Read about BookExpo America (BEA)’s sessions Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday (here and here).

BookCon, the Saturday following BEA, was a whole different animal, and not one I’m likely to visit at the conference petting zoo ever again. However, I did get to see David Mitchell in conversation with David Ebershoff, and Cary Elwes talking about his forthcoming book, As You Wish. (“The title meeting was about two minutes. I said, ‘What do you want to call it?’ and they said, ‘Really?'”)

“For a voyage to begin, another voyage must end…”

David Mitchell displayed exactly the type of dry British humor and sharp intelligence one would expect from reading his books and articles. He described his forthcoming novel The Bone Clocks as a first-person tale focused on six stages in the life of Holly Sykes, from the 1960s through the 2040s; he followed this description with the admonishment, “No whispering ‘He’s rewritten Twilight’ in the back there.”

As for the inspiration for the book, “Novels have a number of seeds, they don’t really just grow from one.” The Bone Clocks may be a midlife crisis book about facing mortality; “You look in the mirror, and ‘Dad, how did you get there?!'”

Reviews have used the phrase “Mitchell-esque”; what would David Mitchell say they mean by that? “Naive, childlike, a compunction to pack in as much of the world as you can; like a loom, character strands weaving together.” His editor David Ebershoff (himself an author), added that Mitchell was “willing to move through time.”

Characters from one of Mitchell’s novels often show up in his other novels; characters from Black Swan Green and Cloud Atlas make appearances in The Bone Clocks, a treat for loyal Mitchell readers.

Some brave Book Riot-ers recounted their adventure/ordeal getting copies of they galley of The Bone Clocks and getting them signed by the author in the exhibit hall after his talk.

Q&A

How do you handle a big cast of characters? In a word, “messily.” In more words, “A little bit like the NSA, I keep files…I know when they were last seen…” Mitchell said he thinks of himself as a writer of novellas, “Novellas full of doors and passageways.” He builds his larger novels out of these novellas, “like a kid with Lego.”

You’re not optimistic about the future – why? Mitchell first answered this question with a question – “Have you seen the news lately?” – but added, “Essentially, it’s oil.” He’s also worried about climate change, dictators, etc. “Though we’re devoting some resources to finding a way around [our dependence on] oil, we’re devoting far more time to convincing ourselves it’s all okay.” His outlook isn’t entirely pessimistic, though: “There’s hope. We’re clever and bright as well as short-sighted and destructive.”

What did you think of the Cloud Atlas movie? Mitchell said he was very happy with the movie. “It’s an unfilmable book. Bearing in mind that caveat, they did a wonderful job…they took it apart and put it back together. Film is a compromise.” (As a side note, he mentioned that entertainment lawyers were “badass scary people.”)

Character inconsistency between books? [Facepalm.] Luisa Rey was mentioned here: is she fictional or real? Mitchell’s novels are a “multiverse” with a fault running down the middle. The novel, Mitchell said, “thrives on inexactitude.” He doesn’t read his novels once they’re published, other than reading from them on book tours; “The only way to stay sane is to plunge into the next book.”

Have you ever considered a serialized format (like Dickens)? “Not really.” The dominant serial format, he said, is the HBO box set, which does it very well. Serialization “changes what books are.” Mitchell believes “you can only serve one form…I hereby choose the novel.” As for the pace of his writing and publishing? “I write one [novel] every World Cup.”

 

Cary Elwes followed David Mitchell in the same room, and I suspect that some people attended Mitchell’s talk just to be sure of a seat in the room when Elwes appeared; while Mitchell merited applause, Elwes walked in to screaming fans. He told several stories that are included in his book; three are recounted in this Vulture piece.

Elwes described himself as a fan of William Goldman’s book, which he read when he was 13. “If you haven’t read the book, read the book, the book is amazing,” he urged. He called The Princess Bride “the most quotable movie/book ever,” which is tough to argue with. “It’s not even our movie anymore, it belongs to all of you,” he said to the audience. “You guys know the lines better than I do.”

Speaking of Andre the Giant (Fezzik in the movie), Elwes said he was “the sweetest guy ever,” truly a “gentle giant.” “He’d give you the shirt off his back – it’d be enough for four people.” When it was cold out during filming – during the first kiss scene, for example – Andre placed his hand on top of Robin Wright’s head and warmed her up enough to stop her teeth from chattering.

For the fencing scene, Elwes and Mandy Patinkin had two months of training on set, though the trainers wouldn’t guarantee “proficiency” by the time they were due to begin shooting. Elwes had studied fencing briefly in acting school, but a teacher had told him not to bother; Patinkin had had two months of training prior to the movie. At the time of the scene, Elwes also had a broken toe (see Vulture article). Neither actor, incidentally, is left-handed.

During the Q&A following the official interview, someone asked about the fake introductions in Goldman’s book (he references a son called Billy and a wife called Helen; in real life he has two daughters). Elwes called Goldman “an inventive writer” and said that while some parts are invented, some – like Mandy Patinkin slapping Andre the Giant – are true. Florin and Guilder, however, are not real countries, and S. Morgenstern is simply a pen name of Goldman’s.

Another question had to do with the fire swamp set. The flame spurts really were “preceded by a popping sound”: “No big deal, just don’t step on it.” (Goldman, who missed Fire Swamp Set 101, got upset when Robin Wright’s dress caught fire, even though “she’s supposed to catch fire!”)

The Princess Bride, Elwes said, was “one of the most joyous experiences of my life,” and it has clearly provided a lot of joy to others as well ever since its release in 1987.