An Exclusive Interview with Bestselling Author, Jeff Kinney

Jeff Kinney is a world-renowned author and illustrator best known for his series, ‘Diary of a Wimpy Kid,’ which has sold over 300 million copies worldwide. Last Friday, he paid a visit to Berkhamsted School to bring his UK book tour to a close, celebrating the release of his landmark 20^th book, ‘Partypooper.’ In keeping with the surprise theme of the book, this visit was kept a surprise for our Berkhamsted Prep pupils!

Before appearing onstage to meet his unsuspecting audience-and the hour of raucous fun that followed-Kinney took a moment to chat to us at Berkhamsted School. In our conversation, he talked about the inspiration behind ‘Partypooper,’ his top tips for writing and illustrating, and what he loves about visiting a School like Berkhamsted.

To begin, let’s talk about the reason you’re here today, Jeff. Tell us about your new book, ‘Partypooper.’

J: ‘Partypooper’ starts off with a bang. It starts off with Greg Heffley’s parents forgetting his birthday, which, of course, would be every kid’s worst nightmare! Greg tries to leverage the guilt that they’re feeling into a giant party for himself, where he can maximise the number of guests, and of course, presents!’

What is the process like to write a book like this?

J: ‘I go through this whole process, where the first thing I do is come up with a theme, and then I come up with a lot of jokes that go with that theme. So, in this case, it would be cakes and presents and balloons, and everything else that comes with a party. Then, I write the jokes, and eventually, I write the manuscript, and the last thing I do is the illustrations.’

Do you have any strange rituals or ways to write that you find work best?

J: ‘Sometimes I write in my car at the cemetery! In the wintertime, when I come up with my book and book theme, I sometimes go there to start writing jokes.’

Do you have any writing tips for our young readers at Berkhamsted?

J: ‘I would say the most important thing that a young aspiring writer could do is read as much as possible, especially in the genre that they’re most interested in. When you’re a good reader, you can become a good writer- and you can’t become a good writer without being a good reader!’

Great advice. So, you’re on tour now to promote your new book, ‘Partypooper.’ Where have you been so far?

J: ‘I’ve been all over the US and recently, of course, here in the UK. Today I leave for Germany, and then I go to Italy, and finally to Turkey.’

What was your first impression of Berkhamsted?

J: ‘It seems like a really nice school- like a place that I would have liked to have come as a kid. I feel like the kids here are very lucky to go here!’

They’ll probably be feeling extra lucky today! Speaking of those pupils- what do you hope they take out of this experience?

J: ‘I really hope they’re entertained, and I’d hope that they can see a pathway to becoming an author or an illustrator themselves. When I was a kid, I never really met any authors, and I didn’t envision myself in that profession. So, I hope that maybe today there’ll be a kid whose career ambitions are sparked from this event.’

Kinney’s vibrant, exciting show undoubtedly left a remarkable impression on our pupils. Perhaps someday, we’ll be sitting down to chat to one of our pupils as a successful author or illustrator themselves, remembering the day the ‘Diary of a Wimpy Kid’ author came to visit. Maybe they’ll even find inspiration in a cemetery too! We will have to wait and see…