TO BEAR AN IRON KEY Blog Tour: Guest Post Getting Into Character by Jackie Morse Kessler

Sometimes, characters pull an Athena and spring fully formed out of our heads and onto the pages. Other times, learning about our characters takes time—and patience. When I first started the short story that would eventually transform into the novel TO BEAR AN IRON KEY, the main character, Bromwyn, sounded very similar to the other main character, Rusty. Sure, she was impatient and he was impertinent, but they were far too similar in most aspects—goals, motivations, conflicts, even the way that they spoke. (There was a reason that short story was never published!)Over time, I got to know Bromwyn and Rusty—and I let myself experiment with how they spoke and acted. How easy were their resolutions? What did they do when obstacles got in their way? What was their first reaction? Was that different from their actual course of action? Did Bromwyn—a witch, and a very serious one, trained by the village Wise One whom everyone fears—speak the same way and have the same gods and beliefs as Rusty—the baker’s son, who considers himself to be sharp in the way of the streets and eager for a wealthier life than the bakery promises? Did Rusty shirk responsibility, even as Bromwyn took on more and more? Were their goals, and their histories, really so similar?Once I allowed myself the time to try different things, I wound up getting the answers to those questions, and much more. Bromwyn and Rusty, while best friends, are completely different characters, down to the way in which they speak. But there’s an ease between them, the comfort of solid friendship, that informs their actions (and Bromwyn’s thoughts, as the story is told in her close third-person point of view). That’s not to say things don’t get explosive between them as well. Best friends can fight. They can also set aside their differences and work together to save the world…and learn about themselves along the way.



To Bear an Iron Key is the first in a new and exciting series from acclaimed author Jackie Morse Kessler.
Five years ago, the young witch Bromwyn refused a gift from the powerful fairy king. Tonight, on Midsummer, that decision comes back to haunt her. When her best friend Rusty picks the wrong pocket, he and Bromwyn are all that stand between their village and the rampaging fairies who have pushed through the World Door. If they cannot outwit the fairy king and queen before the World Door closes at sunrise, the friends will lose everything—their village, Bromwyn's magic, and Rusty's life.
From To Bear an Iron Key by Jackie Morse Kessler: "Bromwyn turned to face the burning fields. Reaching deep inside of herself, she closed her eyes and touched the core of her power, the place where her magic lived, where it connected her to all of Nature. She held onto that magic, let it fill her almost to the bursting point, and then she cast it out onto the fields. It blanketed the rows of spelt, and she felt as it rode the wind—Air—and then touched the grain—Earth—and then sizzled around the fire."


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ABOUT JACKIE MORSE KESSLER:

Jackie is the author of the acclaimed YA series Riders of the Apocalypse, published by Harcourt/Graphia. The first two books in the quartet, HUNGER and RAGE, are YALSA Quick Picks for Reluctant Readers; in addition, HUNGER has been nominated for several awards and RAGE is an International Reading Association YA Choice. RAGE, LOSS and BREATH are Junior Library Guild selections

Author Links:   Website  |  Twitter  |  Facebook  | Goodreads



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