If you were transported to a mythical land of dragons and Thread and were allowed to take only one person with you, Todd McCaffrey would be that person. A New York Times bestselling author, he inherited the pen that writes Pern from mother Anne McCaffrey (my favorite author ever. in the history of the universe) and keeps the series going as strong as ever.
What inspired you to start writing the Pern series, with and without your mother?
Well, actually, I had at one point sworn that I would never write on Pern. ("Be careful with your words / and be certain they are sweet / for be certain that they /you one day will have to eat!")
Years passed. A full decade or more. And then one day, over a decade past, I was cornered by Mum's editor and reminded that Mum would not live forever. This editor was very worried that without someone actively writing on Pern the series would, like too many others, wither and die.
Now, I would really like a world where we don't have to write stories about strong women beating sense into dumb men. I'd like a world where women and men respect each other and rely on each other. Sadly, that world isn't here yet (although with Michelle Obama's buff arms, it may have moved somewhat closer).
But still, I thought. I don't have any stories to write on Pern. And I thought that I'd be judged as a coat-hanger, a nepot. But I mentioned the idea to some of my writer friends and one said, "Why not? You've got a kid to put through college." I thought, at the time that that was a sensible notion.
Still... I didn't have any ideas to write on Pern. I wasn't going to write a bad story just to be writing. Readers are willing to go so far before they give up reading a world if all they're getting is junk.
And then I woke up from a dream in the middle of the night and I had the original version of "Wind Blossom's Song" and the plot for Dragonsblood.
And Dragonsblood, indirectly, set the stage for Dragonheart -- the two books actually start with the same Weyrleaders' meeting. And Dragonheart/Dragongirl/Dragonrider/Dragon?? form a series that answers the big unanswered question left over from Dragonsblood which is -- how, with about a thousand dragons out of the three thousand required, can Pern be kept Thread-free?
And *that* question sets up more questions which will be answered, too (at some point).
So I had Dragonsblood and I had Kindan. Dragon's Kin came by a round-about way that I've described elsewhere (check my letters and FAQ) and after that Dragon's Fire and Dragon Harper. Right now Mum and I are talking about combining forces for Dragonrider which is the sequel to Dragongirl (which itself is the sequel to Dragonheart) as there's a spinoff from that story which we both want to work on only we have to get the stuff in Dragonrider told first or the other story won't make sense.
What world - besides possibly Pern - would you transport yourself into if given the chance?
Well, I started writing when I was 13 and I had plenty of my own ideas. (Some of those will see the light of day, maybe, someday.) Since then, I've come up with several other ideas that I'd like to pursue and right now I'm looking at an idea I've been building upon since the late 90's.
I'm not certain that I'd like to transport myself to another world. I wouldn't mind a starship, though. I'd like to "boldly go" -- I think that could be cool.
What's your favorite movie? Book? Celebrity? Item to throw at an unsuspecting passerby?
Favorite movie? Nah, that's a moving target. I can give you a list of movies I thoroughly enjoyed:
E.T., Star Wars (episode IV), Back to the Future, To Kill a Mockingbird, It's a Wonderful Life, The Incredibles, Star Trek II-IV -- but the list is incomplete and no one is a favorite.
Ditto for books. Right now I'm enjoying Jim Butcher's "The Dresden Files" series. I'm also enjoying Patricia Briggs' "Mercedes Thomson" series. I read Janet Evanovich's "Stephanie Plum" series for fun -- they're a guilty pleasure. I enjoyed Harry Potter but wished that the last book had worked better for me.
Item to throw at an unsuspecting passerby? Wouldn't the only logical and decent item to throw be a kiss?
What has been your favorite event to attend and why?
Again, with the favorites! Life is far too varied to have *one* favorite anything!
That said, I *do* like science fiction conventions, particularly Dragon*con with its hugeness and Texas A&M's Aggiecon with their friendly smallness.
I do Disneyland and Disney's California Adventure (particularly the Animation Studio) on a regular basis -- because I live in Southern California.
And, to stick with the favorites theme I seem to have going, who has been your favorite character to write?
Again, I'm not so certain about a favorite as they vary over time. That said, however, Fiona has been the most interesting character to cross my pages since I started writing. I expect Xhinna will also surprise me and I have an enduring love of Lorana and her spirit.
Do you think anybody will continue the Pern series once you tire of it, or will it end with you?
Well, as Yoda said to Obi-Wan's ghost, "There is another." In fact, if Mum has her way, there are two others: my sister, Georgeanne Kennedy, and my daughter, Ceara. At this moment, however, neither of them are champing at the bit to write on Pern.
Quick. You're about to be mauled by a rabid hippopotamus. What do you do?
Die. Hippopotami are *big*! I'd expect to be nothing but pump.
Let's say you survive the rabid hippopotamus. What do you eat afterward? (Translation being: What's your favorite food?)
Well, as it's a *rabid* hippopotamus my favorite "food" for the longest time will be rabies shots. And, as I recall, the needles are long and go straight into your stomach, I doubt I'll be up for any gourmet meals for the foreseeable future.
But, if I ever recovered from the rabies and got out of Africa (by the way: common or pygmy?), I'd probably want to scarf down some honest-to-goodness New York pizza on my way back to wherever. Pizza is not usually my favorite food and New York pizza is the only proper pizza to consume -- proper New York pizza, at that.
As for favorite snacks -- it's a toss-up between popcorn and Jelly-tots (neither are good for me).
One household favorite is my mother's famous tuna casserole. Here's the recipe:
1 - large can white tuna
1 - large back of Lay's Salt&Vinegar potato chips
1 - can Campbell's Cream of Mushroom soup (concentrate)
1 - medium onion, diced
pepper to taste
Preheat oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit.
Drain the tuna. Place it in a large oven-proof casserole dish. Using a fork (or whatever), mash the tuna into individual strands. Add the diced onion, mix. Add the Cream of Mushroom concentrate (do *not* add water!). Mix. Add pepper to taste (this can be a bland dish without enough pepper).
Now comes the fun part. Pop the top of the large bag of chips and then mash the chips into little itty-bitty bits. Miniscule, microscopic. Pour in a portion of the smashed chips, stir into the mix. Pour in more, stir. Repeat until all the chips are in the dish. By the end, the mix should be very dry -- don't worry.
Place in the oven for about 45 minutes, until the top is brown and the onions have cooked.
Serve hot. Usually makes about 4 servings, never lasts for leftovers. I usually serve fresh (or frozen) peas and corn on the side.
--
I do love California Pizza Kitchen and eat there when we can (contrary to popular belief, most writers aren't millionaires -- not even close). For myself, I like a nice vegetable curry (home made), I also like Chili, spaghetti, most of the usual stuff. What I hate are mussels and scallops (they make me ill). When it comes to hot dogs (one of my favorite foods), Hebrew National are the only choice (I get the reduced fat version but don't get the fat-free version which just doesn't taste right).
I also like Chinese and Thai foods. When we're in Ireland we usually make a pilgrimage to China Sichuan and I invariably have the Beef with Garlic sauce (or as the Chinese say, Beef with Fish Sauce -- apparently the inlanders decided that the smell of garlic was a fishy smell, hence the name).
Thanks for stopping by, Todd! Check out the DragonRiders of Pern series as soon as you get a chance, oh lurvely readers - they kind of pretty much rock.
~N