Manipulation and The Woodcutter

I’ve done a few interviews recently about The Woodcutter and have been asked what inspired it. One strand that I have referenced is that of wanting to incorporate a reality TV show type setup and using that to play with the reader’s understanding of what is going on.

The Woodcutter is set in the small village of Little Hatchet, edged by the overwhelming presence of GodBeGone Woods. These woods are the source of the legend of the Woodcutter and Grandma. Part of the legend was the need for the Woodcutter to claim an apprentice from the village and this process, the offering up of sons to the Woodcutter so that he could chose one of them, forms the re-enactment which is turned into a reality TV show. In addition to the film crew, the villagers also take part, videoing it for social media and YouTube. BUT is this just a re-enactment or is it real? Certainly as you read it, your perceptions will change and change again, much as the characters’ own understanding of what is going on is continually tested.

The idea of this level of manipulation came to me as I remembered a show, Apocalypse, created by Derren Brown which I caught on TV some years ago. It’s always stayed with me because it set up a person to believe that a zombie apocalypse had happened and he was the sole survivor. There has been much debate about whether this central character was an actor or not, but from what I remember, I believed then that he believed what was happening to him. And this was what I wanted to bring into The Woodcutter.

You can see Derren Brown’s show and decide for yourself.