I really love talking about the zombie apocalypse. I find the idea sparks a lot of passionate conversation, whether you’re normally a fan of speculative fiction or not. There’s something about the trope that really brings out the inventive side of people.
That’s very true of Lauren Baratz-Logsted, author of Zombie Abbey, which I read a few weeks ago. And today she’s here to talk with us about her book, her ideas, and some of her favorite aspects of the zombie phenomenon.
Zombie Abbey is definitely The Walking Dead meets Downton Abbey. Are you a fan of either of those shows? How did they play into the advent and development of Zombie Abbey? If they didn’t, where did the idea come from?
I’m a huge Downton Abbey fan! As for The Walking Dead, that’s my husband’s and daughter’s show, but I’ve walked through the room often enough when they’re watching to get the gist. One day it just occurred to me: ‘Why shouldn’t there be something that combines both types of worlds?’ So, having thought it, of course then I just had to create it.
Awesome, I love unexpected combinations. In fact, when I first read the premise, I was instantly drawn to the idea of zombies in a historical context. How do you balance writing to familiar tropes readers expect from the historical genre while still telling a unique story?
It’s probably more simple than it sounds. You create this lovely world of a beautiful country estate and elegant gowns and such…and then you explode it all wide open by throwing a bomb of a major event into that world. In a regular historical context, that event might be a war. In this case, it just happens to be zombies.
An explosion seems like an apt description for some of what went down. And the end of Zombie Abbey left the way wide open for more books. Are there any plans for a sequel?
I would love to write one! (And another and another…) That said, it’s ultimately up to the publisher. So here’s hoping enough readers enjoy this one that it’ll warrant a sequel. (Oh, the ideas I have…)
Ideas, hmm? I’m intrigued. This story was mostly about how the Clarke family and their guests first encounter this plague of “dead, then not dead” creatures. What aspects of the zombie apocalypse would you be excited to address next?
Right now, everyone under the roof at Porthampton Abbey is in stay-and-fight mode. But what happens as the number of zombies increases? What happens when supplies begin to dwindle? I’m thinking at some point, they’re going to have to flee that estate, lovely as it is, in the hopes of finding somewhere less overrun with zombies. But where will they go? Which characters will try to claim power? And in what unlikely places will love grow?
So many things to explore. It sounds like you had a lot of fun thinking and plotting out all the possibilities, and this book really seemed like a labor of love. Was there anything you were particularly proud of in Zombie Abbey?
You know, sometimes as an author, you write a book with half an eye toward history — maybe you’re trying to say something important about the world we live in or you’re hoping to win literary awards. Well, from start to finish, my greatest aspiration for this book was that in a world in which we are daily bombarded with bad and sad news, that it offer a campy respite from misery; that readers would laugh and just have a good time with it. There are worse things than writing a book that people find entertaining and — so far, at least! — the majority of readers seem to be entertained. So if I have given some readers something to be entertained by for a few hours, I’m most proud of that.
I think that’s pretty admirable, and I think you managed it with Zombie Abbey. In the same vein, what are you most proud of in our career as a whole?
After nearly 40 books, it’s tough to pick just one! That said, I’d have to go with The Sisters 8 series for young readers, which I created with my husband and daughter. The books have sold over a quarter of a million copies and almost daily I receive letters from kids, their parents and grandparents, teachers and librarians, often saying something along the lines of, “X hated reading before she discovered these books.” There are also letters from kids where you can tell they’re lonely at school and they write about the books making them feel less lonely because they feel like the eight sisters depicted in the stories are their friends. Finally, there was the letter from the little girl who told me that her brother had died earlier that year and that The Sisters 8 had somehow given her cause to feel cheer again. Being part of something that makes kids feel good? I can’t imagine anything in my career giving me more pride.
Wow, that’s something I can definitely relate to. Getting to create something with the people you love and then seeing that creation change people’s lives sounds truly amazing. But, tell me, what are you currently working on, aside from zombies?
In June, the paperback edition of I Love You, Michael Collins comes out; it’s a children’s book about what happens in one girl’s family during the summer when men first walked on the moon. In August, my next adult novel comes out; that one’s called The Other Brother and centers around a Mick Jagger-like figure. I also have another YA coming out, I Dream of Johnnie, a contemporary comedic romance about a teenage girl who finds a genie on the beach, but I don’t have a date for that one yet.
You had me at “teenage girl who finds a genie.” I’ll be waiting not-so-patiently for that one. Okay, last question: the world has been overrun by the living dead, the apocalypse has come. What’s your zombie plan?
Run. Hide. I’m only 4’11. Are you taller than that? If so, I’ll hide behind you.
Ha! Well, I’m really hoping for slow zombies so I can outrun them in my wheelchair. Maybe you can ride on the back.
Thanks so much for joining us!
Lauren Baratz-Logsted is the author of over 30 books for adults (Vertigo), teens (The Twin’s Daughter) and children (The Sisters 8 series which she created with her husband and daughter). She’d love to dress up in period costume from the 1920s, but she’d be a lot less excited about meeting zombies. Lauren lives in Danbury, CT, with her husband and daughter and cat, all of whom are writers (well, maybe not the cat).
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