Jesse has been a name that I have always loved. I vowed to name my first child Jesse and well... I guess I did. Without thinking or even researching the name, I just named my main character Jesse Knight. When I dug a little deeper I found that Jesse Knight is a commonly used name in fiction writing. My first choice was David but naming my main character David Knight brought flashbacks of talking cars and 80's teen dreams. So David gave way to Jesse and so the story begins.
Even thought the 80's were a safe time for me and I remember it with fondness. I can not help but bring a little touch of that Sci-Fi / Fantasy genre into this. If you look close and read carefully you can pick out the TV series that I enjoyed as a young adult. I was introduced early to the Sci-Fi genre by my older brother, Jon Barry. He was a reader and loved to watch any space show or fantasy that mom and dad would let him, and I was right there for all of this too. My parents were great, they kept an open mind and let us watch anything but horror (they thought that I was to young for those kind of shows).
So early on as a young girl growing up to be a young lady, I had thoughts of being swept off my feet by a Prince Charming. He would be brave and strong. My Prince could fight (not kill) to protect my honor and conquer the enemy. He would be the one to win my heart and the kingdom. My Prince would have a funny best friend who would make you laugh even when you didn't want to. I guess then this would be the first thoughts of Jesse and Daniel.
When I left school and entered the work force, Jesse and his adventures ended up on a shelf in the back of my mind. There he would stay for at least nine to twelve years. It was not like I didn't think about him, it is just that I didn't know what to do with him at that time. It is funny how life is, something can come along and unlock old memories. Sometimes it is something so unexpected or even tragic that would make you long for a simpler time.
Now I would turn 35 years old, I was told a month earlier that my father's cancer had returned. My mom's health was not all that great either. So in 2001, I would lose my both of my parents whom I loved very much. I moved out of my home that I shared with them. It was not like I could not handle being on my own, it was like I needed a friend. Someone who loved me in spite of myself. Someone who didn't mind being woke up at any point during the night and greeted me with a smile. I now longed for that simpler time.
I made some friends on the Internet and took up writing at their request. But what was I going to write about? There he stood just waiting for that question to be asked. I started to write about my Prince Charming, I had not a clue how to end the story so 100,000 words later I brought his first adventure to an end. One day while at the Public Library I seen a sign that asked if anyone was interested in joining a local writer's group. So I thought to myself... why not. I went to several of the meetings and upon their advice I did some editing and rewriting. So the story called "First to Prove Himself" became "The Ballad of Jesse Knight". It was then I submitted it to PublishAmerica and they asked me to change the title, so I did. The title of the first book would be "The Violet Eyes of Jesse Knight". The second part of the story would be put on hold until the first book would be released.
I feel like I just released Jesse from some dark prison. He needs to breathe and be real to some else if not just for a little while. Jesse has a lot to do and a lot to conquer.
And yes, I still am in love with him. I can only hope that you like him too.
