Interview: Jaycee Jarvis, author of the Hands of Destin series

JJ: I once heard novels described as fabricated emotional journeys, and that genre is simply shorthand for the type of emotion a reader can expect to experience. I think new writers can sometimes get hung up on genre conventions or struggle to define their work. A novel is a massive undertaking with a lot of bits and pieces, and it can be easy to get lost in the noise. If you use emotion as a touchstone it can really give you something to come back to when distilling the essence of your work. It helps me enormously in the editing process to focus on the journey I’m trying to inspire.

SS Do you generally write in one genre? If so, what is it? And what can readers expect from one of your books?

JJ: I have a deep love of fantasy romance and can’t imagine writing anything else, though there is a lot of room for variation within that genre. I’ve considered writing lighter books lately because the world could use a little more brightness and joy. Hope and wonder will always be at the heart of my work.

SS: Regardless of genre, what are the elements that you think make a great novel? Do you consciously ensure all of these are in place?

JJ: Larry Brooks talks about the six key elements of a novel—things like great prose, a vivid setting, and a gripping plot. Different writers have different strengths, and different readers put different weight on these elements. I try to write vivid compelling characters with a lot of emotional depth, and I try to sweep the reader away into a different world. My prose doesn’t always sing, especially on the first draft, and I’ll sacrifice poetry for emotional resonance and great characters.

SS: How has Covid-19 affected your writing? Your future writing? Your life? Your family?

JJ: The prolonged lockdowns and disappointing results here in the US have been a real struggle, though I’m grateful to have a job that was already almost entirely virtual. Secret Courtship, the third book in the Hand of Destin series, released in June, and I was able to still host most of the same virtual events I had held for the previous book. At the same time, it hasn’t been easy. My school-aged children are all learning remotely this year, which has meant a lot of family togetherness and a lot less uninterrupted time to write. Getting into the right mental space to write about love and hope has also been more difficult given everything going on in the world.

SS: How did you make the decision regarding point(s) of view?

JJ: As a romance reader, I always feel I get a richer experience from books that explore the inner life of both protagonists or love interests. So I choose that structure in my own writing, and 3rd person narration lends itself more easily to multiple points of view.

SS: Do you think political statements belong in romance? Would you write a novel that was a political tract?

JJ: Recently there has been a rash of enemies-to-lovers romances with protagonists of opposing political parties which I find pretty distasteful. I read and write romance to inject hope into the world and gain new perspectives, and reading about politicians falling in love is probably never going to be my cup of tea. And if I don’t want to read about it, then I certainly don’t have the chops to write about it! Overt partisanship or references to current events are unlikely to show up in my novels.

On the other hand, stories cannot help but convey ideas. Anyone who thinks there was a time when novels or comics or movies weren’t political, simply isn’t paying attention to the themes and subtext of those stories. If nothing else every romance novel makes a statement about who can achieve happiness, and what happiness looks like. There is nothing more political than that, intended or not. As a fantasy writer I also have to grapple with worldbuilding, and what I want the societies I create to be like. I create entire cultures which have to deal with gender norms and roles, economies, and societal structures–all of which is political even if it isn’t framed with the same terms as modern politics. Whether writing utopias or dystopias, it is impossible for a speculative fiction writer to keep their worldview completely off the page. I try to keep that in mind and be intentional about the underlying messages in my books.

SS: How important are romance tropes? Do you ever feel the need to break free of their constraints?

JJ: Tropes are like seasonings on a dish. Used well they enhance the experience for the reader, too much and they can be cloying.

SS: How do classic myths play into fantasy? Into your own work?

JJ: Myths are just another type of trope for fantasy novels. I don’t usually directly call on myths in my writing, but there are echoes of them in my work.

SS: What are you working on at the moment?

JJ: I have a couple of projects in the works right now. The final book in the Hands of Destin series, Crowning Courtship, comes out in May, so I’m working with my editor on final touches to that manuscript. I am also in the very beginning stages of writing a new trilogy, about three sisters who inherit a kingdom and have to fight for their crowns. I’ve done a fair amount of worldbuilding and character creation for the series already. I just started drafting the first book, and I’m very excited to see where this one goes.

Lighting round:

Pantser or Plotter? I’m a total pantser. I do a fair amount of worldbuilding and character work before I start to draft, but aside from a few major turning points, I discover the plot as I write.

Book you’re currently reading: Dragon’s Gift by Jasmine Walt—a fun dragon shifter romance with cool world building

Your favorite guilty pleasure: I’m addicted to chocolate, though I don’t feel very guilty about it…

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Secret Courtship and the rest of the Hands of Destin series are available through Amazon.

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An excerpt from Secret Courtship:

Ulric and his waccat crossed the central market square, quiet in the heat of the day, to the modest neighborhood of brick two-story homes packed shoulder to shoulder where they lived.

Ulric slowed as they approached their home. Only a lonely meal warmed by the house charmaid waited for him inside.

Fighting the melancholy dragging at his feet, he scratched the top of Racon’s head. In return Racon bumped his skull against Ulric’s hip, a happy sound in his throat. A spark of warmth lightened Ulric’s heart. At least with his waccat at his side, he was never truly alone.

A shadow moved behind the stained-glass window on the ground floor. Ulric frowned. He expected Gracie, the charmaid, to be resting in the heat of the day. Curious, he took the three steps into the house in one stride, Racon trailing behind him.

“Ophelia.” A tightness in his chest relaxed. He wouldn’t be alone after all.

Han-Mystic Ophelia had trained to become a Hand the same season as Ulric. She and Ulric’s roommates, along with Han-Bursar Quintin, had formed a tight-knit group of year-mates. Ulric often felt on the outskirts of their comradery, tolerated more than understood, yet he welcomed even their backhanded affection.

Ophelia looked up at the sound of her name. Radiant as always, her blue sari covered her hair and drifted over her shoulder. The embroidered fabric glimmered in the light from the window. With her grace and elegance, she brought to mind the Goddess she served.

“You’re home,” she said, relief clear in her voice. Her gold and white waccat Felice rose and padded over to sniff his fingers. “How is Racon?”

“Racon?” As pleased as he was to see his year-mate, he suddenly realized the oddity of her presence. On Maranasday, Ophelia had a duty to cast fore-tellings at the temple scrying pool from dawn to dusk. How had she managed to escape? “Why are you here?”

“The Goddess sent me.” She stood and gestured at his waccat. “For Racon.”

Apprehension shivered down Ulric’s spine. There was no reason for Marana, the Goddess of Water, to take an interest in his waccat.

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