The Revelry by Katherine Webber

February 7th 2022

A lot of The Revelry is centred around the woods. What inspired this eerie woodland theme?

I’ve always been fascinated and drawn to woodlands – there is something so magical and evocative about them. Stories set in the woods immediately take on a bit of a fairytale vibe, and that is what I wanted for The Revelry. While I didn’t have a wood to get lost in as a child (I lived in a very suburban town in California) there was one tree behind my house that I thought of as “my tree”. I used to climb it and pretend I was in a vast, enchanted forest. One of the things I love about London is how many green spaces there are hidden in it.

Did you have to do any research for the book? If so, what did you have to research and why?

I mostly did research about different types of trees to make sure that the way I described the trees in the woods was accurate. The other thing that I did the most research on didn’t actually make it into the book – in an earlier draft a character nearly drowned and Bitsy, the main character, had to swim them back to safety, so I spoke to a lifeguard to figure out how that would work. But then during edits I changed that scene completely, so I didn’t use it. Other than that, this book didn’t require a huge amount of research – I mostly drew on my own imagination.

What message might you have for teenagers who are experiencing ups and downs with their close friends?

A close friendship is wonderful and complicated all at once. It is easy to feel like you are putting more into the friendship than your friend, or that they aren’t there for you in the way that you want them to be. Try to remember that you never know what a friend might be going through. Maybe they said or did something that upset you, but that might be because they have something going on. Instead of getting immediately defensive or accusatory, try to take a deep breath and see it from their perspective. It is amazing how easy it can be to defuse a situation; offer to go on a walk or get them a cup of tea, and check in. If it keeps being an issue, you can raise it by expressing how you feel instead of blaming them.

For me, one of the biggest takeaways from the book, and something I try to apply to my own life even as an adult, is that people “friend” differently. For example, one friend might think that good friendship means texting every day, where another one might think friendship means spending time in person together. One isn’t better than the other, people just “friend” in different ways, and once you realize that about your own friendships, the easier it is to appreciate them.

The Revelry is a fantastic read for teenagers (and adults!). Do you have a favourite Young Adult novel?

Thank you! I love Young Adult novels. One of my all-time favourites is Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor. This is a fantasy novel with romance and magic, but there is also a really wonderful friendship in it too. I would recommend it to anyone!

The Revelry is out now.