Jade Lee | It's All In The Accessories!

My mother always stressed accessories in dressing. Me, I wanted to be DOING something, not fussing with finding the perfect earrings (which always fell out) or the best necklace (which banged against things when I played). The worst, of course, was when she criticized my footwear. I was a sneaker girl. Actually, I didn’t mind nice shoes. A good pair of heels could give me a lift. But I HATED pantyhose. And since every good girl (in my mother’s mind) wore nylon stockings with her shoes, I became all about the sneakers. She allowed me to wear footies with athletic wear. (Remember footies? Cotton socks with little balls on the end or low socks that weren’t even seen beneath your Keds? Much better than pantyhose!)

Well, childhood habits (or traumas) shape the adult persona. I became one of those women who silently abhor her LACK of a shoe fetish. I never understood the desire to wear 5 inch platforms or those spike heels that left pock marks in the linoleum. Pedicures felt good, but why get the nail polish when no one ever sees it? In short—I wore athletic shoes. Good, closed toed, comfortable, arch-supported New Balance footwear.

And then Love Spell (Dorchester) asked me to write a novella about shoes that gave the unknowing wearer a magic power. Well….MAGIC POWERS I could understand! Oh wait, they warned me, I would have to WEAR these wonderful magic shoes (minus the magic) in public, too. My fellow anthology mates went on a festival of possibilities. Leather boots or delicately sculpted sandals? Iron toes or black leather? The possibilities were endless! But for me, the idea of spending an entire conference in spike heels sent me into a spasm. Until it occurred to me that SOME footwear is comfortable AND cool! And if I had a heroine, for example, who felt just like me—simple practical footwear required—then I could give those lovely Chinese Mary-Janes an awesome KUNG-FU POWER!!!! Even better, I could wear those shoes all day, every day and not fall on my face. Score!

So, if you like awesome kung-fu powers (even if it is shoe-inspired) then please check out our new anthology: These Boots Were Made For Stomping! My practical and sweet high school English teacher kicks gang butt in…you guessed it…”Kung-Fu Shoes!” And if you are one of the millions of women who understand the search for the perfect shoes, you can visit http://www.hiheelia.com/ where awesome boots and strappy sandals are available for your purchase! Seriously! (Not, alas, my cute little Mary-Janes.) My publisher has created the website to sell the shoes available in the book! How cool is that? (Though your magic power may vary.)

Enter my ONE DAY ONLY BLOG contest, TWO winners will win a copy of DRAGONBORN!

Jade Lee
www.jadeleeauthor.com/

Dragonborn, March 2008

The Tao of Sex, Blaze Jan 2008

TemptedTigress, June 2007