My interview with…Thomas Taylor

Welcome to my interview with Thomas based on his brilliant book: Mermendusa from the Eerie-on-Sea series. Thank you so much to Thomas for taking the time to answering my questions whilst waiting for his train to move!

I can definitely see the Philip Pullman influence in Thomas’ writing.

1) How could you end the series?! What are people going to do now without their regular instalment of visits to Eerie-On-Sea? The final scenes must have been emotional to write?

I think it’s always better to ‘get out early’, so l’m not too sorry to hear you say this. Even while I am sorry, at the same time. I do have a notion that another, stand-alone Eerie-on-Sea book might be a good idea in the future, but for now I’d like to write something new. 

Mermedusa was very hard to write, and I was emotional writing those last few chapters, yes. I will miss those characters terribly. 

2) I love the Mermonkey idea, and reading those sections (with mechanical sound effects) in class is always great fun! Where did the idea for the Mermonkey come from?

The Mermonkey is actually a story fragment from another book I was never quite able to write. Originally he was a mechanical chimp, who dispensed books by typing a code out on a typewriter (think Infinite Monkey Theorem). There was a mysterious owner of the shop and a villainous author who hung around there, but no further story presented itself. I ended up squirrelling this idea away until I began creating Eerie-on-Sea. Suddenly my strange bookshop found its home. I put a fish’s tail on the monkey, renamed the owner Jenny Hanniver and the author Sebastian Eels, and the rest is eerie history. 

3) Did you know before the end that Violet was going to find her parents or not? 

I always knew that she would. And, roughly, where they were. 

4) Are there any plans afoot for other ways to visit Herbie (films/comics/theatre shows etc)?

There was a huge movie deal in place for Malamander, with Sony Pictures, but sadly that was completely crushed by COVID. They didn’t get much further than developing a script. The good news is that after the rights reverted to me, another outfit has begun pre-production work on a possible TV adaptation. The bad news is I’m not yet allowed to talk about this. 

5) Do you have any plans to return to illustrating other people’s work?

No. I’m not complete closed to the idea, but I don’t feel confident enough in my illustration these days. At least, not in colour. 

6) Do you have any writing routines? How do you deal with writer’s block (is it a real thing?)?

I struggle with overthinking, and starting new projects can be difficult. The only solution is to write anyway, and push through. I like to be alone, and in silence to write, and that isn’t always compatible with family life. 

7) As a teacher myself I’d like this blog to useful to my fellow professionals, how would you like teachers to use your book(s) in the classroom?

I don’t think about the curriculum as I write, but I hope that my stories will help with generating a love of reading. Hearing that my books are being read in classrooms as a class read, and a treat at the end of the day, makes me very happy indeed. There is a lot to be said for pure escapism and the need to engender a habit of reading for pleasure. Having said that, there is a lot in the stories to inspire topic-related classroom activities. For example, I’ve seen Eerie-on-Sea tied into geography classes (coastal geology) as well as English language work based on persuasive writing, for example. 

8) Who inspired you to write?

Hard to single out anyone, but I have a clear memory of reading Philip Pullman’s fiction — particularly The Firework Maker’s Daughter and Clockwork — and finally deciding it was time to take the plunge. 

9) Herbie is quite the unlikely hero, which seems to be quite a theme in YA books, like Samwise Gamgee in Lord of the Rings, Neville Longbottom from Harry Potter and Stanley Yelnats from Holes. Did you always set out for him to change as a person across the series?

Yes. Herbie is based on me, especially the way I was as a child. Violet, on the other hand, is based on how I would like to have been. Each of them on their own would come unstuck: Herbie on his own wouldn’t have many adventures at all, while Violet on her own would quickly get into very serious trouble. They compliment each other, and as they grow and develop through experience their characters sort of meet in the middle. That was the plan, anyway! 

10) What’s next for you?!

I’m working on a new book. Also super top secret for the moment.