Jennifer Lynn Barnes is the critically acclaimed author of over a dozen YA novels. She has an impressive back catalogue of literary work and an even more impressive number of degrees in psychology, psychiatry, and cognitive science; it is no surprise that her unique voice is so highly regarded in the YA contemporary field. Her newest book, The Inheritance Games, is a dark and twisted tale based loosely on the Cinderella story. Aimed at fans of One of Us is Lying, this YA thriller is full of intrigue and suspense with a multitude of mysteries and puzzles that must be solved before reaching the conclusion.
Hi Jennifer! Thanks for taking the time to sit down today. First off can you tell us a little about The Inheritance Games?
The Inheritance Games is a twisted mystery about an eccentric billionaire who dies and leaves virtually his entire fortune to a teenage girl that no one in his family has ever met. The girl has no idea who this billionaire is, let alone why he’d leave her billions. Per the terms of the will, she’s required to move into his palatial Texas mansion, where she must live for a year alongside the family whose fortune she just inherited. She soon discovers that the deceased billionaire was obsessed with puzzles, riddles, and codes, and comes to believe that she is now his final puzzle, and that following a complicated sets of clues that he has left behind will answer what is now the biggest question of her life: why her?
As a reader who may one day try to write a novel I am always so curious about the inspiration behind novels. What was the inspiration behind The Inheritance Games?
I had spent years wanting to write what I called my “puzzle house” book—a book about a sprawling mansion, filled with secret passages, with puzzles, riddles, and codes built into every detail of the house. I had come up with multiple different premises with a house like this at its core, but none of them ever quite took. Then one day, for a different project, I asked myself “How could a totally normal teenage girl suddenly become world-famous overnight?” And of all the answers I came up with, “a famous billionaire leaves a stranger his entire fortune” was my favorite, so I started brainstorming ways to weave together that premise and my puzzle house—and Avery’s move into Hawthorne House (and the mystery at the core of the book) was born.
Could you tell us a bit about your writing process? Was there anything different about writing The Inheritance Games?
My process is a little different every time. For The Inheritance Games, once I had the general premise, I started by figuring out the cast of characters, since I knew I wanted all of the Hawthornes to be a little bit larger than life. Once I had the cast, I set about developing the three mysteries at the core of the book. The big mystery was entailed in the premise: why did Tobias Hawthorne leave Avery his fortune? I knew that mystery would be solved in an almost National Treasure-esque fashion, with clues built into Hawthorne House and the surrounding estate leading to more clues, more questions, and finally answers. I also wanted two secondary mysteries, which were more character-oriented. Once I had the premise, the characters, and the three mysteries, I wrote up a brief proposal for my publisher. They bought the book, but then I had to contend with the one thing that was missing from the proposal: answers to the big mystery questions I’d posed. I took several days and brainstormed different possibilities, then selected the ones I liked most. So then I knew what mysteries the book was posing and how those turned out. I spent some time figuring out the “puzzle sequence” involved in the big mystery—what the different puzzles and clues were and how each one led to the next—and then I started writing.
Your characters are all so realistic. Do you develop them first or do you work on the plot first?
For me, premise comes first, then characters, then the details of the plot. When I’m working out characters, I like to start by figuring out the dominant archetype or trope(s) that describe each character, and then I start delving into their past or childhood to figure out how they became that person, which leads to their characters inevitably deviating from the general archetype in ways that are consistent with those backstories.
Do you relate to any of the characters in this book?
I relate to the question Avery is asking: why me? On one hand, she deeply wants to be special and to believe that Tobias Hawthorne’s reasoning in choosing her will confirm that she is, but she’s also aware that it would be literally impossible to be special enough to deserve the lucky break that she has been given.
We all love good looking, brilliant male leads and the Hawthorne brothers are so much fun. Do you have a favourite?
It feels wrong to admit this, but I do! Xander is my favorite Hawthorne, because he is the most fun to write.
There are lots of puzzles in The Inheritance Games. How good are you at puzzles in real life?
I am decent at puzzles—but much better at codes.
You sold your first five books while you were still in college. What is the best part about being an author?
My two favorite things about being an author are (1) the readers and (2) getting to know so many other authors. It’s amazing to hear that my books meant something to someone, and I personally love watching readers’ reactions to different plot twists. I always want to know what people saw coming! I anticipated loving that part of being an author, but I didn’t realize going into this career how much getting to know other authors would mean to me. I have always been a little weird. In high school, I felt like the ways that I was different felt off-putting to other people. In college, I met wonderful friends who loved me for my weirdness. But it wasn’t until becoming an author that I met a lot of other people who were “weird” in the exact same ways!
Can you share a bit about what you are working on next? *whispers* Please say Inheritance Games 2.
Inheritance Games 2! I’m doing the last round of line edits right now, but can’t say much about the project without spoiling book one!
Other than your own books, can you recommend some reads for lovers of The Inheritance Games?
The Truly Deviously series by Maureen Johnson!
