Kiersten White: Family + dysfunction = good storytelling

Kiersten White, author of The Chaos of Stars, makes a compelling argument here that some of the best stories revolve around family dysfunction.

Kiersten: So, this one time, Set and Horus were fighting to decide who got to be the Pharaoh god of ancient Egypt. And because nothing says "Rightful Ruler" like a breath-holding contest, they both turned into hippos and sat on the bottom of the Nile. Horus' mother, Isis, like your typical helicopter parent, hovered nearby and decided to meddle. She tossed a spear at Set, but hit Horus instead. Naturally, Horus responded by decapitating her.

Don't worry, it didn't stick.

I have always loved the mythology of ancient Egypt. It's a vast, sprawling, confused mess of a thing. Gods shift, turn into each other, do entirely different things depending on which account you read. But in the end it all comes down to the same two things: power and family. The ancient Egyptian gods give any deities a run for their money in the dysfunctional relationships category, and it's what makes their stories so very relatable.

I mean, I never literally bit my mother's head off. But figuratively, absolutely. So when I wanted to write a YA novel that revolved around that heartbreaking, tenuous time as a teen when you realize your parents aren't perfect — and feel utterly betrayed by their imperfections — Egyptian mythology just clicked. Because as bad as it is when your very normal, well-intentioned mortal mother doesn't understand you, how much worse to have the goddess of motherhood itself screwing up your life?

Oftentimes in supernatural and paranormal novels parents are dead, absent, or utterly clueless. (I'm not bashing it — the Paranormalcy trilogy and Mind Games series both feature dead parents. It does not pay to have offspring in supernatural worlds. If any of my kids ever show the slightest magical tendencies, I'm taking out a hefty life insurance policy.) But for The Chaos of Stars, I wanted to write a world that revolved around families. Few relationships in our lives are as dramatic, as damaging, as supportive, as joyful, and as ultimately permanent as the ones we have with our families.

Some of my favorite books are ones rooted in familial relationships. The Book Thief by Markus Zusak features a tender relationship between a little girl and her adoptive father. Suite Scarlet// by Maureen Johnson has some of the best sibling dynamics ever. If I Stay by Gayle Forman traces the beauty of a world filled with family members who love each other in spite of their differences.

In television, I've often found that family relationships, while usually in the background for teen series, are my favorite parts of the stories. Buffy and her evolving relationship with her mother. Poor Aunt Jenna trying to deal with Elena and Jeremy on The Vampire Diaries. The trio of single parents to Scott, Allison and Stiles on Teen Wolf. So much of being a teenager and growing is pushing against the boundaries our families set for us. The family dynamics add a layer of reality to fantasy, making the outlandish aspects of the story into ones that feel familiar. I've always thought series like these suffer when the parents are taken out. Without families to tether us, how can we safely drift where we need to?

A big part of Isadora's emotional journey in The Chaos of Stars is coming to terms with her family. Until she can accept that they love her, she can't truly accept love from anyone else. (Not even a hot Greek boy with amazing blue eyes. And to reject that would be truly tragic.) Because whether your family is aggravating in all the normal ways, or they just happen to be ancient deities still squabbling over who-stole-whose divine attributes three millennia ago, they're still the foundation of your childhood, and the stepping-stone from teen to adult.

Plus, hey, having a sister-in-law who's the goddess of beer? Could come in handy for those archetypal teen parties.

Here's the blurb for The Chaos of Stars:

Kiersten White, New York Times best-selling author of Paranormalcy, is back with The Chaos of Stars — an enchanting novel set in Egypt and San Diego that captures the magic of first love and the eternally complicated truth about family.

Isadora's family is seriously screwed up — which comes with the territory when you're the human daughter of the ancient Egyptian gods Isis and Osiris. Isadora is tired of living with crazy relatives who think she's only worthy of a passing glance — so when she gets the chance to move to California with her brother, she jumps on it. But her new life comes with plenty of its own dramatic — and dangerous — complications ... and Isadora quickly learns there's no such thing as a clean break from family.

Blending Ally Carter's humor and the romance of Cynthia Hand's Unearthly, The Chaos of Stars takes readers on an unforgettable journey halfway across the world and back, and proves there's no place like home.

To find out more about Kiersten and her books, visit www.kierstenwhite.com. You can also connect with her on Facebook and Twitter (@kierstenwhite).