Mini-Interview: Katie McGarry on Supporting Characters

One of my favourite YA contemporary books of the year so far is Katie McGarry's outstanding debut Pushing The Limits, and one of the very strongest points of it is the superb cast, which includes lots of wonderful supporting characters. When Katie managed to find some time in a really busy schedule to answer three questions, I knew the topic I wanted to ask her about!


1. As much as I loved the chemistry between Echo and Noah, I stated in my review of Pushing The Limits that "what really stands out is the supporting characters," because I've rarely read anything in which every character seemed quite so well-drawn. What would be your top tips for creating compelling supporting characters?

Don’t consider them supporting characters. Think of them as main characters that never get a chance to have their point of view in the story. What are their backstories? What are their goals, conflicts, and motivations? If you know all of this, then you will legitimately know how they will respond in a scene.

For instance, Isaiah has feelings for Beth in Pushing the Limits. This influences all conversations Isaiah has with anyone. It makes Isaiah and Beth richer characters.


2. Speaking of supporting characters, who are some of your favourites from other books?

One of my favorite books is The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton. Two-Bit and Dallas are definitely favorites of mine. What can I say? I love a good bad boy!


3. I mentioned a few weeks ago in a blog post that I love books which are 'linked' to each other, so I'm really excited to see Beth take centre stage in your next book Dare You To. Can we expect to read more books following some of the same characters?

Beth is one of my favorite characters ever! She was so much fun and absolutely heartbreaking to write. I’m excited that the world will get a chance to know her better when Dare You To will be released in 2013.

As of right now, I do have plans to write more stories in the Pushing the Limits universe!


That's great news! Really looking forward to reading Dare You To - and thanks so much for taking the time to talk to me, Katie.