During Comic Con International in San Diego, I had the opportunity to sit down author John Stephens, whose YA fantasy novel, The Emerald Atlas, has generated both excitement and fans. Centering on three orphaned children—Kate, Michael, and Emma—The Emerald Atlas begins their tale of adventure and magic as they travel through history in search of their parents while battling “a horrible evil of devastating power, an evil they know nothing about” (from the book description).
It’s an exciting book that kicks off a new trilogy, but it’s little wonder that the book is so good: John Stephens is a natural and life-long storyteller. Prior to writing The Emerald Atlas he spent ten years in television, as executive producer of Gossip Girls and a writer for Gilmore Girls and The O.C. But as he explains in the interview below, writing for television helped to focus his prose writing.
In our interview below, John talks about how Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials books inspired him to write YA fantasy, the similarities between writing for television and writing prose, and gives you some insight into The Emerald Atlas. It’s an interesting look at a book we’ve enjoyed and an author we hope is at the beginning of a long career.
Enjoy.
The Emerald Atlas is available as a hardcover, ebook, and audiobook (read by Jim Dale, of Harry Potter audiobook fame).
