Susan Hill on 'The Woman in Black'

We held a tournament today to find the scariest character in literature. It was pretty heated. And blood-curdling. In the final, the Grand High Witch from The Witches was emphatically beaten by Susan Hill's The Woman in Black, one Jennet Humfrye.

Seeing as Susan is on Twitter, we tweeted to ask if she'd be happy talking about one of her most memorable creations. She was. This is what she had to say!

First off, were you surprised that Booktrust's followers voted The Woman in Black as the scariest character in literature? She beat the Grand High Witch from The Witches in the final!

Yes. There are plenty more frightening to me but maybe that isn't surprising.

Who do you think is the scariest character in literature and what makes them so frightening?

Dr Jekyll's other half, Mr Hyde…

What do you think makes Jennet Humfrye so frightening and how did you harness that in the book?

I have no idea how I do anything… it just drops out of my head. I think she frightens because of  the single-minded intensity of her desire for revenge. And because she is 'human' - not a werewolf or a vampire or something silly.

Which incarnation of her chilled you the most - the book, the stage, radio, the tv adaptation or the film version?

The stage play undoubtedly - the rustle of her silk garment as she glides through the theatre ….

I've seen/read all the incarnations of this book to this day and it haunts me every time. I can't watch scary films or read scary books any more. What can you recommend I do to get over my fear of The Woman in Black?

Never read anything frightening..! I don't. I hate being frightened and I write ghost stories to do much more than just  be scary.