We chat with debut author Rebecca Mix about The Ones We Burn, which follows a witch whose dark powers put her at the center of a brewing war between the only family she’s ever known and the enemy who makes her question everything.
Hi, Rebecca! Can you tell our readers a bit about yourself?
Of course! Hi, I’m Rebecca Mix, a Michigan fantasy author who writes stories about messy girls and eerie magic. THE ONES WE BURN is my debut novel. I spent the last five years on it, and I’m very excited it’s finally making it’s way into readers hands!
When did you first discover your love for writing?
This is pretty dorky, but I actually learned to write on a website called Neopets. I used to hate writing and reading, but I spent most of middle school on the Neopets role play forums and fell in love with telling stories. When my friends grew up and found normal hobbies, I started writing my own books instead. And here we are.
Quick lightning round! Tell us the first book you ever remember reading, the one that made you want to become an author, and one that you can’t stop thinking about!
Taggerung by Brian Jacques was the book that changed everything for me. I was a reluctant reader, and I remember pulling it off my elementary school library shelf because it was worth the most points in a contest I was trying to win. So that’s the first book I remember reading on purpose. The Book Thief on what made me want to be an author. And I’m eternally thinking about Akemi Dawn Bowman’s brilliant STARFISH. That book is such a gift.
Your debut novel, The Ones We Burn, is out now! If you could only describe it in five words, what would they be?
Exhausted disaster witch ruins everything.
What can readers expect?
Magic! Murder! Betrayal! Plagues! Found family! More betrayal! Some fun talking points for your therapist if you’ve got some trauma around abusive relationships or chronic illness! Also, a cameo of both of my cats. They’re the real stars.
Where did the inspiration for The Ones We Burn come from?
I’ve always loved reluctant heroines, and I love flipping tropes around. “Girl is sent to kill the prince she’s (probably) betrothed to” is a classic YA trope, and I just thought the idea of a girl being confident she won’t fall for the prince and then immediately mucking everything up by falling for his sister would be a blast to write. There’s also a lot of my own experiences woven through this story – but those came later. It was really born from my love for the YA fantasy I grew up reading.
Can you tell us a bit about the challenges you faced while writing and how you were able to overcome them?
The biggest challenge is actually one I’m still dealing with – I have a brain injury. In November of 2019, right after I had my first call with my now-editor, I slipped on ice and hit my head on pavement. I lost my ability to read, write, talk on the phone, or even shower normally. I’m doing better, but I’m still very much in recovery. A lot of this story changed alongside me as I grappled with what it meant to suffer what felt like a total betrayal of my body, and a lot of Ranka’s feelings about her blood-magic and the plot following it are pulled directly from my own journey with reconciling with what it meant to have a brain changed so completely over night. I’m very grateful this book is still coming out – there were many, many tearful nights where I never thought I’d write again, let alone get to continue pursuing my dream as an author. I’m very grateful.
Were there any favourite moments or characters you really enjoyed writing or exploring?
So much of this book is filled with everything I love – but the epilogue was actually my favorite chapter to write. I have so much love for these characters; when I was at my worst, especially these last few years, they were all I had. I really put them through hell in this book, but I hope my love for them shines through in the ending I give them.
Let’s talk about the stunning cover! What was it like seeing the final version?
Dizzying. It’s beyond anything I could have hoped for. The designer, Karyn Lee, and the artist, Eli Baum, absolutely knocked it out of the park. I am eternally in debt to them. It’s just so perfect.
What’s next for you?
I’ve got a middlegrade duology starting next year with HarperCollins I’m incredibly excited about. The first book is called THE MOSSHEART’S PROMISE, and it follows twelve-year-old Ary Mossheart, the unremarkable, anxious granddaughter of her world’s last great hero. When Ary wakes one morning to find her mother filled with the very mold eating her world alive, she sets out in search of a cure – only to learn that her entire world is trapped inside of a giant, rotting terrarium they were meant to leave a hundred years ago. Worse, her Gran knew, and never told anyone. Now Ary has five days to find the exit, or they’re trapped forever. It’s a love letter to the middlegrade that turned me into a reader – REDWALL, CITY OF EMBER, GREGOR THE OVERLANDER, etc – and filled with all my favorite things. There’s also a giant talking newt, climate change Feelings, and a whole lot of mold.
Lastly, what have been some of your favourite 2022 reads? Any 2023 releases our readers should look out for?
Oh man, there were so many excellent books in 2022, this is not a fair question! I really loved CRYING IN H-MART, TOMORROW AND TOMORROW AND TOMORROW, A FAR WILDER MAGIC, IRON WIDOW, JUNIPER & THORN, and BABEL. I’m also currently reading and loving BEASTS OF RUIN & STRIKE THE ZITHER.
For 2023, I’m super geeked for Amelie Wen Zhao’s SONG OF SILVER, FLAME LIKE NIGHT.
