1.
What
is your illustrated book collection, The Rumpleville Chronicles, about? The books focus on human foibles
and eccentricities. They present themselves as children’s stories, but their
plot doesn’t flow as one would expect in a fairy tale because some realistic
aspect of a character steers the action in a different direction that is
simultaneously more relatable and more absurd. For instance, in The Jolly
Elf, when the elf turns out to be evil, the victimized villagers cannot get
rid of him without first negotiating the broadcast rights.
2.
What
inspired its creation? They
were written just ahead of a fresh curve of entertainment that deconstructed
popular culture, but at that time, I didn’t have easy access to illustrators. I
did succeed in getting one animated, which appeared on MTV and in film
festivals. The brilliant Bill Plympton was a big fan. I was inspired by James
Thurber and Tom Lehrer, who savagely and hilariously decimated the hypocrisies
of their respective eras.
3.
Your
tagline for the boxed set of nine books is: “Twisted Tales for Today.” What
makes them twisted – and why? The
books are fundamentally irreverent. The stories are novel and defy
expectations. I guess they are twisted because that’s how my mind works. My
imagination is unrestrained by things like employing better judgment.
4.
The
rest of that tagline is: “There’s a moral in there somewhere.” Is there? Absolutely! There is a point to
each story, and I have a target in mind when I set about writing. The Land
of Plenty is probably the least subtle in its attack on the corrupt legal
profession. The Disciples of Trotsky shows how revolutionary movements
often die with a whimper when ideological divisions take priority over immediate
needs. Boris the Dog was intended to be a commentary on cartoon
violence. Sometimes the object is human foibles.
5. What kinds of reactions have you
received from parents, librarians, teachers, and children to your books? The response has been great from
everyone except for people who are self-appointed guardians of children. They
think the books are inappropriate for little kids, which is understandable,
considering some of them may be. These misguided, self-righteous individuals
are precisely the kinds of people I satirize in the books. None of the books
were written for kids, although it is fine for them to read if they enjoy them,
even if they don’t understand most of it.
6. Do you feel you fill some kind of
void in children’s literature with this series?
The
books definitely fill some kind of void in literature. There have been some
authors who try to reimagine fairy tales, but they play off of existing
stories. This can be entertaining, but it isn’t very inspired. All of my
stories are original, which establishes their own genre. This has been a huge
problem because booksellers and libraries don’t know how to classify them. They
aren’t children's books, and they are too cohesive and pointed to be lumped in
the humor section.
7. What challenges did you overcome in
creating this series? People
who presume these books are for kids. Most of the stories were written
pre-South Park. MTV considered having Boris the Dog take over for Beavis
and Butthead when that went off the air, but decided to abandon animation
in favor of reality TV.
8. How would you describe your writing
style? My writing
style varies dramatically, depending on the medium. In general, though, I am
inspired by things I take umbrage with. That inspiration emerges as dark humor
when I am writing illustrated short stories.
9.
The
Disciples of Trotsky
is about a revolution and overthrowing a fascist regime. Is this too deep for
young minds to understand, or do you feel on some level that they get something
out of reading your book? Again,
these books are not written for children, but this is a common theme in
children’s literature. There was a period in the early 2000s when the major
children’s animations shared a similar plot. The protagonist does not conform
to the expectations of their role in society. An opportunity arises where they
can assume a position that allows them to display their strengths, albeit
discreetly. They are discovered, and a societal breakdown ensues. In the movie Robots,
this breakdown takes the form of an armed rebellion. I have a sore spot with
that book because it was written before Shrek, and many of my stories
made their way onto the internet. Years later, I noticed many striking
similarities when I got around to illustrating. I was incensed that I had to
rewrite a chunk of the book because people would accuse me of plagiarizing
something written after my book, as theirs had come out earlier. I do wonder
whether Shrek “borrowed” extensively from my original text. Ultimately,
I feel my revisions made the work better, but still.
10.
In
your book, Tiffany Brittany Brooke dreams of a successful Hollywood
career. But the path to her dreams is filled with compromises. Her encounter
with a man who also has a dream changes her life in unexpected ways. What do
you hope to teach children with this story? The book is intended to satirize actors and the world
that venerates and exploits them. The overt message was lifted from Miracle
on 34th Street, which is about believing in your dreams. In this
instance, her dream is about wanting to be a prostitute. The lesson for kids is
not to accept easy platitudes. If advice sounds simple, it is likely to be
empty. There are other lessons too, like you shouldn’t always follow your
dreams if your dreams are of becoming a serial killer.
11.
In
The Land of Plenty, the Plentenians enjoy an abundance of wealth and
power that keeps neighboring countries in fear of attack. Then, a clever
ambassador sees how their weakness can be their strength. Is this a story
President Trump would approve of? I
stay out of contemporary politics as it has become irrationally divisive.
People from all walks of life should be able to enjoy my stories and apply them
in ways that give them meaning.
12.
Each
book has a funny “about the author” page that changes from book to book. From
saying you want “to enslave all humanity” to seeking “to expose that
professional thumb-wrestling is fixed,” where do you come up with this stuff? I am glad you noticed. There is
truth to all of them. Growing up, I always wanted to be a supervillain. I
assumed I would need a death ray and a private island with minions. Well, now I
have the island and minions, which is another story, and while in graduate
school, I met a defense contractor who gave me the plans for something even
better than a death ray. It was a terrible moment of truth for me, but I didn’t
follow up. Thumb wrestling is fixed. People should know.
13. What books did you admire as a
child – and why? What makes for a good children’s book? A good children’s story has an
original plot, not one that is derivative or overly obvious in its message. It
should not pander. It should have beautiful illustrations. James Flora is my
favorite illustrator. His work dates back to the 1950s and 1960s. He also did
artwork for jazz album covers. The Fan Brothers are among the best illustrators
today. James Thurber is one of my favorite writers and is undoubtedly an
inspiration, although he is not a children’s book author. Because I admire Tom
Lehrer, the musical satirist, so much, I think it's fine when children don’t
understand everything. They can appreciate the irreverence and pick up bits of
the humor and gradually understand more as they get older.
14.
You
have also written a book called The Student Resistance Handbook, which
is a how-to manual for students to protest mandatory schooling. You also
directed and produced a documentary, The War on Kids; You also gave a
TEDx talk on this. Is this really a movement you want to lead? Why? I want to support children who
don’t want to be subjected to injustice and abuse. Some kids are fine with it,
and it’s not my place to intervene. I would have appreciated someone putting
out the messages I shared when I was little. I wrote an essay that was published
in Wire about why cheating in school is a moral imperative. Children
didn’t agree to be in school, so they shouldn't be expected to abide by the
rules. The essay has been licensed for use on standardized tests to assess
reading comprehension. Someone there has a great sense of humor.
15.
You
went to Harvard University to earn four Master’s degrees, studying education,
government policy, English, and journalism. You chose to author books, perform
music on MTV, and direct and produce films. Do the creative arts just call out
to you? Actually,
I went into the creative arts because science and math came too easily to me.
It was the right decision because while there is room for creativity in those
fields, it is bounded by reality. In the arts, it is vice versa -- reality is
bounded by imagination.
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For
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formed his own book publicity firm in 2020. Prior to that, for 21 years as the
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director of publicity at two independent presses, Brian has worked with many
first-time, self-published, authors of all genres, right along with
best-selling authors and celebrities such as: Dr. Ruth, Mark Victor Hansen,
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has spoken at ASJA, BookCAMP, Independent Book Publishers Association Sarah
Lawrence College, Nonfiction Writers Association, Cape Cod Writers Association,
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Connecticut Authors and Publishers Association. He served as a judge for the
2024 IBPA Book Awards.
His
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and The Washington Post. His first published book was The
Florida Homeowner, Condo, & Co-Op Association Handbook. It
was featured in The Sun Sentinel and Miami Herald.
Born
and raised in Brooklyn, he now resides in Westchester with his wife, two kids,
and Ferris, a black lab rescue dog, and El Chapo, a pug rescue dog.
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