Go Home, Afton (Book 1 in The Afton Morrison
Series)
1. What really inspired you to
write your book, to force you from taking an idea or experience and conveying
it into a book? The idea for Afton Morrison came to me one night after
watching a rerun of Forensic Files. I thought about creating a character
who was cold and arrogant enough to think he or she could pull off a string of
perfect murders without getting caught. The question became, who in a small
town would be the last person suspected of committing a grisly murder? A
children’s librarian, that’s who. I shadowed our children’s librarian here in
Fort Erie to learn more about her role and responsibilities, and then got to
work soon after on creating an unlikely vigilante heroine that readers could
root for.
2. What is it about and whom do
you believe is your targeted reader? Go Home, Afton is the first of
four books that follow Afton Morrison, a twenty-six-year-old children’s
librarian in the fictitious Midwestern town of Wakefield. As a teenager, Afton
first becomes aware of the violent impulses inside of her, demanding that she
claim a human life. She resists those impulses until she’s an adult, at which
point she chooses to direct her murderous intent toward those who, she feels,
deserve it. In Go Home, Afton, our titular protagonist hunts down a known
sexual predator, intending to make him her first kill. Readers that enjoy
fast-paced thrillers, teaming with action, are sure to enjoy Go Home, Afton.
Fans of true crime, vigilante justice, grit, and strong female leads will
appreciate this story, too.
3. What do you hope will be the
everlasting thoughts for readers who finish your book? What should remain with
them long after putting it down? If I’m being truthful, I hope readers say
to themselves, “I need to pre-order the second book! That was exciting, and I
have to know what happens next.” Those are immediate thoughts, however.
In terms of everlasting thoughts, I hope the tagline of Go Home, Afton
resonates with readers. That tagline being, “We all wear masks.” To phrase this
sentiment as a different saying, don’t judge a book by its cover. You never
know what’s lurking beneath the surface, and things may not always be what they
seem.
4. What advice or words of
wisdom do you have for fellow writers? You’ve got to write the story inside
of you. Authors that attempt to chase market trends or write what’s popular
almost always end up crafting an uninspired manuscript. I firmly believe that
the story is more important to readers than the genre. Tell the tale that
captures your interest, and it will hook others, too.
5. What trends in the book world
do you see and where do you think the book publishing industry is heading? Self-published
titles represent a growing percentage of book sales each year. The thing about
self-publishing is that anybody can do it. I’m self-published, for
example, and I recommend following that path to anyone thinking about writing
fiction for the first time. The downside, however, is that because anybody can
self-publish their work, there are a lot of low quality self-published books
out there. There are no barriers to entry for self-publishing. So while I think
self-published titles will continue to grow in popularity, there will
increasingly be “noise” for readers to sift through when choosing a title to
read.
6. What great challenges did you
have in writing your book? There were several challenges, but for the sake
of brevity, I’ll outline two. The first was writing a female lead as a male
author. From a first-person perspective, no less. There are entire online
threads dedicated to discussing “men writing women” and, to be blunt, most
aren’t kind. Compound that with writing a female lead that happens to be
unconventional and it made the entire process more difficult at times. Between
my wife, my editor, and beta readers, however, I got plenty of constructive
feedback along the way. The second challenge I’ll highlight is with respect to
some of the subject matter in Go Home, Afton. The target of Afton’s
murderous intent in this book, Kenneth Pritchard, is a known sexual predator. A
predator that, Afton notes, has slipped through the cracks one too many times,
thanks to the conservative all-male police force, tasked with investigating
claims of his misconduct in a small town. As such, the topic of sexual assault
is broached more than once, and at a time in which allegations of misconduct
are making front page news every day. Some sensitivity was required here while
being truthful about the viciousness of such crimes.
7. If people can only buy one
book this month, why should it be yours? I think Go Home, Afton will
tick a number of boxes for readers. It is, first and foremost, an action-packed
thriller. One reader of an advance copy described the tension throughout as “so
thick you could cut it with a knife.” Fans of morally ambiguous characters who
operate within a gray zone are bound to be drawn into the story, too. Second, Go
Home, Afton is the first of four parts. It’s novella-length and only 99
cents on Amazon. In other words, checking out Go Home, Afton is a great
opportunity for a reader to decide if he or she might like to pick up the rest
of the series. It’s a fast and inexpensive read. Third, and perhaps most
compelling, Afton is not only a strong female lead, but she’s an unusual
character with a fair amount of depth. I think readers will appreciate her
quirks as much as her brand of vigilante justice.
About the Author: Brent Jones
writes from his home in Fort Erie, Canada. He’s happily married, a bearded
cyclist, a mediocre guitarist, and the proud owner of two dogs with a God
complex. For more info, please see: https://authorbrentjones.com/2018/04/10/go-home-afton-cover-reveal/
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