I was incredibly sorry to hear that Perry Moore, the producer of the Narnia films and the YA author of Hero was found dead recently. Perry was really just the sweetest guy, the few times I met with him. We speak of people being warm, but Perry really was. There was nothing “Hollywood” about him (and indeed he lived here in New York in Soho). Back in 2007 I even made him a Hot Men of Children’s Literature. Perry would later credit that post for the fact that People Magazine named him their Sexy Man of the Week but honestly I doubt they ever saw the tiny post. He was beloved entirely on his own merits. On top of that his book Hero remains one of the better known gay teen fantasy novels out there, even today. Perry, I’m very sad to see you go.
Perry Moore is the executive producer of the Chronicles of Narnia films, author of a book about making The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, author and director (with his partner, Hunter Hill) of the feature film, Lake City starring Sissy Spacek, and author of Hero, his first novel. Hero is a book intended for young adults, males or females, males who are gay and/or anyone who just doesn’t feel like they fit in for one reason or another. It is an action packed story about Thom Creed, an athletic gay high school student who develops super-hero powers. It begins on the high school basketball court and moves into the community where Thom finds himself fighting one crime after the other. 
Hero is also a love story. As Thom becomes more confident about his sexuality he lusts after various people and then finally falls in love with Goran.
YALSA: Perry, before we get started I just want to say congratulations on winning the Lambda award for Hero. You must be very excited knowing that your work has made such an impression in the LGBT community.
MOORE: Great question to start with. Just like Thom longs to find his place in the universe, I think we all do.
Winning the Lambda, receiving over four thousand e-mails from fans who’ve been touched by the book, all of that makes me feel like somehow I count in the grand scheme of things. And, let me tell you, it’s a lesson in humility. Because unless you write something above the stratosphere of “successful” into the category of mega-successful, you don’t do this type of work for the money. You do it for the reason you touch on with your question. In Hero’s case, I wrote it to show that gay, straight, black, white, old, young, big, or small, we can all be heroes. With the gay media I was seeing especially, I wanted a young male gay superhero who was the star of his own story – I’d craved to read it, but I’d never seen it done before – and I wanted to show that you can be a male gay hero without the story having to end in tragedy. (Though, come to think of it, there are some deeply felt moments at the end of the book!).
Thanks for the shout-out about the Lambda – you know they have no category in GLAAD which gets all the big press for books, I don’t really know why. Still, I consider winning the Lambda, and being an ALA Top Ten of the Year, two of the greatest honors I could ever achieve. Made me realize my true dreams of connecting with an audience came true! And that’s a bigger reward than any amount of money or fame a work could bring you. Giving someone hope, inspiring someone to be a real hero. That’s what it’s all about.
YALSA: Perry, this interview is being posted to a blog designed for librarians who deliver services to adolescents and teens so I would ike to talk with you about your work, but also a little about your relationship with libraries. In your book about making The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe you talk about your mother taking you to the library every week. Can you tell us more about the role of the library in your li
I was incredibly sorry to hear that Perry Moore, the producer of the Narnia films and the YA author of Hero was found dead recently. Perry was really just the sweetest guy, the few times I met with him. We speak of people being warm, but Perry really was. There was nothing “Hollywood” about him (and indeed he lived here in New York in Soho). Back in 2007 I even made him a Hot Men of Children’s Literature. Perry would later credit that post for the fact that People Magazine named him their Sexy Man of the Week but honestly I doubt they ever saw the tiny post. He was beloved entirely on his own merits. On top of that his book Hero remains one of the better known gay teen fantasy novels out there, even today. Perry, I’m very sad to see you go.
