ARTUR OLIVEIRA: Thank you all so much for coming.
My name is Artur.
And I am really excited today to be
able to welcome Evangeline Lilly to Google in Mountain View.
As you all know, Evangeline is an incredibly
famous and successful actress.
She's been in plenty of works on the big screen and on TV.
But today we're here to talk about her new book--
first published work, which is incredible,
"The Squickerwonkers."
And just to let you guys know, we're
going to be doing a little bit of Q&A and then we'll open up.
There's a mic in the back.
So if you have any questions, feel free to come up.
And with that being said, thank you for coming.
EVANGELINE LILLY: Yeah.
It's a pleasure to be here.
You guys are a better looking group than the New York group.
[LAUGHTER]
Don't tell them I said so.
ARTUR OLIVEIRA: This is going to go up
on YouTube, just so you know.
EVANGELINE LILLY: I'm never going
to be invited back to New York.
ARTUR OLIVEIRA: So tell me a little bit about the book.
I'm sure everybody would love to hear about that.
EVANGELINE LILLY: Oh, I'm sure everybody would really
like to hear about other things, but I'm
going to talk about the book.
[LAUGHS] So I wrote this book when I was 14 years old.
Well, I didn't write this book.
I wrote a poem called "The Squickerwonkers"
when I was 14 years old.
And I carried it around with me for 20 years,
with my mom asking me periodically through those 20
years, (NEW YORK ACCENT) when are you
going to publish "The Squickerwonkers," honey?
(NORMAL VOICE) She's not New Yorkian.
But for some reason when you play a mom,
it just works so much better when you use a New York accent.
And I mean, I've been pining after the notion
of becoming a writer for a very long time.
For any of you who have ever watched me in interview
during my acting gigs, you know I'm
sort of a reluctant actress, and do it is a day job,
but my passion is writing.
So this is a crazy momentous moment for me
to be a published author, and to be talking about my book.
And it means the world to me.
And I've poured three years of full-time work into this book.
And it's the first of 18 in a series of Squickerwonker
stories for your kids, and apparently for their kids.
Because by the time I'm on book 18,
they'll be having children also.
ARTUR OLIVEIRA: I was saving the 18 books in the series--
EVANGELINE LILLY: Sorry.
ARTUR OLIVEIRA: --question for a little bit later.
No, no, this is great.
EVANGELINE LILLY: Jumped the gun.
ARTUR OLIVEIRA: Did Peter Jackson
have anything to do with this?
Or was he like--
[LAUGHTER]
--three is not enough.
EVANGELINE LILLY: Because it's 18 books, is that why?
I was honored to have Peter and his partners,
Fran Walsh and Philippa Boyens, write the forward for the book.
When I was working on "The Hobbit"
is when I first started working on this story.
And I would bring proofs to them to look
at-- Philippa and Fran-- who have written the films that you
all know and love.
"The Lord of the Rings" trilogy and "The Hobbit" trilogy.
They helped me edit the book.
I was the luckiest first time author
in the world to be surrounded by the incredible talent
that I was when I was making it.
And actually, I found him through working on "The Hobbit"
also, because he worked at the Weta Workshop who
create all of the creative-- they create the armor,
they create a lot of the elements of the costume,
and they do the concept design for all of Pete's movies.
So he was a very, very lucky find.
For any of you who have the book in your hands,
you'll have already seen that the illustrations are out
of this world.
ARTUR OLIVEIRA: Yeah, the illustrations really
are amazing, for those of you who
haven't had a chance to see it yet.
EVANGELINE LILLY: Actually, speaking of which,
this is probably a perfect segue into this little thing
right here, which is a Johnny Fraser-Allen
original watercolor.
This is one of the two-page spreads in the book.
But this is the watercolor version that's non-digitized.
So it's not quite as vibrant as what you see in the book.
And it's going to be prints of these,
and prints of the illustrations are
being sold by the National Museum for American
Illustration, because they were so impressed with the artwork
in the book, they wanted to display it in some way.
They wanted to participate in it in some way.
So that was an incredible honor for our book
to be recognized by that museum.
ARTUR OLIVEIRA: It really is a great combination
of your rhymes with his artwork.
I mean, the book is beautiful.
And as you were saying, it's not just for children, right?
It's for children of all ages.
EVANGELINE LILLY: Yeah, I mean, my son's three.
The publishers have to give a demographic.
So they say five to eight.
My son's three and I'm 35, and we both love it.
So it's for everybody.
Even my 13-year-old niece, when I was testing it,
I had her read it.
And she read it through, and she was like, yeah,
it's really good.
It's great.
And then suddenly she got really sheepish
in her teenage pre-teen way, and she was like, wait a minute.
Aunty, is this a book for kids?
And I said, yeah, it's technically a book for kids.
And I could see her expression was mortified.
So I went, but it's cool if older people like it.
I mean, I like it.
And she was like, oh, thank god, because I really like it,
and it's really embarrassing if it's a kid's book.
I want one.
So that's my teenage niece's testimony
that it's for kids of all ages.
ARTUR OLIVEIRA: Another thing I think is interesting
that I've read you say about the book
and about writing in general is that it's your true passion--
EVANGELINE LILLY: Yeah.
ARTUR OLIVEIRA: --correct?
And I think, to me, what's fascinating is you're already
so successful with your acting--
EVANGELINE LILLY: Don't be so greedy.
[LAUGHTER]
ARTUR OLIVEIRA: How does that translate into writing?
Because you have something that's established.
You have something that people know you--
they know you through that kind of work.
Can you talk a little bit about that transition process,
and what it's like now to start writing
and finally coming out to the public with your first work?
EVANGELINE LILLY: Well, I think there's
a lot of fatigue and intolerance surrounding
actors and their pet projects.
And I think a lot of people go, oh, yeah, OK, another actor
wants to be a singer.
Or another actor wants to be a writer.
Or another actor wants to be a director.
And I think that a big part of that is probably
because what people probably don't realize
is that actors in the film and television industry
have no control over anything of the creative building
of the projects that they work-- I mean, very rarely anyway.
If you're Brad Pitt, you do, because you're
producing your own projects.
But most of us don't.
And most of us are very creative people.
In my case, it's not just creative frustration.
It's that acting happened by accident.
And I was fortunate enough to stumble into a job
that pays really well, and that a lot of people
would dream of doing.
And it just was a happen chance thing.
And it wasn't because it was a passion of mine.
It wasn't because I was desperate to be an actress.
So what I do love and what I have always
done and been passionate about since I was a little girl
is writing stories.
As this book is a testimony to, since I wrote it when I was 14.
So this isn't so much a passion project for me,
as a genuine attempt to change career trajectories.
I mean, I've had the disadvantage of publishers
thinking-- assuming-- that I'm probably not very serious,
and not taking me as seriously because I am an actress.
And then the advantage of filling a room full of Google
employees because they want to talk to me about "Lost."
[LAUGHTER]
ARTUR OLIVEIRA: I mean, obviously the book
was published recently.
But you've also got the interactive version
on iBook, which seems like it's great for kids.
And you've got the audio book on audible.com.
And it's just in a lot of different places.
To you, how do you envision people
interacting with your book?
How do you envision them reading it?
EVANGELINE LILLY: Johnny and I both come from the film world,
so we couldn't help ourselves.
We made a stop animation film on paper.
And that's how we envision it.
And that's where eventually I think-- I hope-- ultimately
it will end up on a screen of some sort, small or large.
But I'm impatient, and controlling.
And I couldn't wait, so I started
making elements of the film already.
I partnered with a composer, and we made a Squickers soundtrack.
I partnered with Sylvester McCoy-- some of you
know who he is.
He's Radagast in "The Hobbit."
And he was also one of the original Doctor Whos.
He did the voice work for the audio book
and the interactive book.
And then I kind of brought it to life a little bit on an iBook,
so that children can interact with it.
And there's pop-up videos where I talk to kids, saying,
if you're a bit confused-- because this book is crazy--
let's talk about these topics.
And it was just basically me wanting more.
I wanted a multimedia experience with my own book.
And I now am obsessed with the idea
that they have to go together.
I'm giving away the audio book for free on audible.com
right now until December 1st, because I'm
so desperate for people to read the book with everything else,
with the sound and the narration.
And I just think they go so beautifully together.
And the music really brings the story to life.
ARTUR OLIVEIRA: Something I mentioned earlier
is your writing, it really is beautiful.
EVANGELINE LILLY: You're going to take up all their question
time.
He's getting greedy.
I'm telling you.
This is going to be the shortest talk I've ever given.
We have very little time.
You're busy people.
ARTUR OLIVEIRA: Right.
I'm sorry.
I should've had a clock to keep me honest.
EVANGELINE LILLY: We have another seven minutes
before we have to start a signing.
ARTUR OLIVEIRA: Oh my gosh!
OK, that flew by.
I really do apologize.
You're right.
Let's get some live questions.
And I just wanted to say, "The Squickerwonkers",
do you want to-- just 30-second--
where does the name come from?
EVANGELINE LILLY: When I was a kid,
I was totally obsessed with Dr. Seuss.
And I just loved his irreverent use of language.
I loved the fact that he made up words if he didn't have a word.
And I, being a teenager, was like, well, he
can make up words.
I can make up words.
So I started making up a list of quirky, kooky, weird words.
And one of them just jumped off the page for me
and stuck in my mouth.
And it was Squickerwonker.
And I thought, well, what's a Squickerwonker?
So I ended up making up a poem about the Squickerwonkers,
which are a family of misfit marionette puppets.
But originally they weren't puppets.
Hi, doggy.
Originally, they were just human, but not human.
I didn't know how that would look.
It was Johnny Fraser-Allen who brought
the idea of the marionette puppets.
But there was this clan of Squickerwonkers
that I wrote a poem for.
And it just stuck.
And I still love the word.
I just think it feels fun to say-- Squickerwonker.
I could say it 100 times.
I really like it.
ARTUR OLIVEIRA: Thank you.
EVANGELINE LILLY: So there is a microphone in the back.
ARTUR OLIVEIRA: Yeah, the mic is open.
So if anyone would like to ask questions, please.
And I'm sure Evangeline would love
to keep talking about the book.
EVANGELINE LILLY: Yeah, but I'm tolerant and graceful.
I know I'm going to get a few wild cards in there.
AUDIENCE: Well, I think somebody has to ask this, so I will.
Jack or Sawyer?
EVANGELINE LILLY: By the way, I knew
he was going to ask a "Lost" question, because when
I brought up "Lost," he laughed harder
than anybody else in the crowd.
A girl doesn't kiss and tell.
[LAUGHTER]
Have any of you actually read the book?
Have you had a chance to yet?
Nobody.
That's cool.
I mean, normally I come, and people have read it.
So I'm like, oh, you guys are in for a treat.
It's in the back.
AUDIENCE: Hi, I'm Rose.
I am wondering, are you going to stick with the same art style?
Or are you going to do different art for each book
if it's such a long series?
EVANGELINE LILLY: Well, my plan is
to stick with the same art style.
I feel like once it's identifiable,
you want it to remain identifiable with the brand.
But I don't know if I can convince Johnny Fraser to stick
with me for 20 years.
So we'll have to see.
I certainly wouldn't stray too far
from what has been already established.
It's been really, really well received.
People seem to love it.
I love it.
And, for me, it's a great representation of the world.
So, yeah, my plan would be to stay
as close to what you see now as possible.
I imagine it'll evolve-- all things do, don't they?
AUDIENCE: Hi there.
I was wondering, you started it when you were 13 or so.
And 20 odd years later, how has your maturing and your work
in film and all of that, how has that perspective
altered your 13-year-old Evangeline?
EVANGELINE LILLY: Well, when I first wrote it,
it was just a traditional cautionary tale,
where- actually, it wasn't really even.
Let's put it this way, at 13, it was devoid of message
and moral.
It was just silly.
It was just a silly poem.
And when I started the rewrites, which became extensive--
I rewrote it probably 30, 35 times in the last three years.
I suddenly was a mom.
And I was a grown woman, who had been through a lot more life
experiences.
And now, suddenly, I was trying to infuse the story with all
of these life lessons I'd learned,
and all of these ideas about the world--
essentially, my world view.
And one of things I went out of my way to do with this story
is to break away from the traditional children's
storybook model, where there are good guys and bad guys.
And the good guys are us, and the bad guys are them.
And the good guys live happily ever after,
and the bad guys get killed.
Because I just think that that's a worldview
that perpetuates starvation, and war and fighting
and imbalance and injustice.
And I feel like children live in a much more balanced world
than that, believe it or not.
We all seem to have negative things about ourselves,
and positive things about ourselves.
In my 35 years on this planet, I've
never met a villain, not face to face anyway.
Not that I know of.
I've heard about them.
And so the characters are all partly good and partly bad.
There's positive things about them
and negative things about them.
And our protagonist, who is this adorable little girl who's
very pretty on the outside, is very ugly on the inside.
And she gets herself into a lot of trouble because of that.
And our other protagonist, the Squickerwonkers,
who are these puppets who we're going
to follow through 18 books-- who are so
truly our protagonists-- they look ugly,
they look creepy and weird, they have all kinds of vices,
but there are elements of them that
are fun and lovable, and unique and interesting.
And it's really a book to help children and their parents
explore those ideas together and talk about-- you
can know that there are things that aren't
great about yourself and still be lovable, because everybody's
like that, even mom and dad.
But let's talk about the consequences of some
of your actions, and how you can prevent yourself
from falling to harm because of those things about you.
I'm telling you, I'm not going to get mad
if you ask about "Lost" or "The Hobbit."
[LAUGHTER]
I know you have questions.
And you don't have to use the microphone.
I could hear you.
Oh, wait, sound are probably going to kill me.
No, you have to go back to the microphone.
Sorry.
Do you want to use mine?
Come, you can use mine.
You can talk into my lap.
AUDIENCE: It's about the book actually.
[LAUGHTER]
If you have--
EVANGELINE LILLY: Stop talking to my boobs and talk to me.
AUDIENCE: If you have 18 books that you're going to write,
do you already know the storylines,
or are they still evolving?
EVANGELINE LILLY: Thank you.
[LAUGHTER]
If you're of the male gender, you can't use my lap.
I know what all of them will be, so I'm not
shooting from the hip.
A lot of people who watched my show "Lost"
complained that they thought our authors, our writers,
were always doing that.
And I'm not doing that.
I have a very clear idea of what the books are.
The Demise series, which is the first series
I'll come out with-- which is a series of nine books--
I know every single story.
I haven't written them all, but I know them all.
I have written the second book.
And then the last series-- the second series--
is the origins of the Squickerwonkers.
And that one I know what the stories have to consist of,
I just haven't mapped out the full book yet.
I mean, the reason it's 18 books is not arbitrary.
It has to be 18, because that will complete the circle
and complete the story.
And I can't tell you any more, because it'll be a spoiler.
But it's 18 for a reason, yeah.
Anyone else?
We've only got one minute.
You're going to miss your chance.
ARTUR OLIVEIRA: Come on.
EVANGELINE LILLY: I don't know what was in the hatch.
I loved the ending.
[LAUGHTER]
What else can I tell you?
Being an elf is awesome.
AUDIENCE: All right, "Hobbit" question.
Deal with it.
I understand that your character in "The Hobbit"
was not in the original Tolkien.
Were you at all involved in the process of figuring out
how she fits into this world, and how she'd
be written into the plot for the films?
EVANGELINE LILLY: OK, first of all, when you say,
as you understand it, are you going
to try to pretend like you never read "The Hobbit"?
[LAUGHTER]
AUDIENCE: So as I understand it, she's not in "The Hobbit,"
but as you probably know, there's
a lot more Tolkien mythology that's not directly
in the books, but this apparently still goes on.
EVANGELINE LILLY: I'm curious, have you read "The Hobbit"?
AUDIENCE: --not in "The Lord of the Rings",
but apparently she's in the Tolkien universe.
EVANGELINE LILLY: Right, right.
Well, Tauriel was a complete invention.
She's a complete invention for the film.
I did work very closely with Peter, Fran, and Philippa
to create her.
And I always very tongue-in-cheek
tell people, though, that she was in the book.
As a person who was a massive fan of Tolkien--
and "The Hobbit" was one of my favorite books as a kid--
she was there.
They just didn't name her.
They talk about the Silvan Elves,
and they don't give any of them a name or a face.
And so we just got to meet a few of them.
So she was there all along, you just
finally got the privilege of getting
to know her a little bit.
Thank you.
AUDIENCE: Thanks.
EVANGELINE LILLY: So I think we got to start a signing,
or we're going to run out of time.
ARTUR OLIVEIRA: Thank you all for your questions.
I'm sorry for taking up too much time.
EVANGELINE LILLY: No, you took a perfect amount of time.
ARTUR OLIVEIRA: But Evangeline's been very kind.
She's going to stick around to sign some books,
and take a picture.
There's plenty of you.
So we have limited time.
But with that, we'll just head to the back.
EVANGELINE LILLY: Thanks for coming, you guys.
[APPLAUSE]