Welcome, Jenaiya!

Jenaiya Delavega is the award-winning author of genre-bending feminist bloodbath THE REVERE TRILOGY. Her work has been recognized for its unique blend of western gothic, fantasy, and horror. SMOKE AND OTHER STORMS has been nominated for numerous awards and won the Reader’s Favorite silver medal for western fiction (2024). She lives with her cats in the desert and could say she makes all her own clothes but that would be a lie.

About SMOKE AND OTHER STORMS (THE REVERE TRILOGY #1)

After an accident blinds her sister, Adelaide “The Stranger” Revere seizes an opportunity to change the family’s status from railroad thieves to something more – a journey into the uncharted West Rim, a poisonous desert plagued by storms and hiding untapped riches. But when her grandmother Moira “The Raven” uncovers a bounty on their heads, they realize a deadly conspiracy is already in motion, and the greed of men knows no ends.

Interview with Jenaiya Delavega

Tell us about yourself – what is something readers would be surprised to find out? 

I earned brown belt in Taekwondo a few years ago and have sampled several other styles of martial arts. It has greatly influenced the way I write combat, and I’ll definitely train again someday.

What is it about the Weird West genre that draws you to it? What are your favorite aspects or examples of this often-underappreciated genre?

You can go as weird as you want: zombies and aliens and mothman. Or subtle like Adelaide and The Stranger, and both are equally memorable and unhinged in their own ways. I think a lot of the romanticism around the Wild West stems from the unknown aspects of new country. What’s really out there in all that open space? The possibilities of it being something amazing, or something horrifying we were never meant to disturb. I’m so drawn to those vibes.

What inspired you to write this story?

Aside from my love of all things old west and trains, I saw a huge underrepresentation of women in the western genre as a whole. I wanted so badly to read a western where the women were the outlaws –not the revenge seeking wives who needed the gunslingers to help them carry out their vengeance, or the love interest, or the prostitute with the heart of gold – so I wrote it.

As an introvert, I also noticed the lack of positive representation in fiction of introverted characteristics for years. So Adelaide in the Revere Trilogy is a super important character to me, and I wrote her with every ounce of intention I had that introverts and single women are not problems to be fixed. Her character development has absolutely nothing to do with these character traits. It’s simply who she is and her family never treats these traits as flaws. It was so empowering to write this.

If you were living in the Weird West, what kind of character would you be?

A chaotic neutral. Some kind of necromancer/treasure hunter with an unbelievably tragic backstory and one or two weird friends. Sometimes I’d help people if I felt like it, or now and then I’d rob them using booby traps, but most of the time I’d be too busy treasure hunting and decorating my desert hideout. I’d definitely have my own little undead army.

Are there any other writing projects you’re working on?

I’m currently writing a gothic fantasy about a cursed family, women with bone and necrotizing powers, a rotting city and a few demon-possessed paintings. I’ve also just started outlining a standalone horror, which I’ve never done so we’ll see what happens.

What are you reading right now?

I just finished all three novellas in the Sworn Soldier series by T. Kinfisher, absolute masterpieces. Now I’ve started Bat Eater and Other Names for Cora Zeng by Kylie Lee Baker, which I’m very excited about.

Favorite weird west movie/book/comic/etc. and why?

The Good, The Bad, The Weird (2008). (I do love Korean film and TV.) True to its name, it’s a weird and epic western meets eastern treasure hunt adventure. A little martial arts, a little train robbery, supernatural elements that feel authentic. The soundtrack was also AMAZING.

I also have to throw in the Red Dead Redemption franchise. While not completely weird west, the game makers threw in lots of weird little nuggets like bigfoot, aliens, “night folk” and ghosts that explorers of the world can find and I love that.

If you enjoyed this profile, sign up for Arcane Saloon, the Weird West Fiction newsletter, to receive future author spotlights and other related news!

Check out this #WeirdWest author profile at @WeirdWestFic!

Tweet