Blog Archives
Subversive Hero
The Ballad of Clay Moore follows two people who investigate the mysterious appearance of a military grade plane near their land and find that certain people are ready to kill to keep it a secret. What was the inspiration for the setup to your story?
Every story needs a driving force, and I wanted to establish that early. In Chapter One, Clay is walking his dog on a quiet night when a mysterious plane lands nearby. His tranquil world is shattered, and Clay spends the rest of the book running and fighting and trying to get back to that peaceful scene.
Clayton Moore is an intriguing and well developed character. What were some driving ideals behind your character’s development?
I really enjoyed creating Clay Moore. This good-ol’-boy in over his head. I started playing around with his voice one day and kept throwing trouble at him to see how he’d respond.
Clay was a unique challenge for me because he comes from a world I’m not familiar with. I grew up in Ohio. I wrote this book in Malaysia. I’ve never been a rancher or a Texan or any of that, so it really took me outside my comfort zone. Along the way, Clay became this kind of subversive hero. He defies a lot of the typical action tropes, and I think that makes him really human.
Also his voice is just fire. I can’t wait to see who plays him in the movie 🙂
What were some themes that were important for you to explore in this book?
One of the main themes of this story is power. Who has it? What does it look like? What do they do with it? Clay and his friends go up against some nasty folks with outsized means. It seems like they’re overmatched, but through the course of the story they discover their own power to fight back in surprising and entertaining ways.
When and where will your book be available?
The Ballad of Clay Moore is live now on Amazon.com. It is available in ebook and paperback: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BFXCYHM3
Author Links: GoodReads | Twitter | Facebook | Website
It started like any other night: walking his dog along the creek, having a smoke beneath the stars. Things were peaceful and Clay Moore was happy. Then this plane came down and ruined everything.
Now Clay’s on the run from a madman that wants him dead. He’s got a secret in his pocket and an army on his tail. What’s a good ol’ boy to do?
With his wife and bloodhound by his side, Clay must survive a white-knuckle gauntlet from the wilds of Wyoming to the peak of human power. The Ballad of Clay Moore is an action-packed page-turner about a cowboy caught up in a dangerous game.
The Ballad of Clay Moore
Clayton Moore lives with his wife Ashley and their bloodhound Baxter on a plot of land in Wyoming. Clay, who used to be a cowboy before he sold his ranch to settle here, is walking his dog one night, when a plane makes an emergency landing in a field near their house. His wife, an ex-soldier, is very interested in the military-grade plane and talks Clay into getting inside. There they find an unconscious pilot and technology that certain people are ready to kill to keep.
The Ballad of Clay Moore by Eric S. Hoffman is a riveting action-adventure novel that would make a perfect action movie. I was ready for a methodical story, but I was pleasantly surprised to find a fast moving plot with lots of activity that kept me engaged and constantly flipping pages. But that’s not to say there’s no time for character development. There is down time for the characters to slow down and catch a breath, but it never lasts, because they have to keep moving, they have to keep running, and keep fighting.
Younger readers might get a feeling that this was written by an older man out of touch with the current trends, but anyone familiar with those trends will definitely notice that most of the things Clay is confused by, like internet slang and certain video game titles, are real and accurate and that juxtaposition plays well in the story and adds unique depth to the character.
I really enjoyed the fantastic plot, although a bit unbelievable, once I set that aside I had a great time. Especially towards the end as the story comes to a gripping conclusion, and by then readers will be fully immersed in the story, the detailed world, and the compelling characters. The short chapters were perfect for my on-the-go lifestyle as it made it easy to read in short bursts. I recommend The Ballad of Clay Moore for its creative descriptions and relentlessly entertaining story.
LITERARY TITAN 