Jessica Bayliss
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Inspiration for BROKEN CHORDS: The dark, the musical, and the festive

10/5/2019

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​In honor of the re-release of BROKEN CHORDS, I wanted to share some of my inspiration for the book. This post will definitely appeal to music lovers out there. Anyone play the fiddle or mandolin? Cello? Anyone sing? Then stay tuned. But, my very first inspiration for this book started elsewhere. I’ll start at the beginning.

BROKEN CHORDS was born because I had to pee in the middle of the night while camping on Martha’s Vineyard with my husband. Literally.

If you’ve ever gone camping, you know the bathrooms are never conveniently located. The fastest route from our site was through the property’s playground. So, there I am, wee hours of the night (no pun intended—okay, pun intended), and it’s all cold and misty; and I think: If those swings start moving right now, I’m so out of here.

Lucky for me (and my bladder), that didn’t happen, but once I was safely back in my tent, I knew I’d write a story about a haunted playground someday.

The second inspiration for BROKEN CHORDS is musical. I wanted my book to feel the way certain favorite traditional acoustic songs sound.

​Before I get into the songs, let’s talk about the third inspiration for my book: Greyfox Music Festival. If you’ve attended and you read BROKEN CHORDS, you will recognize it all: the layout, the campgrounds, the crepes and gyros, the unique and creative individual site set-ups, even the creek behind the clearing in the woods—it’s all inspired by that festival.

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Back to the music. Once I decided on that the book would take place at a music festival, certain songs just called out to be included. I mention three bands in particular in BROKEN CHORDS: Crooked Still, Nickel Creek, and The Greencards. They’re probably best described as New Grass or Progressive Bluegrass, and OMG, all three are awesome!

The two songs that were my biggest inspiration are “Wind and Rain” and “Undone in Sorrow.”

“Wind and Rain” is based on ballad that is literally thousands of years old (here’s a great article about it), and it’s so creepy. The content has remained largely the same over the years, though it’s known by several names including: “The Twa Sisters,” “Rollin’ a-Rollin’,” and “Binnorie.” It’s about two sisters, and the older one pushes the younger one into a river because they’re both in love with the same man, and he happens to prefer the younger sister. Not surprisingly, the sister drowns, which is twisted by itself. Then a fiddler comes out of the woods, and he takes the drowned sister’s bones and hair, and he makes a fiddle out of them. When the fiddle is played, it reveals the identity of her murderer.

One line goes like this:
And he made fiddle pegs of her long finger bones.
Oh, the wind and rain.


I mean, shiver. Right? That song is the anthem of some of my creepiest entities in BROKEN CHORDS (actually, the very ghost children who haunt my playground). Probably the most chilling version of “Wind and Rain” is THIS ONE, an acapella version, by Gillian Welch, David Rawlings, & David Steele. But if you want to hear the one Crooked Still did, which also features a fiddle—I mean, apropos, right?—you can hear that ​HERE. (This version also features Rushad Eggleston, their original cellist, who is incredible.)

The other song that features in this book is “Undone in Sorrow,” which was originally written by a woman named Ola Belle Reed. That one is still under copyright, so I couldn’t use the words in BROKEN CHORDS, but when you read the book and Lenny and Jeb talk about playing their song, that’s the one. Crooked Still’s version is my favorite. It’s so haunting and sad. There’s a cello in their band, and the cello solo is one of my favorite musical moments of all time. Then the fiddle comes in and it literally sounds like the embodiment of a tortured heart. Add Aoifa O’Donovan’s ethereal vocals, and it’s a chiller of a song.

Those of you familiar with this genre will know that the cello isn’t typical for bluegrass, but it’s their inclusion of a cello that makes some of their songs so haunting. And readers of BROKEN CHORDS will know that I gave a nod to this when I made Lenny’s mom a cellist.

​I also mention the song “The Fox,” which is a Nickel Creek icon and the first song Lenny and her friends played at the first bonfire of the festival in BROKEN CHORDS. That band is made up of three geniuses of music who all started as kids. (Literally, one member, Chris Thile, won a Macarthur Award. Joining him are siblings, Sara and Sean Watkins.) You can see them at it when they were wee ones right here.

Lastly, I mention the Greencards, an Australian-based band, that definitely takes the progressive in Progressive Bluegrass to the next level. As they like to say, some of their songs are “weird ones.” But they’re incredible too. Here’s one of my favorites from them, “Wind and Water,” and this version also happens to feature Brittany Haas from Crooked Still on fiddle. Their version of “Davy Jones” is another of my favorites, and it definitely crosses the line into more progressive territory.

Of course, BROKEN CHORDS was also inspired by some of my favorite horror themes and films (I like to call it acoustic Poltergeist), but the heart of the book is its setting, and there’s so much that I love captured within it.

If you check out any of the performances or artists PLEASE, PRETTY PLEASE tell me what you think. There’s nothing I love more than sharing music I love with people who love it back. (And if you want more song recs from these fabulous artists, I may just have a couple more where this came from. Hehehe.) 
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Palm Peril is over, and it was AWESOME! (And a bit sobering)

2/25/2018

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A weekend in Palm Beach, FL. My first author panel, moderated by R. L. Stine, an icon and a personal favorite. Seeing my book for sale for the first time. My book with a library bar code! And the kids. They were INCREDIBLE. I can't even explain what it felt like hearing a mob of young readers say they want to read my book. Nothing was so painful as choosing one for my giveaway (I did eenie-meenie-miney-mo). And I got to do my first signing. And have dinner with this fabulous group of writers and Mr. Stine and his lovely wife and editor, Jane Stine. The weather was fabulous, and the other authors were wonderful. (Writers are seriously the best people, ever.) Amy Christine Parker  (author and chair of the new International Thriller Writers Young Reader division) was a fountain of information and made the whole thing easy as can be. J.D. Fennell, Karen McManus, Megan Miranda, and Shelia Sobel were super fun to hang with, and I can't wait to see how things go with all their careers. The Palm Beach Library System set up the event with such professionalism, and helped to ensure we had a large crowd. We visited two high schools the day after the main event, Glades High School and Atlantic Community High School, where we met Elizabeth Zrodowski and Rebecca Radic, librarian and medial specialists, extraordinaires. 
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The event was also sobering. As most people know, February 14th, 2018 saw a shooting at the Marjorie Douglas Stoneman HS in Parkland, FL. The schools in the area were under high alert in the week after, which included our visit, mere days following the horrifying event. Security measures were in effect, but tensions were high. I wont lie; it was emotional and scary. Imagining what kids in America must experience on a daily basis when they walk into their classrooms was immensely moving. Being afraid of going to school. Fear of being in a place where something terrible might happen. Our schools have threats on a regular basis. Social media makes it so easy for masked threats, many of which are pranks, but how does anyone know? Not having children myself, this was a huge eye-opener. Don't get me wrong, I appreciated what all this meant, just nowhere near enough.

Our educators are heroes. Period. Our children are courageous. I don't know how parents get through. In life, we are occasionally exposed to things that change our worldview. This was one of them for me.

Thank you!

I want to end by thanking everyone involved. I also want to thank the International Thriller Writers and the Debut Program, organized by Shaun Harris (author and fellow member of Team Triada), for creating an opportunity for debut authors like me (in other words, clueless authors like me) to learn this valuable aspect of the business in a safe, supportive way.
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BROKEN CHORDS is now an award-winning book!

2/4/2018

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When I entered BROKEN CHORDS into this competition, I had zero expectations. Let's just say I've entered a couple book contests in my day. But, my book took an honorable mention! What a fabulous surprise! As this is a horror novella, I'm extra proud as genre fiction can sometimes get lost in the mix, and I love this book so much. (I know I'm a little biased.) 

Get your copy of BROKEN CHORDS here (PAPERBACK and digital editions now available).

​And don't forget, if you're in the Palm Beach, FL area on February 18th, come see me, four other debut authors, and the legendary R. L. Stine at Palm Beach Peril where we'll be doing a panel presentation followed by a book signing (my FIRST book signing! Squee!) I hope to see you there. Find out more about this event HERE.
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Happy Book Birthday: BROKEN CHORDS, by me!

10/9/2017

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AHHH! BROKEN CHORDS is now out in the world! I can't even believe it. I started plotting the book two years ago, in preparation for NaNoWriMo in 2015. In fact, I specifically wrote it to meet requirements for a call from Leap Books. For a short time only, they'd take submissions from non-agented authors, but only for their Bloody Good Reads series. The books had to be stand-alone YA horror for Leap Books Shine, their novella line, so that's what I wrote. When I sent the story in, I was still a good month away from being accepted into the Pitch2Publication competition and around four months out from the day I signed with my fabulous agent. Needless to say, when editor, Judith Graves, send me an offer on this book, I was thrilled. 

Buy BROKEN CHORDS

Amazon  /  Kobo  /  SmashWords 
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​And here we are, literally two years after my brain first started churning around Lenny and Jeb's story, and BROKEN CHORDS is ready for readers. I am so excited for people to read this. I want to say a HUGE thank you to Judith and the other folks at Leap Books for making this such a beautiful book and such a wonderful experience.

Here's a little sneak peek for you.

    Jeb’s voice ebbed and flowed, his fear growing and sending out seedlings of dread to take root in my own chest. He must have woken the entire camp by now. I fumbled open my tent flap, stumbled outside, and zipped it shut with trembling hands. When I turned around, I knew immediately why no one put a stop to Jeb’s calls.
     He wasn’t in the normal world anymore.
     Neither was I.
     Despite not asking for it, something twisted and bitter in this universe had bestowed it anyway. We’d been transported to the astral plane. The world was bathed in dark beauty, like velvety gauze or some tranquil digital camera filter, making everything hazy and wavery with dim blue-white light. I could actually see the air – or matter or ether or whatever it was--that made up the world around me. When I waved my hand, contrails showed its swishing progress long after I’d ceased movement. Like, whatever I was made of in this form could interact with the very construction material holding this universe together. Or, maybe whatever I was made of in this form was the very construction material of this universe.
     “Oh God,” I whispered. 
     That meant, behind me, within the tent I’d just fled, my body lay prone. Not in sleep, and not a trance. Not dead, but not really alive either. 
     An empty shell. 
     I stared at the dark green vinyl before finally getting up the nerve to look inside. My body lay on my air mattress, curled up as if I were merely sleeping. My chest rose and fell as my organs responded to signals from the most primitive part of my brain, which kept the basic functions of human life online even though the system user had abandoned the controls.
     I breathed in time with my body. I wasn’t sure if I was really moving air around in my spectral form, but the reflex to carry out the action was strong, and it still felt soothing when I blew what might be nothing out of lungs that probably weren’t there anyway. I took another deep, fake breath and closed my eyes. My brain attempted to point out the ridiculousness of this – how I still felt normal even though I was nothing but a ghost now. A spasm of laughter escaped my throat, but I swallowed it down. If I let my mind think too hard about things like where? and what? and how?, I’d crack. Game over.
     Instead, I chanted Jeb’s mantra: “Just go with it.” Then I turned to face the astral plane.
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Countdown to BROKEN CHORDS!

10/7/2017

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BROKEN CHORDS launches with Leap Books in TWO days! In honor of the release, I'm holding a giveaway for a free copy and some swag. 
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I have TWO books available for pre-order (and TEN PAST CLOSING GETS A NEW NAME)

9/12/2017

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Today I found out that BOTH my upcoming books are available for pre-order. You can now purchase TEN AFTER CLOSING (notice the new name?) and BROKEN CHORDS. Click the images and see for yourself!
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Cover Love: BROKEN CHORDS by me!

4/10/2017

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Ah! I'm so excited to share this cover for my YA horror novella with Leap Book's SHINE in their Bloody Good Reads series. The book comes out October 2nd, just in time for the Halloween season. I'm always craving spooky, specter-filled books and movies at that time (Can you crave books? Well, I do .)  and this one is exactly that. In the words of my Leap editor, Judith Graves, this book is CREEPTASTIC.
They rip, they tear, they FEED, and you never come back again.
Here’s how last year’s Gypsy Cob Music Festival should have gone. Lenora “Lenny” Ragno was supposed to rock her duet with her long-time crush, Jeb, during the open-mic competition. Then, swept up in the glow of success, he’d finally kiss her. Instead, Lenny choked on stage and spent the whole year dodging him online. And avoiding playing her fiddle in public. She thought her worst nightmare was behind her, but she was way wrong.

Now, she’s back at Gypsy Cob where avoiding a public performance is about as impossible as hiding from Jeb. She thinks facing him will be the scariest part of the festival, but when one of their friends talks everyone into trying astral projection, Lenny catches the eye of a demonic entity that marks her as its own.


Whenever it wants, the demon can pluck Lenny from her reality and transport her to a hellish between-world, haunted by its countless, gruesome victims. If she doesn’t want to become one of them, she must discover the nature of the demon’s hold on her and remove it. But how can she defeat a literal demon when she can’t even get over her personal ones?
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Add BROKEN CHORDS to your Goodreads Shelf
Add BROKEN CHORDS to your shelf on Goodreads
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It's official. I've got a title!

4/23/2016

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This week, Leap Books formally announced my YA horror novella deal and the TITLE!
This graphic isn't the official cover. This is just to get you in the mood for what's to come. For more, check out the post on Leap's site.
They rip, they tear, they FEED, and you never come back again.
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Here’s how last year’s Gypsy Cob Music Festival should have gone. Lenora “Lenny” Ragno was supposed to rock her duet with her long-time crush, Jeb, during the open-mic competition. Then, swept up in the glow of success, he’d finally kiss her. Instead, Lenny choked on stage and spent the whole year dodging him online. And avoiding playing her fiddle in public. She thought her worst nightmare was behind her, but she was way wrong.
She’s back at Gypsy Cob where avoiding a public performance is about as impossible as hiding from Jeb. She thinks facing him will be the scariest part of the festival, but when one of their friends talks everyone into trying astral projection, Lenny catches the eye of a demonic entity that marks her as its own.
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Now, whenever it wants, the demon can pluck Lenny from her reality and transport her to a hellish between-world, haunted by its countless, gruesome victims. If she doesn’t want to become one of them, she must discover the nature of the demon’s hold on her and remove it. But how can she defeat a literal demon when she can’t even get over her personal ones?
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