Victor Dixen gaf antwoord

Tijdens de Boeken Adventskalender van 2016 konden jullie vragen aan Victor Dixen, schrijver van Phobos stellen die hij zou beantwoorden. Helaas lukte het hem niet om een video op te nemen, maar hij heeft wel de tijd genomen om vrijwel al jullie vragen te beantwoorden! Hoe tof is dat!? Lees snel mee of ook jouw vraag er tussen zit!

Eline: Why do you always wear sunglasses?

I first started to wear them because of a sensitivity to light, and over time they became my trademark 😉

 

Heleen & Leen: Why did you choose for the number 6?

Having 6 girls and 6 boys aboard the Cupido spaceship seemed the right number to build a lot of intrigue, and at the same time not to overwhelm the reader with too many characters.

Only later did I realize that the number 12 is quite symbolic: 12 months in the year, 12 astrological signs, etc.

Today, I like to think of the 12 contestants in the Genesis program as 12 apostles of the human civilization, going to Mars.

 

Lisa: Who is your favourite book character?

In my books, I feel unable to pick just one character. They are all important for me. I always try to eventually explore the positive aspects of characters who primarily appear negative and non-likable. And likewise, I try to shed light on the conflicts and inner contradictions of characters who appear flawless at first sight.

That being said, I am very glad to have Kelly, the Canadian girl, as part of the team. I particularly like to write her dialogue lines. In a thriller atmosphere that is often quite tense, her irreverence, rebel attitude and tongue-in-cheek spirit are such a relief! Kelly is a very fun character to write.

 

Bianca: Would you join the expedition to Mars?

Hum… let me think… Yes, probably, if I can bring enough books with me for the long flight… and get a return ticket! 😉

Raaf & Monique:  What inspired you to write this story??

There are two ideas at the origin of PHOBOS.

The first idea is linked to space conquest, a theme that has always interested me since I was a child. Today, we have the technology allowing us to go to Mars, but not to come back. This one-way ticket possibility stimulated my imagination.

The second idea is linked to the way our world seems to be fascinated by images. We are surrounded by screens, for better and for worse. On the one hand, screens give us the possibility to establish dialogues and relationships throughout the world, and they are also an unlimited territory for creativity. But on the other hand, it is difficult to escape from their flux of images: screens prompt us to react emotionally and instantly to every stimulus, without thinking first.

That is the reason why images are so important in PHOBOS : image of the self, image of the others, false appearances.

Sylvia: Why did you choose to combine a space journey to a new colony on Mars with a live dating show?

It appeared as the best way to combine the 2 main themes I wanted to talk about in Phobos: the fascination of space conquest and the power of images in our society.

 

Jyoti: What kind of research did you do for Phobos?

I did a lot of technical research on space conquest, spaceships and astronomy, as I wanted Phobos to be as realistic as possible.

Nadia: What were your favourite books when you were a child?

When I was a child I was very fond of fairy tales – and I still am.

Fairy tales resonate in each of us individually, and more generally in our common human psyche.

These stories often seem very simple on the surface, but in reality they hide huge depths of wisdom, meaning and emotion. I can always re-read them and find new treasures.

Among my favorite are Charles Perrault’s and Hans Christian Andersen’s fairy tales.

 

Angela: What is your most special (or weird) date experience?

Falling in love and flying to the other side of the planet the day after!

 

Rita & Kelly: How do you come up with a book? Is it only your imagination? Or a dream?

It really depends. For Phobos, it is a combination of marvelling at the immensity of space, and observing the evolution of our society on Earth – I took these two ingredients, I let my imagination soar.

On the other hand, one of my previous books, not yet translated in Dutch, entirely stems from a dream. In that dream, I was lost in a deep forest and I saw a little house. But the more I tried to reach that house, the further it seemed… When I woke up, I thought immediately of this fairy tale I had long forgotten: Goldilocks and the Three Bears. I re-read it, and realized that there was no actual ending to this story. So it became like a mission for me: find the hidden truth behind this tale, imagine its true ending. It became a novel: Animale, the Malediction of Goldilocks.

 

Esther: What would you do if you were in the same situation as the 6 boys and girls in Phobos?

Well, I think I would adopt the same position as Léonor: enjoy the trip to space and try to stay authentic, escaping the show business madness.

But is it really possible, to be both part of the game and outside of the game?

This is one of the questions raised in Phobos…

 

Ik wil Victor heel erg bedanken voor zijn antwoorden en jullie natuurlijk voor jullie fantastische vragen. Ik hoop dat jullie door deze antwoorden een beter inzicht hebben gekregen in Phobos en natuurlijk Victor Dixen himself. Wisten jullie dat hij ook bij YALFest aanwezig zal zijn? Dubbel feest!

Bewaren