Totally Random Tour: Dream Literary Dinner Party Guestlist with Emma Pass, Amy McCulloch & Karen Mahoney

Emma Pass's Dream Literary Dinner Party Guest List.

I like small, intimate gatherings, where you don’t have to shout across the table to make yourself heard, or get exhausted trying to make time to talk to everyone. So my dream literary dinner party guest list isn’t a long one, but I think it would make for a fun evening.

First of all, I’d have to invite…

Stephen King: SK is my all-time favourite author. I discovered him when I was 13 with the epic IT, and have been addicted to his novels ever since. Not only does he have the most incredible imagination, but I love his writing style, his dark sense of humour, and the way he manages to create such rich and interesting characters. I think he’d be a lot of fun to talk to!

And then…

SE Hinton: A pull-no-punches look at life on the wrong side of the tracks from the point of view of ‘Greaser’ Ponyboy Curtis, The Outsiders has been a favourite of mine for as long as I can remember. S.E. Hinton was only 16 when she wrote the book, and 18 when it was published. I’d love to talk to her about her inspiration, and what it felt like to be published at such a young age.

Emily Byrd Starr: I like the Anne of Green Gables books, but I’ve always found Anne Shirley a little too good to be true. Emily of the Emily of New Moon books, on the other hand, is a girl after my own heart: feisty, independent, a daydreamer who spends every spare moment she has scribbling stories… I reckon we’d get on like a house on fire.

Finally…

Lyra Belacqua: The His Dark Materials books are in my all-time reading top ten. Hearing from Lyra about her adventures would be amazing (and I’d love to meet a real, live daemon!).

Amy McCulloch's Dream Literary Dinner Party Guestlist.

My dream literary dinner party would have to start with the perfect venue. I’d want it to be properly inspiring and surrounded by books – so I’m thinking the Beast’s library from Beauty and the Beast? Then we would have the benefit of Lumiere’s kitchen to provide the catering, too!

First up on my guest-list would be J.K. Rowling: apart from wanting to just get a chance to tell her how much her work means to me, I’d want to hear from her first hand what it was like to go from scribbling notes on a napkin to a reading on what might be the world’s largest stage - the Olympic opening ceremony.

Next up, I’d invite Roald Dahl, because he had such a long and varied career – plus he’s funny. I’d definitely bring Neil Gaiman, because apart from being one of my favourite authors, he’s an excellent conversationalist and I’d want to pick his brains about the future of storytelling. I’d invite Jane Austen next, because I’d really love to discuss with her how Pride and Prejudice has influenced modern literature. And then I’d invite all the Lucky 13s (authors who are debuting in 2013) so that we could grill the famous authors at the table and see how publishing has changed throughout the years!

Karen Mahoney's Dream Literary Dinner Party Guest list

1) Charlotte Brontë – because I’ve always been obsessed with her books. Jane Eyre is a favourite, but I also love Villette. I used to be a member of the Brontë Society (don’t laugh) and once upon a time, many years ago, I actually had the chance to hold the handwritten manuscript of Jane Eyre in my hands! That’s a totally true story. It was awesome.

2) William Moulton Marston – because he created Wonder Woman back in the early 1940s. Need I say more? :)

3) Neil Gaiman – because I’ve never met him, and his Sandman comics inspired me to really dig deep into folklore and mythology. I think he’d be the perfect dinner party guest.

4) Holly Black – because I love her work, have never met her (and would love to), and think she’d be super fun to talk to. I’d ask her lots of questions about faeries...

5) Daphne du Maurier – because her books are wonderfully gothic and atmospheric, and many of them I’ve read over and over. I’ve read biographies about du Maurier’s life, and she always seemed like such an interesting woman. She also wrote one of my favourite romances of all time: Frenchman’s Creek. (In fact, Donna in The Iron Witch books is partly named after the heroine of Frenchman’s Creek.)
Here's where we'll be and what we'll be doing:

Totally Random Tour Schedule;

WEEK ONE

Mon 27th May – “Our Top 5 writing tips!” – MOVELLAS

Tue 28th May – “Book Reviews” – SUGARSCAPE

Wed 29th May – “If I wasn’t a writer, I would be…” – CHICKLISH

Thurs 30th May – “Dream Cast” – BOOKS FOR COMPANY

Fri 31st May – “Group Discussion” – GOODREADS 6pm-7pm

WEEK TWO

Mon 3rd June – “Dream literary dinner party guestlist” – BOOK PASSION FOR LIFE

Tue 4th June – “Places that inspire your writing” – SABLE CAUGHT

Wed 5th June – “Webchat” – TOTALLY RANDOM FACEBOOK (5-6pm)

Thurs 6th June – “Soundtrack to your writing” – WONDROUS READS

Fri 7th June – “Group interview” – TOTALLY RANDOM BOOKS