 An April 2005 interview with new author P. W. Catanese, an author putting new endings to old tales.
How did the idea for The Thief and the Beanstalk come to you?
I was reading a lot of fairy tales to my children at the time. I remember thinking about the Jack and the Beanstalk story, and how interesting it would be to read a detailed, vivid description of the beanstalk growing – especially if it was a violent eruption and not the quiet overnight sprouting that the original tale describes. Acting on an impulse, I started to write that scene, without actually intending to churn out a whole novel. That scene I wrote down just for fun is now virtually intact in the final book, starting on about page 80.
What were your favorite books or authors as a child?
My favorite hands-down was any non-fiction or fiction book I could find about dinosaurs. I remember reading Jules Verne, Roald Dahl, Mark Twain, Edgar Allen Poe and James Herriot. Some particular books I recall liking as a young reader were The Hobbit, A Cricket in Times Square, and Dracula.
Can you tell us a little bit about your next two books?
Like The Thief and the Beanstalk, they are “sequels” to famous fairy tales, telling what happens many years after the original story. And like Thief, they are old-fashioned fantasy adventure stories with lots of action. And monsters, of course. I love monsters.
The Brave Apprentice will be out July 1, 2005. It’s inspired by a lesser-known fairy tale called The Brave Little Tailor. But you don’t have to remember the original story to enjoy the book – I tell you everything you need to know as part of the novel. This novel is about a boy who becomes an accidental hero when he kills a troll, and is summoned to meet the king – only to get caught in the middle of an all-out attack by an army of trolls. I think readers will enjoy the characters in this book, particularly a giddy fool named Simon who latches onto the hero. They’ll also enjoy trying to figure out the mystery that doesn’t get solved until the very end.
The Eye of the Warlock will be out in November 2005. This book tells what happens forty years after the Hansel and Gretel story. It’s about a young woodcutter named Rudi, a relative of the long-gone Hansel and Gretel, who has to race into the forest to save his young friends, and comes face-to-face with a villain far worse than any witch. This is the scariest and creepiest of the three books, with lots of secrets revealed and unexpected plot twists.
My publisher wants at least two more books from me, so stay tuned.
What advice do you have for young writers?
I would start with the classic advice: read a lot and write a lot. Next, I’d say learn everything you can about what you want to write about – details make the story ring true. And finally, listen to your teachers, and don’t take criticism personally! I know it’s tough when someone critiques your work. But that’s part of writing, and it happens to every writer. I get hundreds of comments from my editor on my books before they’re done.
What is your writing day like?
I have a regular job, so I write at night. Usually between nine and eleven p.m., after spending time with my family. I’ll average about 800 or 1,000 words a night, which isn’t much, but I rewrite and research as I go, so I have a pretty good first draft in about three or four months. Writing isn’t just the act of typing words, though. The time I spend thinking about the book is just as important, and I do that all the time.
What do you hope readers get out of your books?
I hope they get the joy and satisfaction of reading a story that fires up the imagination. I hope they can almost see and touch and smell the places I’m describing. I hope they’re scared during the scary parts and smiling during the funny parts. I hope they feel transported. Most of all, I hope these become books that the whole family reads and talks about.
If you could be a character in any fairy tale, which one would you be?
I think I’d like to be the Brave Little Tailor, because he was smart as well as brave – he always came up with clever solutions to his problems.
What's your favorite word?
Tough question. I’ll go with “family.”
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