Introducing Metal and Bone (Beautiful Books #1)

It's my favorite time of year again: NaNoWriMo time! In addition to NaNo, there's this kinda awesome thing happening this fall: Beautiful Books, my blog link-up with Cait @ Paper Fury. Click here if you want more details.

I'm here to enter my own link-up because blogging about my books is my favorite thing to do.

1. How did you come up with the idea for your novel, and how long have you had the idea?

I was trying to come up with something that hasn't been done before, and the basic premise for my novel hit me. The rest of it was cobbled together through pictures on Pinterest. Pinterest says I pinned the first picture a year ago, so I'm going to go by that. (It feels like much longer.) The first pin I found was of Lana, my main character, here.

The book has changed a bit. I didn't expect it to stick around. I originally had Louis Tomlinson in the novel, as well as a brother for Lana. Colt wasn't in my original plans, either. At first this book was a standalone, but then I ended up connecting it to Lost Girls, my NaNo novel from last year. Colt is the older brother of Cooper and Bryn, who were in Lost Girls. He was the missing piece, which ended up making this much better.

2. Why are you excited to write this novel?

It's been around for so long, and it is so very atmospheric. It's going to whisk me back to futuristic California, which I can't wait for. All of the characters have such vibrant personalities and I'm in love with each of them.

3. What is your novel about, and what is the title?

My book is called Metal and Bone (I'm not copying Leigh Bardugo, I swear). My synopsis kinda sucks, but here it is:

Lana Michener has always loved the horse races in distant-future Los Angeles. Ever since she was a little girl, she dreamed of competing in the prestigious yearly derby. She's managed to land a spot as a jockey in this year's race, and it seems like all her dreams are coming true. Soon she meets Colt, a fellow jockey with a family secret; Kess, a mechanic supporting her two siblings; and Jax, a quirky computer geek with a lively personality. As the race draws near, Lana grows closer to her little group of misfits, but when it comes time to race, it becomes clear her childhood dreams are on the line. And ultimately the question on Lana's mind is... will she win?

Basically: wild horses, a bunch of extroverts, and the ocean. Should be fun.

4. Sum up your characters in one word each. (Feel free to add pictures!)

CHARACTERS ARE MY FAVORITE OF ANY NOVEL SO I LOVE THIS QUESTION. THAT IS ALL.

Lana Michener

Independent

Colt Matthews

Lost

(You can tell he's lost because he's heavily pondering things in both of these pictures.)

Kess Matthews

Free

Jax Weathers

Fine

Grey Hollens

Adventurous

(I know, I know. Grey and Jamie Dornan in the same novel? I already realized the coincidence.)

5. Which character(s) do you think will be your favourite to write? Tell us about them!
Okay, well, honestly I'm excited to write all of them. I love Lana because she's got a fire inside of her. Colt is connected to my beloved novel Lost Girls and I get to give his family cameos. Kess (Colt's cousin) has been through some serious crap, and even with her bright hair and punk exterior, she's surprisingly sensitive. Jax will be my comic relief, but he also has a dark secret (that I don't know about yet). Grey is enigmatic and very wild, so I look forward to writing her as well. (Basically everyone in this book is an extroverted daredevil. Fun stuff.)

6. What is your protagonist’s goal, and what stands in the way?
Lana's goal is to win the race. 24 other jockeys stand in the way.

7. Where is your novel set? (Show us pictures if you have them!)
Lana is from San Francisco, but the horse races happen in Los Angeles. So, a bit of both maybe. Colt's home is in Santa Monica (the setting of Lost Girls) so maybe he'll head back there for a visit, too.

(I might be a wee bit obsessed with ocean pictures.)

8. What is the most important relationship your character has?
Lana will hopefully be friends with almost everyone in the novel, and each of them will be important to her in different ways. However, she and Colt are planned love interests (assuming they don't rebel and fall in love with someone else).

9. How does your protagonist change by the end of the novel?
I have no idea. I think maybe she learns to rely on other people rather than do everything herself. We'll see.

10. What themes are in your book? How do you want your readers to feel when the story is over?
The themes in this book are basically friendship. I want all my characters to be close to each other and lift each other up in different ways. I'm looking forward to writing each of their relationships.

As far as how I want my readers to feel... maybe like they've just gotten done having a smoothie with a friend. (I'd say coffee, but Metal and Bone is perfectly suited to fruity chilled drinks.)

NaNoWriMo BONUS: Tell us your 3 best pieces of advice for others trying to write a book in a month.
1. Don't think about what you're writing; just do it. You can edit it later as long as it's on the page. If you don't write it, then you have nothing to edit later.

2. Find a community and then plug yourself into it. Whether it's on the NaNoWriMo site or in a writing group on Facebook, find someone you can attempt this really wild adventure with.

3. Have fun! It doesn't matter if every word you write is profound as long as you're enjoying writing your novel and the characters in it.

Have you done Beautiful Books? How's your NaNo planning going? What's your best NaNo advice?