Q&A with Paul Stewart and Chris Riddell

Are you looking forward to your Scottish Friendly Children’s Book Tour of the Highlands?
REALLY looking forward to it. Because we both live in the south of England we don't get up to Scotland enough, but we always have a fantastic time when we do. We've visited schools and libraries in the Edinburgh-Glasgow area and towns nearby, but it is great to be getting a chance to visit the Highlands. We passed through once on a long train journey to Thurso. We can't wait to see it all close up!

 Which of your series of books do you enjoy working on the most?
We've enjoyed all the series we've worked on. We write books that we would have liked reading as boys. Perhaps the series we would have enjoyed most at 11 years old was the Edge Chronicles. We've just finished the series with the eleventh book, the Immortals, and Paul personally feels a little bereft that it's all over. That said, the series we've just started is going to be even better!
 

In the movie adaptation of one of your books which character would you be and why?
Paul: I would like to play Xanth Filatine as he's such a complicated character - an individual who does good things for bad reasons, and sometimes bad things for good reasons. Just like real people! I'd also like to play a banderbear, particularly since I have learned banderbear language. All three words of it!

How does the creative process work between the two of you? Do you ever have to veto a written idea or an illustration?
The books are collaborations. We talk through everything, from the initial idea to the tweakings of the final draft. Some of the first-draft thoughts get vetoed as we gradually put the story together. Since the illustrations are done after the final version of the text has been completed, fewer pictures get changed - although a couple of the characters changed their appearance, e.g. Vilnix Pompolnius.

How did your creative partnership begin?
We met first because our sons were at the same nursery. That was seventeen years ago. Since Paul wrote and Chris drew, we thought we'd try working together. The Rabbit and Hedgehog picture books were the first books we did together. Then Chris drew the Edge map and we really got down to work...

Paul: Can you describe Chris in 3 words?
Enthusiastic. Imaginative. Persistent.
Chris: Can you describe Paul in 3 words?
Organized, intuitive and bald.

Do you have any advice to aspiring writers or illustrators?
Develop very thick skin! Paul: I received a lot of rejection slips before I was finally published. Storytelling is about keeping the reader engaged, so why not try reading something you've written out loud to a friend. If they yawn, it might be a bit boring. If they say, in an excited voice, 'and then what happened?', you're getting it right!

Do you work on one book/project at a time or do you work across several series at a time?
Paul: I work on one book at a time when possible. I like to immerse myself in a project - in the themes, the characters, the language, the mood. It can be confusing working on two or more projects simultaneously, especially when they are very different, so I try always to complete one book before starting on the next.

Finally, The Immortals – the last in The Edge Chronicles series has been published, what are you working on now?
It's top secret, but we've completed over three-quarters of it already, so you won't have long to find out. It's a fantasy, but there are no goblins this time round. We have a website - www.weirdnewworlds.com - which is a blog written by two Edge settlers at the Farrow Ridges. We will soon be adding a new page to this site which will be devoted to the next project. So check there occasionally, and soon you'll be able to find some advanced information about what it's all about.