A
while ago I saw a book on Amazon that grabbed my eye. I mean seriously, when
you see a book with the title “Slay
me,” said the dragon, how can you not be intrigued, right? So I
grabbed it, read it, laughed, shuddered, and was thoroughly entertained. Not a
bad thing considering I’d never read Stephen del Mar’s work before. I knew he
was personable on twitter, we’d exchanged courtesies with each other often and
that was nice. It was especially nice when he told me there were more books in
his Slay me world—which definitely
intrigued me considering his world building was curious.
So
when I found out that Mr. del Mar was doing a book tour I jumped at the chance
to be on it…I love bringing new authors and books to your attention…but
absolutely love doing it with books I’ve already read. Think of it as a bonus
for me.
So
please welcome Stephen to my blog today. :)
Thanks, I’m very excited
to be here. This is my first blog tour. Basic stuff about me: I’m a 54 year old
gay man living in the Tampa Bay area of Florida. I have a background in media
production and attended seminary for a while.
I’ve just finished and
released “Hunter Moon & the Red Wolf,” which is the last book in “The Live
Oak Tales.” This series is a fun and, at times, a quirky take on contemporary/paranormal
fantasy. We have witches, faeries and a number of shifter folk all trying to do
the right thing and live together. All of this is set in the Bennett Bay area
on the Gulf Coast of Florida. A fun little place I’ve made up. I wanted a place
where I could condense all of Florida into one county with a tourist town and
backwater villages. I’ve been very influenced by the southern literary
traditions and setting is always one of my main characters. A strong sense of
place is a must for southern fiction, as is a bit of spirit, in whatever form
that may take.
What
are your thoughts on literacy criticism, specifically with your books?
I take it seriously. If
someone has taken the time to buy one of my books and leave feedback, the least
I can do is take their views into considerations. The only ones I ignore are
the obvious trolls on Goodreads, especially the one who obviously didn’t read
the story. One reviewer pointed out a word I was using way too often in
dialogue, it slipped by me, my beta readers and my editor. And I noticed I was
using it in the book I was working on at the time. Yeah, I really appreciated
that note. I should have sent her a box of candy.
I understand that my
stories aren’t for everyone, no book is, and I take that into account. Overall
I really appreciate feedback. (Don’t be shy about saying hi! We writers love to
hear from our readers.) Writing is communication and communication is a give
and take thing. I think it’s exciting we now live in an age when I can finish a
book and click on a link at the end and send the writer a little note and they
answer back. I think I would have wet myself if I could have done that as a
kid. Imagine getting an email back from JRR Tolkien or Arthur C. Clarke?
Now
as I already stated, Slay me really
grabbed me with its title and I had to read it. What’s the genius behind how
you title your books?
Don’t know it’s one of
those mysteries of writing things. I usually have a title before I begin. It’s
some kind of thesis statement for me. “Slay
me,” said the dragon was this line I had in
my head. What if a dragon asked to be slain? Why would it ask that? How could
it ask that? And the short story that launched my paranormal series was born.
“Dark Love” is a metaphor for gay love, back when it had to be hidden. For too
much of history, gay people had to find their love in darkness. They often
didn’t have love, just quick sex in dark places. It’s a story about love coming
into the light.
There
are lots of new authors in the M/M genre. What new ones have grabbed your
interest?
Well, new as in new to
me, I just started reading Angel Martinez’s works. Very good. I need to read
some more of Bellora Quinn’s stuff. I’ve beta read part of a story of hers and
really liked it. I need to download some of her published work. I recently read
Brandon Shire’s “Summer Symphony” and really enjoyed it. I need to read more of
his work. A very strong writer. I find the men in his books very believable.
What
part of this whole writing gig drives you batty?
Probably what everyone
says, finding the time to do it and keeping focused when I do have the time. I
have bouncy brain syndrome. I can lose myself on social media or researching
something and then I look up and hours have past. Sigh. I need a keep sometimes.
I
love that! Bouncy Brain Syndrome it is. :) Last question then we’ll get down to
the *clears throat* serious book business…name your four most important food
groups.
Fried,
curried, BBQ, and roasted.
Book
Names: The Live Oak Series: Dark Love; The Bear, the Witch, and the Web;
and Hunter Moon and the Red Wolf
Series: The Live Oak
Should be read in
order
Release
Date:
Book 1: Spring 2015, Books 2 & 3: May, 2015
Blurb:
The Live Oak
Tales is a paranormal/contemporary fantasy series set in the wider Stories from
Bennett Bay collection by Stephen del Mar. The series consists of one short
story (“Slay me,” said the dragon.), which serves as a standalone prequel and
three novels, Dark Love, The Bear, the Witch and the Web, and Hunter Moon and
the Red Wolf.
“Slay me,” said the dragon. is a
tongue-in-cheek look at a romantic encounter between a dragon and a slayer. It
sets up the mythology of dragon shifters that runs through the rest of the
series.
Dark Love, a metaphor for
gay love, takes us from the ordinary world of the Bennett Bay, a Gulf-side
tourist town in Florida, to the tiny, backwater village of Live Oak. Dieter
Reinhold, the proprietor of a trendy café in Bennett Bay’s Spanish Quarter
travels back to Live Oak to deal with the death of his great uncle, the man
that raised him as a father. While there, he learns there are more interesting
creatures in the woods than he ever imagined. He discovers that magic, witches,
and undying love are real.
In The Bear, the Witch and the Web, Innes Callahan
and the circle of witches we met in Dark Love are facing a number of crises.
The greatest of which is that the faeries are missing. In fact, all the
enchantment seems to be gone from the Jumble, the wild woods adjacent to the
farm. They need to find the faeries and discover who the new Witch of the Wood
will be.
The final book in the series, Hunter
Moon and the Red Wolf, finds the Circle still in disarray as Janos Pac
tries to come into his own as the new Witch of the Woods. This is complicated
by a plot by the dragons and wolves returning to Florida after nearly a hundred
years, but are they really wolves?
These books are
on the lighter side of the paranormal spectrum with a fair bit of humor.
However, they do touch on deeper issues. Dark Love explores loss, grief, and
what it means to hide one’s love. The stories also explore what it means to
make hard choices about our path in life; and, an overarching theme is the
changing nature of family as we move through life. How we move from our family
of birth to the family we create with friends and lovers.
Pages
or Words:
“Slay me,” said
the dragon: 45 pages
Dark Love: 398 pages
The Bear, the
Witch, & the Web: 153 pages
Hunter Moon &
Red Wolf: 249 pages
Categories: Contemporary,
Gay Fiction, M/M Romance, Paranormal, Urban Fantasy. (Book two also includes an
older main character.)
Excerpt:
Excerpt from Dark
Love: Book 1 in The Live Oak Tales
Setup: Dieter is
alone at the family’s old farmhouse after the death of his uncle. His ex-lover
and still good friend Innes comes over to comfort him. Innes finds the
mysterious silver box Dieter found out in the barn, which seems to have human
ash in it. Innes warns him that it might be dangerous. Innes is a witch and
Dieter thinks magic is bull. Innes calls in his mentor, Flora May Crawford, to
help him convince Dieter there is danger afoot. It doesn’t work. Later, Innes
calls back with another warning for Dieter.
It doesn’t make him think Innes is any less crazy.
***
Of course that
was the moment my phone made the little nose-twitch tinkle-tinkle. I sighed, go with the flow and remember you love him.
I picked up the
phone. “Hello, Innes.”
“Didn’t you get
my text?” He sounded flustered.
“No. I haven’t
looked at my phone. I’ve had other things on my mind.”
“Oh. Right. Well,
what are you doing?”
“Sitting naked in
the kitchen having soup and a sandwich.”
“Why?”
“Because I was
hungry. What do you want?”
He didn’t say
anything for a moment. I heard the creak of a screen door and the chirping of
frogs. He must have moved outside onto Flora May’s front porch. “Look,” he
said, “Flora May just got back from the faeries.” He paused like he expected me
to comment. I had nothing.
“She’s not
telling me a lot. Said they’re pretty agitated about the whole thing.”
Again the pause.
Again I was silent; although I was worrying my grip on the phone would reach
its crush point.
“Dieter, you
gotta promise me to take this seriously.”
Actually, I didn’t have to promise him anything.
“Dieter?”
“Yes?”
I heard him
swallow. “Tonight is a full moon.”
“So? It happens
every twenty-eight days from what I understand.”
“Fuck.” He was
agitated. “Listen, whatever you do, don’t jack-off in that box under the full
moon.”
My mind kicked
into neutral and spun its gears as it tried to make sense of the string of words
it just received. Because they didn’t make any sense and they kept coming.
He continued. “I
mean it. Whatever you do, do not mix your semen with that ash in the full
moonlight.”
Some emergency
back-up system took over. My thumb slid over my phone and ended the call. I
stood up, opened the fridge and pulled a beer out. I twisted the top off and
dropped it on the table. I pushed my way through the swinging door into the
living room. As I fell back onto the couch, I tried to imagine a world where
the idea of masturbating into a box of human ash existed, let alone the need to
warn someone not to do that. Ohhh, I’m
gonna cum, make sure the drapes are pulled and the lids are on all the urns,
‘cause we don’t want our spunk and ash and moonlight to mix! ‘Cause that will
start the zombie apocalypse or something.
You can find The Live Oak series here:
Learn all about Stephen del Mar:
Stephen del Mar
is a fresh voice in Southern Gay Fiction. His Bennett Bay collection of books
and stories explore life in that unique corner of the American South known as
Florida. He also writes fantasy and science-fiction. Del Mar lives in the Tampa
Bay region of Florida and enjoys Key Lime Pie and mango margaritas, but not at
the same time.
Find Stephen here:
Tour Stops
1-Jun
2-Jun
3-Jun
4-Jun
5-Jun
Time
to play with Stephen’s Rafflecopter…
Thank
you Pride Promotions for making my day :)
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