The Birth of Yinyin

“Finally a story portraying the mind of a female fighter,” one of my readers said.

Writing an entire book in first person can be a bit dangerous. We are always one step from jarring, and often too close to mixing your own voice and the character’s. Writing Yinyin was a blast. She was born in the sacred mountains of Wudang, and expected to be a symbols of balance between yin, the soft energy of the universe, and yang, its aggressive counterpart. But balanced she was not. Yinyin is a straight talker and even straighter puncher, with no time for BS and absolute contempt for the modern lifestyle of people who rely too much on technology or who won’t give her the respect she deserves as a fighter. She’s confident, often mean, and driven as f*c k.

To build her, I took inspiration on a number of my former martial arts female students and training partners. I interviewed champions, legends among women who dare to dream of earning a position in the male dominated world of combat sports. In the adults, teens and hall of fame levels.

One of my favorite moments in those interviews was when one of them told me about the worst thing a man could do to her was assuming just because she was smaller and lighter, they should take it easy on her. “When they do that,” she said, “I go even harder, so they learn to respect the belt I carry around my waist.”

In one year, you will get to know her better. In the meantime, I’ll keep dropping glimpses of her, right here.

THE GIRL FROM WUDANG

Launches in the Fall, 2023.