This month, Woolaston Entertainment is celebrating two themes: Male Character Month, and Pride Month. I’ve decided to begin with the later. This week’s blog post, is all about Jo Fuentes of the Valentine and Valentine Apart series.

Jo is the first LGBTQ character to be featured in a published Woolaston Entertainment book. She’s also W.E.’s first LGBTQ character to receive a stand-alone book, Jo Fuentes: The Black Queen. When I created Jo, I was thinking of a sort of alter-ego for Valentine.  The two of them do share a few characteristics: they’re tall, mouthy, and they don’t take any crap. Jo was never intended to be a soldier of any kind, but I had a dream about the scene in the second chapter of The Black Queen, where Jo takes out eight men in under sixty seconds. I thought, it would be cool to have a female character experience a James Bond moment, but I needed a reason. I decided, making her a Marine, would be the best reason.

Jo is a great character, because she’s a little complicated. She has a frightening set of skills, and she has no idea where she learned them. She’s gay, and proud of it. She values the friendships of the people who matter the most to her, and she’ll do anything for them.  She easily makes the transition from Marine to Hitwoman when she begins working for Kelly McCormick. And, she has a wicked sense of humor.

I’m honoring Jo, by making Jo Fuentes: The Black Queen, available for FREE, June 4-June 6. If you’ve never read it, this is a great opportunity to become acquainted with Jo, and the rest of the Valentine Apart/Valentine series.

Jo Fuentes on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Jo-Fuentes-Black-Queen-Valentine-ebook/dp/B078TNHBRF/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1528138515&sr=8-1&keywords=jo+fuentes+the+black+queen

Next week: the boys of Valentine and Valentine Apart