A Door Opens

Hi everyone,

Well, I promised some big news. So I guess, here it is. I know I've been a bit quiet lately. Mostly because I had been given a setback that disheartened me. I won't have an opportunity to write another Realms Beyond book in the near future. I love these books and their world, and there's nothing that I would like more than to build my career to a point where I can reinvigorate interest in their success and continue the series in a way that can keep the series cohesive and vibrant.

However, setbacks can often lead us to new paths. After picking myself up, I was able to dust myself off and free up my muse to write whatever I wanted. So I tried something completely different.

And it turned out amazing.

I am thrilled to announce that starting Fall 2012, I will be launching a new branch in my career as a Young Adult author. The first book in The Chronicles of the Secret Order of Modern Amusementists will be published in hardcover by Simon Pulse, followed by a trade paperback release.

The title, and even my new moniker as a young adult author are still up in the air, but I am so excited about this book.

Here's where it all began.

A while back, the lovely Heather Massey of The Galaxy Express did a feature called Steampunk Week. Having just discovered the blog, I was delighted by her depth and insight. During that week, she published this post about some of the aesthetics of Steampunk.

Now, I've always had a thing about design, and if anyone ever asks me what I would do as a dream job if I weren't an author, I tend to say I'd work on costume design for epic films. Now I'll be the first to acknowledge I have absolutely no talent in that field, but hey, we all dream right? The aesthetic of the Steampunk subgenre of Science Fiction fascinates me. It's completely luscious and evocative. I saw the little picture of the clockwork raven, and I remember my mind twisting around the idea of a mechanical bird as I was driving somewhere and lost in my own thoughts.

The bird turned into visions of extraordinary inventions, and extraordinary inventions have to come from extraordinary inventors. That's when the Secret Order of Modern Amusementists were born.

With my inventors in mind, I set out to write my very favorite story of all time. Ever since I was a small child, I have loved the classic story of a young protagonist slowly wandering into a fantastic world. If I check off all of my very most beloved books, they all have this theme. The Wizard of Oz, Harry Potter, The Chronicles of Narnia, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, The Adventures of Alice in Wonderland the list goes on and on. I wanted to work with this classic theme in my own way. I wanted to give a classic adventure a smart brave heroine at the helm.

And so my Steampunk inspired adventure came to life.

Filled with murder, mystery, romance, and adventure, a clock maker's daughter, Meg Whitlock holds the key to unlocking the secrets of the Modern Amusementists and their most dangerous creation. As she uncovers their world of remarkable invention, she has to rely on the one boy she's not sure she can trust. Together, they must stop a plot capable of unraveling the fabric of reality itself, but for Meg, love might be the most treacherous adventure of all.

While Steampunk can verge into alternate realities and more Fantasy elements, I wanted to keep this novel as real and authentic to actual history as possible. Set in true mid-Victorian London, the story has the feel of a historical mystery/adventure with the gorgeous aesthetic of elegant clockwork creations, and some really fun costumes.

This book challenged me more than anything I have ever written. From the historical research that took me from the wide avenues of the West End, to the wonderfully creepy Brompton Cemetery, all the way to the sweeping moors of Northern Yorkshire, I built this world as carefully and as artfully as anything I've done with my space adventures. This was a remarkable book to write, and I can't wait to share it with you.

In the mean time, don't give up on me yet. I have no intention of taking off my "romance hat." I've got a few ideas up my sleeve to take my romances in new directions as well, and for all my cherished readers who have supported me with the Realms Beyond books, I hope you're willing to come along on my next great adventure.

I'm not giving up. I'll do my best to give you rich, intense, beautiful and evocative love stories for a long time to come.

Happy reading,

Jess