Exclusive Author Interview | Marie Lu, author of 'Legend'

I recently got in touch with Marie Lu, author of Legend, a dystopian novel which I have reviewed here on the site, to discuss the trilogy she is hard at work on. Legend is the tale of June Iparis and Day Wing, two seemingly polar-opposite teenagers living in a post-apocalyptic America split into the Colonies and the Republic. The two merge when June's brother is murdered, and Day is charged as the criminal.

The following interview with Marie Lu contains spoilers pertaining to the first book in the Legend trilogy.

Without further ado, Marie Lu.


Riley Peek: What was it about Los Angeles that influenced you to use a futuristic version of the city as the main setting? 
 Marie Lu: Well, to be honest, I live in Los Angeles and really wanted to mess with my city. :) I also had stumbled across a map online simulating what our world would look like if all of our freshwater ice melted and our oceans rose 100 meters, and in California, there was a huge lake stretching from Los Angeles all the way up to San Francisco. I thought it would be fascinating to see how floodwaters would change the landscape and culture of LA.

RP: We know a bit about June's life before the beginning of the actual story, but what was life like for her being raised in such a prestigious family? I mean, readers know she is beyond exceptionally bright, but did she ever undergo any pressures? 
 Marie Lu: June lived an extremely sheltered life as a privileged child, although I think she always felt a certain emptiness due to the lack of her parents. Her biggest pressure growing up probably had to do with the fact that she has trouble making friends. Her personality is a little stand-offish, and because she was rarely around kids her own age due to how many grades she skipped, she's kind of awkward when it comes to socializing. She really leaned on her brother a lot.
RP: Did you recycle any influences from other literary influences, whether it be for the plot, setting, or characters?  
Marie Lu: The original idea for Legend was inspired by Les Miserables, so I'd say that was the biggest literary influence. I wanted to write about a teenage version of Jean Valjean (the criminal) vs. Javert (the detective). I think Ender's Game also had some influence on me, since I love stories about child prodigies.

RP: We see the plague mentioned in the story as the primary reason that Day behaves the way he does--he ultimately wants to save his family. How different of a character would Day have been without a threat to his family? 
Marie Lu: I think Day's influence on the Republic would be drastically different. If his family was in no danger, or if he had no family to worry about, he would've escaped from the Republic long ago. His family's vulnerability is what keeps him in such a dangerous place.

RP: What event in history sparked the disruption of America, leading to the splitting in half of our current nation? 
 Marie Lu: There's a lot more info in future Legend books about how the disruption of the U.S. came to be, but in short, a flooding catastrophe triggered all of the current problems in Legend.

RP: What are your plans for any subsequent novels? 
Marie Lu: I can't say too much about the sequels yet, except that Legend is the first in a trilogy! Readers will get to see much more of the world than they did in Legend, and find out more about the history of how things came to be.

RP: What can you reveal about the second book? 
 Marie Lu: The second book is called Patriot, which gives a pretty good hint for where the storyline might be headed. :) I think it should be coming out some time around the very end of this year (2012).

RP: What books are currently on your to-read list?
Marie Lu: Oh god, so many! Right now I can't wait to read STARTERS by Lissa Price, SOMETHING STRANGE & DEADLY by Susan Dennard, and THE SCORPIO RACES by Maggie Stiefvater. 

I would like to send a massive thanks out to Marie for doing this interview with me, and I would love to recommend the novel to all who are reading this and have not yet done so. The novel is a wonderfully-told story that truly deserves all the fanatic attention it's currently receiving.  

UPDATE: The sequel to Legend is now called Prodigy.