Fantasy Spotlight: Janavi by MJ James

Janavi:

In Ember's river, survival is not just about strength. It is about knowing who you are and being willing to fight for it.

Purchase Janavi

Janavi is a merperson and the ambassador between her people and the land walkers of Ember-a role she inherited upon claiming her true gender. When she takes custody of a human for Ember's council, she expects to have some fun at his expense.

But an enemy pod tries to seize her family's home, and they are forced to fight for survival at all costs. Janavi is caught between the needs of her pod and navigating the politics of the land walkers.

Now Ember, the land itself, has started to awaken, and the human may be more important to Ember's future than anyone could have imagined. Yet, victory will cost her pod more than they are prepared to lose.

Javani is part of the Ember Town series:

Author Interview with MJ James:

Hi MJ! Congratulations on the release of your new book!
Since Janavi is part of your larger Ember Town series, can you tell us a little about the series as a whole and how the books are connected?

Ember Town is a paranormal novella fantasy series that is queer and neurodiverse. Each book has a unique POV, but the story ties through the series. I wanted to write it this way to give a variety of representation within the series. I also really enjoy being able to see POV characters through other POV characters at different times in the series. It is an interesting way to explore our own self-perception versus other people’s self-perception. Janavi is the sixth book in the series, which will be eight books upon its completion.

What inspired you to write this particular story?

I had included Janavi’s character from the beginning, although she isn’t named in Lucas. I wasn’t sure who she was, but I really wanted to explore what it meant to be a creature so cut off from humans that they would not have to develop to adapt to humanity. I also met a lot of people at events who were excited to pick up Lucas because of the trans representation, but also mentioned the limited trans women representation in fiction.

What makes Janavi’s main character unique or interesting?

I love Janavi so much, but then I feel that way about all my main characters. Janavi in particular is unique because she is really a duality. She is vicious but also calculated. Janavi cares, but in a way that puts duty and honor first. Since the merpeople culture is very strict and unchanging—they live a long time without humanity forcing them to adapt as fast as some of the other paranormal creatures—I wanted to explore how being trans would work in such a society. Janavi became her family’s ambassador to the human world because she had a change in experience that most merpeople don’t experience. By seeing the world as being perceived as male and then correcting the world’s understanding of who she is, it was a shift in perspective that their culture adapted into a role that requires people to be able to understand something other than their pod. I think this is a part of trans representation that isn’t always shown. In my own experience, the world changes how it responds to me depending on the perception of my gender.

What challenges did you face in bringing this story to life?

I wanted to be very conscientious when writing a trans character who is not human. So often trans people are othered, and it can be harmful representation. At the same time, we deserve to be the merpeople also. It was a fine balance between the two that I was conscious of during the entire writing process. It also is the sixth book in the series … there is a lot of backstory and a massive amount of characters. So, keeping track of all that (I have a story bible that helps) and making sure everything was properly included.

What fantasy tropes or elements will readers find in this story?

There is a chosen one trope, but not Janavi herself. Family loyalty. Also, it is a merperson story.

Do you have more books planned for the Ember Town series?

I do. Ember Town will be eight stories long. I initially started writing it with four books planned and the idea to continue the story indefinitely. However, when outlining, Janavi a natural ending to the series developed, and I started writing that into this book. It will be fun watching it play out over the next, and last, two books in the series.

I do admit there are some other side plots I want to write, including a horror-inspired one, so there may be at least one short story set in the same world at some point.

Describe your writing style in five words or less.

Outline, outline, outline, write, revise.

When did you first realize that you wanted to be a writer?

I was in third grade. I was already a prolific reader at that point. My autistic special interest has always been books, and finding out that I could write my own stories … I was hooked. I was the kid on the playground with a notebook and a pencil. I had my first short story published when I was in junior high and won a few reflection awards around that time. I continued on from there.

What is your writing Kryptonite?

Impostor syndrome. I think this is true for most writers, and honestly, I am a bit cautious of writers who don’t have it to some degree. However, being autistic with severe C-PTSD, I have a healthy dose of impostor syndrome in general. I wish I could say I have a way past it, but I don’t. I keep going despite it, and hope that my books find their way to the people who need them.

Who’s your favorite under-appreciated author?

Rivers Solomon. They wrote two of my favorite books: An Unkindness of Ghosts and Model Home. It isn’t that Rivers Solomon is unknown, but I do think they should be better known. They are the one author that I think everyone should read.

If you could have any superpower, what would it be and why?

I always joke that I already have the superpower of invisibility. I’m such an introvert that I can be in a room and people will not realize I am there. But I would really love having a photographic memory … maybe that isn’t quite a superpower, but it seems like one to me.

What new projects do you have in the works?

I have so many projects planned, but currently I am finishing up Building a New Hope. This is the third book in my Lunar Abyss sci-fi trilogy about Finch, who is a canary sent to the moon to risk their life for the ‘real’ astronauts. It is hopepunk that takes a look at the hate being thrown at people and how we will not only survive it, but maybe find some joy within the darkness.

Thanks for joining us!

MJ James

MJ James is an own-voice science-fiction and fantasy author for queer and neurodiverse readers. With themes of found family, aromantic and asexual representation, and a focus on belonging, MJ hopes their stories can provide companionship for their readers along with a sense of validation, understanding, and being seen.

Connect with MJ online at:
mj-james.com

or find them across social media as
MJ_James_Writes