JF: Tell us a little about the 75th anniversary tie-ins to this latest graphic novel, The Haunted Dollhouse.

SP: Sure! First off, the book is set during River Heights' Nostalgia Week, during which everyone dresses up 1930s style, and uses old technology - something computer savvy George finds difficult to deal with. Not only that, Nancy borrows a vintage car for the week, and so winds up driving around in her old roadster. The mystery itself is also a bit "old style" involving an antique dollhouse that seems able to predict local crimes. Lastly, I've cleverly inserted in the dialogue references to the names of the first 10 Nancy Drew novels, all of which were published in the 1930s. It's, I hope, a cool way to pay homage to Nancy's roots, short of doing a time travel story and having her meet herself!

JF: Did you research any of the vintage 1930s Nancy Drew books while writing Dollhouse?

SP: I'd read the first Nancy Drew book, The Secret of the Old Clock, before I started writing any of the graphic novel scripts. But for this story, I really focused on researching the 1930s, a bit of the slang, the technology available at the time, what people did for fun and the popularity of Spiritualism. That ultimately led to the "haunting" thread, as well as a scene set on an old Riverboat. There's a short bit where Nancy talks a little about the Great Depression, too.

JF: The concept of the dollhouse and Nancy's seeing herself murdered is rather unique to Nancy Drew--work us through the process of your conceptualizing and writing of this scenario.

SP: While Nancy Drew herself isn't a child, many of her legion of loyal fans are, and those who are adults connect her with their childhood. So, I guess in a weird sense, Nancy herself is a fictional "doll" - an imaginary character that people like engaging with. Pulling back from that a bit gave me the idea of the dolls acting out mysteries. An antique dollhouse seemed to fit in with the old sort of clues and artifacts that Nancy would deal with, like that old clock from the first book, and the atmosphere was creepy enough to make the whole thing work.

After that, I just had to reason backwards about how and why those dolls just happened to be acting out crimes. Don't want to give away the ending, though!

JF: How do you feel that the 1930s setting of this graphic novel compares to the original text 1930s Nancy Drews?

SP: I hope that it recreates the atmosphere and the flavor of those books, but obviously reading those original books is a unique experience. I wanted, ultimately, to create a bridge with the past, to say that despite the flow of time this was and still is the same Nancy Drew. Whether that succeeds or not is up to the readers.

JF: In 75 years when collectors and fans are celebrating these Graphic Novels, what is it about these novels that you would ultimately like fans to focus and reflect on?

SP: I'd like them to feel that I maintained the integrity of the character while helping to bring her both into a new century and a new medium. I've tried to give the graphic novels a snappy, engaging pacing that's a little different from the text experience, and I hope fans will appreciate and enjoy that as well.

JF: Tell us about what's coming up in future graphic novels--any sneak peeks?

SP: Sure - here's what's written so far:

In #4 The Girl Who Wasn't There, Nancy gets a call for help late one night from a girl she befriended over the phone when getting technical support to help fix her computer. When the line goes dead, Nancy is determined to get to the bottom of things. Soon, Nancy, her Dad, and friends George and Bess are on their way to India to find Kalpana, the girl who wasnąt there! It's only a matter of time before Nancy is captured by Sahadev the crime lord and is being sacrificed to Kali!

In #5 The Missing Heir, a vanishing lake reveals an ancient treasure. This brings the reclusive Mrs. Druthers into the lives of the Drews when she tries to claim it as her husband's inheritance. Only Mr. Druthers vanished years ago, and the rumor is she murdered him!

In #6, Mr. Cheeters is Missing, the wealthy Blanche Porter asks Nancy to help find her missing pet chimp, Mr. Cheeters. Only the more Nancy digs, the more it seems like Mr. Cheeters never existed! Is Blanche insane?

JF: Will there be a Nancy Drew and Hardy Boys super graphic novel mystery tie-in volume in the near future?

SP: It's something we've talked about and would certainly like to do, but the feeling at this point is that the graphic novel series is too young right now for a cross-over. I'd certainly like to see it happen sooner rather than later, though!

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