SUBSCRIBE
SUBSCRIBE
SLJ Blog Network +
  • 100 Scope Notes
  • A Fuse #8 Production
  • Good Comics for Kids
  • Heavy Medal: A Mock Newbery Blog
  • Teen Librarian Toolbox
  • The Classroom Bookshelf
  • The Yarn
  • Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • About/Contact
  • Previews
  • Reviews
  • Manga
  • All Ages
  • Young Adult
  • Interviews
  • News

January 17, 2013 by Brigid Alverson

Interview: Jane Yolen on Curses: Foiled Again

January 17, 2013 by Brigid Alverson   Leave a Comment

Teenager Aliera Carstairs has a pretty good head on her shoulders. She doesn’t have much patience for angst or drama; she describes herself as “A smart, lonely girl with a singular talent for swordplay.” By swordplay, she means fencing, which she is serious about and which forms the motif for both Yolen’s first book, Foiled, and the sequel, Curses: Foiled Again, both illustrated by Mike Cavallaro. (We all did a roundtable discussion about Foiled when it first came out.)

Aliera is pretty solid, but in Foiled, Yolen threw her a couple of curve balls: First there was the cute if not too bright boy Avery, who stirred a few preliminary feelings that Aliera found rather confusing. Then, on what was supposed to be her first date with Avery, in the grand concourse of Grand Central Station, Aliera found herself in the center of a battle between fairies and other otherworldly creatures and learned that she, Aliera Carstairs, was the defender of the fairy kingdom of Seelie. And Avery? He was a troll. Literally.

SCROLL TO KEEP READING THIS POST

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

Curses: Foiled Again picks up Aliera’s story, with more trolls, more fairy-fighting action, and more wry humor. You can see a preview of it here, and we asked writer Jane Yolen to talk about writing comics in general and this graphic novel in particular—and we have a few sample pages as well, so you can get a look at Cavallaro’s art.

GC4K: What comics did you read when you were a child?

Jane Yolen: Archie, Superman, Pogo, and Tales from the Crypt were all favorites, an odd collection, don’t you think?

Indeed! Are you still reading comics? What are your favorites?

Linda Medley, Hellboy, anything by Neil Gaiman, anything by Charles Vess, anything put out by Toon, First/Second, Dark Horse. Love graphic novels like Stitches, Maus, Laika, Deo Gratias, etc.

How has your view of comics as a storytelling medium evolved as you have worked on these books? What surprised you as you worked on them?

As a picture book author, the writer and illustrator are always kept apart. They do not confer. As a graphic novelist I was thrown into the real maelstrom/compost heap of consultation/advisory working together.

You have written picture books and prose novels—how is writing a graphic novel different? Do you visualize the scenes as you write them?

LOTS of visualization and re-visualization going on when working on graphic novels. Very cinematic. I am the writer, and now I must learn to be director and costumer, too. And I have to speak in lyrical shorthand. Being a poet at heart really helps.

Writing about teens for teens is tricky. How did you shape Aliera and Avery to make them seem genuine to the readers?

My teenage grandaughter lives next door with my daughter. I spend a lot of time eavesdropping. They also read the mss. and told me when I missed the mark.

Did you start with the characters and develop the story for them or vice versa?

The characters tell me what is to happen next within a rather loose framework of story/plot. I listen.

With all of myths and legends to choose from, how did you decide which types of characters to include–why trolls and not ogres, for instance?

Even with all the conversation about eating Aliera, with trolls it’s all bluff. Ogres are the awful cannibalistic ones. There are a few in the final battle scenes.

Will Aliera’s story continue after this? How long do you think the series can go on?

Right now I a hoping the publisher will pick up book 3. It’s not a done deal. Ask me again if and when that one gets done.

Filed under: Graphic Novels, Interviews, Young Adult

SHARE:

Read or Leave Comments
First SecondGraphic NovelsJane YolenMike CavallaroYoung Adult

About Brigid Alverson

Brigid Alverson, the editor of the Good Comics for Kids blog, has been reading comics since she was 4. She has an MFA in printmaking and has worked as a book editor and a newspaper reporter; now she is assistant to the mayor of Melrose, Massachusetts. In addition to editing GC4K, she writes about comics and graphic novels at MangaBlog, SLJTeen, Publishers Weekly Comics World, Comic Book Resources, MTV Geek, and Good E-Reader.com. Brigid is married to a physicist and has two daughters in college, which is why she writes so much. She was a judge for the 2012 Eisner Awards.

ADVERTISEMENT

Related Posts

March 2023

Azuki Manga | Interview

by Brigid Alverson

March 2023

Kami Garcia on 'Teen Titans: Robin' | Interview

by Brigid Alverson

August 2021

Gender Queer: A Memoir | Creator Interview

by Brigid Alverson

March 2018

Teens, Graphic Novels, and Mental Health: An Interview with Dr. Jennifer Jenks

by Brigid Alverson

August 2017

Interview: School's Out for 'Gotham Academy'

by Brigid Alverson

ADVERTISEMENT

SLJ Blog Network

100 Scope Notes

One Star Review, Guess Who? (#184)

by Travis Jonker

A Fuse #8 Production

Announcing the 2023 Winners of the Annual Blueberry Literary Award!

by Betsy Bird

Good Comics for Kids

Review: Victory! Stand!

by Esther Keller

Heavy Medal

March suggestions: early Mock Newbery possibilities

by Emily Mroczek-Bayci

Teen Librarian Toolbox

Penguin Random House Showcase 2023

by Amanda MacGregor

The Classroom Bookshelf

The Classroom Bookshelf is Moving

by Erika Thulin Dawes

The Yarn

Newbery Medalist Amina Luqman-Dawson visits The Yarn

by Colby Sharp

ADVERTISEMENT

Related Articles on SLJ

Shoujo Manga: Let's Hear It for the Girls | Mondo Manga

Funny Books for Unfunny Times

Best Graphic Novels 2021 | SLJ Best Books

8 Pitch-Perfect Manga for Music-Loving Teens | Mondo Manga

10 Graphic Biographies Bring Notable Figures to Life | Stellar Panels

Commenting for all posts is disabled after 30 days.

ADVERTISEMENT

Archives

Follow This Blog

Enter your email address below to receive notifications of new blog posts by email.

This coverage is free for all visitors. Your support makes this possible.

This coverage is free for all visitors. Your support makes this possible.

Primary Sidebar

  • News & Features
  • Reviews+
  • Technology
  • School Libraries
  • Public Libraries
  • Age Level
  • Ideas
  • Blogs
  • Classroom
  • Diversity
  • People
  • Job Zone

Reviews+

  • Book Lists
  • Best Books
  • Media
  • Reference
  • Series Made Simple
  • Tech
  • Review for SLJ
  • Review Submissions

SLJ Blog Network

  • 100 Scope Notes
  • A Fuse #8 Production
  • Good Comics for Kids
  • Heavy Medal
  • Neverending Search
  • Teen Librarian Toolbox
  • The Classroom Bookshelf
  • The Yarn

Resources

  • 2022 Youth Media Awards
  • The Newbery at 100: SLJ Celebrates the 100th Anniversary of the Award
  • Special Report | School Libraries 2021
  • Summer Reading 2021
  • Series Made Simple Spring 2021
  • SLJ Diverse Books Survey
  • Summer Programming Survey
  • Research
  • White Papers / Case Studies
  • School Librarian of the Year
  • Mathical Book Prize Collection Development Awards
  • Librarian/Teacher Collaboration Award

Events & PD

  • In-Person Events
  • Online Courses
  • Virtual Events
  • Webcasts
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Advertise
  • Subscribe
  • Media Inquiries
  • Newsletter Sign Up
  • Content Submissions
  • Data Privacy
  • Terms of Use
  • Terms of Sale
  • FAQs
  • Diversity Policy
  • Careers at MSI


COPYRIGHT © 2023


COPYRIGHT © 2023