{Blog Tour} Spotlight + Guest Post + Giveaway: The Voice by Jennifer Anne Davis

For The Voice blog tour, I have a guest post from Jennifer on where she got the idea for this novel. I also have a giveaway for an ebook copy and I know you hate intros so without further ado, let's do this!

Title: The Voice

Author: Jennifer Anne Davis

Publisher: Lands Atlantic

Date of Publication: January 27, 2013

During her abduction and assault, Audrey begins to hear a voice. She hopes she's not going crazy, because after what she's experienced, that's the most logical explanation. However, as she begins to listen to the voice, Audrey realizes that someone may be telepathically trying to help her.

Unfortunately, rescue isn't all she needs. In order to leave behind the constant reminders, she flees to her Aunt Kate's house in San Diego, and assumes a new identity. It works until the eighteen-year-old twin boys who live next door threaten to break through the protective walls she's worked so hard to build.

Between Caleb going out of his way to befriend her and Justin avoiding her at all costs, Audrey doesn't know if normalcy will ever find her again. But one thing is certain: When a familiar danger resurfaces, it's the same voice that she turns to -- a voice that is not only real, but a lot closer than she realizes.

Gripping and tastefully told, The Voice is a story of healing, trust, and courage.

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Guest Post

I asked Jennifer where did the idea for The Voice come from and here's her answer!

There are several major factors that helped create the idea/concept for The Voice.

First of all, I had a crazy dream about a girl locked in a dog crate in a cabin. I had no idea why she was there or who put her there. I just knew that she was dirty, skinny, desperate, and she wanted to escape. In my dream, an angel (aka a drop dead gorgeous guy) saved her. He found this girl in the cabin and let her out. When I sat down to actually write the story of this girl, I realized I didn't want to write an angel story. There were too many angel books that had just hit the market and I wanted to write something different and unique.

As I thought about who I wanted that boy to be who saves Audrey, I had two teen boys move in next door to my house. I was amazed that these brothers appeared to be opposites in every way. One was athletic, popular, and cute; the other was quiet, shy, and withdrawn. I liked the idea of brothers and the bond they share, yet how different they can be. I took this and turned it into Justin and Caleb - the twin boys who live next door to Audrey. While my characters evolved and don't resemble my next door neighbors, I still credit them for the idea!!

Another interesting fact, Caleb and Justin were originally named Jared and Justin. But I couldn't keep the two names straight and I kept switching them around. I finally decided to change Jared's name to Caleb to avoid confusion.

Going back to the girl in the cabin. I knew that a kidnapped girl locked in a dog crate idea was a little too out there. I needed to tone it down a bit. However, I still wanted her to be stuck in a cabin in the middle of nowhere. But why? What was the reason? Well, I thought about this for quite some time. The Elizabeth Smart kidnapping was still haunting me so I began to form the idea of my main character being kidnapped. I also decided I wanted to address the issue of rape without it being the sole focus of the book. I decided to incorporate sexual abuse but have it occur in the past so that the reader knows it happened to Audrey without having to actually read about it happening. The topic is handled very carefully.

For me, when I read a book, I expect romance. The story was really built around Audrey and the voice that saves her from the cabin. So for me, The Voice is really a romance story. However, I decided to address the idea of trust, friendship, and family as well. Sometimes people freak out thinking my book is too heavy of a subject matter for them, but rest assured, it's not. While it does address important topics, it's still a fun read with a positive message.

There's one last interesting thing about The Voice. For those of you who've read the story, you know it starts with Audrey's rescue. Actually, chapter one wasn't written until after I signed with my publisher. The story originally started with chapter two, where Audrey is standing in her living room, ready to leave for San Diego. Then I decided to write a one page prologue with her escaping from the cabin. An agent recommended that I turn that prologue into an actual chapter and the rest as they say, is history!

Thank you so much for that wonderful guest post, Jennifer! It's really nice to know where a certain story idea came from.

About Jennifer Anne Davis

Jennifer graduated from the University of San Diego with a degree in English and a teaching credential. Afterwards, she married her high school sweetheart, worked as a legal assistant, and taught high school English. Jennifer is currently a full-time writer and mother of three young children. Her days are spent living in imaginary worlds and fueling her own kids' creativity.

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Giveaway

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