Interview with Tim Lebbon
By Mark Yon / Hobbit (2008-04-24)
Interview with Tim Lebbon, April 2008
SFFWORLD: Hello Tim: welcome back!
TIM LEBBON: Its good to be back! I love what youve done with the place.
SFFWORLD: Its been 28 months since we last spoke properly about the release of DUSK, back in 2006. [LINK HERE.] What have you been doing in the mean time?
TIM: Its been a very exciting time! I quit my day job at the end of 2006, so Ive been writing full-time for about sixteen months now. My first project as a full-timer was the novelisation of 30 DAYS OF NIGHT, which ended up doing very well spent three weeks on the New York Times bestseller list, and its up for a Scribe Award this year, which is nice. Ive also written two new Noreela novels (more of which later), and Christopher Golden and I are collaborating on a series of contemporary fantasy novels for Bantam Spectra, the Novels of the Hidden Cities. These are stand-alone stories, connected thematically in that theyre all set in one of the worlds great cities. Chris and I are also writing Young Adult (YA) novels for Atheneum, a series called THE SECRET JOURNEYS OF JACK LONDON. And Ive written a YA novel myself, the first in the TOXIC CITY trilogy.
SFFWORLD: Are you finding the transition/responsibility of being a fulltime writer liberating or scary? I have heard other writers say theyve found it quite difficult
TIM: There are sometimes financial worries, and managing and predicting cashflow is still something Im getting used to for the last twenty years, Ive had a salary at the end of every month, and suddenly thats stopped! But I can honestly say, going full time is one of the best decisions Ive ever made. Its utterly liberating making my own living doing what I love to do, and even the low points are just part of the process. I feel happier now than ever before, my old day job feels like someone elses memory, and commuting into my den every morning still gives me a smile. Im very lucky.
SFFWORLD: The response to DUSK was pretty good, and of course you deservedly won the British Fantasy Award for Best Novel with DUSK, last year. I think youve been nominated five times before! Having been nominated so many times before, was that a surprise? Dare you think about, or are you brave enough, to try and say why do you think it won?
TIM: Theres footage on the web somewhere of my acceptance speech. More an acceptance splutter. I was stunned. There was a staggering list of nominees, and wining was something I truly wasnt expecting, especially as DUSK wasnt even published in the UK. It was a real thrill, and one of the best moments of my career. Not my first award, but my first award for a novel. I was and still am delighted.
Why did it win? Well, I think DUSK polarised opinion quite a bit. Some people adored it, and some werent at all impressed. And I think perhaps novels that provoke extremes of reaction are more likely to do well in such circumstances.
SFFWORLD: Id agree with that. I think many were surprised at the books, combining your love of horror with a fresh and different for you, new world. Sometimes I think it is that difference that can get things noticed.
TIM: I was happy to defy expectations, if thats the case. But as Ive always said, theyre books I wanted to write. It wasnt an intentional, conscious shift into fantasy, but rather a widening of the stuff I wanted to write about. Im sure thatll happen again, and again.
SFFWORLD: And, of course, since we last spoke, the HELLBOY work seems to have been well received. Have you had anything to do with the new movie? It looks pretty good in the trailer
TIM: No, I wrote an original Hellboy novel. Nothing to do with the first movie, and nothing to do with this one. The novels are actually based on the graphic novels, not the movies, as there are some differences.
SFFWORLD: Any more wishes to continue there?
TIM: Well you heard it here first, but as it happens, Ill be writing a brand new Hellboy novel for Dark Horse this year! Its called HELLBOY: THE FIRE WOLVES.
SFFWORLD: And so to your latest, FALLEN. Though it is set in Noreela, this looks to me to be something different to DUSK and DAWN. Would I be right in thinking its an exploration novel? How about an archaeology tale? Im also thinking an Indiana Jones type tale. But with that traditional, darker Lebbon twist?
TIM: Definitely with a darker twist, oh yes. FALLEN is a novel Im just so, so pleased with. I think the central idea is strong two explorers seeking the greatest secret in Noreela fall out on their journey, and it turns into a deadly race. And though its set in Noreela, it does have a different feel to DUSK and DAWN. Those two books were my first fantasy novels, and they were very large scale, world-in-peril books. FALLEN does have a large scope, both in idea and the distance travelled by characters in the novel, but its written from just two points of view, and because of that the story feels much smaller and more personal. I love these two characters, Ramus and Nomi. Their relationship is very difficult, and individually they are complex, challenged people. I definitely feel that the book is a huge step on from DUSK and DAWN, and its already attracted a starred review from Publishers Weekly, which is nice. I feel as though Im really starting to get to know Noreela, and I think that shines through in the novel though ironically, much of it is about discovery and exploration.
SFFWORLD: How does this new book expand on the earlier Noreela books?
TIM: Its set 4,000 years before DUSK, before magic introduced itself into the land for the first time. There are people who practise false magic, and those who know the secret uses of herbs and minerals. And there are also other things that happened due to curses, and old, old religions and belief. But no real magic. Not yet. But there are rumblings
SFFWORLD: So, a pre-history/prequel, then?
TIM: I wouldnt even call it a prequel, to be honest. Its a stand-alone story set in the same world, though much, much earlier. Theres some stuff that DUSK and DAWN readers will recognise, and plenty they wont, but the story itself is not directly connected, other than being set in the same world.
I found it interesting setting a book this long before the first two, because though I had a world to work with which was partly recognisable, there were also large differences to explore and write about. Physically Noreela is different in many small, and one large respect, and its population is also much smaller than in DUSK, and restricted mainly to the north. The farther south my characters go, the wilder and more deadly the land becomes. Its a real journey into the unknown.
SFFWORLD: This book seems to delve back into Noreelas sinister history, too. Is that something that has grown out of the earlier Noreela writing or something youve always thought about doing?
TIM: One thing I loved about writing the first two books was that a mere throwaway remark by one of the characters could inspire ideas for whole new novels set in the past. As I wrote them, a whole historical tapestry was forming in my mind. It was quite a different and exciting experience for me, because before that virtually all of my writing was set in our world.
FALLEN explores the strange history of the Sleeping Gods some more, and also reveals more about how some of the geography of the land was created.
SFFWORLD: How are you finding writing Fantasy, as opposed to your more traditional Horror? Sometimes it can be hard to get over those genre divides! Has it been different? Refreshing? Frustrating? Do you think you have grown as a writer, writing these books, do you think?
TIM: Different, yes, but in a wholly positive way. I think Ive grown as a writer, in that these Noreela books really encourage me to flex my imagination. I still work hard on characterisation, but Im enjoying the whole process of well, its creating a whole new world in my mind. Its quite staggering, really. Noreela is starting to feel very real to me, and though Ive already written a fourth novel set there (THE ISLAND, due 2009), Im growing more excited about it as time goes by.
SFFWORLD: There is a trend at the moment for darker, grittier Fantasy: Scott Lynch, Joe Abercrombie, Richard Morgan. This is clearly also something that is a theme in your Noreela books. Why do you think this is a recurring theme at present? Is it Fantasy evolving, or just genres melding?
TIM: With me, its just because thats the way I am. Much of what I write is horror, and when I wrote DUSK and DAWN, it was because the story itself interested, not the actual idea of writing a fantasy.
As for the more gritty fantasy, I dont know why that is. Maybe because of the way things are in the world at the moment? We need to read fiction where things are worse? Im not sure but I think its a good thing. Traditional heroic fantasy will always be with us, but these darker fantasies tend to blur boundaries more, which in my eyes has always been a positive thing.
SFFWORLD: Do such wider trends really matter to you as a writer?
TIM: Not especially ... I write exactly what I want to write, and what excites me, and Im very lucky to be able to do that. I dont set out to try and follow popular trends otherwise Id have turned to crime long ago (writing it, not perpetrating). I have done a little tie-in work, but even that is only stuff that I feel particularly in love with, like the Hellboy novels. Id never write a novelisation of High School Musical, unless it ended with all the kids being eating by flesh-eating platypii. Hey (scribbling notes).
SFFWORLD: That sounds more to my taste too. (grins) Youve been published for a while now (11 years by my reckoning.) How do you see the market at the moment, and how different is it to when you first started?
TIM: In the UK, its better than it has been for a while. The indie press has also come a long way since I began. Its all looking good, I reckon, although publishing in general has fallen in love with celebrity a bit too much for my liking. Imagine, if I had an affair with Joss Stone, and a Hello! Photo-shoot, my sales would rocket. Hey (emailing Joss Stone).
SFFWORLD: In a way it would be nice if we could we get to the point where genre writers might be as well respected as the celebrities? Theres JK Rowling of course, and I guess Philip Pullman, not to mention Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchettbut writing tends to be a solitary business for the most part. Have your own writing routines changed now that youre full-time?
TIM: Most weekdays I try to work all day. Ill check my emails early on, get the kids ready for school (and take them a couple of times each week), then I usually settle down with a cuppa about 9:30 and start writing. Ill take a couple of breaks through the day lunch, a run (training for a half marathon!) and I usually finish about 5:30-ish. Later in the evening, after the kids are in bed, I might do a bit more, though this is usually not actual writing. Answering emails, interviews, proposals for new books, chatting with my agent, or Chris Golden about our various projects Its a 24 hour job. And I bloody love it.
I still mainly take weekends off, depending on how pressing things are. But even then Im often tapping away on emails, brainstorming new ideas, or editing. My brains always working. Honestly. It just sometimes looks like it isnt.
As for the celebrity thing the four you mention are all great ambassadors for the genre of the fantastic, and were lucky to have them. Really, Im not bitter about people like Kate Price/Jordan being able to sell books simply because shes got huge assets (though have you had the misfortune to see even a snippet of the TV programme about her and Peter Andre? Two of the least interesting people I have ever set eyes upon!). And in fact, Im not sure they do sell books because readers respect them. Some do, Im sure, but isnt it really a kind of voyeurism?
SFFWORLD: Im getting the impression myself that (in the UK at least) things are looking up?
TIM: I think youre right! For the first time, I have a mainstream publisher in the UK. Allison & Busby will be releasing FALLEN in hardback in August, as well as my horror novel THE EVERLASTING (which actually has more than a dash of dark fantasy immortals, mythic books etc). So yes, its definitely looking up. Some of the grittier fantasy novels you mentioned above are selling exceedingly well, and Im hoping these books of mine with A&B are just the start of something big. Its very exciting! And Virgin have also started a horror line, which is fantastic.
SFFWORLD: Will that mean the appearance (or reappearance!) of older Lebbon stuff in the UK?
TIM: Nothing firm yet, but theres always the possibility, I guess. Id love to see FALLEN do well, and then perhaps see DUSK and DAWN make an appearance at some point. But its early days yet.
SFFWORLD: And the US?
TIM: The same. More horror is being published, and the fantasy market is very healthy over there. Im writing my fantasy novels for Bantam, and also the contemporary fantasy series with Chris Golden. Indie presses like Night Shade Books are starting mass market lines, too. There are the doomsayers, as usual, but I think things are looking good.
SFFWORLD: Havent really mentioned collaboration yet, but your collaborative work with Christopher Golden seems to be working really well. How are you finding the collaborative experience? And how does it work with you two?
TIM: Actually, the novels Im writing with Chris are very rewarding, and were both having a lot of fun with them. Theyre subtitled Novels of the Hidden Cities, and though theyre stand-alone stories, theyre linked thematically in that each novel is set in one of the worlds great cities. They explore the underside, the forgotten histories, the hidden myths of those cities. The first, MIND THE GAP, is due out at the end of May. Its set, as you might suspect, in London, and concerns a teenage girls discovery of her role in Londons strange, haunted history.
The second, THE MAP OF MOMENTS, is set in post-Katrina New Orleans, and was a real challenge to write. A gruelling, grim book, and the research for that really opened my eyes about the shameful mess of Hurricane Katrina. How something like that could have happened in the USA beyond belief.
Chris and I clicked right away when we first met a few years ago, and weve been good friends ever since. Working on something together was a natural progression we both love collaborating and the process is a real pleasure. We come up with quite a detailed proposal, then each set about writing a chapter or two at a time. We have a detailed conversation between each chapter about where were going from there, and we also edit each others work as things tick along. We have ideas for the next two books, and we hope to continue the series for as long as possible. Well certainly never run out of cities!
Actually, Chris is a Guest of Honour at this years British Fantasy Convention, and I get to interview him on stage! That is something Im really looking forward to (bwah-ha-ha!).
SFFWORLD: Future projects? Are you planning more Noreela? Back to Horror? More collaborations?
TIM: All of the above! Im hoping to write more Noreela novels, and I also have an idea for a stand alone fantasy book set in another, much stranger world. Night Shade Books are publishing my new horror novel BAR NONE this year. And as mentioned, Chris Golden and I are writing the continuing Hidden Cities series for Bantam, as well as the Jack London books for Atheneum. Ive also written my own YA novel, the first of a trilogy called TOXIC CITY.
SFFWORLD: How are you finding writing YA? Its a growth area at the moment, I think, but one thats often not as easy to write as some would assume. (The old story that goes along the line of If JK can do it, then I can are seemingly everywhere.) Is it a different process?
TIM: I really enjoy it. There were two routes I could have taken when I decided to try a YA novel: read as many as I could, and take advice from loads of writers about how to approach them; or just try it for myself. I plumped for the latter. When I wrote the first TOXIC CITY book, I did so from the point of view of a teenage character, and that really didnt change the way I approached the writing of it at all. I tried hard to project myself back twenty years, but Ive written quite a bit of stuff from the viewpoints of children (NAMING OF PARTS, THE REACH OF CHILDREN, UNTIL SHE SLEEPS), and I really enjoy that creative process. I found that whilst writing, I remembered a lot more about being a teenager than I thought possible, and I did my best to have my characters act, think, and react as teenagers would. I think it worked out really well.
SFFWORLD: We should, of course, mention that theres always updates and news on your three websites (yes, three of them!):
www.timlebbon.net
www.noreela.com
www.thehiddencities.com
SFFWORLD: Thanks, Tim: all the best.
TIM: Thanks Mark! Always a pleasure.
And an extract from Tim's latest novel, FALLEN, mentioned above, is HERE. | 
