly peculiar breed. My femme fatale won’t be found peeling off long gloves, or wielding a cigarette holder. She’d need opposable thumbs for that. And a pulse…
Here’s the full Table of Contents for both anthologies:
La Femme:
1. Introduction — Ian Whates
3. Frances Hardinge – Slink-Thinking
4. Storm Constantine – A Winter Bewitchment
5. Andrew Hook – Softwood
6. Adele Kirby – Soleil
7. Stewart Hotston – Haecceity
8. John Llewellyn Probert – The Girl with No Face
9. Jonathan Oliver – High Church
10. Maura McHugh – Valerie
11. Holly Ice – Trysting Antlers
12. Ruth E.J. Booth – The Honey Trap
13. Benjanun Sriduangkaew – Elision
Noir:
2. E.J. Swift – The Crepuscular Hunter
3. Adam Roberts – Gross Thousand
4. Donna Scott – The Grimoire
5. Emma Coleman – The Treehouse
6. Paula Wakefield – Red in Tooth and Claw
7. Simon Kurt Unsworth – Private Ambulance
8. Jay Caselberg – Bite Marks
9. Marie O’Regan – Inspiration Point
10. Paul Graham Raven – A Boardinghouse Heart
11. Simon Morden – Entr’acte
12. James Worrad – Silent in Her Vastness
13. Paul Kane – Grief Stricken
14. Alex Dally MacFarlane – The (De)Composition of Evidence
About the Authors
The launch party for both books is at 6pm this evening at Eastercon in Glasgow. I won’t be there, but I hope others will drop in and enjoy the party! For those who aren’t at the con, La Femme can be ordered here.
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Hounslow Library Spring Fair
On 29th March, I dropped in at Hounslow Library to give a talk and reading as part of their Spring Fair.
I was given this comfy, colourful corner in the Children’s Section.
Many thanks to those who stayed to listen, despite all the other attractions at the fair. (I think my large, cuddly goose puppet was a bigger hit than I was.)
A predatory, hawk-eye view of unsuspecting stalls
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A Newbie at Bologna
Bologna is a beautiful city, known for its shady colonnades, rosy stone, leaning medieval towers and delicious food.
The Asinelli Tower – over 800 years old, 97m tall and still standing
Every year, several hundred publishing companies and imprints from all over the world meet for Bologna Children’s Book Fair, to sell and buy book rights, meet each other and discover all the new and exciting things happening in the book world. Tens of thousands of people attend, including rights reps, authors, illustrators, agents, booksellers and journalists.
Last week I attended the Bologna Children’s Book Fair for the very first time. Fortunately I was being looked after by a posse of Bologna veterans – my fellow authors Rhiannon Lassiter, Mary Hoffman and Lucy Coats.
Lucy, Mary and Rhiannon
Apparently one wise soul recommended that the best things you could bring to the Bologna Book Fair were “good walking shoes and a strong bladder”. Many people who attend the fair have crazily intense schedules, with half-hour-long appointments back-to-back all day, leaving very little time for food or toilet breaks. The fair isn’t small either, so sometimes people have a five-minute dash through the halls to their next appointment.
Fortunately my schedule wasn’t quite as jam-packed, so I was able to explore the fair. (My attempts to look like a calm and seasoned professional might have been more convincing if Rhiannon and I hadn’t spent five minutes jumping around on an interactive fish pool.)
The pool is projected onto the floor. Walking across it creates ripples and scares the fish.
But going to Bologna is useful, because you get to meet important people in the industry! Such as… er… giant bees…
With Rhiannon and Maia the Bee
…and Miffy, here seen with her entourage.
Since it’s the 100th anniversary of the birth of Tove Jansen, author of the Moomin books, The ‘Author Cafe’ contained a lovely little Moominland scene. Moomins and Hattifatteners glowed under animatronic trees, which slowly waved in a non-existent breeze.
The fair also has a large Illustrator Exhibition, filled with beautiful artwork.
Dashing steampunk foxes!
Haunting images of extinction
Underwater scenes
Lots of illustrators who aren’t in the exhibition turn up to the fair anyway, in the hope of catching a publisher’s attention. You see them roaming around with their portfolio cases, or queuing patiently by stalls. There’s a long wall where they can put their posters and flyers, and it’s never long before it’s completely covered – talent pinned haphazardly onto talent, some beautiful pictures even falling to the floor.
I learnt a new phrase at Bologna – ‘paper engineering’. This isn’t just wondrous pop-up book art, this covers all ingenious use of paper and card to make 3D sculptures. We came across it everywhere.
Dinosaur! Pirate ship!
Fairy tale scenes and pop-up owl
Paper dolls’ houses
I even had a chance to explore Bologna itself, thanks to Evelies Schmidt from Verlag Freies Geistesleben, (the publishing company who have produced a German version of Verdigris Deep, and are currently having A Face Like Glass translated into German as well). Since we both love seeing new places, our ‘meeting’ escaped from the fair, and ran off into the heart of the city in search of adventure.
Wunsch Traum Fluch, otherwise known as Verdigris Deep
Things I learnt at Bologna:
1) The children’s book world is vast, and I’ve only seen a tiny corner of it. Although I technically knew this already, it’s a very different matter seeing huge halls filled with stalls from different countries, and large posters for celebrity authors I’ve never heard of because they haven’t been translated into English.
2) My books aren’t really ‘my books’. I work very hard to make them happen, but so do an awful lot of other people. Editors, rights reps, designers, translators, printers and all the people who make sure the books reach the right shops… I’m just lucky enough to be the one whose name is on the cover.
3) Trends in the book world change fast, and move in cycles. What’s more, sometimes publishing companies announce that they’re after one kind of book, then get excited and pounce on something completely different. Moral: as an author, chasing trends can run you ragged. You might as well go ahead and work on the book you’re passionate about, and write it as well as you can.
4) There are a very large number of people all over the world dedicating their lives to the production of joyous things. This makes me very happy.
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My Characters Escape into the World! (And turn out to be made of paper.)
I have become aware that some of my characters have been appearing in public without telling me. Fortunately a kind gentleman named Michael Dickinson managed to take photos of them while they were frolicking at large in Cardiff Central Library. (‘At large’ may not be the right term. ‘At small’ is perhaps more accurate.)
As you can see from the picture below, the runaway characters are preparing to make their getaway in a floating coffeehouse. Note the big, white kite used to pull the coffeehouse along the blue paper water.
Look at the poster on the left! Apparently I’ve been adopted!
Here are Hathin and Arilou from Gullstruck Island/The Lost Conspiracy, dangling their legs into the water.
Here is Neverfell from A Face Like Glass, attending to a formidably sized cheese. It may even be a Stackfalter Sturton…
…which means it should probably be kept safe from this gentleman.
I love the way he’s abseiling down the poster.
The forces of law and order are likely to be very interested in the whereabouts of these three – Mosca Mye, Eponymous Clent and Saracen the goose from Fly by Night and Fly Trap/Twilight Robbery.
Come to think of it, the little figure that is just visible through the lefthand window also looks somewhat suspicious. And… um… rather familar. 🙂
Here is a closeup of the tiny, belligerent paper Saracen…
…and another view of the coffeehouse, where other disreputable individuals can be glimpsed through the windows. The man dressed in a blue coat and seen from behind is Hopewood Pertellis, and the black-clad figure is Aramai Goshawk.
Many thanks to Michael Dickinson for creating this wonderful display, and for sending me these photos!
Michael being terrorised by the tiny paper Saracen on his shoulder
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Kids Lit Quiz National Final 2014
On the 6th December, King’s College School in Wimbledon witness a clash of titans – the National Final of the Kids’ Literary Quiz. The Kids’ Lit Quiz is an international literature competition for children aged 10-13, and each year the team that wins the National Final has the chance to compete in the International Final.
Introductory speeches in the grand hall of King’s College School
This was a second time I had attended the National Final, and once again it was a lot of fun. Every team is given an author as a sort of mascot. It’s very relaxing for the author, because the team does all the hard work, whereas the author basically sits on the sidelines making supportive ‘woo!’ noises and occasionally eating cake.
I was lucky enough to be handed to the team from Finham Park School, who were fun and interesting, and had a tiny cow as a mascot. As it turned out they were also brilliant, and carried off the second prize after a nailbitingly close battle.
Finham Park School team just after claiming second prize
Many congratulations to all the teams who competed, and to City of London School for Girls who will be going on to the International Final!
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ArmadaCon 2013
Last weekend, the appropriately named Future Inn opened its doors to the 25th ArmadaCon. This is Plymouth’s annual science fiction/fantasy/cult TV/anime convention. As I discovered, it’s also a den of colossal good humour, terrible jokes and swashbuckling geekery. And the attendees have all the best toys.
A lady takes her remote-controlled flying inflatable shark for a stroll
Me with Sooty of Borg. (Photo taken by Sooty’s owner, Lady K.)
Keeping the hotel ghost-free
Steampunk gun, sonic screwdriver and ‘Sirius Black’ wand – ready for any emergency
Aside from giving a couple of guest panels, I helped judge the ‘Masquerade’, where contestants were assessed on their costume, performance and flair. The overall winners were a duo who performed the whole of What’s Opera, Doc.
A ‘composite’ Doctor Who, winner of the costume category
However there were many fine costumes that weren’t even entered into the Masquerade.
Thankfully the Jägermonster approved of my hat
On Saturday morning I discovered that I had a stunt double.
On Sunday the lovely Anna came back with a costume based on my fifth book, A Face Like Glass. She even let me keep the goose and apron!
My fellow guest author David Wake spent the Sunday dressing as every Doctor Who ever invented, one at a time, including little known variants that had never reached TV.
David as the 2nd Doctor
Other high points over the weekend:
- The Turkey Readings. Dreadful books are read out, whilst the audience bids loose change to get the reader to stop, or continue in funny voices. Dire crimes against fiction are greatly improved when read in the voices of Winston Churchill, Jessica Rabbit, Gollum, Dr Evil or Dr Watt from Carry on Screaming.
- A stop-motion ‘silent film’ episode of Doctor Who, starring all the Doctors and featuring an entirely knitted cast. (Woollen daleks are unfeasibly cute.)
- The auction, where strange and wondrous things were sold to raise over £1300 for the RNIB’s Talking Books.
- Champagne and chocolate Tardises.
- Readings. Selkie tales, steampunk narrow escapes, and group readings/performances of scenes from The Derring Do Club and the Empire of the Dead and David Wake’s other works. (The latter included the confrontation of an evil Father Christmas, the perils of a particularly smart phone and an amusing case of steampunk hankypanky.)
- Tea duels
Teacup holster worn by one of the tea duellists
As a wonderful finale, on Sunday afternoon Mitch Benn arrived. He treated us to some of his clever, very funny and diabolically catchy songs, and was in some danger of being forced at sonic-screwdriver-point to sing all night. (I was privately delighted that he included my favourite, the “Bouncy Druid” song, but the miniature rock opera based on The Very Hungry Caterpillar is also required listening.)
Many thanks to everyone I met at ArmadaCon for a fantastic weekend!
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World Fantasy Convention 2013
Shortly after the St Jude storm had batted the British Isles around like a bored cat with a paper boat, I travelled down to Brighton for the World Fantasy Convention. Nobody had told the local winds that the storm was over, so whenever I ventured out I kept both hands clamped protectively over my hat.
Those wires might be decorations. Or maybe they’re to stop the tower blowing away.
Once again I had the joy of meeting a lot of people I only knew through Twitter, email and the mailing list of the Scattered Authors’ Society. (I grew quite accustomed to the words ‘I recognised you from your hat!’)
I was also introduced to Shadwell, one of the small felt pigeons acting as ‘ambassadors’ for Loncon 3 next year.
The first evening of the convention was Halloween, so there were many splendid costumes on display.
A coven of authors. From the left and clockwise: me, Teresa Flavin, Gillian Philip, Linda Strachan, Emma Barnes and Lucy Coats (Photo courtesy of Gillian Philip’s iPad.)
There were also magnificent displays of steampunk regalia, and three gentlemen with four-foot-wide hats made out of modelling balloons and flashing lights.
On the Friday I appeared in a panel with a stellar collection of authors – Garth Nix, Holly Black, Sarah Rees Brennan, Chris Priestley and Chris Wooding. This was the brief.
The Next Generation” Not in Front of the Children: How Far Should You Go in Young Adult Fiction? (Oxford)
Our chair, Sarah Rees Brennan, gave a wonderfully tongue-in-cheek performance as the Voice of Moral Outrage, declared us all ‘sinners’ and corrupting influences from the very start, and introduced us by ominous nicknames. I’m very happy with my new title, “The Grande Dame of Darkness”…
…which to me sounds a bit like this.
I have long held the view that young readers are tougher and smarter than many adults realise, and are generally the best judges of whether they are ready to read certain kinds of material. It became clear that most of the panel was broadly in agreement, but it was still a fun and interesting discussion. Chris Priestley gave an eloquent defence of books that purely entertain, rather than making heavy-handed attempts to educate or ‘improve’. Holly Black discussed the perpetual nervousness with which the adult world regards teenagers. Garth Nix stated that YA should not be considered subset of children’s fiction, but of adult fiction (hence the name). By age sixteen Chris Wooding had been not only reading horror novels but writing them.
Friday’s mass signing in the Oxford Hall
Gillian Philip, Linda Strachan, me, Cecilia Busby, Katherine Roberts, Tim Collins, Emma Barnes, Teresa Flavin. (Queue in the background was for Neil Gaiman)
On Sunday I took part in a joint reading with other children’s/YA authors from the Scattered Authors’ Society – a ‘taster menu’ of extracts offering a mix of comic, haunting, exciting and chilling. My fellow readers were Emma Barnes, Cecilia Busby, Teresa Flavin, Amy Butler Greenfield, Katherine Langrish, Katherine Roberts, Linda Strachan and Lucy Coats.
Over the weekend I had the chance to listen to a number of fascinating panels, covering subjects such as world-building, YA as a genre, historical fantasy and the influence of real landscapes and places upon fantasy writing.
In the upstairs art gallery, like everyone else I was hypnotised by Tessa Farmer‘s otherworldly aerial battle made almost entirely out of dead things, suspended from the ceiling by threads. Sheep skulls were dreadnaughts, and tiny ant-like fairies rode dead bees, beetles and sea-horses into combat. I also took a shine to Autun Purser’s Fantastic Travel Destinations, advertising trips to the likes of Yuggoth, Midwich and the end of the Earth with cheery 1940s style posters.
Brighton Pavilion at dusk
Photo taken by Katherine Roberts
Now I have convention withdrawal symptoms… and I have to find somewhere to store all my loot.
