For the final Shreddy story in The Necromouser and Other Magical Cats, it seemed only right to bring the character back to where he had started — chewing on plants. And it needed to be a big finish, since — while I occasionally entertain ideas of writing a Shreddy novel — this might be Shreddy’s last story ever.
I listened to the soundtrack for Little Shop of Horrors a lot while writing “Shreddy and the Carnivorous Plant.” A lot. My eight-year-old daughter, who wants to be an actress, became so enamored of the musical that she declared her life goal was to play Audrey on stage some day. She practiced singing “Somewhere That’s Green” all the time (and got quite a few strange looks for the lines “I’m dating a semi-sadist / So I’ve got a black eye / And my arm’s in a cast”). These days, she’s moved on to singing “I Want It Now” from Willy Wonka which is a little more age appropriate.
If you enjoy “Shreddy and the Carnivorous Plant,” you may want to pick up the collection The Necromouser and Other Magical Cats with the coupon code JW97Y (before April 15th), and if you enjoy the whole collection please consider voting for it under Best Other Literary Work in the Ursa Major Awards. Voting is open through April 15th.