My blog guest today, all the way from the USA, is the lovely Jess B Moore.
Welcome, Jess. Please tell us about your new book Fierce Grace. What was the inspiration for this book?
Fierce Grace came from a place of fear – of a young woman who had lived
a life of pain and sworn off opening herself up to more pain. A young man swamped with family
responsibility, loyal to a fault, and with a poor view of himself as a
respectable partner. These were themes I
could relate to, and felt others could as well.
Annabelle is a music teacher, which ties perfectly with my musical life,
as well as the music culture in Fox River (the small North Carolina town
setting of both my books). Asher is a
steel worker, motorcycle rider, and the mostly “manly” character I’ve
written. It was fun to show how he’s
more than his image. For me it’s about
the characters, and I write people who I want to know, or I have know, or I
could be.
What does a typical writing day involve for you?
I write when I can, between homeschooling
two children, as well as helping manage their gigging band. I’ve never had a set time or place, instead
fitting in a few minutes here and there.
Now that I’m published and have specific deadlines, I have carved out
more time for writing, but it’s still something that shifts day to day.
How do you decide on the names for your characters?
Names are one of my favorite parts!
I have a running list of names I like/love/loathe to choose from, but
also rely on “Name Berry” (baby name website) quite a bit. For my first book, I wanted the names to feel
southern, which meant names like Magnolia and Cotton. With my new book, though it’s set in the same
small southern town, I wanted her name to be timeless and his to be more
modern, and went with Annabelle and Asher.
Do you plot your novels in advance, or allow them to
develop as you write?
I usually start out with the characters, and follow their story as I
write. I’ll have waypoints along the
way, and a general idea of where the story is going, but for the most part it
happens while I’m writing.
Which writers have influenced your own writing?
My favorite romance authors are
Penny Reid, Susannah Nix, and Sally Thorne.
They’ve played a big part in inspiration. I’m also a huge Maggie Stiefvater fan, and
love her way with words, and her incomparable connections between her
characters. John Green as well serves to
remind me that it’s okay to write nerdy smart quirky people.
What has been the best part of the writing process…and
the worst?
I love crafting stories. Love
seeing where the characters take their stories and watching them grow. I enjoy the process of writing. What I don’t love, now that I’m a published
author, is the “work” side of it all.
Marketing, promotion, website, social media – it’s all been an uphill
learning experience for me. After about
11 months, I finally feel as if I’m getting into my stride with it all, and
continue to learn along the way. My
favorites so far are my newsletter and Instagram.
Now the
book is published and ‘out there’ how do you feel?
Thrilled,
terrified, raw, and in awe. It’s a
roller coaster of emotions to put your work out into the world! Reading reviews can be validating in the best
of ways, or devastating, confirming all your greatest fears and doubts.
What can
we expect from you in the future?
My
third book, The Worth of a Penny,
will be out in 2019. I’ve already
started the sequel to Fierce Grace as
well, and hope to have it ready for the world later in 2019. Overall I have six Fox River Romance books
planned, and hope to get them all released over the next couple of years. After that?
Unsure, but it’s likely to include romance, family, and music.
twitter.com/authorjessb
The Guilt of a Sparrow: mybook.to/guiltsparrow
Fierce Grace: mybook.to/fiercegrace
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