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Michael Buckley is the author of The Sisters Grimm
series.The first two volumes of the series, The Sisters Grimm: The Fairy Tale Detectives and The Sisters Grimm:
The Unusual Suspects are in stores now, while the third volume, The Sisters Grimm: The Problem Child will be
released on May 1.
The Edge of the Forest: Were you a fan of fairy tales as a child? Did the Fairy Tales inspire you to write The Sisters Grimm or
did your characters—Daphne and Sabrina Grimm—come to you first?
MB: I guess I liked fairy tales as much as any kid but unfortunately, like a lot of people in America, I got all my information
about them from movies. When I started writing the books I quickly realized how little I really knew about Little Red
Riding Hood and Prince Charming. The Grimm Brothers and Hans Christian Andersen stories are very different than the Disney
versions so I was at a big disadvantage when I sat down to write The Sisters Grimm books. I had to do a lot of
research before I could let Sabrina and Daphne out of my head.
The Edge of the Forest: What I especially appreciate about The Sisters Grimm is the way you play with fairy tale stereotypes. For example,
Prince Charming is a dull handsome prince—a bit of a tool—in the Cinderella stories, but in The Sisters Grimm
he's a conniving villain. Which fairy-tale heroes appeal to you most as targets for reappraisal and why?
MB: My favorite part of these stories is the fact that for most of the fairy tale characters in the town life has been hard.
They had their moments in the sun more than two hundred years ago and now they are just trying to pay the bills. Most of
these characters don't have skills that translate to the modern world. Prince Charming is great example—a handsome guy
who happens to be good at saving princesses from witches but where are you going to get a job like that in the 21st
century? Luckily, he happens to be a born leader so making him the mayor of the town was obvious. But, for someone like Jack
from the beanstalk story, well, people don't need a lot of giants killed these days. He's stuck working in a men's big and
tall store. The last two hundred years have been good for some, bad for others, so really, any fairy-tale hero could get a
second look.
The Edge of the Forest: The Sisters Grimm: The Problem Child hits stores on May 1. The second title in the series, The Sisters
Grimm: The Unusual Suspects ends with a cliffhanger. Will Sabrina and Daphne be okay? What is the girl in the red
cloak up to? Where are Sabrina and Daphne's parents? Will these issues be resolved in the third volume of the series?
MB: Well, if I told you too much, it would ruin the surprise. I will tell you this, Sabrina and Daphne will get something
they've been wanting for a long time at the end of Book Three but it will also cause them a lot more problems. As we have three
more books planned (and hopefully a few more, if readers like the series) I assure you that all will not be wrapped up nice
and neat at the end of The Problem Child. In fact, the adventure goes in a completely new direction. As for the girl in
the red cloak, well, she's going to cause a lot of trouble for everyone.
The Edge of the Forest: How many titles are planned in The Sisters Grimm series and why?
MB: Like I said, right now we have six books planned. Everyday I come up with a character and a storyline that might work, but I
also don't want to overstay my welcome. There should be an ending to Sabrina and Daphne's adventures and I don't want to
milk these books until there's nothing left to say. I suspect, if things go well, that we'll wrap it all up at Book Nine. I
have other things I'd like to write someday and characters demanding their fair share of my attention.
The Edge of the Forest: The Sisters Grimm series has received good reviews, but what is most important is that the "word on the street"
(kids demanding information from librarians and bookstores) is very strong and building. Have you noticed an increase in
sales in the past few months?
MB: I try not to pay too much attention to sales as that can drive a person crazy. I don't want to start sitting around with a
calculator trying to figure out how many books we've sold. I will say that the publisher is very happy with the response
the books' have gotten and are also very happy with orders and sales. What I've noticed is that I'm getting quite a bit
more fan mail every week on my website www.sistersgrimm.com. Readers can contact me and I
do my best to respond to every message. I get lots of kids asking for advice about writing, school and their parents. It's
one thing I'm proud to offer fans—one on one contact with me, though, I have to admit it's getting a bit overwhelming,
but wonderful, too.
The Edge of the Forest: As an adult reader, I really like your attention to historical and linguistic detail. Do you know or did you study
German?
MB: My mother's family is from Germany but I don't speak it and honestly don't know a lot about it. I have done a lot of
research on Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm as well as folktales from the region. I picked up a few words that fit nicely into the
books and because I wanted to have the Grimm lineage be so important I knew I'd better brush up on a little modern history.
I'd love to visit and see the Black Forest some day.
The Edge of the Forest Who is your favorite character—fairy tale or "real"—in The Sisters Grimm and why? Do you have your own
fictional counterpart in the books?
MB: Oh, like my mother used to tell my brother and me, "You're both my kids—I love you equally." I feel the same about the
characters. I do have a few that I really enjoy, for instance, I love Prince Charming's fake bravado and Daphne's naive
goofiness. I find Sabrina to be hilarious at times and Mr. Canis incredibly interesting. But, all in all, and this might
be the little boy inside me, Puck is one great character, with the most to learn. I'm currently writing Book Four right
now and I'm diving more into his past, how he got to Ferryport Landing, who his parents are, and the nature of being a fairy.
As for me having a fictional counterpart, I have to say that there's a bit of me in all the characters. I can be grouchy
like Canis, a gentleman like Sheriff Hamstead, cynical like Sabrina, full of hot air like Charming, even playful like Elvis.
The Edge of the Forest You have written and designed television programs for children before writing The Sisters Grimm. Do you find
the process of writing for television to be similar to that of writing fiction?
MB: Writing for TV is very different than writing for books. TV writing is very economical—you don't do a lot of describing,
you don't get to explore emotions, or use words to explain a feeling. Those are the jobs of the actors, set designers,
animators, producers, etc. As a TV writer, you're really writing a skeleton of an idea down and other people come in and
fill in the rest. Book writing lets you dive into a smell, taste, a smile—anything. You can make comparisons to
things, find meaning in ideas, and explore new ways of looking a things. It's much more difficult, but quite a bit more
rewarding.
The Edge of the Forest Finally, and most importantly, do you have a grandmother like Granny Relda?
MB: Granny Relda is based upon my real grandmother who's name was Relda Gandee. She lived in a little town called Kenna, West
Virginia with my grandfather, Basil. Together, they took care of my brother and me during summer visits and for a bit when I
was very young. She wasn't German, but she had a lot of Granny Relda's qualities. She was very adventurous and had a great
sense of humor. Plus, she was an amazing cook.
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