Justine Windsor
About Author
Justine Windsor is a debut author but has been shortlisted for writing awards including the Times/Chicken House children's writers prize and the youwriteone.com Children's Book of the Year. She lives and works in London. Goodly and Grave in a Bad Case of Kidnap was her first published book.
Interview
GOODLY AND GRAVE IN A BAD CASE OF KIDNAP
HARPERCOLLINS CHILDREN'S BOOKS
MARCH 2017
Expect magic, twists, fabulous villains and some great detective work in the new Goodly and Grave series by JUSTINE WINDSOR!
At the losing end of a bad gamble, Lucy finds herself living as a servant for the forbidding Lord Grave. Then, as news spreads of several mysterious child disappearances, Lucy suspects her employer knows more than he is saying... Will she be the next to disappear?
We asked debut author JUSTINE WINDSOR to tell us more about GOODLY AND GRAVE IN A BAD CASE OF KIDNAP.
Q: What took you into writing for children and what is it like having your first book published?
A: I'd always wanted to write a book, but although I tried over the years, I couldn't manage it because I didn't really know what it was I wanted to write. I wrote a lot in my career as a civil servant but that didn't satisfy my writing itch either. Then I heard about this slightly successful children's author, J K Rowling, you may have heard of her?
As soon as I read Harry Potter everything fell into place as I realised writing for children would let me set my imagination free and have fun. It took me a while to work up the confidence to begin, but from the very moment I started, that was it. I knew this was what I wanted to do more than anything else.
Achieving my aim of having a book published is simply amazing. Working with all the team at HarperCollins has been brilliant. One of the very best parts of the whole experience has been working with an illustrator. Becka Moor's fantastic work is such a delight and adds so much to the book.
Q: Why did you decide to set Goodly and Grave in the past - the Victorian times?
A: When Lucy and the other characters from Goodly and Grave began to grow in my head, one of the first things I realised about them was that they were from the Victorian era. So it was more their decision than mine!
I was also influenced by a book called The Winter of Enchantment by Victoria Walker (she now writes as Victoria Clayton), which has a Victorian setting My mum bought it for me one day when I was ill and off school. It had magic, an imprisoned girl, a wicked enchanter, and all sorts of other wonderfully fantastical elements as well as charming illustrations. I loved it and it remains one of my favourite books.
Q: The story has a kidnapping mystery at its heart that Lucy Goodly tries to solve - so it's a little like a detective story but with magic. Why did you decide to combine these elements?
A: I love writing about magic because there is so much scope to be creative and have fun. I have once or twice tried to begin writing something non-magical, but magic always creeps in somewhere. I also love a mystery or detective story, so combining the two seemed like a good idea.
Q: In the story, the bad guys and good guys are hard to tell apart, was it difficult to write it like this?
A: It was quite tricky as the good guys needed to seem bad and vice versa. I also needed to seed in clues that suggested characters might not be who they seemed to be so that when all is revealed their actions make sense. It made my head ache at times, keeping track of everything.
Q: In the end, Lord Goodly and Lucy Grave - Goodly and Grave - make a great detective pairing. Why did you decide a grumpy older man and a bright, magical girl would work well together?
A: I like detective pairings where the detectives are very different personalities and so I thought having Lucy and Lord Grave working together on cases would be enjoyable to wrote and hopefully to read. They are such opposites, I'm sure there will be a lot of conflict between them in their coming adventures, but of course they complement each other too and ultimately they like each other very much.
Q: How carefully did you need to plot out your story, which has lots of surprising twists?
A: Probably not as carefully as I should have initially! When I write the first draft of a book, I tend to know how it begins and how it ends, but am more hazy on the middle parts apart from one or two scenes.
My first drafts tend to be a deluge of ideas and incidents and everything is often far too complicated. One of my writer friends calls this 'having too many currants in the bun'. I then have to look at what I have and pick out which currants are essential to the bun I am making and which currants need to be thrown out or saved for another bun.
I possibly need to do more advance plotting as it would save a lot of currant-related angst.
Q: You also lay some careful clues - do you want the reader to understand more than the main character, Lucy?
A: Yes, I wanted the reader to be able to spot some clues that might suggest all is not what it seems, but without giving too much away. I also like the idea of a reader getting to the end of the book and realising there were clues that they may not have spotted initially, but add up looking back and I hope I might have achieved that. I find laying clues very, very difficult but also very, very satisfying.
Q: What are your top tips for writing a strong mystery / detective story?
A: My main tip would be not to have too many currants in your bun! Also, have a detective that your reader can identify with so they want to follow them on the trail they are pursuing. Have a good twisty plot with some convincing red herrings thrown in. Make sure your villain has a good reason for their actions, and that they get their just desserts at the end.
Q: There are some lovely magical creatures in the story, including a surprising cat and a flying horse. If you could have one of the creatures from the story, which would it be?
A: I am a huge animal lover and I really enjoyed creating the animal characters in the story. If I had to choose... I was going to say a talking cat, but my own non-talking cat might not like that. Also, cats are very observant creatures and sometimes you don't notice them sneakily watching you. A talking cat might blab all my deep dark secrets.
So, I think I would settle for a flying horse. Horses are such beautiful majestic creatures, riding one through the sky would be an amazing exhilarating experience and much more pleasant than using the tube. No more fighting for a seat!
Q: There are also some useful magical objects - a never-ending meal, cards that change, a secret library; which of these would you like to bring to life?
A: A never-ending meal might be good, but the downside of that is that I would probably eat until I burst, so perhaps not. A secret library is an enticing idea, especially if it has a comfortable armchair and a crackling fire. I might never be seen again. A magical playing card is tempting too. I could follow Lucy's bad example and cheat at poker, but knowing my luck I would be arrested before I'd made so much as a tenner.
Q: There are some great supporting characters in this story - a grumpy maid, a cook who makes terrible food, and Smell the cat, for example. Do you have a favourite and did any of them surprise you?
A: Smell has a very special place in my heart. He first appeared in a book I wrote years ago but never finished (he was a ghost cat in that version). But he kept demanding to be written about and so I eventually gave in. I love his character, how he gets distracted so easily and messes up. He has a very good heart though.
Mrs Crawley's cooking always surprises me. I think her experimental cuisine may have its roots in my childhood. A friend and I used to make disgusting concoctions from old ingredients we found in her kitchen cupboards. It was more about how disgusting we could make them look though as we never dared taste them!
Q: Was Lord Grave's house inspired by any places you have visited? It is also set inside a zoo, is that something you'd have loved as a child - or would panthers and elephants have terrified you?
A: Grave Hall is completely made up, although the wildlife park element of it may have been inspired by visits to Longleat. I would have absolutely adored living in a wildlife park and none of the animals would have frightened me except perhaps for any spiders that might live there. I was terrified of them as a child, because one crawled across my pillow when I was in bed (I ran downstairs very fast screaming and scared the life out of my parents).
I would love living in a wildlife park even now, though like Lucy I might not be so keen on mucking out the animals...
Q: Are you planning further adventures for Goodly and Grave?
A: Oh yes. I love writing Goodly and Grave and there are lots of magical adventures to come as Lucy discovers more about the magical world she is now part of and more about her own powers, which are remarkable. And of course she's going to get in lots of trouble along the way and meet many new magical baddies!
Q: Where do you write / do you have a favourite writing place? What are you working on now?
A: I have a massive writing shed at the bottom of my garden, full of fancy stationary and gorgeous fountain pens and a state of the art computer. The window overlooks a sumptuous rose garden, which my husband prunes to perfection.
Well, I have that in my dreams. In reality, I write in a corner of the living room and at the kitchen table. When I am stuck or finding there are too many distractions (Facebook, Twitter, hoovering behind the fridge. Like Smell I am easily sidetracked) I go out to a coffee shop.
At the moment, I am working on book two in the Goodly and Grave series - Goodly and Grave in a Deadly Case of Murder.
Q: What do you do to escape?
A: I read in the bath. That's where I get some of my best ideas! I also like eating out and trying new food (although my tastes aren't as experimental as Mrs Crawley's). It's nice to travel once in a while too and I particularly love the South of France and Greece. I also like watching box sets of detective series!
Goodly and Grave in A Bad Case of Kidnap (Goodly and Grave, Book 1)
