Origins, inspiration, and the development of characters, places, and ideas in Jamie Foley’s novels.
Finally he pulled out onto the road and hit the accelerator harder than was necessary. Where to grab dinner? There was the one with the good noodles. No, he thought. Then she’ll make me eat the vegetables that come with it. The neon red sign of the Chicken Palace blurred closer. Fries count as vegetables, [...]
Maroon Bells National Forest, Colorado When I was a kid, we would visit Colorado to skiing every year until my little sister was diagnosed with leukemia (she was miraculously healed and is now one of the greatest joys in my life). One year we went to Aspen, Colorado, and I immediately decided that aspens [...]
Grand Master Levi Emberhawk's original name was Ja'korun. Everyone was going to call him "Jak," but when you're reading, it seems too similar to "Jet"... both three-letter names beginning with the letter J. I thought "Jak" fit him so well that it remained his name all through the development process, right up until I started [...]
Okay, this is super rudimentary. It's my first sketch of the campus of Jade Glen Serran Academy. This was just a quick brain dump a couple years before writing Sentinel. This map is based off of the campus of KAA3, one of Kanakuk Kamp's Kids Across America camps. Previously called "K-Klassic," I worked there as [...]
What is Jet Valinor named after? A color? A plane? Ooey gooey s'more deliciousness? Ignoring the fact that I just like the name, Jet's name refers to two things: his black hair and eye color, and his dark personality. However, there's nothing special about having black hair and eyes in Valinor; almost everyone does. There's [...]
Sorvashti's name came about one summer when I worked as a photographer at a camp called Kanakuk. (By the way, the design of Jade Glen Serran Academy is based on the layout of the KAA3 campus—Kids Across America.) Another camp staff member named Vashti was part of the medical staff. Every time I went to [...]