Interviewing Margret Helgadottir
Helloooo!!
Last week I reviewed the final volume in Fox Spirit’s Monsters series Eurasian Monsters edited by Margret Helgadottir this series has explored the legends and folk tales of monsters using authors from all around the world creating i think one of the best anthology series around. Been an annual joy to pick up my copy and explore what links humanity in our fears! I am extremely honoured that Margret agreed to talk to me about the entire journey.
How would you book tempt the Monsters series?
In this book series you get to follow along on a grand world tour continent by continent, exploring local scary myths and monsters tales. I have invited authors from around the world to write about own culture and folklore, using any genre they feel will get the monsters’ bite across, be it horror, fantasy, science fiction, post-apocalyptic, YA, crime, or the more literary. The seven anthologies feature dark creatures and monsters that have not received much spotlight in the western culture.
In the Fox Spirit Books of Monsters I don’t just wish to scare people with monsters they have probably never heard of, but I also want the books to give their readers an insight into the continents we cover. It is a journey, after all. Through the stories the reader also get to know the countries and cultures covered, contemporary life and everyday struggles that usually is unknown to us in the west.
The journey started in Europe in 2014 before it continued to Africa, Asia, the Pacific region, and Central, South and North America, and it ended with Eurasia in 2020.
The series contain stories by authors such as Cory Doctorow, Darcie Little Badger, Lewis Shiner, Liliana Colanzi, Teresa P. Mira de Echeverria, Nnedi Okorafor, Tade Thompson, Ken Liu, Xia Jia, Aliette de Bodard, Usman T. Malik, K.A. Teryna, and Maria Galina, to name a few.
Three of the monster volumes have been shortlisted to British Fantasy Awards as Best Anthology. Stories in the anthologies have been shortlisted to awards like for instance Caine Prize for African Writing, Aurealis Awards and Sir Julius Vogel Awards. I was also awarded the Starburst Magazine’s Brave New Words Award 2018 for my editor work on Pacific Monsters.
What inspired you to start this series?
It all started with a Twitter discussion about eight years ago, where myself and a few others, including my co-editor of the two first monster volumes, Jo Thomas, demanded that something had to be done. We felt that most monsters are forgotten today, while the rest are watered down and overused in the popular media, and then only a few of them dominate the scene—and they are almost all from Western popular culture.
Jo and I discussed furter. We wished to re-establish the monsters’ dark reputation, and give them a comeback, so to speak. We wished to drag the monsters out from the darkest corners, to show how many great monsters we have from all over the world. And we wanted to make them visible in the middle of people’s homes, as coffee table books with lush art. So, Jo and I pitched an anthology idea to Adele Wearing at Fox Spirit Books, and happily Adele liked our ideas, and while working on the first book about Europe, it quickly developed into the world series of seven volumes - after several discussions about how many continents we actually have, and thus the book journey Fox Spirit Books of Monsters begun.
Life happened, and Jo had to pull herself out of the editing while we worked on Africa, and so I have edited the last five books alone. I have of course developed the style in the books further, but the main basis of the series have remained intact since the first ideas, something I am very proud of. I do feel the series is a whole journey, based on the same idea. And thus, it makes it more fun to compare the continents and the author’s different take on the monster tale.
Every country and region in the world has wonderful dark and eerie tales of monsters, some of them maybe thousands of years old. Hopefully this book series will bring you a small glimpse of the rich monster folklore excisting out there in the world.
Finding authors from around the world doesn’t sound that easy? What are the challenges and the highlights?
Yes it has indeed been challenging. I would say that the most crucial and time consuming part of my work with these anthologies have been to locate and track down the authors. Usually I have researched each book at least for a year before I start sending out invitations. Language has been a challenge in some continents. For some volumes I have received suggestions from other editors or translators who knew the authors in the continent well - I will especially give my thanks to Fabio Fernandes, Ken Liu and Alex Shvartsman, who all were very helpful in the research for different volumes. Often invited authors would have name suggestions too. Other than this, I have read a lot, and in some cases I have had to ask in public for pointers towards authors from such and such countries. I have also tried to look beyond the speculative genres and the authors well established within these genres. There are many lovely authors who I’ve had a hunch would be able tell a good monster tale, so I have challenged them to write outside their genre comfort zone. And they have loved it.
I usually have started inviting authors about 18 months before the book is published. I have had to make sure that all parts of the continent is covered, that I have a good balance in representation (for instance gender, sexuality, indigenous backgrounds etc). But I’ve had a limited number of available slots in these books. And that means I carefully sent out the invitations, only one at the time. So I would say that I mostly have used up to 4-5 months just on the invitations, both to make sure I don’t exceed the story limit, and that the countries are represented. But still, the books are not all complete. I struggled with locating people from several of the Pacific Islands and the Eurasia countries, for instance. Also, there have been 3-4 of the invited authors to each book that haven’t been able to submit a story, and it has been sad because it often has meant that his/her country will not be represented in the book.
To me the most important aspect of these books has been to represent the continents well, and to make sure most voices have been heard. I hope I have succeeded in this. So all in all, even though it has taken lots of time and effort tracking down the authors, it has been worth it. The books have been much better because of this. And I am getting quite good at tracking down people. And I have also tried to track down local artists (just as time consuming).
What does the role of an editor on a themed anthology entail?
These books have been quite challenging to work on, since there are so many people involved in the production (authors, illustrators, translators - and this is only on my side). I have done all the invitations and contracts, then of course followed up the contributors (for instance discussions about what monster to write about), then editing on each story – usually 2-3 rounds on all new stories, talking with the illustrators etc. Then, my job has been to make sure it flows well in the book, that the stories fit each other both in running and theme, country and monster type. Then, of course all the finishing (proof reading etc), and then much work when the book is published, mostly with marketing (contacting reviewers, magazines etc). Since these books are published by a small press, there have been much work on me as editor, but I have loved it, and learned lots about book productions.
How does it feel to know the journey is completed?
I am both relieved – they have taken lost of time to make – and sad. These books have been a part of my life for eight years, and there have always been something to do, either on last book, cureent production, or coming book. Plus all the lovely people I have met. It was weird to enter a new year withour a new monster deadline.
What’s next for you and where can we find out more from you?
As for editing, I am actually not sure. I am currently discussing one project with a publisher, and I plan to pitch a few more anthology ideas. I have plenty of those. But at the moment, nothing is decided, so that means I am open to discuss both anthologies or periodicals. I am also an author, but there haven’t been much own writing the last years, so I also hope to finish my second book and some stories. You can find out more about me both on my website (https://margrethelgadottir.wordpress.com), my Facebook page (https://facebook.com/MargretHelgadottirwriter) or Twitter, where I am @MaHelgad
If you could make everyone read one book (not your own) what would it be?
Sadly many of my favourites are not published in English but of those that are, I would urge all to read two books: The Sacred Book of the Werewolf by Russian author Victor Pelevin, and
Strange Weather in Tokyo by Japanese author Hiromi Kawakami.
