Interview with thriller author Jennifer Juvenelle

I’m wrapping up the month with thriller author Jennifer Juvenelle and a conversation around her new psychological thriller, Daughter of Belial.

During her virtual book tour, Jennifer will be giving away a $50 Amazon or Barnes and Noble (winner’s choice) gift card to a lucky randomly drawn winner. To be entered for a chance to win, use the form below. To increase your chances of winning, feel free to visit her other tour stops and enter there, too!

Bio:
Jennifer Juvenelle is a Native American/French author born in Hollywood, raised in Detroit, and fashioned in France. Formerly an actress and model, Jennifer now splits her time between crafting psychological thrillers and the magic of motherhood. A survivor of childhood sexual abuse, Jennifer made healing from trauma a priority when her life became untenable. Daughter of Belial is the unexpected product of her journey from trauma to triumph. Jennifer holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Wayne State University. An eager explorer, she currently lives in a remote Mexican seaside-jungle village with her debonair Aussie author husband and their adorable young son.

Welcome, Jennifer. Please tell us about your current release.
Some Family Trees Should Be Burned. . .

Greer Girls are special. Greer Girls are rare. Greer Girls are central to the secret Order of Belial.

Sophie Greer knows none of this. All she knows is that her now ex-boyfriend cheated on her, she’s alone working in Paris, and her mysterious billionaire boss, Edward Hughes, is way too interested in her life.

But when Sophie is kidnapped in Moscow while on a business trip, she’s plunged into the dark underbelly of the global elite and a sinister secret society with deep ties to her family; ties that lead to revelations darker than anything Sophie could have imagined.

Betrayed by the man who raised her, and targeted by the illustrious Hughes family, only one thing is certain—family history can be deadly. If Sophie is to survive, she must decide who to trust and what to believe, or risk being crushed beneath the weight of the all-powerful secret Order of Belial.

What inspired you to write this book?
I began writing Daughter of Belial at the start of a very intense healing journey. A few months prior, I’d experienced spiritual and emotional rock bottom—a dark night of the soul. My coping mechanisms were not only no longer working, they were destroying me. Cigarettes, alcohol, drugs, I was addicted to escaping my life—always searching for that euphoric high, not realizing it was creating a devastating comedown that was wreaking havoc on my life.

The story of Sophie Greer was initially inspired by my own family history. I grew up in a family that knew how to keep secrets, and kept a lot of them. As I entered adolescence and then into my twenties, the secrets slowly began to unravel, and I was loath to discover that I was the only one in the family being kept in the dark. In fact, a sort of coalition had been erected to protect me from truths perceived as harmful. These secrets had to do with paternal identity, hidden siblings, and other such dramas befitting your favorite soap opera.

It was intense but liberating to discover the truth after so many lies. It got me thinking about what it’s like to be surrounded by people who know more about you than you do. How that weakens a person. The oracle at Delphi tells us to Know Thyself, and I have found this maxim to be true time and time again. It may be frightening at first, but that’s just fear of the unknown. Ultimately, discovering who you are and where you come from is empowering, and most importantly, it enables you to become aware of your unconscious patterns so you can consciously decide where you’re going.

With Daughter of Belial, my desire was to invite readers into the life of Sophie Greer, a young woman who doesn’t know herself (but thinks she does), and take a trip into the dark night of one woman’s soul. Will she conquer the demons targeting her? Will she discover her power? Moreover, will she be strong enough to claim it once she does?

You’ll have to read the book to find out! And I sincerely hope you do 🙂

 

Excerpt from Daughter of Belial:
The front door slams behind me with a clamorous thud. I jump, frightened. Marcella Belleville’s ominous laughter sails through the air while the cloaked beings descend the steps to encircle me. Turning to and fro, I try to slip through an opening in their ranks, but they close in so that not even a hairpin could find a fissure for escape. A low chanting starts up, like a rumble from some vile private inferno.

Testor ad sanguinem. Respondendum est in sanguinem.

The primal beating of the drums grows louder, drowning out Marcella’s maniacal laughter. Blood rushes to my face. I hear a whirring in my ears.

Testor ad sanguinem. Respondendum est in sanguinem.

All I see is darkness. My heartbeat keeps time with the pulsing of the drums.

Suddenly I feel another presence. Ephemeral. Sinister. It also laughs. Its guttural wails blend with Marcella’s tinny falsetto as it, too, encircles and envelops me. No one is touching me. I know that. And yet…

It feels like hundreds of hands are caressing my body. Sliding up and down the sides of my torso. Untucking my shirt. Unfastening my trousers. Cupping my breasts. Pulling my hair. Wrapping icy, tentacled fingers around my throat…

It feels awful—delectable—disgusting—delicious, all at once. I hate it. The chanting grows louder.

Testor ad sanguinem. Respondendum est in sanguinem.

Testor ad sanguinem. Respondendum est in sanguinem.

“Stop!” I cry out, finding my voice at last. “Please. Stop!”

But it’s too late. Wispy black smoke fills my nostrils. My mouth freezes into a silent scream as the smoke fills every orifice in my head—eyes, nose, ears, mouth. The sound of babies crying mixed with horrific images of children laughing and playing in blood assault my senses. I know it can’t be real, must be a trick of some sort, an illusion, but I’m powerless to stop it.

 

What exciting story are you working on next?
I’m currently writing the second installment in the Daughter of Belial series!

When did you first consider yourself a writer?
I never really considered myself a writer until I started writing Daughter of Belial. In hindsight, it was one of those aha moments, “Duh! Of course, I’m a writer!”

I’ve been writing since I was twelve years old when I was given my first journal. Writing very quickly became my only outlet for healthily expressing my emotions. As a teenager, I began writing short poems in addition to my journal entries, and took a couple of creative writing classes in high school and college. The business of “learning” to write never resonated with me though. I felt limited by the structures taught, enforced writing topics, and deadlines demanded. Writing remained a pastime, not a career to which I aspired.

I managed to go through all of my twenties never thinking that I could or would do something with my ability. Sure, I may have had the occasional, “I’d like to write a book someday,” but I always projected it into a faraway future. In truth, I thought I’d write a memoir, and for that I figured I needed A LOT more life experience. But as is often the way, Fate had other plans the day I sat down to write a poem and out popped the start of a novel. After that, I realized I’d been a writer all along and I haven’t looked back since!

Do you write full-time? If so, what’s your work day like? If not, what do you do other than write and how do you find time to write?
When I’m writing consistently, I like to write earlier in the day when I’m most alert. The best hours for me are between 11am and 4pm. However, at the moment, I’m a full-time mom to a very handsome and precocious 13-month-old boy. My husband is also an author so we help each other out to get writing time in when we can.

Lately we’ve been focusing on publishing, but I’m ready to dive back into the writing side of things. In that vein, we recently hired a nanny to come a few days a week in the afternoons so that I can get into the flow of writing consistently again. Needless to say this new mom is very excited!

What would you say is your interesting writing quirk?
Before each writing session, I connect inward and upward to call in Divine Creativity to flow through me with grace and ease. As such, I don’t really write the story so much as the story reveals itself to me. My job is to describe what I see and/or hear as accurately as possible. I’m consistently amazed at the high quality of language, plot, and character development that comes through when I work in this way.

As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?

A movie star!

There’s actually a funny story around this that my mom always told. When I was born, my mom had my astrological chart done by a very respected astrologer. He said I was destined to work in entertainment. My mom’s brother lived in Hollywood and they quickly took that to mean actress! So when I was about 2 or 3 years old, my uncle came to visit and we went shopping. While we were in a store, I threw a major temper tantrum. I threw myself down on the ground kicking and screaming, and pounding my little fists on the floor. As the story goes, my mom glanced quizzically at my uncle who shrugged and said, “She’s practicing!”

While I ultimately decided acting wasn’t my end all be all, it looks like I’ve still ended up in the entertainment arena!

Anything additional you want to share with the readers?
If you’re an aspiring writer, I’d like to encourage you to keep going! There were so many times in my writing journey when I nearly gave up. Thanks to the love of my mother and the never-ending support of my would-be husband who was just a friend at the time, I might have. Having one or two trusted individuals in whom you can confide is incredibly beneficial.

Most of all, trust yourself. Trust your process, it is uniquely yours and doesn’t have to look like anyone else’s. Write from the heart and write what scares you!

Links:
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