| Greetings!
Happy Birthday America!
In this context there are two possible meanings to that birthday wish. Of course, it is Independence Day in America today, a celebration of the country's birth. Also, Glory's missing sister is named America. There are multiple meanings to a lot of things in my novel GLORY.
I was recently asked why there are so many patriotic references in GLORY: the heroine's name, her sister's name, an intrepid demon-fighting Australian Shepherd named Hallelujah, the lyrics to "The Battle Hymn of the Republic," and a fearless Army National Guard helicopter pilot. The easy answer is that I was writing a patriotic novel named RED HOT LIBERTY when I conceived GLORY and was influenced by that creative effort.
However, there is far more to it than that. What is America's Independence Day celebrating? Freedom from tyranny; a fight that was fought with blood. Hmmm. Sounds like the plot of GLORY to me. Glory and her scrappy band of rebels fight the good fight against evil and are willing to die for the cause.
As Liberty True, my uber-patriotic character in RED HOT LIBERTY says to that novel's heroine, Molly, "You have to stand for something in life."
In the TWILIGHT series, readers are divided between "Team Edward" or "Team Jacob." They enthusiastically take up the cause of either the vampires or the werewolves. One morning I was thrilled when I checked my Facebook page and someone had happily posted, "Go Team Caretakers!" In GLORY, The Caretakers represent the forces of good in this world.
You have to stand for something in life.
Glory, glory, Hallelujah!
Devin | 
