Neil Gaiman on the Newbery, Coraline the Movie

Despite the fact that Neil Gaiman has tons of fans and dozens of awards under his belt, winning the Newbery on January 26 threw him for a loop. 

School Library Journal spoke to the 48-year-old graphic novelist and sci-fi/fantasy writer about nailing the highest honor in children’s literature, Coraline hitting the big screen, and his latest Batman graphic novel.  

Did you ever imagine winning the Newbery while writing The Graveyard Book (HarperCollins)? 
No, I never thought that I was the kind of author that wins Newberys. Generally, I always thought that they were a lot more respectable than me and had been doing it a lot longer. I’m just thrilled and baffled. It’s just wonderful.

So you were in L.A. promoting Coraline the movie. You were just going about your business and completely forgot the Newbery winner was going to be announced on the morning of January 26?
I had so little thought of the Newbery that after two days of promoting Coraline in Los Angeles, it was my day off. So that night, I did that thing where you have a long bath after midnight and you sit in bed and read. At 3 o’clock in the morning, you set the alarm for 11 [a.m.], and you hang the “Do Not Disturb” sign on the door, and you know that you have nothing to worry about. But maybe two hours later, the phone kept ringing and ringing, and I was trying to figure out what it was. I thought maybe the hotel was on fire. It took me completely by surprise.

Tell us about that phone call.
I got a call from my assistant, who is currently staying in my house looking after my sick dog, that she’d got a message from my agent that someone was trying to get hold of me. I was doing that thing where you’re going, “Oh, I hope nobody’s died.” Then I got a phone call a few minutes later from people saying, “Hello, we’re the Newbery Committee, and you won!”

What was the first thing that went through your mind when you heard the news?
I can’t swear! These are librarians and teachers. But I’m just thinking, “F---, I won the Newbery, F---!” But I’m saying to myself, “Don’t say that.” So I didn’t. I’m not quite sure what I did say. I think I said, “Do you mean it’s Monday?”

You did curse in your tweet. 
I tweeted once I was sort of up and trying to figure out what was going on, that somebody is trying to phone me, somebody is trying to get hold of me. And I thought, I’ll twitter it. 

You’ve won lots of awards, so does the Newbery make a difference? 
Oh, enormously. Over the years, I’ve won many major awards. And every now and again you win one and it makes a difference in some way. It makes either a difference in how you see yourself or how the world sees you. And the first time when Sandman, my comic, won the World Fantasy Award for best short story it changed everything because it was the first time that any comic had ever won a prose award. And winning the Hugo Award for American Gods changed things for me.

How so? 
I felt like I was a real novelist, and people were taking me seriously. But the Newbery is far and away probably the most important. It means that you are seen as being part of a group of books that are of quality and ensures survival over the years. You are part of some kind of strange literary canon, that maybe you’ve written a book that will outlive you. And it’s a wonderful place to be.

What have you heard from people back in England?
I think the thing that thrilled me the most was seeing an article in the Guardian in the U.K. They were talking about the debate recently with the Newberys, whether they should be about popularism or whether they should be about excellence. [The article said] the best thing about The Graveyard Book is that it kills the argument from both directions because it’s excellent and it’s popular.

Some might argue that this is the first Newbery in years that’s loved by both kids and librarians.
I’ve been reading the various articles, and the blogs, and newspapers about whether the Newberys were out of touch, what kinds of books should win Newberys and stuff like that. And I’m thrilled. I think librarians are awesome. Librarians are the coolest people out there doing the hardest job out there on the frontlines. And every time I get to encounter or work with librarians, I’m always impressed by their sheer awesomeness.

So now you have the Newbery under your belt and Coraline is out on the big screen. How are you handling all this madness?
Dreadfully. I feel like I should be sort of much less mad and bubbly than I am.

Has it sunk in yet?
No. None of it. I was saying to a friend that I’m really pleased that I’ve had 20 years of winning awards, 20 years of having to talk to newspapers and TV, and stuff like that because if I was a quiet young author who hadn’t done this stuff, this would destroy me. I could just see myself falling apart.

Are you happy with the way Coraline has translated to the big screen?
Oh, I think [director] Henry Selick is a genius. There is nobody like Henry. That he has taken my novel and turned it into this amazing thing is just wonderful. It’s the world’s most ambitious stop motion film that anybody has ever made.

Do you think it’s as scary as the book?
I don’t know how scary the book is because I wrote it. The only time I’ve ever been scared by the book was a few years ago, the first time I ever listened to the [British actress] Dawn French audio book. I remember listening to it, and I was in the middle of the chapter where the little ghost children are behind the mirror, sort of pleading with her to find their souls, and at that point, it did scare me. 

Was it always the intention for the movie to be animated? 
That was always my intention. That is why I sent the book to Henry Selick when I finished the first draft because I loved The Nightmare Before Christmas so much.

How closely were you involved in the making of the film? 
I was involved on some things and not on others. The joy of making a stop motion film is they are so slow. I got to suggest some casting, for example. For instance, Jennifer Saunders as the two old little ladies downstairs. All the other casting was Henry’s.

When writing for kids, do you ever think that it might be too frightening?
The only people that I’ve ever encountered who were scared by that book were adults. Kids read it as an adventure because it’s about somebody their age going up against something nasty and winning. It’s like a James Bond book. Adults are reading a book about a child in danger, and that is a much scarier thing. 

The book has been out for a while, but what are some memorable responses from kids?
I get loads of letters from schools, drawings, letters, and whenever I can I write back. I sometimes fail to write back because there’s always a bit too much mail.

What made you decide to write children’s books?
I was a child once. And when I was a child, the most important thing you could read was children’s books. Children’s books were things that I felt were exciting and cool. When I was a kid, I knew that when I grew up I wanted to write children’s books. My first book that I ever wrote was a children’s book. It didn’t get published. But that was a good thing because it was terrible. I was 20, but that was where I started.

Did having your own kids have an impact?
Really, I think it was just having children. At the point where I had children, once you get to that point you realize that there’s a desperate need to provide them with the kind of fiction that they like and that was really where it began.

Did you read your books to your three children?
Always. They’re amazing. When I finished my book The Wolves in the Walls, I remember that was when my daughter Maddy was still in kindergarten or first grade. She was about six. And I phoned her teacher and said, “Would you mind if I read this to this class just to see if it works?” And she said, “Not at all.” So I came in and read it to her class. What’s lovely is that kids aren't fake. They haven’t figured out the whole thing about being polite yet. So if they like it, they like it. If they don’t like it, they don’t like it. It’s lovely and crisp and even.

So you’re back to writing graphic novels again.
I’m currently writing a Batman two-parter. It’s the death of Batman. And the first part comes out in about a few weeks' time.

Are you finally heading back home to Minnesota?
Now I fly back to Los Angeles, which is where I started out before this odyssey, and I get back to promoting the Coraline film.