Tell us about your new picture book, The One and Only You
It’s a fact book – with one fact in it. I had wanted to write a picture book story that took in a tour of the universe but at the heart of it would be the reader. So it seemed both epic and personal to write about how in the entire history of the universe, and everything that will ever live in it, there will only ever be one of you. Ben Mantle’s stunning illustrations add the wow factor.
It is a very optimistic story. Does this reflect a wider message you are keen to convey?
It was a theme of my Boot series too, that for all the twists and turns of life there is always someone there to catch you.
It’s a collaboration with your regular illustrator Ben Mantle. How does that relationship work?
Ben is an extraordinary illustrator. It’s our fifth book together and he elevates every story. His work here is the best yet – vibrant, funny and packed with detail. Readers think we must work side by side but he’s based in England so, like many author/illustrator relationships, we only get to meet up occasionally.
What inspires stories such as your first picture book Dexter Lost His Boo-Woo?
Every story has a kernel of reality in it. That story, about a boy leading a search for a scary-sounding creature, was based on my daughter losing her favourite teddy on holiday. I might have been the responsible adult at the time, but we don’t like to dwell on that.
How do you find performing events for a younger audience? Happy, unfiltered chaos? And that’s just you?
They’re brilliant. They laugh at my stupid jokes and never run out of questions and enthusiasm. The only time I’ve ever had to complain about misbehaviour was because of chatty, disruptive teachers in one expensive private school.
What have kids taught you?
That every one of them has their own story and that we should encourage them to tell it and, very importantly, we should listen.
You are best known for two bestselling series, Darkmouth and Boot. Tell us about them
Darkmouth was a monster story about a reluctant hero and Boot about a lost robot, but both are about different stages of growing up and finding your place in the world. Boot has made a particular connection with readers and is what I now get asked about most – I like to think it’s because of the emotional themes but it’s probably because it has a daft robot unicorn called Killer and silly jokes about how leaky humans are.
What’s the latest on the film adaptation of Darkmouth?
I’m not directly involved, but I know there’s a talented team still working hard on it.
Irish children’s authors feature less in the bestseller lists than their adult contemporaries. Why might this be so and what can be done?
Multi-book, all-pervasive behemoths dominate the children’s charts, but all we can do is keep showcasing the wonderful Irish alternatives. Some, like Leona Forde’s excellent Milly McCarthy series, do break through. I am creative director of the Magic of Stories festival at Swords Castle each September, with a focus on Irish children’s book artists. It’s a privilege to be able to help introduce readers to their new favourite authors.
You used to be arts editor of The Irish Times. Do you miss it even a little?
Of course. I still have great friends there and miss being able to wander up to someone’s desk and chat through an idea.
Which projects are you working on?
I’m just finishing two more picture books for Hachette and am also working on something new and exciting which I’m hoping I’ll be able to talk about soon ...
Have you ever made a literary pilgrimage?
I was at the Hay-on-Wye festival a few years ago. To explore the extraordinary variety of the town’s bookshops was an absolute treat.
What is the best writing advice you have heard?
Was it Dorothy Parker who said “Writing is the art of applying ass on seat”? Ultimately, it still comes down to that.
Who do you admire the most?
I’m lucky to see the work done by teachers, who often go above and beyond for their students. They are undervalued.
You are supreme ruler for a day. Which law do you pass or abolish?
I think we have enough people wanting to be supreme rulers right now!
Which current book, film and podcast would you recommend?
I’m about to read Pádraig Kenny’s new book, After, and must recommend his previous book Stitch, which is a clever and affecting take on Frankenstein. I’m big into Severance on Apple TV – brilliantly realised sci-fi that shines a light on society, technology and grief. And for a podcast, I like In Our Time’s deep dive into eclectic topics. I forget everything five minutes later, of course.
Which public event affected you most?
I was in Stade de France when Johnny Sexton kicked that famous drop goal and lost my mind fully for a couple of minutes.
The most remarkable place you have visited?
Pompeii. How did they lose that place for so long? It’s huge.
Your most treasured possession?
Photographs. I think I could lose all possessions but those.
What is the most beautiful book that you own?
My parents gave me a first edition of WB Yeats’s Irish Fairy Tales for my 50th birthday and it was such a perfect and precious gift.
[ Age of transformation: the startling revelation about turning 50Opens in new window ]
Which writers, living or dead, would you invite to your dream dinner party?
That’s tough to answer because the most enjoyable thing about being at a festival is when writers are thrown together over dinner or in the pub. The randomness is the key.
The best and worst things about where you live?
I live in Skerries, Co Dublin, which last year made headlines as the “best place in the world to live”, so who am I quibble with the world’s press?
What is your favourite quotation?
From Louisiana’s Way Home by Kate DiCamillo: “Granny has many middle-of-the-night ideas.” Summing up a character in a single line is an efficiency I strive for.
Who is your favourite fictional character?
Arthur Dent in The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. That book, plus the character’s wry observations and befuddlement in the face of the absurd, were formative on my early and all subsequent writing.
A book to make me laugh?
See above. It gets funnier with every read.
A book that might move me to tears?
I could lie here to make myself sound more empathetic, but I honestly can’t remember crying over a book. Make of that what you will ...
The One and Only You by Shane Hegarty, illustrated by Ben Mantle, is published by Hachette Children’s Group
