A-Z challenge: G is for Good vs Evil

Good -vs- evil. It's as old as once upon a time. Heck, it's even biblical. So why, millions of versions later, are we still so fascinated by it? The simple answer: we like it when the good guys win and the bad guys get what's coming to them. I know I do. It makes me feel like there's order in the world, like someone is actually looking out for the people trying to do things right.

But I think there's a flip side to that, too. The yin to the yang. Can you say - with absolute certainty - that you are a good human being with no ill will or thoughts, that you make the "right" decision, every moment of every day? Is that what we expect of our stalwart and true heroes? And on the other side of that, are our villains without any redeeming qualities? Are they simply evil for evil's sake? What's their motive? The end goal? And what dark hour in their past turned their hearts to stone? This duality is what intrigues me most.

With Moonlit's release eight short days away, I've been answering tons of interview questions for blog tours, etc. One question asked me whether I thought the story or the characters was more important. I could see an argument for either side, but for me, it's all about the characters. What makes them tick. What's beneath the surface, and then under that. Those flaws and hot-buttons drive their decisions, and their decisions create my story.

My villain, Asher, is a bull-headed dude with a short temper and some serious tunnel-vision. His turn in the spotlight will come in the third book of the series, where I'll pull the curtains back on what has hardened his heart. He's not sweet, but he's not soulless, either. And Tanzy, my heroine, is a bull-headed chick with an impulsive side and trust issues. She made some decisions in Moonlit that will come back to haunt her big time in the sequel.

I like to see just how far I can push my characters, good and evil alike. I can't help but wonder if Freud would say that it's an exploration of self... What about you? What's your take on good-vs-evil? Who is your favorite Heroine? Your favorite villain?

My favorite good guy: Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Sassy, strong, and loyal.
My favorite bad guy: Spike (from Buffy the Vampire Slayer.) I know, I'm kind of cheating. But he was a most excellent bad dude.

A-Z Challenge: F is for Fate

Fate is a curious thing. If I get too inside my head, my wheels start spinning me into a plasmic oblivion where time and matter and choices don't exist. We're simply going through motions, following a track. The idea of that scares me to death.

Here is the definition of Fate, by dictionary.com:
1. something that unavoidably befalls a person; fortune; lot: It is always his fate to be left behind.
2. the universal principle or ultimate agency by which the order of things is presumably prescribed; the decreed cause of events; time: Fate decreed that they would never meet again. 

3. that which is inevitably predetermined; destiny: Death is our ineluctable fate. 

4. a prophetic declaration of what must be: The oracle pronounced their fate. 

5. death, destruction, or ruin.

 

Sounds kind of bleak. Even in the definition, fate seems to best its players. My main character, Tanzy Hightower, is a victim or champion of fate, depending on how you look at it. She is not fated to complete one action, she's fated to choose between two. Still each choice comes with a price tag.

 

Are we master of our fate? Are we aware of the price we pay when we make a choice, or does it only make itself known down the road?

 

I don't regret choosing to stick with an equine business management degree in college. (Not entirely, anyway.) My road here has been long, winding, and sometimes eventful, but I am now pulling from many of those connections to spread the word about Moonlit. However, I do wish I'd minored in either English or Creative Writing instead of Politics. And, if I could go back, there are a few friendships I would not have let scatter in the wind.

 

What about you? Do you believe in some kind of fate? What choices would you undo given the opportunity?

A-Z Challenge: E is for Equitation

Equitation is, first, a real word. A friend of mine received her print copy of Moonlit and immediately called me, horrified, and sure that "equitation" was a typo in my biography. It's a horse-related word, and, to be fair, many horsey words are odd. I am, among other things, a coach for a high school hunt seat equitation team, which competes in the Interscholastic Equestrian Association.

So what is equitation? In short, a style of riding that focuses on "form to function," or, maintaining the most correct form in order to be able to most effectively use your body and aids. I copied this from Wikipedia's definition for a more thorough explanation:

Equitation is the art or practice of horse riding or horsemanship.^[1][2][3]
More specifically, equitation may refer to a rider's position while mounted, and encompass a rider's ability to ride correctly and with effective aids. In horse show competition, the rider, rather than the horse is evaluated. Judging criteria covers the rider's performance and control of the horse, use of riding aids, proper attire, correct form, and usually factor in rider poise and the cleanliness and polish of horse, rider and equipment. The performance of the horse is not judged per se, but a poorly performing horse is considered to reflect the ability of the rider. A good equitation rider is always in balance with the horse, maintains a correct position in every gait, movement, or over a fence, and possesses a commanding, but relaxed, presence, able to direct the horse with nearly invisible aids.

Tanzy is a life-long horse girl and, until her path took a detour with her father's death, was a formidable opponent in the equitation ring. My real-life equitation team did very well this year, claiming the title of Region reserve-champions, and sending two individual riders to the Zone championships. We're also sending six riders from our sister teams to the National competition in New York in two weeks. I'll be there to cheer them on, and to promote Moonlit. I'm very excited!

Here are a few pictures from our season:

Here is a picture of me at a horse show many years ago. Funny thing: my position isn't great in this picture. I'm pinched at the knee and my lower leg is too far back, which puts my upper body a little too far forward. But luckily, we were competing in hunters instead of equitation, and we won!

A-Z Challenge: D is for Dancing 'til the world ends

Music does something to me - I can't explain it. The right song comes on, and the energy that kick starts inside of me insists that I move with the beat. So, naturally, the "playlist" in my head for Moonlit is something I take pretty seriously. Of course I'm about to say the name: Britney Spears, so maybe that hurts my credibility...

Anyways, there's a scene in Moonlit when Tanzy and Vanessa go dancing at a swanky nightclub - with some unforeseeable consequences. I can see it in my head, the bright, iridescent energy swirling around the room full of throbbing, wanting people. And I hear Britney Spear's song: Dancing 'til the World Ends every time I read the scene.

Tanzy isn't one to let loose, so she takes some coaxing from Vanessa on the way there. Check out an excerpt from Moonlit, where Tanzy gets her first taste of letting go:

           “That’s a good song. Turn it up,” Vanessa says, and starts to dance in the driver’s seat. “Come on, Tanzy.”

I turn up the volume and nod along to the beat.

“Aw, you’ve got more than that.”

“I don’t know how to dance,” I finally admit.

“You don’t have to know how to dance, you just have to know how to let go,” she says, and promptly releases the steering wheel. She twirls her hands above her head as we fly down a straight road.

“Vanessa!”

“I’m not stopping until you start,” she teases.

I do my best to copy her.

“Do you feel that? How can you not want to move? Close your eyes and feel it, Tanzy.”

Well, at least this way if we crash I won’t have to see it coming. I hold in a breath and close my eyes. The deep bass thumps like a heartbeat. My hands drum against my knees as the sounds flood my veins.

“There you go!” she says. I open my eyes and Vanessa grins in approval as she rocks her hips in her seat. I mimic her movement, feeling the little twists in my waist. My shoulders join in, rolling side to side with the music. Before I can stop them, my fingers press against the ceiling of her car and my body sways to the pounding rhythm.

Louisville’s lights fly past like a whirling disco ball as we speed through the city. Vanessa throws her head back with laughter, and I can’t help but want to feel just how she does in this exact moment. At last, I let go of the final thread of hesitation. I brace myself, sure it will feel like falling. But it doesn’t. Not at all. I’m soaring. I’m free.

 

You know what else starts with D? Discount! A friend of mine saw that Barnes and Noble online (BN.com) is currently offering print versions of Moonlit for $10.95. The price for print copies on Amazon (amazon.com) is also reduced, and they're selling kindle copies for $1.99.

A-Z challenge: C is for Cover

Moonlit has a gorgeous cover. But when I first saw it, I didn't know how I felt about it. The story is dark, Tanzy's journey army-crawls through some serious spiritual underbellies. In my mind, I imagined something bleak, perhaps a black background with three rings ablaze in the center. Simple and straightforward. That speaks to the story... right? Nope. Here's the thing about Moonlit - it's neither simple nor straightforward. Not by a long shot. There are many layers at work. Heck, there are even two worlds and past lives invovled. And nothing is as it seems.

Cover artist Steven Novack did an amazing job bringing many of those layers to life: the horses, an integral part of the story (one of which is named "Moonlit," just for title trivia,) the serpent bracelets in the corner, which is probably my favorite plot detail used on the cover, the red desert floor, the elements themselves (earth, air, fire, and water,) and, of course, scraggily, creepy, shadowy trees.

I won't lie, it wasn't what I expected. It wasn't what I would've come up with if left to my own devices. Thank GOODNESS they didn't leave it up to me.

 

Moonlit is now available for kindle for only $1.99 on amazon! Print copies are also currently discounted on amazon.com and BN.com.

A-Z Challenge: B is for Blood

Blood. Does it have a hand in making us who we are? What we want or believe? Does our blood guide our mind, our heart, or is the opposite chain of command more true?

What would happen if your blood was completely replaced with someone else's - something else's? Would it change anything else inside you as it moved through your muscles, pumped through your heart? Whose desires would win?

Fear not - Moonlit is not another vampire tale. But it does have to do with blood. The way it rushes, rising to the surface when our instincts tell us something is amiss. The way a warm surge rolls down our core when we catch someone we might just be falling for watching us from across the room...

My favorite line from Moonlit with the word "blood": Still, the memory of her stepping in a pool of his blood in silver high-heeled shoes blooms within me and lingers like I might enjoy the way it smells.

I forgot to mention this in my "A" post: now is a super time to buy Moonlit on Amazon. The print copies are discounted (right now about 30%, but it's been rolling from 20%-30% off) and the kindle version is only $1.99! Here is the direct link: http://www.amazon.com/Moonlit-Jadie-Jones/dp/1937178331

 

A-Z begins with Asher...

First, a little ditty about this A-Z blogging challenge. For those of you who don't know what this entails, the challenge calls for bloggers to pick a topic and write something about that topic each day (except Sundays) during the month of April, and that our daily post topics have to follow the alphabet. Fun? Absolutely. Masochistic? ....maybe.

I'm using this A-Z madness to peek inside the many layers and players in my debut YA fantasy novel, Moonlit, which officially releases April 16th. Just so you have some backstory, here's the back-of-the-book summary:

Eighteen-year-old Tanzy Hightower knows horses, has grown up with them on Wildwood Farm. She also knows not to venture beyond the trees that line the pasture. Things happen out there that can’t be explained. Or undone. Worse, no one but she and the horses can see what lurks in the shadows of the woods.

When a moonlit ride turns into a terrifying chase, Tanzy is left to question everything, from the freak accident that killed her father to the very blood in her veins. Broken and confused, she turns to Lucas, a scarred, beautiful stranger, and to Vanessa, a charming new friend who has everything Tanzy doesn’t.

But why do they seem to know more about her than she knows herself?


Now that you're all caught up, let's get started.

Day one begins with A, and I think it's so fitting for this challenge to begin with my villain, Asher. He's pretty - and I mean pretty - except for the startling feature of colorless eyes. And he does have a bit of a temper. But there's so MUCH to him. Unfortunately, I can't give many details about him away without spoiling some twists and turns that potential readers will experience along the way.

Here's what I can tell you: Asher is OLD (but remember, pretty.) He is an Unseen, and Unseens were never born, and can never die. They simply are. Birth and death are forbidden in their world, which coexists with ours like two plays on one stage. And I will tell you that Asher's goal is to break one of those rules... and that's all I can say about that!

 

 

Learn more about this crazy A-Z blogging challenge on the official website:

http://www.a-to-zchallenge.com/