2013 GRL Authors: Jordan Hawk

This is going to sound absurd, I know, but the thing that first attracted me to Jordan is her profile picture on Facebook. I love that hat. How trivial, how silly, I know, but sometimes those little eye-catching things make you pay attention through the noise of social media.

I liked her posts. I liked her sense of humor. Pretty sure I spotted her at the last GRL, but we've yet to speak. (Time for an overly honest moment here: as much as I'd love to say hello and get to know everyone involved, it takes a ridiculous amount of shoring up my social fortitude to introduce myself to someone new. I will try to follow my more social friends' example and do better this year.)

Point is, I was interested and finally (with the birthday book money this year) was able to purchase a couple of Jordan's books. Hooray! Had my eye on the Whyborne and Griffin books for some time...

Jordan is self-published, which sometimes makes folks hesitate, even in this shiny new era of alternative publication. I understand - some self-pub stuff is really rough, unfinished, unpolished. These? Gorgeous books. I had no real idea of the plot/content of the W &G books going in, so I absolutely giggled in glee when the word Arkham showed up early on. Lovecraft! My brain shrieked in delight.

The edge of horror was not as oppressive as Lovecraft, nor as overwhelming to an easily influenced mind, but the atmosphere that Jordan lets ooze through the pages is perfect, dredging up old feelings of dread and wonder. I had a couple of bad nights where I was turning on more lights than usual, convinced that something (thing!) lurked in the dark outside my house.

These paranormals are as good (or better in several cases) than the ones being put out by the big M/M publishers these days - thoroughly enjoyed the setting, the poignancy of the characters and the creeping sense of horror. (Yes. Old horror fan. I do enjoy it even when I'm scared into doing silly things like racing up the stairs too fast.)

This is one of the most wonderful things about our genre - discovering each new, wonderful author a story at a time. We'll always have our favorites, our comfort food authors if you like, but there's something exquisitely satisfying about sinking your teeth into someone...er, something new.

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