Welcome to the Moonlit Blog Tour!
Author Jadie Jones is here today for a special guest post, talking to readers about how her work with horses influenced her writing of Moonlit. Welcome Jadie!
***
To me, horses are as close to tangible magic as there is in this world. They represent every element: earth, solid and strong, air, lightning fast - they can fly across a field like a gust of wind, fire, brilliance of spirit and always a spark of unpredictability, and water, their movements fluid and powerful.
They're also home to me, a sanctuary from any kind of trouble. Even though what I appreciate most about them is the wildness, I am drawn to the steadfastness of their hearts. They can trust and love, and they can also fear and retaliate. They are creates of both light and dark: capable of incredible acts of empathy, and capable of deadly force.
Most interesting though, is the way horses read people, and the relationships they have with specific handlers. These bonds can last years of absence, a horse recognizing a favorite person when their paths cross somewhere else. I'll test that bond later this summer. I gave up my one-in-a-million horse in college. She had an aggressive kind of cancer, and I ran out of money to treat it. So I gave her to a women in Florida who had the means and the connections to try experimental treatments. It worked, and my horse survived. I haven't seen her in ten years, and I am going to visit her at the end of June.
I tell you that story, because writing about losing her was the best way I knew how to cope. I journaled. I even used the experience to develop a risk analysis report for my college senior project. I sketched her. I wrote short stories, longer stories. I never did anything with them - they were just a place for grief to find a way out. Then I started working on Moonlit. Before I knew it, my main character had a gray, one-in-a-million mare that she loses under extreme circumstances. But this story I got to control, and it gave me a wonderful peace.
Horses are a part of me at a soul level. When I was a child, my grandfather would tell me stories about a girl who belonged with horses, and I felt like I'd found my place in the world. Writing about them allows me to explore the brightest and darkest parts of my own mind and heart. They give me courage and strength, and remind me that it's okay to fail, because 99..9% of the time, you get to try again. That's incredibly liberating.
Moonlit is available now from:
Author Jadie Jones
Georgia native Jadie Jones first began working for a horse farm at twelve years old, her love of horses matched only by her love of books. She went on to acquire a B.A. in equine business management, and worked for competitive horse farms along the east coast. The need to write followed wherever she went.
She currently coaches a hunt seat equitation team that competes in the Interscholastic Equestrian Association, and lives with her family in the foothills of north Georgia. When she’s not working on the next installment of the Moonlit series, she is either in the saddle or exploring the great outdoors with her daughter. Moonlit is her first book.
She currently coaches a hunt seat equitation team that competes in the Interscholastic Equestrian Association, and lives with her family in the foothills of north Georgia. When she’s not working on the next installment of the Moonlit series, she is either in the saddle or exploring the great outdoors with her daughter. Moonlit is her first book.
No comments:
Post a Comment