Changeling, the first YA novel by Philippa Gregory is finally released this week!! I for one am so excited for this amazing looking new series. To celebrate the launch a fantastic widget has been created which you can find here - http://www.orderofdarkness.com/widget/
Simon & Schuster have also done this incredible question and answer session with Philippa Gregory, which I am thrilled to share with you!!!
How was writing a book for teens different from writing a book for adults? I
don't think there is any difference for me in terms of the craft of
writing. I think that the quality and enjoyment of the novel should be
at least equal to a book for adults.
Do you have a favourite character in your new teen series? I
created the two principal characters of Luca and Isolde and liked them
so much, but then I was amazed to find that the servant character of
Frieze just jumped off the page. He is funny and full of common sense,
wonderful with animals and has a great loving nature. His role just grew
through the story as I came to like writing about him more and more. He
is very important in book 2, and I think I will end up with a cast of 4
principal characters rather than 2.
When
you are writing a multi-book series, do you work from an outline (know
all the beats) or do you work toward an ending (know how it all ends)? This
has been the first series that I have written that is not anchored
completely by the historical record, so I have revelled in the freedom
of it and have worked on each novel quite independently. I know where
the whole series ultimately ends, but I don't know yet how I will get
there. It's a truly creative process, I feel as if I am making it up as I
go along and loving this.
Why did you set your new teen series in the 15th century? The
date of 1453 is such a key one - people really believed that it was the
end of the world. It is this belief that means that Luca has his job in
exploring the "end of days" and also means that there are so many
manifestations of the supernatural that people report.
