William Sutcliffe
Circus of Thieves is a funny book for 8-12 year olds about a nefarious circus troupe who put on a show, then burgle the audience while they are watching. Fortunately, our heroine, Hannah, and a boy she befriends from the circus, Billy, have other plans. The fantastic illustrator, David Tazzyman, has done some brilliant pictures for it.
The idea was sparked by bedtime reading with your son so can you tell us a bit more about this?
My wife has been telling me for years that I should write something funny for children, then one night I was reading Mr Gum to my son, who was bellowing with laughter, and I finally thought I’ve got to stop daydreaming about it, and actually sit down and write something. And I did. And when I read it to my son, I’m delighted to say that he laughed, which was the whole point of the exercise.
How does writing for children compare to writing for adults?
I don’t want to jinx anything, because I’m currently at work on a sequel, but I found writing Circus of Thieves and the Raffle of Doom strangely easy. It just flowed in a way that I don’t think I have felt with my writing for a long time. I think children of this age like crazy ideas that bounce off in unexpected directions, so I found that writing for this age group was less about discipline and focus, more about letting my mind float off in whatever direction seemed funny, which, to be honest, is very enjoyable. You have to be rigorous in your rewrites, but doing that first draft felt close to messing about – and that’s a feeling I wanted to come across on the page. I didn’t pitch anything to anyone, or even tell my agent I was doing it, I just wrote it to see if it worked, and for the fun of it.
You have written for adults, children and young adults so do you have a preference?
It’s the variety of switching from one set of demands to another that is the best thing. If you don’t change stylistically, you’re just doing the same thing every day, which can be hard.
You were shortlisted for the Guardian Fiction Prize, so how did this make you feel?
Like a dog feels when you tickle it on the tummy.
How much feedback did you get from your son while writing the book?
I read it to him in two chunks, listened to his ideas, and also jotted down what he found funny and when his attention seemed to flag. I then rewrote and did my best to cut the boring bits.
Why do you enjoy bedtime reading with your son so much?
In a noisy house with three children, it’s really important to fit in some one-on-one time at the end of the day. And it is also a huge pleasure – especially if the book is making your child laugh.
What is next for you?
I’m hard at work (in a gazing out of the window trying to think of silly jokes kind of way) on the second book in the series: “Circus of Thieves on the Rampage.”