The brains behind Gangsta Granny!

During his latest book tour in India, comedian-actor-author David Williams encountered many interesting experiences but probably what fascinated him the most was multiple pillion riders on a single bike. He cheekily says, ‘In the UK that would be a motorcycle display team. They would be doing a world record’.

In an interview with DHoS, Williams, who is the man behind popular children’s books like Gangsta Granny, and Super Sleuth, takes us back to where it started for him, the popularity of his Indian character Raj, and more. Excerpts

What brings you to India? Are we going to see more Indian characters in your book?

I came to India for the first time 15 years ago, and I loved it. I have always been interested in Indian culture. I think there’s a sort of magic in the air in India, especially if you’re from Britain. You have such a rich culture and incredible history, and I know, I’m sorry about the British Empire (laughs)... 

I have an Indian character in a lot of my books like Raj in Gangsta Granny. It was interesting when I was doing a book signing and many people said that they really liked Raj, or asked, ‘Where’s Raj on this?’ I don’t know yet if there’s a character I’ve met in India who is going to end up in my books. But it might happen!

You had already tasted success and stardom as an actor and comedian. What brought you into the children’s literature space?

Matt Lucas (British actor-comedian) and I did this comedy show called Little Britain. Kids liked it because they were cartoon characters who came to life. So I realised there was something that perhaps I could do to entertain children, and I also come from writing for children’s TV. The second thing was, I enjoyed reading all the children’s books that I hadn’t read when I was growing up. Third, I just had an idea for a story with a Boy in the Dress. What would happen if a boy goes to school dressed as a girl? As you know, 15 years ago this was a little edgy as a subject. So with all those things, it just somehow felt like the right thing to do. I didn’t have particularly high expectations though.

What do you feel is the best part about writing stories for children? What are the books that have stayed with you and are still your favourites?

The Twits by Roald Dahl… I think it’s the funniest children’s book ever and one of the most imaginative. I really like that children’s books can be more imaginative than books for grown-ups. The reason, I think, is that children believe in magic more than adults, and when you’re a child, everything seems a bit larger than life. The most imaginative book ever written is Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. I struggle to name a book for adults that has as much imagination in it. I just like that. I like the idea that you can take kids on a journey, on a much bigger imaginative journey. 

As an author, how do you work towards issues of short attention span and social media addiction in children? 

When I see children on their phones, I confiscate them. I put them in a lounge. I go over them in a steamroller.. (he quips)... All I want to do is entertain kids, so I just always want the books to be funny. I want the books to be exciting. I want the end of every chapter to be like a cliffhanger. So I try to write books that kids don’t want to stop reading or can’t stop reading because they are so into the story.

Children’s book writers are sometimes not taken seriously enough. Do you have any advice for someone who is starting out?

It’s pretty hard to get noticed. By the time I wrote my first children’s book, I was pretty well-known on television. But if you look at the book charts in the UK, you’ll see people like Julia Donaldson, who wrote The Gruffalo, and JK Rowling, who is famous for her Harry Potter series. None of them were well-known before they wrote a book. I believe that if someone wants something very strongly, there are ways that they will get noticed.