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I Am Wolf was in my head before I even knew what it was.
Creating a story can be a strange process. Often, you might have all the clever ideas, cunning plots, and intricate worlds, but they mean nothing. They sit there, on scribbled post-its and computer screens, and if they could speak, they’d say: So what?
But one day, as I was wandering along thinking not very much at all, a phrase came to me: I Am Wolf. I actually saw it in my head as a book cover. A boy stared out at me, fearless and challenging. I Am Wolf. That was it. No story, no plot, no world. Just those words.
It turned in my head all day, and that night I lay in bed, wide awake. I Am Wolf.
Somehow, I knew that Wolf was the only thing that mattered. Wolf was home, family, purpose. Wolf was your crew. There were other crews, but they… They were the enemy. This was about tribalism. About how good it feels to belong. About how easy it can be to hate people different from you.
I Am Wolf.
Over time, more pieces appeared. Wolf, I realised, was real. People lived on Wolf. At one point, I thought Wolf might be a fantasy creature. Then perhaps it was a virtual avatar in a giant computer game. But the image that kept returning was the deck of an eighteenth-century frigate ship – ropes and rigging, battles and busy-ness, lives on board. Wolf became a sci-fi version of that.
I needed to explain how Wolf could exist, so I came up with Anthryl – a wondrous sci-fi material that can change shape, using psychic energy for power. Literally, the more you believe, the stronger your creature becomes. Wolf. Wolf. WOLF! But I was still missing a main character – and then along came Coll.
Coll arrived in my head, ready to go. It was like I’d already met him – I knew everything about him. I knew he was strong, tall, a bit hot-headed, sometimes grumpy, maybe not the smartest. I knew he had a prosthetic arm and leg. I knew he was brave.
He was perfect. Coll loves Wolf. He’s fiercely loyal, and will rush into a fight to help anyone. I knew that he would be treated differently because of his limb difference, and as Wolf is all about belonging, that isolation would be a driving force.
But I was cautious. Coll’s limb difference was important – it would be important to him, after all. But it wasn’t the point of him. I had to tell his story right, so that he felt authentic to people who had lived his experiences.
My publishers at Nosy Crow were brilliant with this, and reached out to some amazing organisations who support kids with limb differences, like Limbo and Finding Your Feet. I chatted with them, and they helped me understand the bits I’d missed or got wrong. My proudest moment was when some of these kids and their parents came back and told me that they saw themselves in Coll’s story – not in the background, or as a sidekick, or some sort of tragic character, but there. Like Coll – real, alive, and kicking arse. I’m incredibly grateful to you all.
I Am Wolf was so much fun to write. What are you working on? people would ask. A giant mechanical wolf with a human crew, I’d say, roaming the land and fighting other creatures. I couldn’t stop grinning. I mean – how cool is it, that I get to write stories like this? Giant. Mechanical. WOLF. Yasss.
I hope your readers enjoy Coll’s adventures. I hope they roar at the battle scenes, gasp at the twists, shudder at the horrible rockjaws, and wonder – how did this world come about? I hope they love Coll and his friends, and I hope they punch the air at the end. If they have half as much fun reading it as I had writing it, then it’ll be a blast.
About the Author: Alistair Chisholm
Alistair Chisholm has written many books for children and is also a puzzle creator!
His books are full of twists and turns that keep readers hooked. They’re packed with adventure and science fiction that make them wonderful to read aloud and he keeps room for moral questions that invite plenty of discussion.
You can browse a selection of Alistair’s books via the images below. Many of his titles. including the brand new I am Wolf, are included in our Class Set Summer Promo, so if you need class sets do have a look.
Dragon Storm: Tomas and Ironskin
Original price was: £7.99.£5.59Current price is: £5.59.
Inch and Grub: A Story About Cavemen
Original price was: £7.99.£5.59Current price is: £5.59.