Welcome to the official website of Author J. Jermayne
Love changes everything...
Welcome to the official website of Author J. Jermayne
Love changes everything...
About Snapshots
LOVESTRUCK SPICY RECKLESS
Is love...wild, relentless, passionate, intimate?
Is love confusing, sexy, exciting?
Is love heartbreaking or inspiring?
In this truly one-of-a-kind novel, love is all of those things...and more.
Is love for the young or the old or everyone in between?
Love is for everyone...
and this love story
is different than any other love story you’ve ever read before.
Dante and Gabrielle at their start
Dante and Gabrielle are the main characters in the novel Snapshots, a love story: Take 2. He is an NFL player who is unpredictable, over-the-top, and keeps the story taking countless, unexpected twists and turns. Dante also takes Gabrielle on a rollercoaster ride, and he even takes you the reader through a whirlwind of emotions because you get so deeply involved in their love story, you live it.
Sugar and spice are all throughout this "can not put it down" novel.
Where is the sugar? Gabrielle is a sweet and innocent college student when she first meets Dante. And, even though Dante's personality is sometimes wild and out of control, at his core Dante is warm and loving in ways that melt your heart.
Where is the spice? Dante is a pro ball player so he’s had more interludes with more women than he will ever admit. Gabrielle is wildly in love with Dante and she’s creative—in more ways than one—and according to Dante she indulges him with experiences he’s never had before.
The first time they meet, there is a push and pull between them that almost foreshadows the relationship they will have even though neither of them realizes they are headed into a relationship.
You know their relationship is coming because the book opens up by telling you that Dante and Gabrielle have a love story. Then, the story flashes back to Gabrielle’s early life when she was growing up as a small town girl, and to Dante’s early days.
You will be glad you got the early glimpse of who they were ‘back in the day’ because once they meet each other and their story takes off, you have to brace yourself for some of the decisions they make.
They become enemies...or lovers...or both...
Dante has an outgoing and flirtatious nature so his first few interactions with Gabrielle don’t seem to mean much to him. But, the fact is: Gabrielle throws him off a few times and Dante is not used to that. Gabrielle has grabbed Dante's attention and without intending to, they end up in a relationship that continues to throw both of them for loops.
At times they are friends, at times they are lovers, at times they are enemies to lovers or lovers to enemies, and everything in between.
The complications come to their relationship because just like most people, Dante and Gabrielle’s relationship is centered on them, but it also involves everyone around them: their friends, their families, and all the situations from their past and their present that have a real impact on what they are doing and who they are becoming.
Dante and Gabrielle click, then clash, then slip into a relationship, and then slide in and out of each other’s lives. Dante is the constant pivot point, and the situations are sometimes more than intense.
You are inside their life and they are in yours
Once you start reading Snapshots, Dante and Gabrielle come off the pages and into your life.
Sometimes you love Dante but sometimes you are shaking your head. Sometimes you are hoping the best for Dante and Gabrielle and sometimes you wish that Gabrielle would just walk away.
It’s hard to manage how you feel about what they should do, but you will definitely be making decisions about them—page after page.
Snapshots is like reading a mystery that you want to solve even though you can't ever be sure what will happen next.
You may even feel like you're reading a psychological thriller because Dante keeps you thinking even beyond the last page.
Then there's the love and romance, the heart warming and the heartaches because Dante's actions along with Gabrielle’s reactions keep you emotional
—page after page.
At times you will laugh, you will definitely cry. At times you will be heated—in more ways than one—whether it’s from the spicy scenes or the choices either of them make.
There are life lessons that make you doubt Dante, analyze Gabrielle, and even question relationships in general but one thing is for sure...
You will love this love story.
***
FRESH LOVE and NOSTALGIC LOVE
If you are in your 20s or 30s Snapshots is a coming-of-age story, and if you are 40 or beyond, Snapshots takes you back to the nostalgia and the warmth of first love.
Dante and Gabrielle’s story is the first of its kind love story of an NFL player’s life off the field. Long before any sports love stories were being told, Jermayne wrote Snapshots, and after being sold out many, many years ago, Snapshots is available again. And, even though other sports love stories have been written, the story in Snapshots cannot be matched.
Be sure to get your copy of Snapshots and enjoy this rich African American literature that achieves the classical literary elements and style of storytelling reminiscent of Toni Morrison, Gloria Naylor, and Terry McMillan.
The Story Behind The Story
A Surprising Meeting...
The Journey From Then to Now...
A Surprising Meeting...
People often ask me two questions about Snapshots: what inspired me to write this book and what path led me to publishing it.
The answers to both questions pretty much connect to each other.
One of the driving forces in writing Snapshots is that I knew someone in real life who was a ‘Dante’ and I knew a 'Gabrielle.' I can’t say exactly how
People often ask me two questions about Snapshots: what inspired me to write this book and what path led me to publishing it.
The answers to both questions pretty much connect to each other.
One of the driving forces in writing Snapshots is that I knew someone in real life who was a ‘Dante’ and I knew a 'Gabrielle.' I can’t say exactly how I knew them, but I knew them, and the story of Dante and Gabrielle was living in my head—to say the least. Back then I had written a variety of short stories, but I had never written the story of Dante and Gabrielle down. What I mostly wrote was poems.
In a very interesting way (which is a story of its own) I met someone in the music industry and showed him my poems. I didn’t know how he could help me with my writing, but I figured he had to know something because he was a really big name.
When I went to go see him I took him my poems and true to his personality in music and in acting and in real life, he was point blank and told me that he couldn’t do anything with my poems. He did offer me a chance to write film because he was also crossing over into that world.
He began teaching me how to write a treatment and we talked about a few story ideas I had. One of them was about an NFL player and the drama of an on again off again relationship. He liked the idea and storyline because at the time there was no story in tv, movies, books, or anywhere out there about life behind the scenes in pro sports.
He said that was “the one” that stood out to him so he told me to move forward on that. Because he is known for being so straight to the point in movies, music, and real life, I knew when he said that story was “the one” he meant it. So, we moved ahead with the writing.
The Unexpected Turn...
The Journey From Then to Now...
A Surprising Meeting...
He taught me how to write for film so initially Snapshots was intended to be a movie and he could have definitely launched the script into a film but when we went our separate ways, I didn’t want my story to just fade.
I didn’t know what to do with the script, but I knew it was good because he would not have spent the time working on it w
He taught me how to write for film so initially Snapshots was intended to be a movie and he could have definitely launched the script into a film but when we went our separate ways, I didn’t want my story to just fade.
I didn’t know what to do with the script, but I knew it was good because he would not have spent the time working on it with me and demanding the perfection if he did not believe it was as good as he said it was. The problem was: without him, I had no idea how to navigate film—and definitely not at the level that he was at. But, I did know I had a good story, and I knew that if I could transform the script to a book people would feel like they were watching a movie because the plot was originally written for that purpose. I knew I would have to shift from all dialogue to more description, which is one difference between script and novel writing. But, more than anything else that I knew, I knew I wanted people to see the story or read the story—somehow.
On down the line, a couple of things led me into believing I could transform the film script into a book and then publish it on my own. Self-publishing was in its early stages and a number of authors were courageously putting their work out, and I was one of them. I published Snapshots and the response was tremendous.
The Journey From Then to Now...
The Journey From Then to Now...
The Journey From Then to Now...
People read Snapshots and ate the book up. They said they loved the story, and it sold out fast. I didn’t think that “I had another book in me” because I had poured so much into Snapshots plus it seemed like the ‘Dante’ I knew was settling down and there wasn’t much left to write about. But, to my surprise, I still had more in me as far a
People read Snapshots and ate the book up. They said they loved the story, and it sold out fast. I didn’t think that “I had another book in me” because I had poured so much into Snapshots plus it seemed like the ‘Dante’ I knew was settling down and there wasn’t much left to write about. But, to my surprise, I still had more in me as far as writing books, and the road led me to other projects that I took on in media, pro sports, and academics.
Several months ago, someone sent me an email—just out of nowhere—about a different book of mine that they had read years ago. They said they couldn’t get over the story that I told in that book. They also said that throughout the years they reread my book, countless times. They asked for the titles of my other books and if I was working on another book at the time. I was not. I thought that was an interesting interaction and I was going to let it go because all of my previous books had sold out, and I left it at that.
Then, I had another encounter with someone who insisted that I put my books back in print. They also insisted I start from the start—my first book—which was Snapshots. The new platforms (social media and digital) have been in place, but I never intended to give that a try. Now, I have decided to take this new journey and I am excited about it.
Snapshots has life lessons, real life situations you can relate to, and it is a book that you will take to heart. I hope you will read it, love it, and spread the word that Snapshots is a great read.
Appreciatively,
Jermayne
About the Author
The Books and Their Venues
J. Jermayne is the author of seven published books that include Snapshots as both her most recent publication as well as her first published book. Snapshots, a love story: Take 2 is actually a revision of Jermayne's first published novel which was the first of its kind, exploring life off the field in the world of professional sports from the vantage point of a significant other.
The success of the original version of Snapshots was widespread, as it landed Jermayne as a facilitator for an NFL team's Rookie Seminar/Life Skills development with an option for the Rookie Symposium and additional seminars.
Jermayne structured learning experiences for NFL rookies who would face challenges that were synonymous with the issues that were true to their own actual experiences including adjusting to entering the League, adapting to life away from friends and families, pressures associated with the game itself as well as personal and relationship dynamics that all effect a player's personal growth and development.
As a credit to how realistic and relatable Snapshots was, the players made comments on the segments they were given to problem solve like "that's real" and they requested copies for training camp. From that time on, Jermayne continued to write books with characters and situations that were vivid and alive.
At least two more of her books were NFL themed (Cleaning Out My Closet and Game Face). These books continued to resonate with active players, retired players, significant others, families, and executives who credited how true to life-in-the-game the situations in Jermayne’s books were.
NFL Seminar, Courses, Colleges, Book Clubs, and more
As a result of Jermayne's vivid, vibrant, and relatable storytelling, Jermayne's books have been featured in other settings that include book clubs that have invited Jermayne in to talk with them about her books as well as educators who have requested her books for literature courses.
The rich and classical elements of Jermayne's writing are borne from her formal graduate school, collegiate, and high school studies of literature. As well, Jermayne has taught literature so her interactions with groups who invite her to speak, lecture, or run seminars is structured, robust, and engaging.
Literature courses using Jermayne's books provide rich texts that embody the classical structure and techniques of strong storytelling with plots that have multiple layers of meaning and multidimensional characters. These qualities have made Jermayne's books a great fit for colleges, book clubs, literature circles, and organizations, including sports teams.
The Range of Writing
Jermayne has personally had a long history of verbal storytelling, writing poetry and short stories which, according to her mother, began in kindergarten.
One of Jermayne’s strongest suits is writing engaging, entertaining, and educational stories with characters who can be analyzed on the psychodynamics of their realistic depictions. Further enhancing the reading experience is the space Jermayne’s stories create for discussing the practical life lessons that can be gleaned.
***
In addition to her fictional novels, Jermayne has a nonfiction text It's Nice To Be Nice that is categorized as self-development. Life experiences guided Jermayne into a place of deep introspection and reflection which led to her writing one of the books she is most proud of: the chief reason being that It's Nice To Be Nice is about far more than just being nice or even being kind.
It's Nice To Be Nice offers readers an opportunity to walk themselves through practical steps for living from the better self.
The Distinguishing Trait
The distinguishing and unifying characteristic of Jermayne's works is that they come from a place of depth and clarity. Jermayne's writing is realistic and gives readers a sense that they are stepping into a story or situation that they can work through in order to arrive at a better space within themselves.
Jermayne finds deep meaning in that because beyond providing an entertaining or informative reading experience, Jermayne’s ultimate goal is to be part of people's journey to grow themselves.
Reading any book by Jermayne warmly welcomes all readers to live, love, laugh, and learn: four things that Jermayne values.