Dahl based the novel on his own childhood experiences, with the character of the grandmother modelled on Sofie Dahl, the author’s mother.[3] The author was “well satisfied”[3] by his work on The Witches, a sentiment which literary biographer Robert Carrick believes may have come from the fact that the novel was a departure from Dahl’s usual “all-problem-solving finish.”[3] Dahl did not work on the novel alone; he was aided by editor Stephen Roxburgh, who helped rework The Witches.[4] Roxburgh’s advice was very extensive and covered areas such as improving plots, tightening up Dahl’s writing, and re-inventing characters.[4] Soon after its publication, the novel received compliments for its illustrations by Quentin Blake[5]
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