Dinosaurs with Andy Day
In a special blog today, we welcome Andy Day, Cbeebies presenter and author, to answer a few questions. His knowledge and passion for dinosaurs has really come across in his books- proof of how important non-fiction can be for authors!
You are widely known for your CBeebies shows and we wonder whether you had always wanted to explore writing for children?
Yes absolutely, being in the world of kids for 18 years, there are many bedtime stories I’ve read, many books I’ve come across. So I guess I felt like (or hoped) I could write something that would be engaging for kids, but it just had to be the right time and the right subject really.
Where did your interest in dinosaurs stem from?
I was a big fan of dinosaurs when I was a kid and its never really left me. I used to get all the toys and try and learn the names. But my passion for it and my real love for it came from doing my programmes – ‘Andy’s Dinosaur Adventures’ and ‘Prehistoric Adventures’ – because I have learnt so much about them. And now I’m a bit of a dino nerd! I follow lots of different dinosaur Instagram accounts.
How did the idea for Dino Dad develop?
I’ve always wanted to write a book, being in kids’ TV. It was very appealing to me because I feel that I’ve gotten to know the audience so well over the years and I now have a passion for the subject [of dinosaurs]. So I always wanted anything I wrote to be related to that.
When I had kids, I was reminded of my love for reading and those worlds that are created and the importance of kids’ reading. My idea was to have my kids in the book so they could relate to it in that way – I wanted to implement my relationship with them into the book. So it was dinosaurs, that sort of family dynamic, and my love for my kids that was the inspiration for writing Dino Dad.
And then it came down to how to make it as exciting as possible and I wanted it to have that sort of magical element, so that’s where the idea of having someone being able to turn into a dinosaur in a magical land where dinosaurs still live came from.
What was the biggest challenge in writing a children’s book? Was there anything you learned to help you along?
The biggest challenge was just doing the best job that you can because you know there are lots of great authors out there. And I don’t want people just looking at me going, ‘Oh he’s in children’s TV, so he’s trying to be an author.’ I want parents to read the books and go, ‘That’s a good job’ and for the kids to be really inspired by it. So I guess I just put a lot of pressure on that and on myself to make sure that the books are as good as they can be.
What do you hope readers and their families will take from reading this new series?
In Dino Dad: Ice Age, what I hope readers will take aways is really just the love for dinosaurs. I want them to enjoy it, to just escape into the world of Dino Dad and Dinotropolis. Another element that’s important is the relationship between Dino Dad and his daughters – that’s always very prevalent in the books. How Dino Dad and Ruby deal with situations and how they communicate together is based very much on my love for my own daughters and my kids.
Do you have a favourite fact about dinosaurs that you like to share?
I think my favourite fact is that the name Oviraptor, meaning egg thief in Latin, might well be completely non-void now because new science has emerged and they now believe that they didn’t steal eggs. They now believe that there’s every possibility that they protected them. So I like the idea that it’s been named one thing that’s completely different to what it is. And that’s the beauty of science in general, [they’re] always finding out new things.
How was it working with renowned illustrator Steven Lenton?
Steven is a joy to work with. He’s really passionate about what he does, he’s fantastic at it, and he completely got the world of Dino Dad. He asked how I envisioned it and I gave him my stance on it, gave him a couple of examples. But it was quite easy in the fact that the characters are very much based on my daughters, Dino Dad very much based on me, and my wife is very much Belinda. But the actual dinosaurs came from [Steven’s] brilliant illustrations and his ideas there just hit the nail on the head straight away. I didn’t have to really change anything. One thing we discussed is when you’re a POOPA (Protector of our Prehistoric Allies), when you go to Dinotropolis and become a dinosaur, you still have hair. That’s the defining difference between the dinosaurs there and the POOPAs.
What can we hope to see next from this series?
I’ve got two more books to come out for Dino Dad. One of them is about Ruby having to start school in Dinotropolis, at a school called P.L.O.P.S, and the other one’s about Dino-Detectives. So yes, there are two books that are yet to be released.
What is the funniest question you get asked by children?
Kids obviously say the funniest things and there are too many experiences to actually recount. But mostly, kids don’t believe you’re real until they meet you. One of the funniest things that happened, (but bless him I felt bad for him), was a young lad came to the studio when I was filming ‘Andy’s Prehistoric Adventures’ and he was really excited, was dressed up like me. He came in and I was like, ‘Hey mate,’ gave him a little high-five. And in the corner was the clock. So I said, ‘Oh I’ve got a little surprise, you’re gonna love it! Come and have a look – it’s the clock!’ And he started shaking and crying –he was petrified because he believed that he was going to go back and see the dinosaurs! I didn’t understand at first, and then suddenly I was like, ‘Oh of course.’ So I had to explain to him, ‘No, no, it’s alright, I’m the only one who can use it. It won’t take you through time, you’ll be absolutely fine.’
