The Dog Dish with Kriffle

We have a slightly different Dog Dish interview today -- for the first time, Dakota interviewed a fictional character!

We're welcoming Australian author Jonathan Gould to the blog today on his tour with Goddess Fish Promotions. He's a humor author and has written two fun books: "Flidderbugs" and "Doodling". He'll be awarding a $25 Amazon GC to someone who comments during the tour, so make sure you leave a note!

And now ... please welcome Kriffle, the central character in Flidderbugs

It’s lovely to talk to you today, Kriffle. Firstly, can you tell me exactly what is a Flidderbug?

That’s a good question. Well firstly, I guess we’re bugs. That bit's pretty easy. We have six legs, and big, googly eyes, and long, wiggly antennae, and we live on the Krephiloff Tree. Secondly, we flidder.

Ok, that’s not very helpful. Can you tell me what is a…flidder?

I don’t know. I never really thought about it before. It’s just what we do. Maybe it’s a bit like a flittery fiddle. Or perhaps it’s more like a fiddly flitter. Come to think of it, it could be more like a fluttery dither. One of my friends thought it might be a little bit like a twittery twitter but I don’t think it’s anything like that at all.

Maybe it’s best if we move on to more interesting things. What do Flidderbugs like to eat?

Klummerflies are our very favourite food. They’re crisp and savoury and very crunchy. My mother makes the finest tasting Klummerfly broth on our side of the Krephiloff Tree. Flidderbugs come fliddering from faraway branches just to breathe in the aroma.

That’s the second time you’ve mentioned the Krephiloff Tree. What on earth is a Krephiloff Tree?

The Krephiloff Tree is our home. It’s the only place where you’ll ever find us Flidderbugs.

What’s it like?

I don’t know what it’s like. It just is. It has a big trunk, and in the middle of the trunk is the Fleedenhall where the Fliddercouncil meets. I’ve been there lots, because my father is head of the Triplifers – that’s one of the two main tribes of Flidderbugs. The other tribe is the Quadrigons, but we won’t mention them. They’re our arch-enemies.

Why don’t you like them?

Because they’re horrid and rude and they have no idea how many points there are on a leaf.

How many points there are on a leaf? Is that important?

Of course it is. It’s the single most important thing in the world to us Flidderbugs. Not that it’s a complicated question. We all know the answer is three, don’t we?

I’ll take your word for it. I have just a few more questions to ask if you don’t mind?

Sure. Go ahead.

Six legs or four – which is better?

Definitely six. I don’t know how you possibly cope with so few legs. With all the leaves around here, I wouldn’t be able to get anywhere.

Which is worse, flyspray or a bug-catcher?

They both sound pretty nasty. I think I’d have to go with the bug-catcher. At least flyspray would be quick. Being stuck in a bug-catcher would be like being exiled from the Krephiloff Tree. I don’t think I could live with that.

Have you ever owned a pet?

Well once I had a pet Klummerfly. Actually, I’ve had a number of pet Klummerflies. They never seem to survive for long. I guess it’s because they just taste so good.

Again, I’ll just have to take your word for it. Kriffle, it’s been a pleasure talking to you. Thank you for your time and all the best for the upcoming election.

Thank you. We’ll need it.

As Kriffle the Flidderbug investigates why his fellow 'bugs find it impossible to agree on the pressing issue of how many points there are on the leaves of the tree on which they live, he finds that the truth is more complicated, and ultimately more terrifying, than he ever could have imagined.

Flidderbugs is a political satire, a modern fable, or maybe just a funny little story about a bunch of insects with some very peculiar obsessions.

Neville Lansdowne fell off the world.

Actually, he did not so much fall off as let go. The world had been moving so quickly lately and Neville was finding it almost impossible to keep up.

Doodling is an engaging comic fantasy which relates the events that befall Neville after he finds himself abandoned by the world and adrift in the middle of an asteroid field. Douglas Adams meets Lewis Carroll (with just a touch of Gulliver's Travels) as Neville wanders through his new home, meeting a variety of eccentric characters and experiencing some most unexpected adventures.

He calls his stories "dag-lit" because they're the sort of stories that don't easily fit into the standard genres. Some might think of them as comic fantasies, or modern fairytales for the young and the young-at-heart.

Over the years, his writing has been compared to Douglas Adams, Monty Python, A.A. Milne, Lewis Carroll, the Goons, Dr Seuss and even Enid Blyton (in a good way).

http://www/daglit.blogspot.com

And he's only just entered this world of social networking - so if you meet him somewhere out there, please be nice to him.

https://twitter.com/#!/jonno_go

https://www.facebook.com/jonathangouldwriter

Purchase Doodling from:
Amazon
Amazon UK
Smashwords
Barnes and Noble
iBookstore
KoboSony Bookstore

Purchase Flidderbugs from:
Amazon
Amazon UK
Smashwords
Barnes and Noble
iBookstore
Sony Bookstore
Kobo