More about the authors: Joe Craig

Trapped By Monster author Joe Craig writes the backside-booting, page-turning techno-thrilling stories of teen assassin Jimmy Coates. The books are devoured by boys 8+ and you can find out much more on the official Jimmy Coates website. But for now, ahead of his appearance in Abingdon on June 20th as part of Trapped By Monsters, we put a few questions to the sushi-loving author...

Q. Let's start at the beginning: Where did you get the idea for Jimmy Coates?
The idea developed over a period of a few weeks in February 2003. I was trying to come up with a story where every event turned out in a surprising way. I love thrillers – where you never know what’s going to happen next, but you just have to find out. I thought it would be fun to have a character who didn’t even know what he was going to do next himself, because something inside him was taking control – and then I decided that whatever it was inside him, it should be pretty sinister.

I was drawn to the idea of a boy being on the run because of what he is. In other words, it’s not because he knows something, or because he has something his enemies want – that would be too easy for him. Jimmy is stuck in a worse position – he can’t get rid of the evil, because it’s part of him.

Q. The first book in the series is Jimmy Coates: Killer. When you started it, did you have the entire plot in mind or did you develop it as you went along?
Both! I spent several months working on the plot before I wrote a single word. I drew diagrams, pictures, scribbled on thousands of scraps of paper (now I’ve learned it’s much easier in a notebook).

When I eventually started writing, the plot continued to evolve. I had to focus on the specific elements of each scene (the chases and the fights, for example, required careful acting out – but only with models). Essentially, the plot remained the same. Some points became more significant, and others, which I thought were going to be major events, shrunk.

Q. A lot of authors write from their own experience. I'm guessing you aren't a government robot - but is anything in your books true?
I’m not a government robot. Or am I? That’s the thing – I don’t know. I couldn’t know. You don’t know that you’re not a government robot. How could you?

Apart from that, there are elements in the book that are definitely true. These range from the small to the sinister. I’ll tell you a few of them.

Felix’s snacking. That’s me. His love of toast? Me. In fact I’m eating some right now. It’s not just Felix, though. I think all of the characters are elements of me. So in that respect, there is a lot of my own experience coming out in them (not that I have much experience of anything – I’m only 28 now, and my first book was mainly written when I was 23 or 24).

The tunnels underneath the streets of London? That’s all true. For example, there really is a disused tram tunnel that runs from Holborn Station down the length of Kingsway. That’s just one small part of London’s city beneath the city. It’s even true that some of the tunnels have been used for secret government purposes at various times. I have every reason to believe that some of them still are.

All the technology in the book is based on real technology, though I’ve embellished some things.
Also, the spy techniques mentioned are based on real techniques used by intelligence organisations around the world – including British Secret Services. And throughout history there have been secret government organisations getting on with the dirty work of running the country smoothly. I don’t mean distant history, either. I’m talking about the last few years and, who knows, maybe even the present day.

So yes, there is plenty in the book that is true – frighteningly true.

Q. Who are you writing for? Do you try your books out on children first?!
It’s primarily aimed at the 8 to 13 crowd. That’s quite a wide range, I know, but everybody is different. And I hope there will be people outside that range who enjoy it too. They might enjoy it on a different level, though. I hope so. Older readers might notice more of the undercurrents and more of the general questions I was thinking about when I wrote it. For everybody, I wanted it to be gripping, explosive and funny!

I tried the book out on one child – me! I count myself as a child when it comes to lots of things. The only person I am ever trying to entertain when I write is me. That might sound selfish, but I am very demanding, so I know that if I like it, it will be good enough. Besides, how could I expect anybody else to read my book if I didn’t love it myself?

Q. Have recent events in the world influenced your writing?
Great question. I think the answer is yes. However, I certainly don’t seek to write about events in the world. I’m interested in the general ideas and problems that have cropped up over and over throughout history. If I pick the right ideas, I hope what I write will always be relevant to events, simply because the same problems always recur.

Q. Were you a reader as a child? What were some of your favourite books?
I wasn’t really a reader as a child. So many great books have appeared in just the last few years that I would have loved, but they weren’t around when I needed them! I think if I were a child now I would definitely be a reader.

I started off with Dr Seuss, whose work I still love, and then read lots of Dick King-Smith. I also remember enjoying the series of books about the Bagthorpe family, by Helen Cresswell, though I can’t now remember a thing about them.

When I was about ten or eleven I stopped reading fiction and read books of sport statistics (I can still remember most of the stats, even though they’re out of date now). I also read film magazines from cover to cover.

I didn’t start reading fiction again until I was seventeen, but I haven’t stopped since!

Q: How do you relax?
I play football or cricket with my friends, I play the piano, listen to music, read, and watch movies. Or I invent new snacks that I then eat. I enjoy cooking - especially sushi.

Q: What is the best thing about being an author?
I get out of bed whenever I want. Or sometimes I don’t.

Q: If you could have one of Jimmy Coates’ special skills which would you choose?
The special skills I most want are ones that Jimmy doesn’t have. I want to be able to fly and make myself invisible. Actually, more than those, I want to be able to control objects using just my mind. I’d keep it a secret and become the world’s greatest ever sportsman.

Q. There are now 7 Jimmy Coates books - what's the one thing you'd say to convince us to go out and start reading them?Jimmy is on the run from the secret service because he was genetically engineered by them to have the abilities of the perfect assassin, but that’s not a future he wants! So the government is trying to eliminate him, while he has to fight to control his assassin instincts.I suppose if I could only say one thing about the series it would be this:It’s been described as ‘The Bourne Identity for kids’, which I take as the greatest compliment!

Jimmy appears live on stage as part of Trapped By Monsters, 1pm on June 20th - to reserve tickets, click here.