Rebekah L. Purdy, author of THE SUMMER MARKED, on breaking characters down to build them back up

by Jocelyn Rish

THE SUMMER MARKED is the second book in the The Winter People series, and we’re excited to have Rebekah L. Purdy here to tell us more about it.

Rebekah, what scene was really hard for you to write and why, and is that the one of which you are most proud? Or is there another scene you particularly love?

I think writing the scenes with Kadie in Winter were a little grueling at times, just because it’s such a dark, dreadful place. And watching Kadie go from this strong, bad ass girl, to at times breaking. But sometimes we have to break characters down in order to build them back up. I think a lot of people will try to put themselves in her shoes to understand why she’s making some of the decisions she does. So for me, I think a lot of her scenes in Winter were the hardest to write.

As for a scene I love, I’d have to say the scenes with Salome and Lord Darach (who you will meet in this book). There’s a particular part where he helps her in a sword fight that I adore. LOL.

How long did you work on THE SUMMER MARKED?

Well, I wrote the original version of this a couple of years ago. It took me about 4 months to write. But then in edits, I ended up rewriting probably ½ the book. I cut a bunch of the “horror” scenes and added in more Salome and Gareth scenes. Kadie had more scenes in the book, but we decided to back some of them out. And the edits took like 3 months to process. So in total, it was 6 months of “writing/rewriting”.

What are you working on now?

So many projects! LOL. I’ve just started writing the 3rd and final Winter People book. I’m also working on two other projects. One YA Fantasy/Horror that I’m super excited about. And I’m in the plotting/brainstorming process of writing another YA Fantasy/Horror that I plan to write with my fifteen year old daughter—we have a title and blurb for it and lots of notes. So I’m hoping to dive into those two projects once I finish up the Winter People series.

ABOUT THE BOOK

The Summer Marked
by Rebekah L Purdy
Hardcover
Entangled: Teen
Released 9/22/2015

The sequel to the chilling Winter People returns to the world of Faerie, and is a romantic and enchanting follow-up.

Fresh off a break-up with her boyfriend, Kadie’s glad to be home from college for Thanksgiving. All she needs is a rebound guy, a box of chocolates, and some girl time with her best friend, Salome. Problem is, Salome isn’t returning her calls, and her family won’t say where she is. Feeling sorry for herself, Kadie ends up at Club Blade, a place filled with pumping music, dangerous guys, and promises of a good time. However, when midnight strikes, Kadie’s fun turns into a nightmare as she’s ripped from the human world into Faerie by a vengeful Winter Prince named Etienne. For the first time in her life, she realizes the monsters Salome always spoke of are real, and they’ll stop at nothing to destroy her friend.

Salome thought the winter curse was behind her. But winter has left its mark. Not just on her, but on the whole summer court. The Kingdom of Summer is falling apart, and Nevin is hanging onto his throne by a thread. With war on his doorstep, he has no choice but to send Gareth into enemy territory, which means Salome will be left alone—vulnerable in a world she doesn’t understand. A place where beauty is deadly and humans are pawns in the macabre games the Fae play. Both Kadie and Salome will have to call on all their strength to survive in a world where humans aren’t meant to be. With death and enemies all around them, it’ll be a miracle if they can survive.

Purchase The Summer Marked at Amazon
Purchase The Summer Marked at IndieBound
View The Summer Marked on Goodreads

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Rebekah L. Purdy was born and raised in Michigan (just look for the mitten-shaped state on the map). She’s lived here most of my life other than the few years she spent in the U.S. Army. At which time she got a chance to experience MO, KS, SC, and CA.

She works full time for the court system and in her free time she writes YA stories. Pretty much any genre within the YA realm is considered fair game, but her favorites are fantasy, urban fantasy, paranormal romance, thrillers, light sci-fi, and some time travel.

She also have a big family whom she considers the modern day Brady Bunch.

Other than writing some of her other hobbies include: reading (mostly YA of course), singing, swimming, football, soccer, running, camping, sledding, church, hanging with her kids, and traveling. She belongs to a fabulous writing group called YA Fiction Fantatics (YAFF) and you guessed it, they all write YA. She’s currently represented by Jennifer Mishler and Frances Black of Literary Counsel.

Have you had a chance to read THE SUMMER MARKED? How about the first book in Rebekah’s series THE WINTER PEOPLE? How terrible are you to your characters in order to break them?

Happy reading,

Jocelyn, Shelly, Martina, Erin, Lisa, Susan, Sam, Lindsey, Sandra, Kristin, and Anisaa

Jocelyn Rish

Jocelyn Rish is a writer and filmmaker who loves researching weird and wonderful animals and sharing what she learns. Her debut was BATTLE OF THE BUTTS, about ten animals that do weird things with their butts. Her latest book is BATTLE OF THE BRAINS, a Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection about ten animals with mind-blowing brain abilities. When she’s not writing, she tutors kids to help them discover the magic of reading. Jocelyn has won numerous awards for her short stories, screenplays, films, and novels and lives in South Carolina with her adorable dog. Find out more at www.jocelynrish.com.

Post @ Jocelyn Rish and/or Adventures in YA Publishing. All rights reserved.

Posted: Sep 26, 2015

Category: Imported from AYAP

Tags: YA Author Interviews

Welcome to Transmedia Mutts

Yellow origami dog on a teal background

Unleash your creative bark!

Shout out to AYAP!

Logo for Adventures in YA Publishing

Thank you to the women who started Adventures in YA Publishing and ran it for years. AYAP and TMM have merged to form Adventures in PUPlishing, and the legacy AYAP posts are now part of TMM. Click here to learn more about the earlier AYAP team.

Click to Join our Facebook Group

Share advice, practice pitching, celebrate successes, and support each other through writing and publishing adventures.

← Previous: Kendare Blake, author of UNGODLY, on characters hanging out and harassing each other Next: A. S. King, author of I CRAWL THROUGH IT, on writing inside the chaos →

The first slide is an animation of a science/magic room in a castle. A cartoon character of a mad-scientist looking man in in the foreground says: “Hello! Dr. Frankenstein here to say, Well Done on kid lit zombie week! I’m an expert at reviving the dead, and let me assure you, with a little spark, you can bring dead projects to life. Especially if you dig up parts from other dead things. I’ll even let you have a sneak peek at my laboratory’s store room to consider potential parts for your dead project. If you see something with a yellow glow, that means you should click it. Have fun!”

He points to the right side of the screen and a new scene slides in of a castle science/magic storage room. There are various cartoon Frankenstein body parts scattered around. Some of them have a yellow glow. If you click on them, the images below appear (I’ve added alt text to them, so I hope it works).

The Heart of your story is the main character. The protagonist is the beating core that truly brings your story to life. If your MC doesn't make kids (and their grown-ups) care within the first few pages, your story will flatline. </p>
<p>Your main character needs to be:<br />
• Relatable enough for kids to see themselves<br />
• Unique enough to stand out in the slush pile<br />
• Active enough to drive the story<br />
• Memorable enough to survive multiple readings at bedtime</p>
<p>Where do you find this amazing donor heart? It might be the very thing you loved so much about the manuscript you want to revive. It might be the younger sister from your shelved YA novel. Or maybe it’s the hilarious kid you blogged about meeting at a school visit. Find a character beating with potential and place it in the center of your story.<br />

The Brain of your story is the theme or central message. The theme is the big idea that controls everything else. Picture books are more than stories - they're tiny life lessons disguised with humor and heart.</p>
<p>But your theme needs to be:<br />
• Subtle enough not to trigger the dreaded "didactic" rejection<br />
• Clear enough for a four-year-old to grasp<br />
• Universal enough to speak to both kids and adults<br />
• Fresh enough to prevent agents and editors from responding with "Not another sharing/bedtime/first-day story!"</p>
<p>Check your other dead manuscripts to see if there is a recurring theme, something that really seems to be speaking to you. Find the bit of poetry you scribbled on the back of a receipt to see what theme inspired it. Reread the pep talk you texted your critique partner at 1am. Pick the theme that will drive your story, giving it purpose, direction, and deeper meaning.<br />

The Legs of your story is the plot. Not to be confused with a grave plot.🤪 The plot is what keeps everything upright and moving, as well as providing support for all the other elements. You have very few words to use in a picture book, so you need to do a lot with each plot point.</p>
<p>In general, your plot should:<br />
• Hook readers fast<br />
• Build tension that a child can follow<br />
• Create page turns that feel natural<br />
• Wrap up in a way that satisfies</p>
<p>You can borrow a plot twist (a leg) from one manuscript and the opening (the other leg) from a different manuscript. Consider if the subplot of the middle grade novel you trunked would work better as a picture book. Or maybe your Facebook post about a disastrous camping trip could become a story for kids. Just keep putting one foot in front of the other until you have your storyline.

The Arms of your story are the side characters.

The Torso of your story is the setting. Setting helps a story breathe and connects all the elements of the story. It isn't just where your story lives, it's what makes your story ALIVE. It's the difference between "this happened in a park" and "this happened in that park, the one with the twisty slide that burns your legs and the creaky swing that sounds like a baby crying.”</p>
<p>Your setting should:<br />
• Make your character's world feel real<br />
• Contain your story in a way that makes sense to young readers<br />
• Connect different scenes and moments organically<br />
• Give your illustrator enough room to add visual subplots</p>
<p>Half-finished manuscripts are a great place to dig up settings, since you worked out the place details before the plot petered out. Or maybe you had to cut a second fantastic location from your chapter book. You can also revisit the detailed caption from your Instagram carousel documenting your tour of that delish candy shop. Disinter a robust setting that can house all of your story's vital organs.

After you press the Click When Done circle button, the lights flash with the sound of electricity buzzing. Then the screen goes black and lightning zaps across the screen with the sound of thunder.

The screen then lights up to show the storage room, and all the Frankenstein pieces have been assembled into the whole monster. An upbeat song plays in the background. Then a speech bubble pops up with the words, “I’m alive! I’M ALIVE!” Then the screen goes to black.

Dog holding a sign that says Pupdates!

Sign up for our newsletter for pupdates and publishing advice