She wants more, so much more. Education, travel, love...sex...
A chance at university hundreds of miles away is too much to pass up, so she follows her best friend Naomi and decides to take her future into her own hands.
She had no idea this decision would change her in ways she never imagined, will the one person she falls in love with hold her back from everything she ever wanted?
***As with all my work, this novel is intended for those 18+. It is New Adult, but contains depictions of graphic sex, drug use and underage drinking.
****This is not a stand alone, it is a cliffhanger, the first of three books.
Author Bio: Jaden is the pen name of a girl living on the prettiest farm in BC. She shares her space with her husband, her children, and an Irish Wolfhound named Tiberius. She can now be found lurking in the dark corners of the internet looking for artful porn gifs, dirty poems and places to promo her work.
MV: You’ve worn a lot of different hats in your life. Archeologist, teacher, photographer, poet. What made you decide to turn writing into a career?
Jaden Wilkes: I suppose out of that list, I would only consider
Archaeologist my career...teacher and photographer were only done for a
couple of years each, and poet has always been a hobby, but a constant
part of my life. Writer, well that remains to be seen if I end up
calling it a career. I found myself back in a small town after our
family made the decision to leave the city and buy a small farm. I have
been obsessed with the homesteading movement for years and decided I
needed to garden and can and raise our own food. I was at home at this
point, and spending way too much time online on mommy boards. A close
mommy board friend decided in February to write her novel, and I was
inspired. I had always talked about writing a book, and started a few
different ones, but never finished. I always imagined I would write a
heavy handed post apocalyptic warning for all humankind...who knew my
brain preferred to write erotic romance? I told myself I'd just be happy
writing and publishing, and that would be it. As any writer knows, the
moment you open the floodgates, the more characters and stories start
showing up. I knew I couldn't stop at that one, and I had to keep going.
So now, I suppose I'm hooked on being a writer! It's funny though, I
still think of it as a hobby even thought it's consumed my life. I'm not
sure when I'll allow myself to consider it a career.
MV: You published your first book, Reverse Cowgirl, in April of this year. A
lot of authors say there is a bit of a learning curve with your first
book. Did you find this to be the case? What did you do differently for
your second book?
JW: It was a very steep learning curve, and I'm
almost embarrassed by some of the literary faux pas I committed. I was
so enthusiastic and sent my book off to a million and one blogs to
review without even noticing if they reviewed my type of book. At first I
was all about the "ZOMG buy my book" marketing, but that doesn't feel
natural to me at all. With the second book I established more of
marketing plan, and I approached blogs interested in New Adult
spcifically. I also worked more on actually getting to know people on
facebook and twitter instead of blasting them with my book all the time.
At this point I always forget to mention my book, I've become the
world's worst self promoter. I just figure if they like me on facebook,
they'll find my books...and if they like my books, they'll find me on
facebook. So yeah, buy my books or something.
MV: More and more authors are leaning towards indie publishing. What advice would you give them?
JW: It's much easier than you anticipate. There
are a million and one services out there that want you to pay for
formatting and converting and advertising, don't pay for that. Use your
budget on polishing your work with editing and cover design. Also, find
yourself a group of writers in a similar spot as you. There will be
times you feel like throwing in the towel, or thing your work is pure
crap, you need a safe place to vent or ask for opinions. Honest
opinions. Not just your mom telling you that you're a superstar.
And ultimately, don't be afraid to push the button
and publish. It's not the end of the world if your book isn't the next
best thing the world has ever seen. As they say, onwards and upwards,
keep moving and improving and doing what you're passionate about.
MV: What inspired you to write Like Falling?
JW: Sarah
did. I was sitting on my back deck thinking about my own Mennonite
family, we had just been visiting, and how strange it was that there is
this entire group of people living in our world, but not completely in
it. I started to imagine what it would be like to grow up in the
community without feeling connected to it, and Sarah popped into my
head. Mennonites vary greatly in their commitment to the religion, and
each region seems to have different ideas of how to live a proper and
righteous lifestyle. I called up my best friend who is also Mennonite
and we started talking about the story, and how it was for her to go
from living with severely fundamental parents to becoming her own person
in the world. I have to say though, Sarah is not like my friend at all,
she was not based on anyone I know, she ended up having a very strong
voice of her own.
MV: You are a wife, a mother, and you live on a farm, which must take up a lot of your time. How do you balance your writing career now? What can you tell us about your writing process? (Do you have a set time to write each day, or do you write when inspiration strikes?)
JW: I have an insanely busy life, sometimes I
don't know how I manage it all. We are just opening up a bed and
breakfast in our guest house, so the last year has been crazy planning
and learning about managing a small business. Of course, twin teen aged
boys and a toddler thrown into the mix means I have very little time for
myself, let alone my writing. What I have found is that I work on the
business end of things in the morning, social media, marketing, cover
ideas, etc. Inspiration strikes all day, so I work in Google Drive on my
iPhone and write sentences or ideas that pop into my head. The actual
writing happens at night after everyone is in bed. I generally write
from 9 to midnight and seem to get a fair amount done.
MV: Are you more of a pantser or a plotter when it comes to your books?
JW: I a panster who has an overall idea of the main story arc when I go in.
At times though, the characters take me in directions I never saw
coming. There was a point part way though Like Falling when I stopped
writing for three days because Sarah was making an idiotic decision. I
tried to force the story in a certain way, but kept getting dragged
back, so her being deliberately obtuse is still in the book. *dramatic
sigh* :)
MV: What was the last book you read?
JW: Crazy Rich Asians by Kevin Kwan. Loved it!
MV: What made you decide to write with a penname? How did you choose it?
JW: As my brain apparently likes writing dirty stuff, I decided
to keep it separate from my real life business. I don't want people we
encounter in the real world thinking of me any differently if they find
out I write smut.
MV: Like Falling is the first of a trilogy. Any hints as to what is to come?
JW: Sarah's
frustrating journey into herself will bring great satisfaction to those
who wish to see her grow and blossom. Book one was about her being
unleashed and feeling free for the first time in her life, books two and
three will allow her to find the middle ground with all this new found
freedom. That's all I can say. :D
MV: Do you have any other projects you are working on, or hope to be working on soon?
JW: I
am working on a historical western romance where a BC ranching girl has
to take on a role she's not sure she can handle. She meets a smoking
hot cowboy from Texas with memories that haunt him. I am also working on
a story about a really really dirty girl with a wild streak who
secretly yearns to settle down and have the white picket fence in the
suburbs. She doesn't quite know how to get there, until she meets the
crazy hot punk of her dreams with secrets of his own.
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