The Shape of Water: Daniel Kraus & Vanessa Taylor

This week, we’ll hear from two of the writers behind The Shape of Water, which was developed simultaneously as a novel and film. First up, New York Times bestselling author, Daniel Kraus who originally approached Guillermo del Toro with the story about a sea creature locked in a laboratory based on an idea he had when he was 15 years old. And later we’ll hear from screenwriter Vanessa Taylor who co-wrote the film version of The Shape of Writer and was nominated for an Academy Award® for Best Original Screenplay.

Daniel Kraus is a New York Times bestselling author who started his career as a documentary filmmaker. In 2015 he collaborated with genre director Guillermo del Toro on the novel Trollhunters. Del Toro is best known for his dark fantasy films Pan’s Labyrinth, Crimson Peak and the Hellboy series. In March of 2018 the pair reteamed to release a novelized version of The Shape of Water, which was based on an original idea that Kraus had when he was 15 years old. The novel was developed at the same time as the Academy Award winning film. I caught up with Daniel Kraus over the phone earlier this year.

Clips of The Shape of Water courtesy of Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation & TSG Entertainment Finance LLC.

While Daniel Kraus was working on The Shape of Water novel Guillermo del Toro was writing a screenplay for the film version with Vanessa Taylor. Taylor has an extensive background in television; having written for Alias, Jack & Bobby and Game of Thrones. I spoke with Vanessa Taylor at the premiere party for the 8th season of On Story at the beautiful KLRU Studios in Austin, Texas.