Sunday, February 15, 2009

"The New Mother" by Lucy Clifford

In this interview with The Toronto Star, Neil Gaiman says Coraline was partially inspired by "The New Mother" by Lucy Clifford (1882), which he calls "haunting like a nightmare is haunting." Indeed it is. Here's the text.
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3 comments:

  1. zach nFebruary 16, 2009 at 12:47 AM

    wow great dig! It really evokes "mommy dearest"-esque chills

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  2. Sarah SmithFebruary 16, 2009 at 12:02 PM

    I had read that as a child in a collection of scary stories! It was somewhat altered (names) and shortened, but yes, it's the same story. I'm so glad someone dug it up. I guess it really is haunting like a nightmare because after I read it as a kid, I did indeed have nightmares. Gosh, that story still gives me chills.

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  3. NatalieFebruary 18, 2009 at 1:33 AM

    I don't know if I am just horribly desensitized or what, but I did not find that story haunting in the least bit. Sad day.

    I think it's interesting how Gaiman took part of his inspiration for Coraline from not only his and his daughter's own childhood, but also from a short story that was published in a completely different century. I can see a slight resemblance in the two stories, although "The New Mother" seemed almost folklorish to me. I was surprised to find out that a Victorian author wrote it; it seemed almost tribal in nature.

    My favorite part of the interview by far though is when Gaiman reflects on what his publisher originally said of the manuscript:
    "It's possibly the best thing you've ever written." But he warned Gaiman that fantasy horror for children didn't sell like gritty social sagas: "Unless you're going to write a realistic novel about a kid in a tower block whose brother has heroin problems, no one will publish it."

    Haha, I feel that every writer gets fed a line like that last one. And usually, must to my great amusement, they usually overcome the odds. Because honestly, who really enjoys reading heroin addicts?

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