I AM A GOOD DOG: A DOGTOWN book by Katherine Applegate and Gennifer Choldenko

I am always thrilled to feature both Katherine Applegate and Gennifer Choldenko. When I found out they had a third Dogtown book (coming out a week from today on 09.22.26), I couldn’t wait to ask them about it. (And feel free to check out their past Dogtown interviews below):

A Mouse and His Dog
Dogtown

Dogtown is a shelter for all dogs — real and robot. Metal Head, a robot dog who is a longtime resident of Dogtown, yearns for a forever home. When a girl named Esme begins visiting Dogtown, Metal Head goes on a mission to get her to adopt him.

But Esme doesn’t like robot dogs. She has her heart set on taking home a gangly wolfhound mix named Ghost with one blue eye and one yellow eye. Sadly Ghost’s former owner mistreated him, so he’s terrified of everyone. Can Esme, Metal Head, Mouse, and Molly, a dog who fosters stray kittens, figure it out?

And what about Metal Head? When will he get his forever home?

In our last interview, Gennifer said, “I would dearly love to have the chance to spend more time with Mouse, Metal Head, Buster, Chance, Saanvi, and Mr. Molinari.” Without giving away spoilers, how do these characters show up in I AM A GOOD DOG?

Gennifer Choldenko: Mouse and Metal Head are a big part of I AM A GOOD DOG. In fact, we got to know Metal Head much better in this book. And Mouse continues to be a very small creature with a large heart and . . . a bit of a jealous streak.

Katherine Applegate: There’s something so gratifying about returning to characters you’ve come to know and love. It’s like attending a family reunion. Who’s grown the most? Whose story is the most compelling these days? And who is the most surprising? I confess that Metal Head holds a special place in my heart, so hanging out with him again was a total joy.

And what a wonderful reunion it is! I’m glad I AM A GOOD DOG focuses on Metal Head, everyone’s favorite robot dog! How did you know Metal Head needed his own story?

GC: Our original plan for the first Dogtown book was to have the story told in two voices. The voice of a real dog (Chance) and the voice of a robot dog (Metal Head). But that didn’t work mostly because Metal Head’s voice was more challenging than we thought it would be. Still, the idea of having his firsthand perspective on Dogtown wouldn’t go away. And when an idea has staying power, that’s something to pay attention to.

KA: Oh, there was no question that Metal Head needed some quality air time! He turned out to be so complex and fascinating . . . and surprisingly—irresistibly—lovable. I give Gennifer so much credit for that. She truly found the way to his heart.

I’m so glad! What has been the most challenging revision of a novel you each have had (either separately, or together)?

GC: My most challenging revision was for a book in the Tales from Alcatraz series. I wrote it. I turned it in. And then I got a 28-page editorial letter that could be summed up in two words. “Start over.” I will always be grateful to that editor. Because I did start over. Tossed 275 pages out. Didn’t keep one line. And man am I proud of the book that was published.

KA: Where to start? Every novel has its own unique—and painful, revelatory—revision process. It helps tremendously to have been around for a while (a GREAT while!) and to have a few revisions under your belt. You know that when you turn in your first draft, your Perfect Prose will inevitably turn out to need serious pruning. When an editor’s comment in the margin amounts to: Can’t you do better?, it’s hard to hear, but ever so necessary.

You sigh. You kill your darlings. You press the delete key. (A lot.) And because of all that, you do better.

Wonderful advice. Lots of publishing outlets are talking about declining sales in middle grade publishing in recent years. What do you both think about that, and what do you envision as a possible future for middle grade books, particularly ones aimed at upper middle grade audiences? Do you think adults can enjoy middle grade books too?

GC: I’ve been in this industry long enough to know that someone is always pronouncing the death of something. I remember early in my career going to an SCBWI conference and being told that YA was dead. And you could not write a MG novel longer than 200 pages. Then Harry Potter was published (MG/YA) and YA had an explosive rise. Suddenly kids were eating up books 600 plus pages long.

And yes, of course adults enjoy middle grade novels. Right now, YA books are read by more people over the age of 18 than under the age of 18. And that has begun to trickle down to MG. One of the bright spots of the publishing world this year is the boom in audio books. And part of that upsurge comes from families listening together.
Net-net: I play the long game. I put my energy into writing the best stories I can.

KA: I can’t improve on what Gennifer said. (That’s so often the case!)

The long game is the only game in town. Publishing is always, and will forever be, cyclical. Don’t obsess over trends or try to play the odds. Stay disciplined and ignore the ups and downs.
Write what you love. Write what you need to write. Write what nobody else can write.

The rest will follow.

Order I AM A GOOD DOG