A S T OK E R & HOL M E S NOVE L

C OL LEEN GLEASON

AN EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW WITH

Colleen Gleason
AUTHOR OF

A S T OK E R & HOL M E S NOVE L

THE C LOCKWO R K SCA R A B : Q +A W I T H CO L L E E N G L E A SO N

Q
A

: Tell us about your inspiration for writing

The Clockwork Scarab: A Stoker & Holmes Novel.
: The very first time I learned what "steampunk" was,
I was fascinated and knew I would someday write a

book in that genre. It was just a matter of getting the right

story. And so I just let it perk for a while, because there's one
thing I've learned after writing more than twenty books: when
the story's ready to be told, it'll come to me.
I've always been a huge fan of Sherlock Holmes. I read
most of the stories when I was in middle and high school, and
when I learned a movie was being made with Robert Downey,
Jr., as Sherlock, I was over the moon. I adored that movie
(the second one, not quite as much but I will totally go see
the third!), and seeing it got me to thinking about Sherlock
in a steampunk world. In fact, I had several discussions with
people about whether that movie is steampunk (it's not), but
that got the juices flowing and reminded me what a fantastic
character Sherlock Holmes is. I loved RDJ's portrayal of him
too. He nailed it. (And so has Benedict Cumberbatch, in the
BBC's Sherlock.)
With this on my mind, one day I thought: what would
Sherlock Holmes's daughter be like? Then I immediately
erased that thought. Sherlock Holmes would never, ever have
a daughter.

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THE C LOCKWO R K SCA R A B : Q +A W I T H CO L L E E N G L E A SO N

But he had a brother, and thus could have a niece . . .

and I loved that idea.
From there, it blossomed: Sherlock Holmes's niece in a
steampunk world. How much fun would that be?
I decided she had to have a friend, and I got to thinking
about that. Who could it be? Another literary character? I
happened to learn that Sir Arthur Conan Doyle was not only
a contemporary of Bram Stoker, the author of Dracula, but
they were also friends. I had previously written an entire series
about Victoria Gardella, a female vampire hunter during the
time of Jane Austen . . . and then my brain exploded. (Or it
felt like it.)
What if Sherlock Holmes's niece was partnered up with
Bram Stoker's sister, who happened to be a vampire hunter?
In a steampunk London? There'd be mystery, adventure,
danger, vampires, cogworks, all sorts of inventions . . . and
steam. And, of course, romance!
That sounded exactly like a book I would want to read.
And so I wrote it!

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THE C LOCKWO R K SCA R A B : Q +A W I T H CO L L E E N G L E A SO N

:The heroines in your book are inspired by classic

stories, and there are some fantastic details from

Dracula and the Sherlock Holmes novels woven into

The Clockwork Scarab. Can you share some of those with us?

: As I was writing the first Stoker & Holmes book, my

editor encouraged me to include winks and nods to

the original books that inspired my characters. I had a lot of

fun doing this (and had the excuse to re-read some of my
favorite Holmes stories as well as Dracula to make sure they
were fresh in my mind).
One of the first discussions my editor and I had was
about the name "Mina." From the very beginning, my
character's name was Alvermina (Mina) Holmes. She hates
her name, but she can abide the shorter Mina.
But of course, anyone who is familiar with Dracula
knows Mina Harper is the name of the young heroic woman
in that novel. Since, in The Clockwork Scarab, Bram Stoker is
currently writing Dracula, my editor suggested I might want
to name the Stoker girl Mina, because of the connection with
the book.
But after some long discussions, I decided to leave it as
it was: Mina Holmes and Evaline Stoker. Because, you see,
Mina Holmes is much more like the character of Mina Harper

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THE C LOCKWO R K SCA R A B : Q +A W I T H CO L L E E N G L E A SO N

than Evaline Stoker isshe's a proper young woman, very

intelligent, and she even has all the bus and Underground
schedules memorized. So it made sense that my Mina could
be Bram Stoker's inspiration for his Mina, instead of his sister
Evaline, who is wilder and more active than Ms. Harper.
In The Clockwork Scarab, we also meet Sir Arthur Conan
Doyle's Irene Adler, who is known as the Womanthe only
female to ever outsmart Sherlock Holmes. There have been
many fictional interpretations of Irene Adler, but we really
don't know all that much about her. She appears in one story
("A Scandal in Bohemia"), and we know she's American,
has been an entertainer, and most likely has a questionable
background. But she's also very intelligent, wears disguises,
and one-ups Sherlock Holmes. Who'd be more perfect than
Irene to pull together a group of extraordinary young women
to work together in a brilliant team? She becomes their mentor,
and I've had a lot of fun developing Ms. Adler's background,
which is still filled with many questions.
We do meet Sherlock Holmes and Bram Stoker in
The Clockwork Scarab, but they are by no means center stage.
This book is about young women and their skills, and so the
men (both older and of their own age) take a back seat to the
driving force of the females.

THE C LOCKWO R K SCA R A B : Q +A W I T H CO L L E E N G L E A SO N

: We hear you've incorporated a connection to your

very popular adult books into The Clockwork

Scarab, which is your debut young adult book. We're sure

your fans will be eager to hear details!

: My bestselling series, The Gardella Vampire

Chronicles, is about another extraordinary young

woman: Victoria Gardella Grantworth. She lives in London

in 1820 (during the time of Jane Austen) and learns she is a
vampire hunter. A little bit Buffy, a little bit Pride & Prejudice,
the five-book series follows Victoria's character arc from
learning of her calling to coming to terms with it. She has to
juggle being a debutante and attending balls, filling her dance
card and looking for a husband with sneaking off to stake the
occasional vampire.
The connection between Stoker & Holmes and the
Gardella series is loose, but definitely present. At the end
of the Gardella series, one of the minor characters who was
fascinated by vampires but never could choose which side to
be on, writes a tell-all book about the vampire hunting family
and the vampires. This book is called The Venators and is in the
vast library at Mina Holmes's house. So when Mina learns
that her new so-called partner, Evaline Stoker, is descended
from the Gardella family of vampire hunters, she is already
quite well informed about the family and their history (much
to Evaline's irritation).

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THE C LOCKWO R K SCA R A B : Q +A W I T H CO L L E E N G L E A SO N

Evaline Stoker is the great-great niece of Victoria

Gardella. The only problem is, Victoria did such a good job
running the vampires out of London, there aren't any undead
for Evaline to hunt! Which is why Irene Adler pulls her into
partnership with Mina Holmes.

: We can't believe we have to wait until Fall 2014 for the

: For me, one of the most interesting and compelling

second Stoker & Holmes novel! Will you give us a

sneak peek?

elements of Victorian society was the fascination with

sances and spiritualism. I thought it would be very fun for

Mina and Evaline to get caught up in a mystery that involves
spirit-talkers. One can only imagine Mina's take on the
situation (complete balderdash!) and Evaline's openmindedness (after all, she is supposed to hunt vampires).
Not only do the young women get to attend several
seances, but they also attend the grand opening of New
Vauxhall Gardens, which is a steampunk amusement park.
We're still working on a title for this second book, but I can
tell you they eat lots of fun street food and someone adopts an
adorable beagle with a mechanical leg!

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