Guest Post featuring Marilyn Almodóvar

Hello all! Today I have at Uniquely Moi Books, the author of Interred, Marilyn Almodóvar. Please welcome her here today!

Marilyn Almodóvar is the author of a series of YA paranormal novels. Born in Ft. Huachuca, Arizona, Lyn is a lover of words whose reading tastes range from Victorian novels to the books of Stephen King. Her favorite past-times have always been reading and writing, two activities that let her escape to other worlds.
She could happily exist breathing the clean air of Narnia, trapped in a cupboard under the stairs with Harry, fighting alongside Captain Jack Sparrow, doing an internship in Torchwood, or traveling around time and space with the Doctor…as long as she can have Mr. Spock, Captain Kirk and Captain Mal as companions.

 

On Writing Interred

By Marilyn Almodóvar

When I started writing the first few scenes of Interred, I had no idea what sort of story I was writing. The idea for Declan came to me whilst I did the dishes. That kind of chore contributes to a sort of Zen-like zone where I can get creative and forget about what I’m doing. 

So there I was, doing the dishes at my Aunt Joyce’s house. The house has a massive garden at the back, and over the kitchen sink is a window that opens upon that view. As I stared out thinking that it was our first winter back in Florida and I was missing real winter in England, I started to daydream about snow and the cold. It was then that the clear picture of a boy dressed in Victorian clothes formed in my mind. 

I didn’t know who he was or what he did. The only thing I was certain of was that his name would be Declan (even though I thought that wasn’t a very Victorian name). I started writing a few scenes from his point of view, but although Declan had a lot to say, it didn’t feel right. I set it aside and decided to walk around the garden for a while to gather my thoughts. 

It was then that I clarified the picture in my mind about the snow-covered garden where I envisioned Declan. At some point between an avocado tree and the next door neighbor’s fence, I realized that the snow in my mind wasn’t falling on Declan. In fact, Declan wasn’t really narrating this story. The voice in my head was clearly feminine.

I rushed back to the house and grabbed my trusty laptop before returning to the garden. There in the sweltering heat of January, I sat down in the gazebo and discovered Baxter. I wrestled her for a name change, since I’ve always considered Baxter to be a boy’s name, and I thought Arabella was prettier. However, Baxter won, since her strong personality shone with that name.  

After drafting the first six to eight chapters, I discovered that Declan was trapped in a Time loop. I have to say, I was slightly disappointed. I’d been hoping to write a story about a ghost. Of course, the moment I realized that it was a Time loop and that Baxter’s abilities allowed her to travel through Time, I was excited about the story and the possibilities. -Because I’m a Whovian-

After the first round of edits from my editor, I went deeper, writing the connections between the characters. I knew I wanted Baxter’s family to be akin to her. She’s a strong girl, and I wanted a strong background for her. Including her parents in the story was important to me, so I worked on what sort of relationship she would have with her mum and stepdad and also her brother and younger sister. Also, I wanted her to have friends, even if the book isn’t expressly about friendship. After the Interment, Baxter’s life changes dramatically, and I wanted her to have a somewhat normal interaction with other teens, even if there was nothing normal about their birthdays.  

Interred was a very fun book to write, even if at times there were scenes which broke my heart. One of my favorite things to do while writing was creating new Time Traveling rules and dictating the ruthlessness of the Councils that govern Magical Beings. I loved every moment I spent with Baxter, Jack and Declan, and I’m looking forward to sharing their next set of adventures with all my fans when Fissure comes out this summer.

 

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