Interview by Shannon Barnes
Tell us about your latest book or a project you are working on.
Right now, I am working on the third instalment of the Nansi series. I won’t say it’s the last, but this book brings our crew into Grade 8 and the end of elementary school. I’m super excited I get to share the whole series with kids across Canada and beyond.
Tell us about your writing process.
There are really two parts to my writing process: persistence and space. I try my best to get up really early and write. I don’t tell myself how much I will write, but I stay focused on it for an hour (sometimes two). On good days, I also write during my lunch hour. The first stage is about getting the story out; once it is done, it usually is quite rough. Then I need space, so I will often start writing a new project. When the new project is completed but rough, I turn my attention back to the first story. That space allows me to see all of the oddities and really turn the rough chunk of a story into something worthwhile.
How did you first get published?
I don’t have an agent, so I was lucky enough to know people at the publisher, Kids Can Press. At first, the story was written as a picture book, but my friend who read it and I knew it was better as a graphic novel. I rewrote it and gave it back to her. She, in turn, passed it on to someone she knew in the editorial department. The editor really liked it and pitched it. A couple of years later, it was published.
What do you like about writing for young people?
I don’t consciously write stories for young people or old. I just write, and when it’s done, it takes on whatever character it has. But I really love finding out how young people experience the book. I was lucky enough for Way off Track to be part of a summer reading program, and I got to read some of the kids’ reviews. I loved reading what they had to say, even when it was brutally honest about the things they didn’t like.
Tell us about writers who inspire you.
There are many writers who inspire me, and continue to inspire me. I have always looked to the way Louise “Mrs. Lou” Bennett kept the Anansi stories alive, and I feel grateful that her words inspired me to use our Jamaican language in my books. I love how Taiyō Matsumoto can pull me into joyously slice-of-life worlds. I have really lost myself in Ram V's ability to weave Indian spirituality into comics. And I love hearing my son read Jon Le Bon comics and chuckle all the way through, hoping I can do the same for some other kid when they read my books.
Follow Carl Brundtland on Instagram @no_laughs_b.