The Young Elites deals with an interesting twist of diversity — young people who are not only unique because of their ethnic or gender identities, but because they have survived a plague and experienced radical physical changes. How did you approach this?
It was something that I approached quite anxiously. I think it’s always scary to write outside your point-of-view, and what I’ve experienced as a person. Because [unlike Adelina] I’m not missing an eye, I don’t have a marking on my face, or anything like that. So it was a little bit nerve wracking to write that, and wanting to get it right. I tried to go online and do as much research as I could, and I ran it past people. Hopefully it came across okay.
I wanted to weave [these deformities] in so that their powers come with a price — and at the same time, the weaknesses that were given to them after the fever passed through gave them powers to some extent. I wanted to have this metaphor where there’s this plague that swept through, and some people are marked and they’re treated horribly, but it would be nice if having those blemishes on you actually gave you something that made you more powerful than anyone else.
Which is why, early on in the first book, Enzo says something along the lines of, “You are not an abomination. We were born to rule, we were given these powers by the Gods.” And that was something I wanted to play with — this idea that their weaknesses become their powers, and their powers come from their weaknesses.
The Young Elites ended with an intriguing epilogue that expanded the world, and introduced several intriguing new characters. Can you give a few hints about who will appear in The Rose Society?
Maeve definitely comes back, she was introduced in the epilogue. She definitely plays a huge role in the second book. There are some returning characters, some old and some new; there is a new guy who plays a pretty big role, who is kind of alluded to in the first book. He’s pretty notorious as a thief, he’s very famous, he has a power that no one is really sure what it is – and he starts to play a pretty central role.
Taran comes back — he’s just as crazy as he always was, maybe even more so! Enzo’s sister comes back into the story… she’s twisted in her own way, so another character to kind of give me trouble!
The Rose Society will pit superpowered characters directly against each other for the first time. What was it like to write those epic clashes?
That was fun, I had a really good time with that. I had been waiting for a while actually, since I started the series, to have that moment where these two different societies of superheroes could clash. So there’s a couple of battle scenes in there, where Adelina and her new people, the Rose Society, are facing off against the Daggers; that was really, really exciting to write. These people who were once her friends are now her enemies, and they have to out-do each other, so that was really fun. I may have gotten a little carried away!
On a different note, if the characters of The Young Elites came to a convention, who do you think they would chose to cosplay?
This is the greatest question ever! Adelina would probably be behind some kind of mask, so she would probably cosplay as Darth Vader, or a stormtrooper.
I think she needs a cape.
She would definitely have a long, black cape. Rafael would… he’s so pretty, I’m trying to think of somebody he would actually cosplay as. He would probably cosplay as a girl, I think, and he could probably pull it off.
I could see him as Black Widow — maybe in one of her seduction outfits.
I could see him as Black Widow! Yeah, he could totally pull that off! I actually think he would really dig that. Or — going on the Star Wars theme — he would probably cosplay as Padme, so he’d get to wear her crazy costumes. I think he would have fun with that.
Enzo would make a great Zuko — all he’d have to do is paint a [scar] on his face and he’s good, he’s like, “Look what I can do!” It’s like the most realistic Zuko ever. And Violetta… I don’t know who she would cosplay as; she would actually make a good Padme, now that I think about it. Like, out of [ceremonial] costume.
Finally, 2015 and beyond are shaping up to be amazing years for geeks. What upcoming events are you most excited for?
I am, of course, super excited about the new Star Wars, like everyone is! I’m just waiting, I saw the footage and clips that they were playing [at San Diego Comic-Con]… they were playing sad music, and I was like, oh my God, you guys are killing me here!
Let’s see, what else. I’m a huge Mad Max fan now — I’m dying to see the next one, to see what they do with it… Oh, and I’m super excited for The Martian! I’m a huge fan of that book, and I think the author [Andy Weir] is awesome. I saw one of his panels, and he was so funny and nice, and his book is amazing. I’m a huge Ready Player One fan, so I can’t wait for that movie to come out — so those are some of the big ones for me!
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Marie Lu is a former art director in the video game industry, who would love to be a fighter pilot. Marie enjoys cupcakes, tea, and Christmas lights; she lives in California with her husband and her dogs. Find out more at TheYoungElites.com, and connect with Marie on Tumblr and Twitter for the latest news on her writing.
The Rose Society will be available tomorrow from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and your local independent bookstore.
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