Christina Meldrum | When a Plot and Its Characters Collide

How does a writer create a story with a compelling plot AND compelling
characters? This was a question I asked myself throughout my writing of
MADAPPLE (Knopf), my debut novel. Released last month, MADAPPLE is a crossover
novel intended for older teens and adults. Part literary mystery, part
psychological thriller, I knew the success of MADAPPLE would depend at least in
part on my ability to devise a page-turning plot acted out by well-developed
characters. I expected this would be difficult, because often novels provide
either an intricate plot or complex, richly developed characters. Rarely does a
novel provide both. But why?