Ask the Author: Katharine McGee
Answered Questions (19)
Katharine McGee
My advice for teen authors is, most of all, to focus on being a teenager! You have the rest of your life to build a career. High school and college are a time when you get to explore the world, figure out what type of person you want to be. Focus on learning, building friendships, having adventures. The richer your experiences, the more material you’ll have to write about someday!
And of course—keep reading. Read everything you can get your hands on. The more you read, the richer your own voice will become. Reading widely will help you decide what types of narratives resonate with you, and ultimately, what stories you want to tell.
And of course—keep reading. Read everything you can get your hands on. The more you read, the richer your own voice will become. Reading widely will help you decide what types of narratives resonate with you, and ultimately, what stories you want to tell.
Katharine McGee
I would love for American Royals to become a tv show or movie! My agent in LA is hard at work trying to make it happen. It would be so much fun to see the Washingtons and all their drama on the big screen!
Katharine McGee
Most people are surprised to hear this, but Daphne was actually inspired by Kate Middleton—or at least, the way the British press used to portray her. When Kate first started dating Prince William, the British media were so critical of her! They drew upon a few facts—Kate had a poster of William in her room when she was a teenager (like most teens!), and the fact that she switched schools to St. Andrews, after William had announced he was going there—and based on that, they fabricated a narrative where Kate is an elaborate social climber. They claimed that she’d switched schools *because* of Prince William—because she had decided that she would marry him, and become a princess. They even had a cruel name for Kate and her sister Pippa: they called them the Wisteria Sisters, because wisteria is pretty and climbs very fast. How awful.
While I don’t believe that Kate set out to marry William from age fourteen, I’ve always thought this was a fascinating starting place for a character. What if you were a modern woman who orchestrated her entire life around the goal of marrying a prince? What kind of person would you have to be to make it happen, and ultimately, what would it cost you?
As for the ending to Daphne’s story—I don’t want to say anything, in case there are more American Royals books!
While I don’t believe that Kate set out to marry William from age fourteen, I’ve always thought this was a fascinating starting place for a character. What if you were a modern woman who orchestrated her entire life around the goal of marrying a prince? What kind of person would you have to be to make it happen, and ultimately, what would it cost you?
As for the ending to Daphne’s story—I don’t want to say anything, in case there are more American Royals books!
Katharine McGee
Sometimes there are aspects of real-life people that make their way into my characters. For instance, Samantha sometimes reminds me of my younger sister—they’re both spontaneous and fiercely loyal, and have great fashion sense (namely, a love of sequins). But I never consciously base my characters on people I know. More often, I find myself drawing upon a *moment* from my own life to write a scene, or repurposing a joke into a line of dialogue. In The Thousandth Floor, when Atlas realizes that he loves Avery while waiting for the elevator—that was me, eight years ago, realizing that I love my husband on a subway platform. Or in Majesty, when Teddy shows Beatrice the hole from the dry ice bomb—let’s just say my husband may have done something similar in high school...
Katharine McGee
Thank you, that is so lovely to hear! Amazing-but-heartache is what I was going for ;)
The drama of the American Royals books comes from having so many different characters. The more characters, the greater the conflict, especially when two characters want the same thing. The purest way to set this up is (of course!) a love triangle! In American Royals, I amped up that sense of drama by introducing four characters who all want very specific things, and whose goals compete with one another’s. Instead of a love triangle, you end up with… a love quadrangle? A love tangle? I’m not sure what else to call Nina-Jeff-Daphne-Ethan!
The drama of the American Royals books comes from having so many different characters. The more characters, the greater the conflict, especially when two characters want the same thing. The purest way to set this up is (of course!) a love triangle! In American Royals, I amped up that sense of drama by introducing four characters who all want very specific things, and whose goals compete with one another’s. Instead of a love triangle, you end up with… a love quadrangle? A love tangle? I’m not sure what else to call Nina-Jeff-Daphne-Ethan!
Katharine McGee
For me, writing is all-or-nothing: either I’m deep in a draft and thinking about it nonstop, or I’m not really writing at all. That is, I find it hard to “casually” write if I have a stray hour or two! It takes some time to fully submerge myself in the world and the characters—I have trouble getting much accomplished if I don’t have at least half a day free so that I can focus.
I usually spend about four months on the first draft of each project. But I do a lot of worldbuilding and brainstorming before I start writing, so the first draft of a new series always takes longer than the first draft of a sequel. For American Royals, I spent nearly a year fine-tuning the concept (and writing and rewriting the first few chapters!) before I felt ready to tackle the first draft. It was much easier with Majesty, probably only two months of outlining before I started writing.
I usually spend about four months on the first draft of each project. But I do a lot of worldbuilding and brainstorming before I start writing, so the first draft of a new series always takes longer than the first draft of a sequel. For American Royals, I spent nearly a year fine-tuning the concept (and writing and rewriting the first few chapters!) before I felt ready to tackle the first draft. It was much easier with Majesty, probably only two months of outlining before I started writing.
Katharine McGee
I’m so happy that you loved the relationships in both series! There’s no way I could ever choose one couple as my favorite One of the best parts of writing books with multiple narrators is that I can show so many different types of romance—friends-to-lovers, enemies-to-lovers, fake dating, and more. I can write a sparks-flying meet cute (like Mariel and Eris) and then juxtapose that with a quieter, more subtle romance that builds slowly over time (like Beatrice and Teddy). Honestly, I don’t know if I’ll ever write a “traditional” romance novel with just one POV character. I’m having too much fun playing with multiple romances at once, and all the ways they can get complicated and tangled!
Katharine McGee
When I was first developing the concept for American Royals, I knew right away that I wanted an “everygirl” character who fell in love with the prince. Even better, she should have known the prince since childhood and have a history with him (like Audrey Hepburn in Sabrina!) And since I wanted the prince to have a twin sister, it made sense to have Nina also be Samantha’s best friend.
I was already working on American Royals when Prince Harry and Meghan Markle announced their engagement in 2017. But as I kept going on my draft, I couldn’t help working pieces of Harry and Meghan’s relationship into the pages: particularly since Nina, like Meghan, is a person of color. The negative publicity and brutal tabloid treatment that Nina endures in the book is very much inspired by what Meghan went through—but I also tried to give Nina some of Meghan’s strength, poise, and self-awareness, too.
I was already working on American Royals when Prince Harry and Meghan Markle announced their engagement in 2017. But as I kept going on my draft, I couldn’t help working pieces of Harry and Meghan’s relationship into the pages: particularly since Nina, like Meghan, is a person of color. The negative publicity and brutal tabloid treatment that Nina endures in the book is very much inspired by what Meghan went through—but I also tried to give Nina some of Meghan’s strength, poise, and self-awareness, too.
Katharine McGee
Right now American Royals is only two books, so the story concludes at the end of Majesty. I'm currently working on a new project that’s in the very early stages—I can’t share anything about it yet except to say that it’s a change of pace and a fun creative challenge. My husband and I are also expecting our first baby in September… which is a new project of a very different variety!
That said, I’ve really loved exploring the world of American Royals. I don’t know if I’ve left it behind for good! I might return to these characters for a third book someday (and I have some ideas for where the story would go, if I do…!)
That said, I’ve really loved exploring the world of American Royals. I don’t know if I’ve left it behind for good! I might return to these characters for a third book someday (and I have some ideas for where the story would go, if I do…!)
Katharine McGee
I’m so hopeful that American Royals will become a movie or TV show! It would be amazing to see the Washington family and the American court depicted on-screen (plus, I keep imagining the costumes!) My LA agent is hard at work trying to make this happen—I’m keeping my fingers crossed. If there’s ever any news, I’ll share it asap on my social media handles at @katharinemcgee.
Katharine McGee
Right now American Royals is only two books, so the story concludes at the end of Majesty. I'm currently working on a new project that is in very early stages! But, I know better than to say a story is ever *truly* finished. I have some ideas of where I would take the characters of American Royals in a third book, if I end up back in their world someday!
Katharine McGee
The characters are all incredibly fun to write, because their voices are so different, but Sam and Nina usually need the most revisions. When I’m building a scene, I have to ask myself a few key questions—what the main character wants, what obstacles are in her way, and what she’s willing to do to achieve her goals. For Beatrice and Daphne, this is always clear. (Daphne’s chapters practically write themselves! What does she want? Prince Jefferson. What is she willing to do to win him? *Anything*)
Nina, however, is often confused about what she wants, and Sam tends to get in her own way (she’s her own greatest obstacle!) Their chapters can be slower to take shape, because their motivations are tricky to keep track of. That said, they both have really fun storylines in Majesty… with more forbidden love and a few surprises!
Nina, however, is often confused about what she wants, and Sam tends to get in her own way (she’s her own greatest obstacle!) Their chapters can be slower to take shape, because their motivations are tricky to keep track of. That said, they both have really fun storylines in Majesty… with more forbidden love and a few surprises!
Katharine McGee
Characters are like children; each has their own strengths and their own difficulties! I don’t really think of any one character as being easier to write than another, but instead, that some types of scenes are easy, and some are more challenging.
For me, the more action in a chapter, the less time it will take to write! It’s easier to tackle a scene when I know the main story point—e.g. two characters are fighting, or discovering a secret, or kissing for the first time. The harder scenes are the vague ones. I groan each time I look at my outline and see a chapter where two characters are “getting to know each other” or “softening toward each other”--I write a lot of enemies-to-lovers, can you tell?! :) Those chapters take more time because the conversation isn’t driving toward any specific point. They’re more nuanced, which means I need to do a lot of thinking before I dive in.
For me, the more action in a chapter, the less time it will take to write! It’s easier to tackle a scene when I know the main story point—e.g. two characters are fighting, or discovering a secret, or kissing for the first time. The harder scenes are the vague ones. I groan each time I look at my outline and see a chapter where two characters are “getting to know each other” or “softening toward each other”--I write a lot of enemies-to-lovers, can you tell?! :) Those chapters take more time because the conversation isn’t driving toward any specific point. They’re more nuanced, which means I need to do a lot of thinking before I dive in.
Katharine McGee
This is such an interesting take on the notion of a futuristic tower city. Thank you for sharing, I hadn’t seen it before!
My idea for the Thousandth Floor trilogy was actually a response to the YA dystopian trend. Those stories all feature such bleak, hopeless versions of the future: with evil dictators, or children fighting to the death, or caste systems and slavery. I kept hoping that someone would write a brighter version of the future—one where humans had actually improved upon the world of today, rather than turning it into something twisted and broken.
All of this had been swirling around my mind when I read an article about “vertical urbanization”: the idea that cities in the future will be completely self-sufficient buildings, complete with everything from hospitals and schools and retail outlets to interior parks and gardens. I couldn’t stop wondering, what would New York look like if it became one of these cities—if it stretched upwards for two miles? And what would it feel like, to be a teenager there? I realized then that it had to be the setting for my novel!
My idea for the Thousandth Floor trilogy was actually a response to the YA dystopian trend. Those stories all feature such bleak, hopeless versions of the future: with evil dictators, or children fighting to the death, or caste systems and slavery. I kept hoping that someone would write a brighter version of the future—one where humans had actually improved upon the world of today, rather than turning it into something twisted and broken.
All of this had been swirling around my mind when I read an article about “vertical urbanization”: the idea that cities in the future will be completely self-sufficient buildings, complete with everything from hospitals and schools and retail outlets to interior parks and gardens. I couldn’t stop wondering, what would New York look like if it became one of these cities—if it stretched upwards for two miles? And what would it feel like, to be a teenager there? I realized then that it had to be the setting for my novel!
Katharine McGee
As a reader, I’ve always been drawn to big, fat books with lots of intersecting stories. (I grew up on high fantasy—stories like Lord of the Rings, that jump back and forth from one cluster of characters to another). There’s nothing I love more than opening a novel and finding a family tree or a map: signs that this is a sweeping, epic story, and I’d better buckle up and pay attention. So I always knew that when I wrote books of my own, they would be narrated by more than one character. I just find that it makes the world feel richer and more textured when you see it through multiple sets of eyes.
My characters are tangled together in all kinds of ways, so I do a lot of outlining before I start writing. I use a whiteboard to figure out the main beats of the story, then get onto my computer to do an actual chapter-by-chapter outline, color-coded and all! Inevitably the story will change once I start drafting, but it’s helpful to have a roadmap that I can keep flipping back to.
My characters are tangled together in all kinds of ways, so I do a lot of outlining before I start writing. I use a whiteboard to figure out the main beats of the story, then get onto my computer to do an actual chapter-by-chapter outline, color-coded and all! Inevitably the story will change once I start drafting, but it’s helpful to have a roadmap that I can keep flipping back to.
Katharine McGee
The second American Royals book will come out this fall! If you follow me on social at @katharinemcgee, I should be sharing some updates about it very soon...
Katharine McGee
Right now American Royals is only two books, but I know better than to say a story is ever *truly* finished. I have some ideas of where I would take the characters in a third book, should I decide to write one...!
Katharine McGee
I have ALWAYS been a historical fiction nerd. When I was in middle school, I used to sneak into my parents’ room to read my mom's Philippa Gregory and Margaret George books. I hoped that I would someday write a historical fiction of my own, something with forbidden love and political intrigue and fun villainous scheming for the throne… which I ended up doing anyway in American Royals… :)
It was the Cambridges’ wedding in 2011 that planted the seeds of this book in my mind. I actually watched the live broadcast with friends at a bar, even though it aired at 6 AM in New York (the things you do at age 23…!) The moment the newlyweds kissed, it felt like all of New York broke out in cheers. I remember marveling at how invested Americans felt in the fairy tale of it all, even though we don’t have royals of our own. Which got me to wondering, how would the world be different if we *did* have a royal family?
It was the Cambridges’ wedding in 2011 that planted the seeds of this book in my mind. I actually watched the live broadcast with friends at a bar, even though it aired at 6 AM in New York (the things you do at age 23…!) The moment the newlyweds kissed, it felt like all of New York broke out in cheers. I remember marveling at how invested Americans felt in the fairy tale of it all, even though we don’t have royals of our own. Which got me to wondering, how would the world be different if we *did* have a royal family?
Katharine McGee
Heather! First of all, thank you so much for being a fan of the series! I'm so happy that you loved it enough to buy your own copies!
There are no deleted scenes in the paperback edition of book 3, but the first draft of book 2 actually did have Mariel's POV! I used those deleted chapters as a preorder giveaway for the third book. If you email me through the contact form on my website, I'll send you a secure link to read them :)
There are no deleted scenes in the paperback edition of book 3, but the first draft of book 2 actually did have Mariel's POV! I used those deleted chapters as a preorder giveaway for the third book. If you email me through the contact form on my website, I'll send you a secure link to read them :)
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