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Interview

What was your inspiration for The Apex Cycle? 

I was inspired to write The Apex Cycle after I graduated college. I lived on the Olympic Peninsula of Washington State and found work in Seattle. This means a LOT of ferry rides from the woods of Kitsap County where I’d grown up to the busy city. While I’m very used to the hustle and bustle of Seattle these days, back then, I felt completely out of my depth and had no idea what I was doing or where I belonged. Out of that feeling- and the hour long ferry ride in the mornings- I came up with the idea behind The Apex Cycle, the story of a girl who is terribly ill-prepared for what awaits in the island city of New Delos. 

What drew you to writing YA? 

I feel like reading peaks for most people when they are young adults and that is when books can make their biggest impact. I wanted to write the book I needed as a 16-year-old and in the process I ended up with a story that has appealed to readers of every age. I like to say YA doesn’t have an age limit, especially since we are all young adults at some point. The common themes in YA, those of belonging and standing up in the face of oppression, are relatable to a wide audience and their importance shouldn’t dull with age. 

How did you choose which character to focus the story? 

I knew I was writing about a character who was getting in over her head in a world she knew nothing about. Enter Samantha, a non-superhuman moving to the superhuman epicenter of the world. She doesn’t have powers and she doesn’t get powers. She loses almost every fight but there is no one in these pages more stubbornly determined than she is. She starts the first book as a bit passive and a little complacent, but about 25% of the way in, she takes matters into her own hands, then spends the rest of the series doubling down on that decision. She’s the worst possible person to be fighting an immortal villain, but that’s what makes her story so compelling and so different from what we often see in most media. 

What was your process for writing for The Apex Cycle? 

I had a coworker who was very enthusiastic about the project! I had told her my idea while bored at work one day and she said she would read it. She changed jobs shortly after and to keep in touch, I would send her a chapter everytime I finished one. About ten months later, I had a full book on my hands and my friend told me I needed to make the story available for others to read. As for a day to day process, it involved a lot of scribbled notes on scratch paper, scattered throughout my office, as ideas came to me while I worked. After the workday was over, I would gather my scratch papers and write. 

What is your approach to world and character building? 

The first thing I ask is what does the story need. I knew my books would take place on a man-made island city. I knew I needed a school and a museum in this city. Those locations became the epicenters of my worldbuilding. Despite the high-tech island and lurking superhumans, the world is still fairly grounded, which made worldbuilding a little easier. As for the characters, the same process applied! I had my main character Samantha, now I needed to figure out what characters I needed to tell her story. There’s her family, of course, and then her myriad of classmates. She’s at a school, so she needs at least one teacher and she’s trying to join a superhero team of students, which probably needs some sort of medic character. From there, the characters build themselves, as pretentious as that sounds. I did improvisational theater in college, and my character creation leaned heavily on what I learned on the stage. I make them up as needed and their personalities develop as I go. 

How would you describe Beta in five words? 

Fresh, Heartfelt, Adventurous, Surprising, and Discovery 

How would you describe Delta in five words? 

Angsty, Fast-paced, Determined, Trope-defying, and Thrilling

How would you describe Epsilon in five words? 

Intense, Emotional, Dark, Gut-wrenching, and Satisfying

Did you have a favourite moment to write? 

The reveals! The fun part about writing superhero stories is that there are lots of hidden identities and secrets. Some of them are more obvious than others, I’ll admit, but that doesn’t make it any less fun to reveal to the characters. There’s an especially big twist at the end of Beta that recontextualizes the entire book and sets up the next two in the trilogy and it felt so good to get that moment down on the page! Otherwise, I really enjoyed writing the gentle moments between Samantha and her friend-to-something-more love interest Wesley. Their careful friendship was a treat to explore and they sit at the heart of these books. 

What was your favourite book growing up? 

I adored the Percy Jackson books! The first one came out when I was in fifth grade so I was the perfect age to read the series right at its start. Needless to say, I haven’t stopped reading them since!

Do you have a favourite genre to read?

Young Adult, preferably with a hint of fantasy! They say to write what you love, and I think I did just that!