Guy Bass - Questions & Answers.

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1. “Very small, very blue and very hairy.” Gormy Ruckles is an unusual character - how did you dream him up?
I was in a really boring job, staring out of the window and dreaming of my escape. I think that’s where Gormy came from – in the first chapter he’s in his treehouse, staring out over an unknown land and dreaming of stomping all over it! I only wrote a page or so at first. I found it a couple of years later and turned it into a whole story.

2. Gormy’s roar needs some serious work. How’s your roar?
And do you ever use it to scare other ‘hoomums’? My roar is surprisingly feeble. The doctors say nothing can be done. It’s definitely not good enough to use on hoomums. Or wolves. Or sheep. Maybe hamsters. Yeah, I reckon I could freak out a hamster.

3. Mike the dung-eating scuttybug is Gormy’s best friend – even if he is a bit greasy and smells of poo. Do any of your friends have peculiar habits?
None of them smell of poo, thank goodness. They do smell, though. You wouldn’t want to get stuck in a lift with any of them.

4. Gormy’s always reading his How to be a Better Monster book. What’s your favourite book?
George’s Marvellous Medicine by Roald Dahl. Hands down the best book I’ve ever read. It’s an everyday tale of a boy poisoning his evil granny – what could be better?

5. In his first two adventures, Gormy faces up to sheep-chasing wolves and a mischief-making creature. Can you reveal what’s in store for him next?
I’m really excited about the next stories. Gormy’s parents go away for a night, leaving Gormy with the monster-sitter. It turns out she has a pretty monstrous secret, which gets Gormy into all kinds of trouble. The story I’ve just finished is about Gormy’s birthday – Gormy finally gets to visit the land beyond the hill, but he eats something he shouldn’t and ends up with a very monstrous stomach-ache… that one really puts Gormy through the wringer!

6. Do you have any tips on how to be a better monster (for all those budding Gormy-wannabes out there)?
Well, Gormy’s had well over five hundred lessons in monstering so far and he’s barely even started, so I’d suggest starting young.

7. You seem to know an awful lot about the monster world. Is there something you’d like to tell us?
The most monstrous thing about me is my nose hair. I try to read the Monster Gazette, so I can keep up with what’s hot and what’s not in the world of monsters.

8. What did you want to be when you grew up?
A superhero. I still do. It’s a universal truth - if you want to be a superhero when you’re 3, you still want to when you’re 33. You just stop admitting it.

9. Can you tell us a secret about yourself – something that readers might be surprised to learn?
When I was younger, I was the world’s most reluctant reader. I knew I was missing out, but I just rarely found the sort of things I wanted to read. I think I’m trying to write the stories now that I wanted to read all those years ago.

10. Lots of readers love writing and aspire to be authors when they’re older. Could you suggest a first line or a title for them to turn into a story?
I’d like to read a story called Nightmare Pigs in 3-D.

Quick Quiz:

Kittens or puppies? Puppies

Chocolate or Sweets? Chocolate sweets

Salad or chips? Salad, but really chips

Favourite websites? eBay is my greatest weakness…

Text or call? Text

Favourite lesson at school? English

Worst lesson at school? Maths

Favourite colour? Red

Favourite film? Jaws

City or countryside? City