Boyd discusses Solo with The New York Times

William Boyd

The New York Times THIS WEEK examined continuation novels in general and 007 continuation novels in particular, focusing on the latest, William Boyd’s Solo.

The reporter, Sarah Lyall, posed the question why readers would buy a continuation novel featuring one writer’s take on another author’s character.

“I think it’s a reader-driven thing,” said Mr. Boyd, who was interviewed on the phone from London and later in person in New York. “If people like the characters and like the stories, they want more of the same. Because authors are finite creatures and stop writing and fall off their perches, these rebootings can satisfy readers’ needs. People want to find out what Elizabeth Bennet did next.”

Boyd, meanwhile, told Lyall, that he was given enough leeway by Ian Fleming Publications to make the project worth his while. “I wanted to write a gritty, realistic spy novel about a human being, not anything fantastical or silly, with organizations trying to rule the world,” he told the Times.

As for IFP’s perspective, Lyall provides this:

“This is bringing a fresh, new interesting life to Bond,” said Corinne Turner, managing director of Ian Fleming Publications. It’s “about the heritage,” she said, not the money.

The story notes that IFP’s copyright on the literary Bond lasts until 2034, or 70 years after Ian Fleming’s death.

The story examines a number of other continuation novel projects, including one where Sebastian Faulks — author of the 2008 007 continuation novel Devil May Care — is a participant. You can CLICK HERE to read it. The story ran on page one of the Oct. 23 print edition of the paper.