Bestselling author Darren Shan has written a trilogy of brilliant works that Voyager has been thrilled to publish: Procession of the Dead, Hell’s Horizon, and City of the Snakes. Last year we asked him some questions on the trilogy, and I hope you enjoy reading what he had to say…
You originally started out writing adult fiction. What made you return to it after the success of your children’s novels?
I felt like I had unfinished business. I love writing for children, but as fans of my books will know, I love exploring the dark side of human nature, and there are certain areas of the darkness which are off-limits in books for younger readers. I don’t see adult books as being superior to children’s. Both allow you to explore different areas. Most writers are happy to settle on one or the other, but I like the variety of having a foot in both camps!
Procession of the Dead has been described as the ‘director’s cut’ version of Ayuamarca. How did it feel revisiting it?
It was fascinating to return to it after so many years. I finished work on it first time round in 1998, when I was still learning my trade. Over the following decade I sharpened my skills enormously, especially in the editing department. The basic structure of the book was sound, but I was able to tighten it up and quicken the pace, making it a faster, more entertaining read. The strangest thing for me was like the intervening years hadn’t really happened — as soon as I sat down with the book, I was back in that world and it was like I’d only been away from it for a few months.
The City Trilogy blends action, fantasy and crime. How would you categorise it?
Heh! That’s always been my problem with the City books — I can’t categorise them! They’re a real mix of genres. Overall I think the detective genre possibly shines through more than most. Each book is based around a mystery that the central character has to solve. In the first, he has to find out who he is and why he can’t remember his past. The second, he has to find the killer of his girlfriend. The third revolves around the search for a missing man. But they all go off in different directions, and work on all sorts of different levels. Ultimately I think of them as horror novels. They explore the horror of the human condition. The world in which they’re set is a nightmarish metropolis, and the lead characters are lost souls who are pushed to the brink of great evil by circumstances beyond their control.
Which of the characters in The City did you most enjoy writing?
Al Jeery, the narrator who we first meet in the second book, Hell’s Horizon. In the dark, twisting world of the City, Al is one of the very rare good guys, someone who has come from a dark place but is trying to put things right. He gets knocked around mercilessly, betrayed and set up by virtually everyone he comes into contact with, but he keeps going, keeps trying to do good. He’s no angel – he slips along the way, and does things no true hero ever would – but he’s trying to be a decent man. In the City, that’s more than most ever strive for.
Where did the idea for The City come from?
It started with the movie, Barton Fink. I was watching it for the second or third time, and it inspired me to write a darkly comic story about a young guy who wants to become an insurance agent. As I bounced ideas around, it got darker and less comic, and ultimately evolved into the mystical, gangster-ridden world of Procession of the Dead, and then the subsequent books.
What sort of research went into writing it?
I watched a few documentaries about the Incas, and read some articles about them, but otherwise I didn’t do a huge amount of research.
Do you have a favourite scene or moment in the trilogy so far?
My favourite scene is the final chapter of book 3, City of the Snakes, when all the characters come to the end of the road which they’ve been on. I don’t believe that every book should have a neat ending in which all the loose ends are tied up, but in this instance that’s pretty much what happens! Things come together smoothly, believably, and despite all the darkness that has gone before, it ends on a relative high. It’s probably my favourite ending out of any of my books. Every time I come to it, I smile nostalgically, not wanting to bid farewell to the characters, but pleased that I was able to do so in a fitting manner.
Which authors have most influenced your work?
I could write a LONG list! But some of those who have had a direct, powerful impact on me include Stephen King, Clive Barker, Jonathan Carroll, Ray Bradbury and James Ellroy. There are elements of each of those writers in The City.
Tags: author questionnaires, Authors, Darren Shan, q&as
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