As in, Malcolm Tucker amounts of swearing. My reaction to being asked? I think I swore a lot. But no matter how busy you are, how little sleep it will mean, you don’t turn down an opportunity like that.
It was after the Tales of Trenzalore story that Justin approached me about writing the book, so yes, I was a VERY busy man for a while. It ’ s quite a quick turnaround after The Day of the Doctor so when were you approached (and if you factor in your excellent instalment in the Tales of Trenzalore anthology, you were clearly quite a busy bee for the first half of this year)? And what was your reaction to being asked?
Probably a dull question here but when I found out there was a War Doctor novel coming out, I was genuinely surprised. That said, every now and then, lying in bed at night, there was a certain little frisson when I considered how lucky I was. I just had to roll my sleeves up and get stuck in. It helped that I was working on a deadline, which meant that I couldn’t afford to stall. To be honest, I found I couldn’t really dwell on what I was doing – writing the first solo adventure of the War Doctor, fighting the Daleks during the Time War, which has to be every fan’s dream gig – because otherwise I started overthinking it. It ’ s a considerable remit to be given – to be the person to write an adventure set during the Time War – so what was it like when you first sat down to write Engines of War?Įxciting, daunting, a little terrifying. I had the chance to fire a few questions at Mann about researching the Time War, nailing John Hurt’s mannerisms and the possibility of returning. If you currently don’t have a copy of it then I implore you to acquire one as soon as possible – it’s a real accomplishment. This interview was late coming purely because the success of Engines of War overwhelmed Mann – and rightly so, he deserves every ounce of praise. The writer ( Paradox Lost, Tales of Trenzalore: An Apple A Day) was tasked with delivering a full-length novel that preceded The Day of the Doctor, chronicling the later years of the War Doctor’s life,and he delivered a piece of extremely rich and satisfying prose. And for George Mann, too, because without him, the new masterpiece from BBC Books would have never been made (because in less skilled hands it could have flopped massively but Mann tackled the commission deftly). Patrick Kavanagh-Sproull interviews the author of Engines of War. Share on Twitter Share on Facebook Share on Reddit Share on WhatsApp Share on E-mail
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