Posts Tagged ‘writer’

All That Glitters

Posted: March 1, 2017 in Blog Tour Hosting, guest post, Recommended Reading
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~ All That Glitters by Liza Treviño ~
Book Tour – 1st to 10th March
 




Book Details:


Title: All That Glitters – A
Tale of Sex, Drugs and Hollywood Dreams
Author: Liza Treviño
Genre: Women’s Contemporary Fiction
Publisher: Koehler Books 
Published Date: March 1, 2017
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1633933083
ISBN-13: 978-1633933088



Book Links:






Synopsis:
Alexandria Moreno—clever, sexy, ambitious and, at times, self-destructive. She blazes a path from Texas to Los Angeles at the dawn of the 1980s to make her dreams of becoming an A-list Hollywood film director come true. She and her best friend arrive in Los Angeles with little more than hope and the determination to make it big. Alex, a beauty as dark and mysterious as her scarred heart, stands at the bottom of the Hollywood mountain looking up, fighting for her chance to climb to the top. Will her quest to live fast and take no prisoners on her way to success destroy her in the end?


All That Glitters is a women’s fiction Jackie Collins-type saga that introduces a strong, driven Latina heroine at the center of a rags-to-riches story spanning a decade of action. Along the way, Alexandria walks the fine line separating ambition and self-destruction, and discovers that some sacrifices will cost her everything.


What early readers are saying:


“Treviño tells her story with wit, intelligence, and an undercurrent of sadness at the plight women face to make a name for themselves as human beings instead of strictly as women. Treviño may have cloaked her ideas in entertaining vignettes and snappy dialogue, but underneath is a bite that stays with you.”
— Jonathan Marcantoni, author and publisher of La Casita Grande Press.

“Liza has a way of taking you with her as she tells this very compelling story. She draws readers in with her as she describes scenes and characters with colorful detail and vivid imagination. This story is a testament to it’s title: it really glitters!”
—Reesha Goral, author, The Servant Boy

“With distant echoes of Jacqueline Susann’s Valley of the Dolls in the background, Alexandria Moreno, the protagonist of All that Glitters, chases after the allure of Hollywood, all the time substituting pills, booze and sex for genuine happiness. It is only after she reaches success that she has an awakening leading her to realize the emptiness of her aspiration, and finally accepting true love. Kudos to Liza Treviño for giving us this unique image of the New Latina! I urge reading All that Glitters. You won’t regret it.”

—Graciela Limón, author


Read an Excerpt:


Los Angeles
Oscar Night, 1990

When did things start going wrong?
Alexandria Moreno gulped another swig of champagne from the bottle. She picked at its broken gold foil. It was the same stuff she used to buy back in the days when spending more than ten dollars on bubbly was an extravagance. Now she sat in the best limo money could buy, inching along the craggy hillside road waiting for her turn to put in an appearance at the first of many scheduled post-Oscar parties. She was obligated to dole out heartfelt hugs and kisses to any of the beautiful people who might want one. Tonight, everyone was going to want a piece of her. She was the girl of the hour.
Until recently, Moreno had been an unknown writer-producer. She rocked Hollywood, winning Academy Awards for Best Director and Original Screenplay for the lushly violent, low-budget film, Win or Lose. Moreno, widely considered a dark horse contestant in the Oscar race, was the first Hispanic woman to be nominated, and win.
Two golden statues for writing and directing lay on the limo’s floor and the vehicle glided to the top of Hollywood’s heights. Beyond the winding canyon road, the Los Angeles electrified grid shimmered like Moreno’s own personal cauldron of gold. She understood that more than just a movie had won tonight.
She had won.
So why doesn’t it feel better?
Why don’t I feel better?
Despite everything she’d done to reach this moment of glory, Alex understood that none of it mattered. Not one bit. No matter what happened to her, she was still alone and drinking the same convenience-store champagne.
“Want some of this blow, babe?” Nick sniffed and dropped his head back with a slight shake, giving the chemicals a little jumpstart in the brain he liked to say.
“No thanks,” she said, “I don’t want to mix tonight.” Alex turned her attention from the scrubby hillside to handsome Nick Sirianni sitting across from her, casually relaxed in his Armani tuxedo. Though he favored stiff Wall Street suits, Nick was always casually relaxed due to the fact that he was worth millions from a Hollywood Midas touch.
Alex heard Leonard Cohen’s gravel-rubbed, breathless voice floating faintly through the air, crooning his patented melancholy love proclamations, and she couldn’t help but let her eyes wander along Nick’s impeccably tailored suit. Her hands absently grazed the familiar bluish-purple marks on her wrists currently hidden under make-up.
Nick’s thin lips curled into a slow, understanding grin. “Fine, but I have some X for later, and I don’t care what you’ve taken already,” he said in a tone Alex had learned not to question. “I’ve got plans for you, babe.”
“I guess it’s gonna be a long night.”
“The longest ever.”
Alex could tell he had taken off. She absently twirled a lock of her black, shoulder-length hair.
“Hey,” Nick nudged her leg with his polished leather dress shoe, “let me see.”
“Not right now.”
“I’m not asking, Alley Cat. Let me see. And do it right.”
Alex locked eyes with him, but she relented.
She found the fold of her straight wraparound skirt of crepe and beading that draped to the floor. She peeled it back and uncrossed her legs beneath the gown, giving Nick a peek-a-boo of her
narrow ankle and high-heeled foot. She loosened her knees, proving to Nick she’d followed his instructions.
Nick looked her over and loosened his collar.
“Good girl,” Nick said and shifted toward her, the leather seat creaking beneath him. He knelt between her legs and softly traced the length of her pale grey stocking from her shoe, along her leg, up to the matching garter, and over her supple brown thigh exposed between the garter and its straps. Nick kissed her just above where the stockings ended. He breathed in deeply and peered up to her.
“I gotta have a taste, baby,” he said and dipped his handsome face between her thighs.
Alex sighed and sank back into her seat.
How did things get so out of control? Isn’t tonight supposed to be everything I’ve worked for? Everything I’ve sacrificed for? Or, what I’ve sacrificed everyone for?
Alex knew she had purposely cut off anyone who had the misfortune of ever giving a damn about her. And there were such people.
It certainly wasn’t Nick. She’d made her deal with this particular devil nearly a year ago. Things between them were comfortably tawdry. Nick owned her. She knew it. He knew it. They had an understanding.
A flicker nudged her: so many things that could have been. She took another swig of champagne, letting the alcohol’s fizz and burn push everything back into the darkness.
Alex registered Nick’s velvet tongue expertly stroking her crevices, and she couldn’t help but give him all the access he wanted. She felt him smile when she dropped her head back and settled deeper into the limo’s bench. The car halted forward and the lazy, swaying sax turned up the tension in Cohen’s sonic plea for love.
Alex peered beyond the cracked sunroof, searching the starless LA sky for some answers. A corner of the tinted sunroof caught her faint reflection and she saw a vacant-eyed, thirty two-year-old wasted stranger. She’d never known herself less than at this moment. Her passion for work was burned out and, even tonight, she couldn’t muster excitement. Now, everything was just a game requiring too much effort.
She shut her eyes tight and sucked in air sharply, breathing in the car’s mixture of broken-in leather and artificial lemon scents. She clasped at Nick’s broad shoulder, wringing the expensive jacket sleeve as if it were nothing more than a cheap cocktail napkin. After a moment, she relaxed.
Nick brushed a sweet kiss on her inner thigh before he returned the thin black crepe material of her skirt to its full length. He slid back to his seat across from her and smoothed his hair back.
“Damn, you taste good, honey.” He wiped his mouth with the back of his hand.
“We’re next in line, ma’am,” the chauffeur’s voice crackled through the intercom. The limo moved into place with a definite stop.
Nick grinned. “It’s show time, Alley Cat.”
The cool night air took Alex by surprise as she waded into the sea of people and flashing cameras. She staggered, unsure she could move.
“One foot in front of the other,” Nick said in his soft voice through her hair. “I’ll get you a drink once we get inside.”
Alex smiled serenely and nodded. She focused on the live band somewhere in the distance belting out a Sinatra standard. Her eyes found the majestic Griffith Observatory looming in the distance, hovering above the white party tents.
Inside, the camera flashes kept coming.
“And here we are,” Nick offered as he swiped a couple of champagne flutes from a roving waiter’s tray. “This should get ya right, babe.”
Alex took the glass automatically. Another bulb flashed near her and she saw blue sprinkles. She regained focus quickly, but then her stomach dropped. Across the room was the last person she wanted to see.

◊◊◊

Jamie Douglas stood out in any crowd. Angular looks punctuated by oceanic blue eyes, a naturally lean athleticism, and down-to-earth boyishness had made him a reigning movie star around the world for almost twenty years. And right now, Alex saw Jamie’s eyes find hers through the crowd. When they caught each other, a flash sparked between them like one of those popping camera bulbs. Jamie’s surprised look gave way to a lopsided grin; it was a look so familiar to her.
Alex registered Nick snake his arm around her thin waist and she broke her gaze from Jamie.
“Okay, Alley Cat, time for our victory lap.”
“Perfect timing,” she said.
Timing—everything always came down to timing. It seemed to her that her timing had always been off. Not crazy off, just that extra millisecond that pushed everything either too early or too late. And now, she understood that it was too late.
Suddenly, she couldn’t bear to go through with the whole charade of tonight. Maybe, she couldn’t even bear to go through with the whole charade of her life any longer. Just leave, a soft voice whispered inside her head. There’s nothing written you have to stick around. It’s practically programmed into your DNA that you’ll be checking out of this world early.
All at once, Alex understood that simple fact. She, Alex Moreno, would leave Los Angeles tonight as anonymously as she had arrived nearly a decade earlier. She knew that wasn’t an entirely accurate account of how she’d started.
Now I’m alone, and that’s just how I knew things would always turn out.

Author Bio:

Liza Treviño hails from Texas, spending many of her formative years on the I-35 corridor of San Antonio, Austin and Dallas.  In pursuit of adventure and a Ph.D., Liza moved to Los Angeles where she compiled a collection of short-term, low-level Hollywood jobs like script girl, producer assistant and production assistant.  Her time as a Hollywood Jane-of-all-trades gave her an insider’s view to a world most only see from the outside, providing the inspiration for creating a new breed of Latina heroine.






Catch Up with Liza Treviño on her Website

Author Interview – L W Montgomery (Promise of Departure Novel)

Posted: April 4, 2013 in book reviews
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Debra: Hello wonderful readers, so pleased you joined me today!  This is going to be a great interview with L W Montgomery and I am so excited to finally meet him after talking on email for the past few weeks.  He is just a really neat guy and I think you will enjoy this edition of Talk Radio with NO Radio!

So, let me tell you a bit about Landon today, oops, he has L W on everything so I don’t know if I was supposed to use his first name, oh well, its out there now!  Landon, Landon, Landon!  Yep, there it is folks, I am going to be in a silly mood today.  Anyway, about this author…where to start, let me look at my notes, ah, this is cool, he was a co-founder of Gearbox Software.  Now, I remember having to take away my son’s Brother’s in Arms game and later his Halo game when he would spend too much time gaming and not do his homework and I am thrilled to know who to thank for that now!  <laughs>

Aside from his career with Gearbox, Landon has been an avid reader and dreamt of being an author most of his life and isn’t that a common thread for all of us writers?  I know we have all had to focus on the realities of needing to pay the bills and set aside our dreams and it’s a wonderful thing when you finally get to write and then publish your first book or whatever your dream is.  Landon really pulled that off with a bang with his break out novel Promise of Departure.  Oh, I heard a motorcycle pulling up, let me go peek out the window and see if that’s him…no, must be one of my husband’s friends, he’s in the barn working on his bike today and whoever just came up stopped there.  So, need to kill a few more minutes then while we wait…I hope you all saw the book review I posted yesterday for Landon’s new book and be sure to check it out on Amazon too, there are a lot of other reviews there as well, he has almost a 5 score on there right now, way to go!

Wait a minute, my husband’s friends all ride Harleys and the bike that pulled up was not a Harley…let’s go mobile and go see who is in the barn, shall we?

<slips shoes on, grabs mobile to keep you readers involved and heads out the double doors…it’s only about 50 feet from the studio and we arrive at the doorway to the barn>

Voices in the barn: …all new clutch gears, primary chain, the works, Man, you rode with it like that?, Yea, we’re lucky I know…

Debra:  Hi there! <startles both guys on bended knees engrossed in the open primary case on the side of the ancient Ironhead>

Bob:  Hey babe, you missing something?LWM_photo

Landon: <stands quickly, spins and extends a hand, a greasy hand>  Hi, I’m L W Montgomery, please to meet you and sorry, I couldn’t help but stop and see what was happening in here, call it compulsive but I love to work on bikes especially, am I late now? <smiles sheepishly>

Bob: Oh bro, you are in big trouble!  <snickers>

Debra: <hands Landon a grease rag instead of shaking his hand> Oh stop Bob!  He’s not in trouble and yes, you are late now but that’s okay because we are already live, say hello Landon!

Landon: Hello Landon! <speaks into imaginary microphone and smiles sheepishly at Debra, offers nearly clean hand again>

Debra: <offers back the southern belle hand in lieu of shake, Landon smiles> Perfect, I love a good sport! <sticks tongue out at husband, still on bended knee and wrenching away inside the primary case>

Landon: Great to meet you and you Bob, nice bike and I wish I could stay and play while you work on it but I promised to do this interview so….

Bob: <looks up, extends a greasy hand and Landon hands him the grease rag but they shake grease and all, solid and confident like men that share a secret knowledge of great power in two-wheeled machines> Great to meet you too, maybe when you get done you can stay a while before you have to leave?  I’ll need a hand getting the new front tire back on if you wouldn’t mind?

Landon: Oh, I’d love to but I don’t want to intrude-

Debra: Hey, what about me?  I was going to help you?  <in her best child like voice and with bottom lip poking out>

Bob: My snot nosed booger brat, God I love this woman! <is walking them back to the entrance of the barn, grinning ear to ear and wiping grease from his hands, turns to Landon> She loves helping me work on this thing, when we break down I get pissed and she gets all goofy because we get to work on it again, crazy woman!  Come on back after your done if you want, I’ll be here for awhile putting this back together!  <gives Debra a quick kiss> Don’t worry honey, we’ll take it out later and by our luck you’ll be in here helping me fix something else tomorrow!

Debra: So true!  That’s half the fun!  So Landon, will join me in the studio and let’s do this interview? The batteries on my imaginary cordless mike are dying.  <they are walking towards the studio doors now, Bob is back to work on his beloved Harley>

Landon: <laughs, cuts a sideways glance at Debra> Sounds good, can we go back after though, I didn’t get to see what you have going on under that carport there yet?

Debra: Sure that would be fun actually, I haven’t had much time lately for my baby…that’s my project, Michelle-

Landon: 82 or 83 IROC Z28?! <typical car enthusiast sound of excitement in his voice>

Debra: Yes, uh, 83 with Cross Fire Injection actually, good eye!

Landon: My first hot-rod was a Z28, I wanted a ’69 SS in the worst possible way, but ‘settled’ for a new-model Z28 when I was 18…I’ve had three F-Bodies all told over the years.  Not just a motorcycle guy here, bet that surprised you.

Debra: Yes, actually, it’s usually one or the other…I like you!  I love my Camaros, this is my fourth…she’s special and haunted, I am writing a short story about it so won’t get into all that just now, plus this is your day anyway.  To be honest, I wasn’t sure about you at first…BMW motorcycles?  Really?  Okay, there’s the Harley girl coming out-

Landon: Oh now, two wheels is what matters isn’t it?  Besides, I’m not prejudice because you don’t like BMW motorcycles! <points a finger and smiles big> I kind of have a ‘tearing stuff down and putting it back together’ fetish – cars, bikes, kids toys – it’s all kind of fascinating and pleasing to me to work with my hands in ways not associated with a keyboard/mouse/touchscreen, etc.  Did you say haunted?

Debra: I did but you have to wait for the story to come out, it would take me too long to tell you.  I am that way about cars and bikes, something about the magic of an engine, the machine, all of the systems producing so much power and movement, don’t much care about tearing anything else apart or fixing it.  Won’t you sit down?  Can I get you something to drink before we get started, I did grab some Shiners for you? <reaches into a beer cooler and produces two Shiner beer bottles and smiles wickedly while walking back to sitting area>

Landon: How thoughtful, thank you, I’d love one!  Your stores have these here?

Debra: No, but you can get anything on the internet, no big deal, thought it would be nice to try one myself on this occasion.

Landon: Very nice Debra, thank you. <offers up the bottle for a clink with Debra’s>

Debra:  Hey, my pleasure and now I have had a new experience, this tastes great!  I am going to set this down and get this interview started, okay?

Landon:  Great!  You know, I tend to be a bit shy but you guys really made me feel so comfortable and thank you for that!

Debra:  Oh good, now drink up and let’s see what I can get you to say after a couple of those! <laughs>

Landon:  Oh I see how it is!  Now, I do have to travel back today you know….

Debra:  Just kidding, I promise!  Seriously, now, interview, our readers are waiting, I will focus now, sorry.  Um, so, I finished the book and wrote a review that posted yesterday so it’s all very fresh in my mind right now.  My first question for you today is how long did it take for you to write it, take us from the idea to the moment you published and share any quirks about it all that might be funny or interesting to our readers today?

Landon:  From the very first spark to the absolute final edit, it was right at two and a half years. I write in a slightly different fashion than most, I think…I will ‘index card’ a story for up to a year or more, accumulating details and thoughts, prose and lines that sometimes make their way into the book verbatim (those middle of the night lines that rip you from the sheets in a panic to jot down before they’re gone), things to research, and so on. Eventually I get to a point where I have what feels like enough to begin writing, and it’s only then that I pack the bike and check out for a while, usually a week or two someplace remote. For example, Promise of Departure was mostly written over the course of several weeks (two at a time, about a year apart) in a small cabin down south in the amazing Texan hill country. I’m able to get out of my own skull in a place like that, where there’s next to nothing to distract you…no phone, no internet, no news…just you and your ghosts. I’d usually get up late in the morning, have a quick bite, have a nice drink or three, and get into the writing with just two promises made to myself: aim for 10 pages/5000 words each day, and don’t edit along the way! I am definitely a fan of the ‘verbal vomit’ approach, with full, in-depth editing to come later, only after the writing is finished. I can get a bit too calculated or structured if I’m editing on the fly…but perhaps more importantly, what I consider to be my best writing comes when I’m not constantly looking in the rear-view mirrors, when I’m focused on the flow and letting things pour out. This works for me because I trust in my OCD-driven editing phase. The last day of writing Promise of Departure, for instance, was the day after Thanksgiving in 2011. With the exception of just a handful of holidays and weekends, I re-wrote/culled/edited almost every single day for the next nine months straight.

Debra:  Wow, that is an interesting process.  Very personal, thank you for sharing that with us.  Talking with so many authors and asking that question, I have learned that everyone has their own unique way of approaching their art.  I think too, because it is an art and we are artists, the process tends to be somewhat eccentric and a reflection of the creative monster inside, just my opinion.  I’m curious, Landon, are there any parts of being an author that you dislike?

Landon:  This is a great question and one that’s simultaneously simple and nearly impossible to answer. For me, and I imagine this might sound odd to those who don’t write, but I sort of dislike the entire process. Everything about it can make you hate or question why you’re even writing in the first place. Let me give you an analogy that’s worked for me the last little bit: we don’t necessarily enjoy a healing wound, or an itch that’s difficult to reach, but when we finally get a chance to scratch at it a little, even though we know we shouldn’t, it’s the best feeling in the world. But that’s the tricky part of the thing – we don’t go around hoping for more things to scratch at (well, most people don’t).  😉

Debra:  Great answer!  That makes total sense too, you are so right, the process is frustrating and can be brutal on the brain, the emotions, the confidence, etc., it certainly is for me too.  What do you think makes a great story?

Landon:  For me, a great story forces me to think or feel or connect in ways I’m not always comfortable with – in ways that make me reexamine my own life or how I think about things…often, these are the very things I’ve taken for granted my entire life. This seems like an increasing rarity for me, and when I do discover something that I’m mentally carrying around and chewing over all day (or all night, as is more often the case), I tend to fall head over heels for it. There’s this special thing certain writers can do where the reader feels not only like they’ve just heard a real echo of something they’ve always (perhaps secretly) thought or felt, but that the writer has said this revelatory thing using the exact same words they’d use themselves, as if they’ve heard it finally summed up perfectly for the very first time…where they feel for the first (and maybe only) time that someone else has really felt precisely the same way about something. Great comedians like Carlin, or songwriters like Dylan, have the ability to do this seemingly effortlessly, like they don’t even realize they’re performing magic as they yank the rabbit out of the hat.

Debra:  Nice!  Which kind of reader do you think will enjoy your book?

Landon:  Promise of Departure seems to be resonating with folks who’ve found themselves a little disenfranchised with the life they thought they always wanted, that the dream they’d sketched out for themselves wasn’t all that satisfying when they finally got hold of it. I think people who like emotionally challenging media will enjoy the book. It doesn’t hurt if you’re a motorcycle fan, either.

Debra:  I initially fought over who would read this book with my partner and won, of course, because it had a motorcycle in it and well, big interest for me but ultimately that fact was just a perk in a story line that drew me in and piqued my interest on several levels.  Certainly, a very wide variety of readers will enjoy this book very much!  Why did you choose especially this title? Was it your first choice?

Landon:  I was reading Jack London’s ‘The Sea Wolf’ when I just started to take notes for the book many years ago, and I fell in love with a certain passage the moment I read it: “The imprisonment of Wolf Larsen had happened most opportunely, for what must have been the Indian summer of this high latitude was gone, and drizzling stormy weather had set in. We were very comfortable, and the inadequate shears, with the foremast suspended from them, gave a businesslike air to the schooner and a promise of departure.” That phrase, promise of departure, so perfectly captured what I was writing about and feeling that there was never a second title. I was hooked, or stuck, depending on your perspective.

Debra:  Oh very interesting and what a great classic!  I read a book review on amazon once where the reviewer described the book as a page-turner and had clearly enjoyed the book, and yet only gave it three stars out of five. Have you had any similar experiences with reviews yourself and if so did you take pleasure in the positive comments or frustration from the rating?

Landon:  It has indeed happened to me. I was awfully confused by this at first, and a bit dismayed to be honest – the praise simply did not match the star-rating, but as more reviews began showing up on Amazon or  Goodreads I had a change of heart – I began to appreciate ANY review whatsoever. That anyone would take time to share their thoughts with the world began to mean quite a bit to me. The whole star-rating thing is pretty interesting really, and it’s amazing just how dramatically it’s changed our consuming habits. A good friend of mine sent me a link to an excellent essay about this very subject a while ago (search for ‘The Age of Excellence’ by @jason at Launch) – a great read for writers and readers.

Debra:  By the way, I noticed you have quite a few reviews already and a very nice score on Amazon, for a new author that is outstanding!  I will look for that essay, sounds like something that should be in our content on our authorshelpingauthors wordpress blog.  Do you already know what you are going to work on next?

Landon:  Unfortunately, yes and no. I think most writers tend to develop more ideas for stories than they have time for…usually (and ironically), this happens in the period of time you’re writing or editing something else, when you have the LEAST amount of time for another “Big Thing” to even think about. When I finished Promise of Departure, I had a list of 18 separate stories that all vied for the Next Thing, ranging from simple little single-line descriptions to fleshed-out pages of notes per concept. I think I’ve changed my mind about what I’m working on now/next about three times in the past six months, so I’m either working very hard on several things or nothing in particular!

Debra:  Oh that was an eloquent and brilliant way for you to divulge nothing! <laughs and offers up the beer bottle for another click>

Landon:  There’s another Big Thing on the way – ‘a novel devoted to motorsport as religion’ is how I’ve been describing it. It’s a very important story to me (and the damn thing just about killed me to not work on it while finishing Promise of Departure – stuff was just tumbling out every single day, which is exactly what you WANT, just not at that particular moment, you know?). But that’s going to be a several-year thing and I need to do a little sketching between Big Things to remain mostly sane. I guess it’s sort of like scribbling in the corner of your blank grocery list first just to make sure the pen still works. I’m working on two short stories at the moment and both are claiming “me first!” daily, though I think ‘Piccolo Peche’ will win this back-seat bickering bout – it’s the diary of a ten-year-old girl who accidently invents a device that stops the world from killing itself…and that’s about all I’m gonna’ say about it for now.  😉

Debra:  Oh alright, I won’t dig anymore then, can you blame me?  I was hoping for a sequel…I can be happy with just more to read from you though, loved your writing style.  Is there a TV series or movie which you think would appeal to a similar audience as your book?

Landon:  Thank you, you are too kind.  <mock bows in jest of the humbled to a queen, they both laugh, pause to enjoy a couple more swigs from the Shiner bottles> Seriously though, I’ve always had a short list of flicks or television shows that feel like reliable control groups to me – in other words, if you like these, you’re probably going to like the book (and equally, I think, if you absolutely do NOT like these, you probably won’t like the book). In my case, I think anyone who’s watched (and liked) ‘Long Way ‘Round’ and ‘Long Way Down’ with Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman would love the book for the motorcycle aspect alone. The book is about much more than just bikes and riding in an unknown land, of course – it is very much a love story at its core – and I think folks who like their emotionally-charged media a little on the heavy side, folks who like John Hillcoat’s amazing adaptation of McCarthy’s ‘The Road’ or Sean Penn’s ‘Into the Wild’ will also really enjoy the book. Joe Carnahan’s ‘The Grey’ is another example, and probably the most aligned in themes/emotional content/etc. – amazing, literary film that was marketed all wrong, I believe. There are multiple stories being told in the movie (and in the original Ian Mackenzie Jeffers’ title ‘Ghost Walker’ upon which the film is based) that most reviewers (and viewers) seemed to gloss right over or outright miss. I’ve watched that movie half a dozen times in the past year and still pick up subtle little clues that make me reexamine what I think of the film. I really do believe it might be the deepest/best film of the last ten years that far too few moviegoers have seen. That’s good story, back to your original question. That movie is still with me, nearly a year after the first viewing. When it continues to live off the page, off the screen – that’s good story.

Debra:  If your book was made into a movie and you were asked for input into the soundtrack, are there any songs that would work especially well for any particular scenes?

Landon:  This too is a fantastic question. I think most writers would be fibbing if they didn’t admit to envisioning their work on the silver screen at least a few times while they work. I’m no different, honestly, and wrote many scenes in the book with very specific music in mind (Sigur Rós, the amazing Icelandic band, would score the entire flick with their interoperated views of Haitian culture/music). Anyone optioning movie rights for Promise of Departure would very likely roll their eyes at my little conditions, but this would certainly be one of them.

Debra: Never heard of them but I will be signing into my Bing account after you go, rack up some more credits for free stuff while checking them out.  Landon, it has been amazing talking to you today, learning more about the artist behind the book and all of that.  We are out of time today and must let our readers get back to whatever they were doing when they were gracious enough to take time out to join us today.  I have something to do to wrap up here, will you be leaving right away or will you stay a bit?

Landon:  I’d love to stay a bit actually, my day is just getting started good since I am more of a night owl and its only 3 in the afternoon, I think I’ll go back to the barn and keep your husband company, give him a hand with that tire, if you really wouldn’t mind?

Debra:  Of course, please make yourself comfortable and stay as long as you like, I know he’ll enjoy your company!  My son will be home soon, oh, by the way, thanks for the great games that kept me so frustrated chasing him around to do his homework all these years, good job, Landon! <is poking fun and chuckling all the while>  We’re going to throw some burgers on the grill when he gets here, I hope you will join us.

Landon:  You are most welcome and thanks for helping me pay the bills! <laughs> We’ll see how late it gets, I have a long ride back to consider, ok? A special thank you to all of you reading this, I appreciate your support.  <shakes hands, smiling and exits with a skip in his step, heading off to pick up a wrench….>

Debra:  Wow, such an eloquent speaker, so personable, great guy…so that’s it for today and I just want to encourage everyone to check out this book, I know you’ll love it, here are some links for you.  Gotta go!  <stuffs a few bottles of Shiner into a cooler and heads out the door>

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16077360-promise-of-departure

http://www.amazon.com/Promise-of-Departure-ebook/dp/B009F162XE/ref=tmm_kin_title_0

Author Interview – Joe Prentis

Posted: March 27, 2013 in Author Interviews
Tags: , , , , ,
2

Debra: Hello hello and good afternoon!  Welcome to this edition of Talk Radio with NO Radio and let me start by saying, SORRY it’s been so long between posts.  Work and launching the AHA! site has kept me too busy, but I am catching up and want to share the upcoming schedule – I will have some great book reviews for you over the next week, starting with Joe Prentis’ Civil War novel, Redemption.  Joe will be joining me in the studio today so we’ll talk more about that when he arrives.  I also have L W Montgomery and his novel Promise of Departure about ‘a broken mechanic, facing divorce, packs his motorcycle and heads to Haiti to repair his own crumbling life’ and that looks like an interesting read for this book lover.  Also, Lilith Darville’s erotic romance novel Scorpio Awakens is coming up, can’t wait to read that one too and it is already getting rave reviews.

So, today, I am interviewing Joe Prentis and I am looking forward to meeting him in person.  His profile is on his website at http://www.joeprentiswebsite.com with a list of all the wonderful titles he’s written, available in the US and the UK.  We’ve chatted a couple of times while syncing up to do this interview and he seems like a really down to earth guy.  He has lived and worked on a farm and lived and worked in big cities both, I get the impression he prefers the country life personally, as do I.  Oh, I hear someone coming up the road now, let me take a peek out the window…yep, that must be Joe.  <watches a pick up truck come up the drive, park and the door opens…he steps out and looks all around, breathes deep the cold and clean mountain air, then catches me standing at the open door to the studio>

Joe: Hi there!  You caught me, it is so beautiful up here and COLD! 

Debra: Hi yourself, yes we’ve been having some crazy weather this season, its a bit colder than it should be for this time of year.  Come on in where its warm!joeprentis

Joe: Alright, thank you, thank you, I’m Joe Prentiss,  <hand shake> its nice to meet you Mrs. Hartmann.

Debra: You too and just call me Debra or Deb, let’s keep it casual now! 

Joe: Well, I appreciate your invitation to do this interview and can’t wait to see how you like my book. <Debra is leading the way to the sitting area, they settle into comfortable chairs>

Debra: So glad you accepted and could make it today.  Can I offer you anything to drink before we get started?

Joe: Well, by that accent little lady, I am bettin’ you have a some good iced tea on hand?

Debra: Yes, we southern girls are taught to make tea properly before we can tie our own laces you know?!  Let me get us both a glass, you make yourself comfortable and I’ll be right back.

Joe: Thank you, I believe I’ll walk around and stretch my legs a bit then.  Interesting studio you have here, love the decorations.  A little cowboy stuff, nice civil war sword collection, music posters, such a variety, and all this biker stuff.  Am I at the right place?

Debra: <hollers from the kitchen at the back> Yes, I work here so I like to surround myself with a variety of the things I like and have experienced, good writing atmosphere and all that.  Surely you can tell by that desk over there that I spend a LOT of time here. <desk in front of big picture window with amazing few, barely visible over the monitors and stacks of books and messy junk>

Joe: Its nice to have a space at home, but separate so you can concentrate and focus I bet.

Debra: Here ya go, yes, it is, allows me to work even when my son is home, as long as I lock that door and he can’t come in here and “mom” me to tears.  <laughs>

Joe: Thank you! <takes tea, sits and sips> Mmmm, that is good tea, thank you.

Debra: My pleasure.  So shall we get started then?

Joe: Lead the way, you have my undivided attention!

Debra: Oh, let me turn that music off, sorry-

Joe: Leave it, sounds good actually, is that a radio station or a cd?

Debra: Oh, its just an internet station that I like, that’s an 80’s pop playlist.

Joe: Nice, I was listening to Lady GaGa on the way here-

Debra: No you weren’t!  Really?

Joe: Yea, I like a wide variety of music and will listen to anything!

Debra: Well, let’s talk about your wide variety of writing shall we?  You write more than one genre and I noticed that you are working on multiple books at the same time.  Not sure I could pull that off!

Joe: Ya know, I have just had so many experiences to draw from and really just feel privileged to entertain and bring pleasure into the lives of the people I touch through writing.  There are no limits to what I might write about!  I write both Westerns and Suspense because I like to read both. It is rather easy for me to switch from one genre to the other because I write about life as I understand it. It really doesn’t matter if my character is a cowhand on a ranch in a bygone era, or if he is a diplomat in Washington D.C. I do a lot of research in an effort to flesh out my characters and the area in which the story occurs. I don’t attempt to write anything that I haven’t experienced to some degree. I have worked for the federal government, toured the west, lived in large cities, as well as on a farm. This widely diverse experience has enabled me to slip into the skin of various characters.

Debra: That’s fantastic and you are blessed to be able to do that.  Tell me, why did you start writing?

Joe: I have always been a voracious reader. I read everything but porn, and my taste ranges from mysteries to suspense/thrillers, to westerns and historical novels. I started writing because there were so many books that fired my imagination. I believe that writers are born rather than made. That is not to say that any writer is born knowing everything about his/her craft. There is always room for improvement. My first attempts at writing were at a very early age when I tried to improve the ending of the books I read.  

Debra: Interesting!  So, who are your favorite authors, who inspired you?

Joe: James A. Michener, John Jakes, and LaVyrle Spencer. In case you are wondering how a romance writer got into the mix, I am thoroughly convinced that unless you have some romance in a novel, then you don’t really have a book. Even the most hardened soldier, criminal, or adventurer, has something he loves.

Debra: Well said!  What is your latest book called and could you tell us in 20 words or less what it is about?

Joe: My latest book is REDEMPTION, and it is the prequel of the Renegade series. It involves the lives of two Civil War soldiers who find themselves in a difficult and dangerous situation at the end of the war. They think they have become battle hardened, but discover that the spark of decency is still very much alive. <counts off the words as he speaks on his fingers, then stops counting but continues> That was more than 20 words, no way to make it any shorter sorry.

Debra: <laughing> Good one, maybe I should say 4o words from now on-

Joe: It would have been close!

Debra: Oh my, your funny!  Now you said it was the prequel of the Renegade series, would you expand on that a bit and do you have plans for how long the series will go on?

Joe: Sure, well, Redemption is the first book in the series. The following books take place in the Colorado Territory in the years following the end of the Civil War. There are many characters in the series and they each have a story to tell. I love writing about these characters. The series will go on as long as there are readers who are interested.

Debra: Oh good, so if I love it then I will have tons of reading material to look forward to, I like that!

Joe: You will love it, I wrote it so I know you will! <laughs>

Debra: Oh, we’ll see then!  I do enjoy good series books though, when they are good, you don’t want them to end and not be able to read about the characters ongoing lives anymore.  What inspired you to write this series?

Joe: I live in an area near one of the major battles in the Civil War. I did some extensive research about the families that endured the war, collecting family stories of the events, and also read extensively in the Records of the Union Army.

Debra: More of that voracious reader in you comes out!  Sounds like the research was as interesting as I’m sure the book will be.  What is it you love most about writing?

Joe: I am and have always been, a creative person. I dabbled in several different things such as sculpture and oil painting, but I was always drawn back to writing. I no longer try to sculpt or paint. I use whatever time I have for writing. There is nothing more exciting than sitting down in front of my keyboard and making a character or situation come to life. Did I tell you that I love writing?

Debra: You must love writing, Joe, so many books on your website!  <laughs>  Do you ever feel yourself becoming quite emotional when writing a particularly intense scene and is there a specific passage in particular where this was the case?

Joe: I don’t think I am stretching things too much when I say that any good passage in a book is the results of sailing along the tops of an emotional high. The story must have slow passages where the characters (and the reader) can draw a breath. Someone once said that plot can best be understood by picturing a bloodhound on the trail of someone in the forest. The hound runs all out for short distances, then stops and circles around possible places of concealment. Whenever the hound is at rest, the reader should experience a feeling that something yet unseen is happening just out of sight. Danger, romance, or indecision can do a number on me. I wouldn’t want to spoil REDEMPTION for any reader, but I became very emotional as I penned the last passage in this novel. I hate books with cardboard characters who feel nothing. You won’t find that in my books.

Debra: Well, now I really can’t wait to start reading it!  I was planning on doing that tomorrow morning but may just have to order take out and start tonight!  Joe, if you could choose someone famous to record your book in audiobook format, who would you choose as the voice and why?

Joe: I don’t even have to think about that one. Morgan Freeman would win hands down. There is something about his voice that makes you believe whatever he says, and that is one of the major requirements for fiction. You must make the reader suspend disbelief.

Debra: Oh I love him, he is such a great actor and yes, his voice does have that affect on you now that you said that!  Do you have any marketing tips for other authors?

Joe: If you can imagine the city of New York breaking loose and floating out to sea, you have an idea of what exists in the world of book marketing. Floating on our sea of literature is an unimaginable pile of debris. Throw your book on top of the flotsam and see how quickly it will be noticed. Putting a book in the marketplace without any effort to market it and you aren’t likely to generate any sales. The short answer to marketing is ‘whatever works.’ The new writer must realize that marketing is an ever-shifting quagmire. The things that work today, might not work tomorrow. The only way to sell, is to try everything and try to figure out what you did that generated the sales. When I published Abraham’s Bones as an eBook, it quickly shot to the top of the suspense list in Europe. It stayed in the top 100 for over nine weeks and I sold many thousands of copies. I received countless emails from writers who wanted to know what caused the rapid increase in sales. I had to tell them the truth: I honestly didn’t know. So I would advise any author to spend as much time marketing as their schedule allows and try everything that has even a remote possibility of success.  

Debra: Thank you, love that analogy, so true!  One more question before we wrap up then…this is one of my favorite questions, here goes.  If this was your last book and your last day on earth, what would be your last words?

Joe: I have some strict instruction concerning my last wishes. I want someone to put a placard in my hands in my casket with the cover of my last book and the address on the Internet where it can be purchased.

Debra:  Spoken like a dedicated author! <laughs>  That has to be the best answer to that question so far!  I love it!  Thanks so much for joining me today Joe, it’s been a real pleasure and I hope you’ll stop back by anytime.

Joe: Well thank you and I will!  Hope you enjoy the book, can’t wait to read your review.

Debra: Thank you to everyone that stopped by for the show today.  Here’s some links to help you find Joe’s website, books, and so on.  He has a great blog site, be sure and check that out and tell him who sent ya!  Until next time….

Website: http://www.joeprentiswebsite.com
Blog: http://www.prentisatpickwick.blogspot.com
Author’s Den: http://www.authorsden.com/joeprentis

BONUS!  Here’s some more interview questions and answers from Joe:

What do you think makes your genre special?

ANSWER: Our society is becoming too complex. I like writing books where the individual is able to accomplish something without having boots on the ground or the 7th fleet available for backup. You find that in the average Western or historical novel. While the Wild West was a long time ago, readers still identify with the situations and the characters. We are regimented, supervised, and observed to a degree where people resent the interference in their lives. People long for a time when they actually had control of their destiny. That is what Western books are all about.

What do you think makes a great story?

ANSWER: Oh, that is an easy one. Books are about the characters more than they are about plots and literary situations. Create a real character or two, place them in an understandable situation, and the book will write itself. I like rugged men who know who they are and where they are going. I can’t stand wimpy women who fold when the going gets rough. Give me a gutsy woman who can stand by her man, but can defend the house if he happens to be gone. One strong man with convictions, a gutsy woman, and a difficult situation—what else do you need to create a book that readers want to read?

Which kind of reader do you think will enjoy your book?

ANSWER: My book is an old-fashioned Western. People who have read and enjoyed John Jakes will find it pleasant going.

Do you already know what you are going to work on next?

ANSWER: I have another book in the planning stage in The Renegade series, and another in my series about politics and terror in the Middle East.

If you were to write a novel outside your usual genre, which genre would you like to experiment with and why?

ANSWER: I write both Westerns and Suspense because I like to read both. It is rather easy for me to switch from one genre to the other because I write about life as I understand it. It really doesn’t matter if my character is a cowhand on a ranch in a bygone era, or if he is a diplomat in Washington D.C. I do a lot of research in an effort to flesh out my characters and the area in which the story occurs. I don’t attempt to write anything that I haven’t experienced to some degree. I have worked for the federal government, toured the west, lived in large cities, as well as on a farm. This widely diverse experience has enabled me to slip into the skin of various characters.

When you first get the idea for a new story, do you find that the finished product tends to differ quite significantly from your original idea, or does the original idea remain more or less intact?

ANSWER: I research the subject rather thoroughly, but don’t cling religiously to any plotting ideas. Just as there are twist and turns in real life, the same thing happens in each of my books. An author must never forget that a novel is intended to be a reflection of the real world.

Have you ever had an idea which was inspired by a real life incident, but which you ultimately decided not to include in your story because readers would think it was too farfetched?

ANSWER: Two of my novels were inspired by real incidents that happened in my area. They are suspense novels, one of them dealing with a rather gruesome murder, and the other with abduction. The investigation uncovered some incidents that were over the top and I had to tone them down somewhat in the story. Trying to fit real incidents into a novel can give you one of those ‘you can’t make this stuff up’ kinds of situation.

Have you ever written a supporting character who took on a life of their own or turned out to be far more popular than expected and if so do you have plans to feature them as the lead character in a story of their own?

ANSWER: When I wrote INNOCENT and GONE IN A MINUTE, I created a young woman who was just out of high school and joined the sheriff’s department. Her purpose in the book was to be a ‘Watson’ to Sheriff Barrett’s ‘Sherlock Holmes.’ But she suddenly took on a life of her own as she interacted with the other characters. When I sent the first draft of her appearance in the book to friend and fellow writer Milton Burton, he immediately emailed back and said: “Damn! I love that spunky little girl.” I knew from his reaction that I was on the right track. In the next book in that series, she will take on a bigger part.

When deciding on your book title what influences you most; potential sales or artistic integrity?

ANSWER: It is very difficult for me to know where my titles actually come from. I sometimes have a working title when I start, by to date, the working title has never survived to the end. The title always pops into my head as I start to define what I am trying to say to the reader. I have seen book titles that I suspect have turned readers off and were probably pulled from someone’s wastebasket. A title should reflect what a book is about.

Do you foresee more and more authors making a living from their writing?

ANSWER: Just a few years ago, there were only two groups of writers: Those who sold very few books and made next to nothing, and those successful writers who sold millions of copies. The popularity of eBooks has made it possible for a new writer to make a decent amount of money for his/her efforts. As eBook readers are improved, I believe that they will command a larger amount of  the total sales. The eBook market is now more than 40% of the novels sold. I think this will continue.

Do you have a favorite review or has anyone expressed a particularly nice compliment about your writing which stands out as your most memorable piece of praise?

ANSWER: I received one review where the reader said. “This story made me feel like I was in the woods with the characters.” That was very short, but the kind of thing I was trying to achieve.

I read a book review on amazon once where the reviewer described the book as a page-turner and had clearly enjoyed the book, and yet only gave it three stars out of five. Have you had any similar experiences with reviews yourself and if so did you take pleasure in the positive comments or frustration from the unduly ungenerous rating?

ANSWER: The strangest review I have received was one in which I received a one-star review from one reviewer, and then, later in the day, the same reviewer gave me a five star review for the same book. I have often wondered what happened between early morning and later in the day. I was relieved that she removed the bad review and left the one with five-stars.

Have you tried experimenting with different prices for your book(s) and if so what pricing strategy worked best for you?

ANSWER: Most writers believe that pricing the first book in a series low and the other higher is the best way to attract sales. For eBooks, pricing the first book at $0.99 and the others at $2.99 seems to work best.

Can you remember the moment when you logged into your author account and discovered you had made your first sale?

ANSWER: My first sale was a heady experience for me. It was for a short piece to Reader’s Digest. I felt as if I was floating. This sale was followed very quickly by a sale to another major magazine. Then I experienced a long period in which I sold nothing. I soon learned that sales were an up and down experience.

What other book would you regard it the biggest compliment to have your own work compared to and why?

ANSWER: Abraham’s Bones has been compared to Dan Brown’s work. You can’t get much better than that.

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