Today I climbed what felt like the steepest hill in the world, but it was worth it, because at the top of the hill, in the poshest hotel I have been in for a long time (butlers! giant chandeliers! ladies who lunch!), I got to sit and chat with Cassandra Clare. Here for the Auckland Writers and Readers Festival, Cassandra is speaking at both general festival events, and several sessions aimed more specifically at teens, including the festival’s schools’ programme, and the Wordy Day Out.
Cassandra is a best-selling author of two fantasy series for teens, the Mortal Instruments series (currently up to book 4: City of Fallen Angels), and the prequel Infernal Devices series (book 1: Clockwork Angel). I love these books, and am constantly waving them at people, both young and old, and so it was a great privilege to be able to meet Cassandra and talk with her.
I’m not going to say much else here, because you can listen to the whole interview below (apart from the bit where there was a small technical hitch involving a waiter, the pause button and some spaghetti bolognese). I will also be attending Sunday’s session on Fantasy writing, at which Cassandra is speaking, and will no doubt have some more to share about that later. For now, grab a cuppa and turn the volume up, and have a listen to this interview. I began by asking her what percentage of her audience were adults:
[9 minutes 8.8Mb .mp3]