Nancy Springer Q&A
Question:
What is it about the Holmes canon that has inspired so many offshoots starring everyone from irregulars to noncanonical wives, children, and siblings?
Answer: I wish I knew. No other fictional character ever has been as “real” as Sherlock Holmes. I wish I knew how Conan Doyle did it.
Question: What was it like infusing the world created by Conan Doyle with a feminine, one would say flowery touch?
Answer: Fun. Rollicking good fun.
Question: Have you always had an interest in ciphers or did the creation of Enola lead you into a deep dive of cryptography?
Answer: Writing about Enola Holmes led me there. I had no interest in secret codes until I learned how many of them Victorian women had to use, and why.
Question: It’s been over a decade since your last Enola Holmes Mystery, did the success of the Netflix movie, leading to renewed interest in the series, so much so that readers could literally not get a physical copy of any of the Enola Holmes books, inspire you to continue her adventures, hopefully over several books, or was it just a happy coincidence?
Answer: I actually wrote Enola Holmes and the Black Barouche* and some other Enola Holmes novels after the 2008 recession, but they didn't sell then.
Question: For me, adaptations are an obsession. Though contrarily I totally believe, unlike many others who don’t hold this stance, that books are the final product in and of themselves and adaptations are just a nice additional. Has having the first Enola Holmes book adapted changed your opinion on the series?
Answer: I'm not sure I understand your question**. I'll just say that when writing about Enola Holmes, I try to stick to my original vision of her and not let the movie intrude.
*Out today!
**I was trying to weigh in on the book world controversy where some people don't believe a book has really "made it" until it has been adapted. Which is a total disservice to the awesomeness of literature in my humble opinion. But as you can see with so many people only picking up Nancy's work once it was adapted, to them, having work being adapted matters.
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