This is an interview with Philip Pullman from when he visited the Cheltenham Festival of Literature. Quite an interesting read!
Question:
How long did it take you to write the His Dark Materials trilogy,
with all the philosophical and religious problems that Lyra and
her friends run in to?
Morgan Lee Elwell, 14, Richmond, Virginia
Philip Pullman: Seven years from beginning to end. But I didn't plan it all out in advance - otherwise I would have spent seven years following a plan and would have gone mad. You have to have the freedom to let the story go off in unexpected directions. But I did a lot of re-writing to sort it out afterwards. That's the way I work.
Q:
What age group did you write them for? I read them when I was seven
or eight, and I loved them! But my friend, who read The Golden Compass
a few weeks before her tenth birthday, didn't understand it. I couldn't
understand how she could read the ending, and not have to read the
second and third books!
Margaret Lindeman (Your Number 1 Fan), 10, Kingston, New York
PP: I wrote them for the age I was at the time I started the story - which was a rather tired 43-year-old!
Q:
Did you expect the books to be such a success? I have heard that
many people write their books, expecting only a few to be sold,
and they turn out to be a huge thing.
Joss Love, 12, Cheltenham
PP: No, I only thought about 80 people would read them at most. I never dreamed they would become as popular as they have.
Q:
Were Lyra or Will based on someone from your own life?
Chloe Simmonds, 11, Greet
PP: Not on particular individuals, but when I was a teacher I taught a lot of young people of Will and Lyra's age. I wanted to show that ordinary children, without magical gifts, are capable of achieving extraordinary things.
Q:
Why did you choose Oxford as the setting?
Peter Lane, 15, Lechlade
PP: Because I'm lazy! I have lived in Oxford and know it well so it saves on research. And Oxford is also a fascinating place in lots of different ways, with its academic life, the business world and its artistic traditions.
Q:
Where did you get your inspiration for the His Dark Materials series
from?
Carrieanne French, 12, West Lothian
PP: From everything I've ever read! I have always loved stories and I enjoy poetry too.
Q:
Which of your minor characters deserves his or her own novel?
Tom Croft, 13, Reading
PP: Oh, that's a very good question. There are quite a few but the explorer Lee Scoresby and the bear Iorek Byrnison are old companions by the time we meet them. It would be interesting to know more about what happened to them earlier in their lives.
Q: Do you believe people (from our world) can learn to see their inner d
1 comments - Add yours
#1 what about lyra's age?
I know that Lyra ages throughout the books, but I'm not really exactly positive of anything, one person told me in the Golden Compass shes ten, turns eleven, and is almost twelve by the end. another person said she is 13 or 14 by the end of the Amber Spyglass. but then how old is she in Lyra's Oxford? Someone told me 15 or 16, but Pullman says that the Book of Dust takes place 4 years after Lyra's Oxford, so does that mean she'll be like 20? I'm just really confused! could someone whos really smart please post what her age is in each book? (and Lyra's Oxford) PLEASE!
# December 20, 2006 22:11 by kyra