by Jason Joyner | Sep 22, 2017 | Blog, superheroes, Uncategorized, YA series
It’s a few days from my birthday, but an amazing present came early.
I am so excited to announce that I’ve signed a 3 book contract with Little Lamb Books for my YA superhero series!
This came about in an unexpected way. I participated in #FaithPitch on Twitter, an online pitching opportunity in July. I’ve done this before and had a few nibbles, but no real bites with either my adult suspense or my YA.
I got tagged by Little Lamb Books, and I had noticed them from the same thing the year before. I could see they had developed and grown their author list. The timing was crazy busy with a lot of family stuff going on, but in a couple weeks I was able to get their requested submission together.
After I sent that off, I was asked to call Rachel, the founder and publisher. Of course, it would just be a little get to know you session.
How could I expect to get an offer that day?
That was crazy enough, but it was also cool how God orchestrated things. Listening to Rachel, I really felt a match with her vision. She brought up things that my wife and I talked about regarding ways to promote the book.
So with a little discussion and negotiation, we ended up at this point today.
Right now the first book has the tentative title of Launch. Finalizing titles and working on edits will be the first steps. We’re looking at a 2018 release date.
I’ll be posting more updates along the road. The first details will come to my author newsletter, and you can sign up here. You can read about Rachel’s side of the journey at the Little Lamb Books announcement.
Overall, it’s the beginning of an exciting journey. I can’t wait to show you the world of Launch. It promises to be a wild ride. 
by Jason Joyner | Dec 8, 2016 | Blog, love, Uncategorized
Twenty years ago, a modern love story began.
Two people had grown up together, through church and school. Her mother taught both of them in Sunday School and youth group. They didn’t run in the same crowd at school, but being in an area where few shared their beliefs, they had a connection there because of their faith.
She was popular, in student government and choir. He was a little awkward, in band and drama. He was shy, but asked her to prom – only because he knew she was so nice she wouldn’t say no. Otherwise he probably wouldn’t have had a date. They had fun, but it was just as friends.
She was a year older than him in school. When she graduated, she went to Youth With a Mission for their Discipleship Training School in Lakeside, Montana. He was a little lost without his good friend that year, but ended up following in her footsteps, also going to YWAM after his graduation.
When he returned, they both attended the local university, carpooling together the first year. She didn’t like it when he was snooty about having to listen to country music. He wasn’t amused when she and her friends all got in the back of his car and treated him as their chauffeur. Sometimes they seemed to bicker like brother and sister, but they remained friends through it all.
She found that she could even call on him-when he was about to sit down to a hot plate of homemade macaroni and cheese-while she was being chased by a vicious spider. He arrived at her house, only a few blocks away, to find her standing on the kitchen counter using a broom to fend off the ferocious arachnid. A well-placed sandal ended the threat.
After a couple of years he decided he needed something radical in his spiritual life, and signed up for a Bible school program through YWAM – in Australia. She is one of the last people he spends time with before leaving. He even calls her from Oz, since he has some extra time on his phone card. But she wasn’t expecting a call from overseas, so she asks, “Who is this?”
After 9 months he came back from Down Under, and their friendship resumed. She noticed that he had matured in his time away. He had always honored their relationship so much that he never dared to make it more, because he didn’t want to scare her off.
Over the next year, they continue their friendship. Best friends now, they start working together at a local restaurant. But when asked if he’s ever thought of dating her, he replies that “they’re just like brother and sister.” When you’re both in your early twenties, and some of the only singles around in your church in a small town, that automatic pairing is inevitable. However, they both share a strong passion for the Lord, and they try as best to let Him guide their lives.
Their college studies are coming into focus: she is majoring in education, and he is trying to get into the physician assistant program. December arrives and he’s dealing with finals in fun classes like anatomy, physiology, and organic chemistry. English papers aren’t the highest priority, so on a Sunday he is holed up in his basement most the day to research and write his next assignment. He might have been farther along, but his mind was distracted by what she said after church.
“I need to talk to you about something. But I can’t do it right now.”
Isn’t that maddening?
“Well, when are you going to tell me? What if I call you when I get my research done?”
“Okay.”
He finds that he can’t concentrate, and his overactive imagination is spinning with different possibilities. Finally he gets enough done where he figures he can take a break and give her the long awaited phone call. Despite all his imaginings, he can’t expect what would happen next.
“Remember how you said we were like brother and sister?”
“Yeah?”
“Well, my feelings for you have changed.”
Pause. “What do you mean?”
“I like you more than a friend.”
That may not be the most amazing line ever spoken in a romantic film, but it was the most wonderful thing I have ever heard. This woman, who was my ideal, had just opened a door that I could not have ever hoped would open. She is beautiful. She loves the Lord with all her heart. She is sweet and kind, tender and caring. Her smile lights up a room, but she could also speak with God’s fire when moved.
So our courtship began. Being good friends, we knew that this wasn’t a trifle. The next day I fasted and prayed and the Lord spoke Proverbs 18:22 to me. Wow.
It wasn’t easy to be single and waiting. Both of us railed against that at times, but mercifully Jesus kept us hidden in His hand, keeping us from any serious entanglements, keeping us pure.
March 28, 1998, was the day that we were joined into one, and that day will always be special. But our journey started 20 years ago. The day we fell in love.
I love you Beccy. Always and forever.
by Jason Joyner | Mar 31, 2016 | Blog, Uncategorized
Hey y’all. I’m pleased to help my author friend Amy Brock McNew with her cover reveal for her debut book, Rebirth. Check out the awesome cover and a synopsis below. The book is available on May 24!
Liz Brantley has a gift she wants to return.
Able to see and fight demonic forces, she has spent her life alone, battling the minions of hell bent on her destruction, running from the God who gave her this curse. The demon
Markus, drawn to her abilities, unleashes havoc on her hometown and pulls Liz further into the throes of battle.
She’s desperate for a normal life.
When she meets a mysterious man who seems unaware of the mystical realm that haunts her, the life she’s always wanted flits within reach. But her slice of normal slips from her grasp when an old flame, Ryland Vaughn, reappears with secrets of his own. Secrets that will alter her destiny.
Torn between two worlds, Liz is caught in an ancient war between good and evil.
And she isn’t sure which side to choose.
Author bio:
Amy Brock McNew doesn’t just write speculative fiction, she lives and breathes it. Exploring the strange, the supernatural, and the wonderfully weird, Amy pours her guts onto the pages she writes, honestly and brutally revealing herself in the process. Nothing is off-limits. Her favorite question is “what if?” and she believes fiction can be truer than our sheltered and controlled realities.
by Jason Joyner | Mar 7, 2016 | Blog, Uncategorized
Hey! It was time to do an introductory post to let you know about my work.
I’m an author living in southeast Idaho, in the high desert valley leading up to Yellowstone National Park.
I’ve been writing since 2005. So far I’ve been published in Splickety Magazine for flash fiction, and I’m a local columnist for the Post Register, a regional newspaper with a reach of 70,000.
I love a variety of genres. Currently I have a completed suspense novel, Darkness Under The Moonlight, about a medical student who travels to Thailand to discover the cause of her missionary brother’s death.
My current project is a YA superhero trilogy, with the first book almost to completion and a first draft of the second book. In the Bible, Samson had strength. Elijah outran chariots. Today we’d call these superpowers. In modern day San Francisco, an evil is rising that triggers an ancient prophecy, and teens suddenly find themselves with amazing abilities. But will they choose to use their gifts for good or evil?
I’ve done a lot of blogging, and you can find all my posts on this site. I’m also very active on Facebook, Twitter, and Goodreads.
Thanks for stopping by. Let me know if you have any questions or comments.
by Jason Joyner | Oct 23, 2015 | Blog, Uncategorized
So the last couple weeks I’ve been helping with the launch team for Nadine Brandes and her latest book. She’s a fellow Idaho author who has crazy adventures and uses them as fuel for her fiction.
After the success of her first book, A Time To Die, which won a Carol Award, it’s a pleasure to review the next book from this talented author.
A Time To Speak is the second book of the Out of Time series. (Spoilers for book 1 ahead)
Parvin Blackwater is dealing with the shocking aftermath of A Time To Die. She had been so sure that her Clock was running out and she was about to die, but now she needs to find a reason to live. Her family struggles with the shock of the events, but Parvin finds a new ally in Solomon Hawke, an Enforcer with a conscience.
She learns how the Council has manipulated her and events to increase their hold over the populace. This leads to her new mission, to speak out against the Council and bring truth.
But no one wants to listen.
As Parvin wrestles with God over her seemingly ineffective actions, the Council pulls an unexpected stunt that has Parvin and hundreds of Radicals shipped far away for experimentation.
Now stranded in a barren wasteland, Parvin and Solomon have to rise up and lead the survivors if there’s ever to be a hope of speaking out again.
—
Nadine has a unique voice and space in YA fiction. She loves dystopian, but there’s an element of hope that doesn’t usually cross over in this genre. The world-building that was set up in book one expands in this book, creating an interesting world with real consequences for characters. 
Parvin continues to suffer. This is not a character who skates above the trouble, and details aren’t spared. Sometimes Parvin gets down and doubts herself, but her faith in God is growing, and she clings to her perceived mission with dogged determination. She can be headstrong and a bit stubborn, but she’s also a literary character that can be a strong role model for readers.
The action builds throughout the story. At one point it seems things are coming together too well, but Nadine ably blows our expectation at appropriate times.
I definitely enjoyed the book a lot. My main complaint would be that some segments drag on a little too long, and sometimes we spend too much time having Parvin’s thoughts ruminate on a plot point or issue. Overall, the rich world-building, rising consequences, and damaged but determined heroine make it a strong read for lovers of YA or dystopian fiction.
Oh yeah, the legal mumbo-jumbo: I did receive a review copy in exchange for a fair review.
And if you want to win a free book from Nadine, check out the contest below.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
