Dungeon Runners by Kieran Larwood and Joe Todd-Stanton
Kieran Larwood and Joe Todd Stanton chat all things Dungeon Runners as they launch this adventurous, fully illustrated new series for young readers with Nosy Crow.
In celebration of the publication of Dungeon Runners; Hero Trial, we – Kieran Larwood, and Joe Todd Stanton, are here today to interview… each other!
Joe: Let’s start with this for you, Kieran – where did the idea for Dungeon Runners first come from?
Kieran: It actually all began during lockdown, when I thought it would be a good idea for my eight-year-old son and I to come up with a new story. We had been playing Dungeons and Dragons on Zoom and he loves sport, so we put the two together!
Joe: And was it the world, or characters that came first?
Kieran: The world and the game of Dungeon Running came first, then we had fun putting together a team of characters to play in it.
Kieran: I was so delighted that you agreed to come on board to illustrate the Dungeon Runners series. What made you say yes to this project?
Joe: I’d seen Podkin around and always thought it looked like something I would have loved as a kid, so I was instantly on board with your new project. On top of that I love Dungeons and Dragons and classic adventure stories, and this sounded like such a perfect fun twist on those ideas, so I said yes straight away.
Kieran: What was the most fun thing to illustrate? I love the way you captured Kit, Sandy and Thorn so brilliantly – how do you go about deciding on the details of the world/ characters?
Joe: There was so much that was fun to draw but my favourite was definitely the jelly beast. I loved trying to show its different expressions and the porkers floating around inside looking confused was an added bonus.
Joe: I would love to know what kind of classic fantasy, games, films were inspiration for you as a writer?
Kieran: Well, The Hobbit was the book that got me into the fantasy genre, then I grew up watching films like Labyrinth and The Dark Crystal. I also used to play a lot of Zelda and Final Fantasy games, too.
Kieran: I’ll throw that back to you too, I know you were a fan of SFF when you were younger, what were your favourite books/ writers?
Joe: You’ve taken the words right out of my mouth! I remember my mum reading the Hobbit to me and that being a life changing moment. She always brings up how excited/scared/happy I got that first moment Bilbo leaves the shire to go on his adventure. I also loved Ursula Le Guin, Brian Jacques and Phillip Pullman.
Joe: One of my favourite things was the gamified element to the books – what was the driving force behind this, and can you ever imagine a DnD type game or campaign based on Dungeon Runners?
Kieran: I would love to play a DnD version of Dungeon Runners! I also think it would make a good board game, or a trading card game with the amazing cards you have illustrated in the book.
Kieran: If you could pick one book you’ve read recently to recommend, what would it be? Mine would be the Lightfall series of graphic novels by Tim Probert.
Joe: That’s a tough one. I recently read the first comic in a series called Yotsuba about a single dad and his daughter and them moving to a new house. It’s hilarious and sweet.
Joe: And what’s coming in the next adventure? Can we give the readers a little sneak peek?
Kieran: Yes! Triple Trouble have another dungeon to conquer– this time they’re off to the birdkin city of Cloudroost to battle lots of feathered monsters…
Thanks for joining us – we hope that you’ll adventure with the Dungeon Runners Triple Trouble team into the future…
DUNGEON RUNNERS, HERO TRIAL will be published by Nosy Crow on 6 June 2024
The second DUNGEON RUNNERS book will be published in September 2024
