After reading the new novel The Beast of Harwood Forest I spoke to author Dan Smith and asked him a few questions about the project. The full review for The Beast of Harwood Forest can be found here.
The Beast of Harwood Forest is a follow-up to The Invasion of Crooked Oak, was it easier to write as a second book, or was there an extra degree of pressure because of how well received the first book was?
The truth is, I was just excited to be writing about Pete, Nancy, and Krish again. The books are a joy to write! I have always loved a creepy mystery, so it’s great fun to write some of my own, and it’s a pleasure to work with Barrington Stoke. It’s very kind of you to say that The Invasion of Crooked Oak was well-received, and I hope readers enjoy the new adventure.
The book has some really creepy moments in it, is it difficult writing spooky stories for children because there’s the need to not make it too scary for younger readers?
There’s something exciting about having a bit of a scare, isn’t there? When I read excerpts to groups of children, I can see the excitement in their eyes, and lots of teachers and librarians tell me that children are asking them for creepy stories. You’re right that it’s important for the stories not to be too creepy, but I also think it’s important not to hold back too much. I wouldn’t write anything too horrifying, but it’s good to make your reader’s pulse quicken just a bit … isn’t it?
There’s a campfire story early in the book about a ghostly Grey Lady, it’s really spooky and I loved that part of the book. Were you ever tempted to have the kids investigate something ghostly like that? And could we possibly hope to see more of this story in a future book?
I love that part too! It’s my nod to the classic moment in ‘80’s slasher films when the kids are sitting by the campfire, hearing the legend of Jason, or Cropsy, or whatever monster we’re going to see. I have thought about having the kids investigate something ghostly, but one of the themes of the Crooked Oak stories is that there is always some kind of real-world explanation for what is happening, no matter how strange that explanation is. I would never want to do a Scooby-Doo style unmasking (that was always a disappointment to me) so a ghostly story would have to have exactly the right idea.
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| Both Crooked Oak books are available from Barrington Stoke now! |
The main part of the story is about the Harwood Institute, an old MOD facility from World War 2 where secret experiments went on. What was a chief inspiration for this part of the story?
I wanted there to be a real-world explanation for The Beast, and for the reader to believe that there really could be something like that. Bizarre science experiments are a great way to create all manner of horrors, so it fit really well. I’m a big fan of horror films, especially from the 1980’s, and in many of those stories we find monsters created through experimentation, so I had lots of inspiration to draw on. Scientific experimentation is also a key element of one of my favourite videogame series – Resident Evil – so that may have played a part too.
One of the characters compares the experiments to Resident Evil, and one of the scientists is called W. Birkin. Please tell me this is a nod to Resident Evil 2?
Yes, it definitely is. I’ve been playing and re-playing Resident Evil games for years, and I love them. I’m actually a bit of a horror geek and if you look closely at the Crooked Oak stories, you’ll find lots of secret shout-outs to some of my favourite horror films, books, and videogames. I wonder if anyone will spot them?
How did you go about designing the Grendel creature, what was that process like?
Mainly, I had a lot of fun researching pictures of monsters and different interpretations of Grendel. I love the Beowulf story, so that was always going to be an influence, but mostly I put together the elements that I thought would make the beast look scary. When I saw Chris King’s initial concept, I was blown away! He did an amazing job of turning my words into a terrifying creature.
What’s the process like with Chris King working on the book? Do you pick out key moments that you think should be illustrated, or is that something that is down to Chris or the publisher?
I don’t really have much involvement in that side of things. My publisher, Barrington Stoke, briefs the illustrator, Chris, so I really have no idea what scenes they have chosen until I see the first rough illustrations. I’m always in awe when I see the different stages as the roughs become finalised. We look over them very carefully, and Barrington Stoke is very strict about the presentation of the scenes. The books are designed with a particular type of reader in mind so it’s important that the illustrations inform the text in the right way. The details have to be right. If Nancy is holding her phone in the text, she has to be holding it in the illustration too.
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| Dan's adult thriller novel, 'Red Winter'. |
Are you planning to write any more books with Pete, Krish, and Nancy, and if so what kind of spooky things can we look forward to next?
I’m working on another Crooked Oak story right now. I think I’m allowed to tell you that. I don’t want to give too much away but I can tell you that this one is going to be horrifying! It will make your skin crawl. In fact, you’ll be banging out your shoes and checking under the bed after this one!
As well as writing children’s fiction you’ve also written a number of adult thriller books. Is the process different when you come to write these different types of books?
The thrillers I wrote for adults are very heavily researched stories, so yes there’s a big difference between those and a Crooked Oak story. I do research for the Crooked Oak stories, but it’s not such a long and detailed process. Obviously, I write the Crooked Oak stories with a much younger audience in mind, but one of the biggest differences between these and any other stories I write is that Barrington Stoke has an additional step in the publication process – one which ensures that the stories are accessible to as many young readers as possible.
You’ve travelled around the world a lot over the course of your life, would you say that this has helped to inspire your writing in any ways?
Yes, it has definitely influenced some of my writing, but not all of it. And it’s important for me to add that it’s not essential for a writer to have had life like mine. There is no exclusivity on imagination – anyone can make up and write stories.
What can people look forward to seeing from you in the future?
I’m currently working on another Crooked Oak story, so I’ll be trying to scare a few readers with that. I also have a book coming out next year called The Weeping Tree, which is a longer novel featuring a bleak windswept island, a dangerous causeway, an otherworldly pact, and a search for three mysterious treasures. I’m really proud of it, so I hope everyone likes it.
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