Jeaniene's 3 copies of First Drop of Crimson will be going to ......Roxanne Chin Choy, Donna S, and Chelsea B! Thanks, everyone, for visiting with us!
~Elaine
Walt Disney was famously quoted as saying “it all started with a mouse” regarding his Disney empire. While my own accomplishments are nowhere near his, I can relate to Mr. Disney’s point of inspiration. For me, the journey to achieving my dream of being a full-time writer started with a dream about a half-vampire. In that dream, I saw a woman arguing with a man, but somehow I knew this was no ordinary lover’s spat. I knew she was a half-vampire, he was a full vampire, and they were arguing because he was angry that she’d left him. I also knew she hadn’t wanted to leave, but had done it to protect him. When I woke up, I couldn’t stop thinking about these characters. Who were they? Why would a full vampire need a half-vampire’s protection, and did everyone else in that world know that vampires existed, too?
Brainstorming the answers to those questions eventually became the first novel I wrote, Halfway
to the Grave. Answering new questions that popped up during the process of writing Halfway to the Grave became the other books in the Night Huntress series. But something else happened while fleshing out Cat and Bones’s tale; I discovered other characters that fascinated me, too. After all, no one is truly an island and Cat and Bones had friends, acquaintances, enemies, allies, etc., all of whom brought their own histories to the story. Some of those side characters were fun to ponder in a casual way, but some of them metaphorically reared up and demanded I gave them their own novels. Such was the case with Spade and Denise, the protagonists of First Drop of Crimson.
I’ve been asked a lot about why I wrote a spin-off to my Night Huntress series before the completion of Cat and Bones’s story. The answer is simple; I go where my characters lead me. This may sound a bit fanciful, because characters don’t exist and the author is the one pounding out words on a keyboard, but let me explain. Ever had a conversation with someone where there were long, awkward silences and you struggled for something to say while your mind kept going blank? Okay, now, have you ever had a conversation where you and the other person fell into a fun rhythm of chatting, ideas and opinions freely flowing back and forth? For me, that highlights the difference between writing something that really isn’t where my heart is versus writing about characters that are speaking the loudest to me.
Plus, several completed novels and short stories later, I’ve learned that following where the characters lead me results in better stories. Sure, some projects I’m inspired to write have to be shelved because of time and deadlines, but when I get the opportunity to let my characters grab the reins, the result is less editorial rewrites and more happy hours at the keyboard, two things I hold very dear :). So when Spade and Denise began to crowd my thoughts, telling me their histories and revealing their current predicament, I wanted to write their story more than I wanted to do anything else. Luckily for me, that also coincided with my editor agreeing to do the Night Huntress World books. The timing was perfect. First Drop of Crimson segues perfectly into the timeline of events in the Night Huntress series while still remaining uniquely Spade and Denise’s story. Following my characters and the inspiration they gave me was again the right decision, just like it was several years ago when I first started writing Halfway to the Grave.
For Walt Disney, the world of cartoons, movies, theme parks and more started with a mouse. For me, the Night Huntress series and now the Night Huntress World books started with a half-vampire. It’s wonderful to see what our imaginations are capable of if we decide to let them take the lead.
To read the first 20% of First Drop of Crimson and to see the book trailer, go here: http://jeanienefrost.com/night-huntress-world-books/first-drop-of-crimson/
-Jeaniene Frost
Jeaniene is giving away copies of First Drop of Crimson to 3 lucky commenters!
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