Q&A with Samantha Shannon

Posted by D on Saturday, September 07, 2013

A couple of weeks ago, I reviewed a book which has been receiving a ton of buzz recently - The Bone Season, by Samantha Shannon. The Bone Season hasn't even been out for a full three weeks yet, but it's already gone into its third print run! With rights sold in 21 languages, film rights already optioned, and an Oxford degree under her belt, this 21-year-old is definitely well on her way to having her seven-part series become the next big thing. Courtesy of Penguin Canada, here's a brief Q&A with Samantha Shannon:


When did you begin writing The Bone Season and what inspired the story?
I started writing The Bone Season when I was nineteen years old, shortly after completing an internship at David Godwin Associates (DGA), a literary agency in Seven Dials, a small district in London. While I was there, I had a vivid image of a girl having the same day at work as me, but she happened to be clairvoyant – and The Bone Season was born. I sent the finished book to the same agency in April 2012 and it was bought by Bloomsbury a month later.

You wrote The Bone Season whilst studying at Oxford.  How did you find the time?  Describe your writing process.
I was mostly an indoor girl at university. Where other students did drama or music or sport alongside their degrees, I wrote. I used to work on essays and classwork during the day and The Bone Season in the evenings.  


How do you feel about the film?  Are you nervous about the big screen adaptation?
I’m thrilled about the movie rights being sold, although film can be an incredibly slow process and I know it will take a while to happen. I don’t want to write the screenplay – I’ll leave that to a professional screenwriter – but it’s a huge relief to have consultation rights, and to know that my opinion will always be taken into account. Andy Serkis, Jonathan Cavendish and the rest of the team at Imaginarium are passionate, committed, and always keen to hear what I have to say. It’s incredibly exciting to be working with such a new, innovative production company, especially as it’s based in west London, where I live.

When can we expect the sequel?  Do you know what's going to happen? Are you excited to be staying in the world of Scion for the new books?  What is the expected time-frame for all seven books?
The sequel will be largely set in London and will focus more closely on the clairvoyant syndicate, which I didn’t get to explore much in the first book. I’m really excited for this one, as I’ll be able to redesign and transform large parts of London, which is my home city. I’m hoping to finish a first draft by early 2014 at the latest so you shouldn’t have to wait too long.    

*Author photo by Mark Pringle 

One Comment

  1. Hadn't even heard of this - but I love being in on the current popular favorites, so I'll have to check it out!

    ReplyDelete

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