Q&A with This Tale is Forbidden author, Polly Crosby
We spoke to Polly Crosby, the author behind This Tale is Forbidden – a brand-new, thrilling dystopian fantasy that will change the way you think about the fairytales we know. This Tale is Forbidden is out now.
Tell us about the concept of your debut YA novel This Tale is Forbidden.
This Tale is Forbidden is about 16 year-old Nesta, who lives in a cottage in the woods with her grandma. Nesta believes in the fairy tales – the true stories of powerful magical women who shaped and ruled the world decades ago. But the world outside of the woods has changed over the years, and now, she is forbidden from leaving their protection. Nesta is desperate to go to the nearby city, and when her grandmother is abducted, she gets her chance, journeying there in the hope of rescuing her. But once there, she is horrified to see that girls in the city are punished if they don’t behave in certain ways. The city’s Authorities have rewritten history, erasing magic and replacing the stories of fairytale heroines with weak girls who must rely on men. Worse still, everyone believes this is how the world has always been. Nesta knows the truth, and she’s not afraid to tell it. But truth is a dangerous thing…
Where did the idea for This Tale is Forbidden come from?
In the pandemic, I sat down to write my next adult novel, but a persistent voice kept whispering in my ear. Nesta is not one to be quietened! In the end I had no choice but to stop what I was doing and listen. I’ve always loved fairytales. I think I’m drawn to their darkness and that twisted creepiness that always gives me a delicious shiver. I wanted to write something that was the opposite of the sickly sweet princess story.
In This Tale is Forbidden, you shine a light on the oppressive nature of many of the traditional fairy tales we know. What made you want to tell a different version of these stories?
Fairytales have been told and retold for centuries throughout the world. I read a lot of versions whilst writing this book, and it’s incredible how much changes from author to author as a story is retold. The stories’ morals change over the centuries too, and often, meanings get mixed up or twisted in translation from one language to another – a bit like the way a piece of gossip grows more and more scandalous the further it spreads. I love that nowadays we are finally giving a voice to the girls and women who so often before have been written as docile and sweet. Now these girls are beginning to shout!
Where did you get inspiration for the character of Nesta?
Nesta is the type of heroine I wanted to read about as a teen. In some ways she’s quite like me at that age – happiest out in nature, and at ease with not trying to fit in with the crowd. But Nesta is a lot more vocal than I was. She is the underdog who doesn’t care that she’s different. In fact, she embraces it! She is a voice for all the teens I meet nowadays who are disgruntled with the world, who see that there is still work to be done to further equality, but who don’t quite know how to do it.
The importance of who gets to tell stories becomes incredibly apparent throughout the book. Do you think this is true in ‘real life’?
Yes, definitely. And increasingly so since the advent of social media. The internet has given a platform to so many, allowing people who would not have been heard before to speak up, which is brilliant. But of course, this also means that our sources of news and education are not as reliable as before. Anyone can say anything, twisting the truth, and if they are charismatic and clever, they will always attract followers – just like the dangerous Authorities do in This Tale is Forbidden.
What is one key message from the book you would love for readers to takeaway?
I want each and every reader to know that they have a voice and a right to be heard. They have way more power than they realise, they just have to unlock it ☺️
What are you reading right now?
I’ve just started Bitterthorn by Kat Dunn. It’s a deliciously gothic retelling of Beauty and the Beast. A sinister castle, wild woods and a monstrous and lonely witch – what more could you possibly want?
Do you have any tips for aspiring writers?
Write for you, at first. Writing is a muscle, it needs exercise. Every word you write makes you a better writer, and don’t give up if you don’t succeed straight away: I wrote my first novel at 19, but I didn’t get published for another 20 years! Let me tell you, it was absolutely worth the wait though!
