AJ DeWall chats about Forever Man #mm #contemporary

Today we have A. J. DeWall in the hot seat, talking about her latest release, Forever Man. There's a $25 Amazon GC (tour-wide) up for grabs for one lucky participant. Read on to meet A.J., get a taste of the excerpt (a hot kiss!) and see how to enter the drawing. Enjoy!

~Mia

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Interview questions for A.J. DeWall...

Quick round:

Coffee, tea or…what’s your vice?

Tequila, and hot fudge sundaes.

Favorite Movie: “The Philadelphia Story” is my all-time favorite movie, but movies are my great love, and it would be impossible to come up with a top ten list.

Favorite Color: Is it weird to say Martha Stewart green? I’m a little obsessed with that color right now. (‘Right now’ as in the last six years.)

Favorite book/author: “A Prayer for Owen Meany” by John Irving.

How do you feel about bacon? Unfortunately, I had to break up with bacon. I no longer eat meat, and I miss bacon every day. I pine for bacon.

It's not as good, but maybe it will help the longing. 

The REAL questions…

Tell us a little about yourself.

I live in a quaint little village on the Hudson River, about 20 miles from Manhattan. I walk everywhere, carting my laptop with me. When I’m not writing novels or ghostwriting self-help books, I am usually hanging out with my nine-year-old son, whom I raise with three other people—my wife of 16 years, our son’s biological father, and his fiancé. It’s an unusual family, but it works for us. 

What’s under your bed?

Nothing sexy, unless you count those dusty old mix tapes given to me by former loves.

What comes first, plot or characters?

Characters. Always. I get a character first, learn about his or her life, and then figure out which part of their life story I want to tell.

Pantser, plotter, or hybrid? Tell us about your writing process.

I’m a pantser until I figure out my characters. Then, I’m more of a hybrid, outlining the next few chapters. I never know the exact ending until I’m done with the rough draft, though. I would be bored, otherwise.

Oddest thing on your desk?

A little troll doll that represents the annoying little voice in my head that tells me I shouldn’t bother trying. I like to knock him over, dunk him in a water glass, make him bow down to my son’s LEGO mini figures. Whatever it takes to shut him up.

What’s your most interesting writing quirk?

About writing process, I would say the fact that I write usually start my writing day at around 3:30am. Is that quirky or just plain scary?

What’s your favorite thing about the genre you write in?

I love writing GLBTQ love stories because we, as a community, don’t have enough stories with happy endings.

What is the hardest thing about being an author?

Getting the little troll to be quiet long enough to let me say what I want to say.

What’s the easiest thing about being an author?

Getting ideas! I have so many!

What do you wish someone had asked you for an interview question? Here’s your chance to get the soap box out!

I wish someone had asked me why I set the novel in Santa Fe. I lived there for half of my twenties, and fell in love with it. Santa Fe has a way of waking you up to desires and dreams you’ve pushed down, or put off. It’s a romantic city that seems out of time, as if anything could happen there. When I lived there, I knew many people who came there for a visit and never left. It’s a city where people make big changes, seemingly overnight, and that is what I wanted for Ren and Cole.

Tell us about your latest release!

Forever Man is a story about getting one last chance to act on your feelings, and maybe, just maybe, live the life you were supposed to live. In the novel, Ren and Cole are prep school friends who loved each other deeply but never told each other. Instead, they went on to live on separate continents with other lovers. When fate puts them in the same hotel in Santa Fe, they are both faced with the same choice—should they act on their feelings and give in to the chemistry between them, or stay friends and go back to the men they settled down with?

This story explores the question, “What if you had one more chance to get the love—and the life—you always wanted? Would you take it?”

Thank you so much for having me on your blog!

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BLURB for Forever Man...

A bond forged in Catholic school, an unspoken attraction that outlasts years of separation and other relationships.

Ren and Cole never acted on that thing that always bubbled beneath the surface of their friendship, not until a chance encounter in a Santa Fe bar and a song that would tip the scales forced them to confront their feelings. Will the influence of a music superstar, a New York socialite and a mystical property manager finally bring them together, or will a history of missed opportunities, their own fears and an impending wedding keep them apart? Can they just have one night, and then walk away?

Forever Man is a story of the consequences of the choices we make, and how the courage to change can last a lifetime.

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Excerpt from Forever Man...

 Suddenly Ren's mouth is on his and they're kissing. Oh God. This is everything. Cole’s whole body gives over to the kiss, lips warm, tongue skating across teeth, hands wrapped up in the hair at the base of Ren's neck.

         

Ren wraps both of his hands around Cole's neck, winds his fingers up into his curls and tugs. Cole hisses, loving the pain; Ren does it again. And again. His are lips strong and insistent and Cole knew it, he knew Ren would kiss him just exactly like this. Cole nips at Ren's bottom lip and then Ren's hands are on his hips and his mouth is at his neck and Cole can't help but moan into Ren's ear.

         

The song is like a spell, and Cole feels it coming to an end so he pulls Ren off of his neck. Ren looks confused, almost hurt, but then Cole takes Ren's face in his hands and gives him a soft, chaste kiss, the kind he should have given him that day by the chapel.

         

He wants to give him all of the missed kisses now, the sweet, innocent, hopeful kisses he should have given him in the hallways at Saint Benedict, in empty classrooms, under stairs. Cole kisses Ren's forehead, his cheeks. He nuzzles his nose and then runs his tongue over Ren's bottom lip like he should have done that day in Ren's bedroom, when Ren told him he was accepted to Pratt and promised to visit him every month in Boston. He kisses him deeply now, a bit desperate, like he should have done in the backseat of Ren's car every damn Saturday night for years, winding themselves up.

         

He knows he should kiss Ren like another missed kiss, like this is goodbye, but instead he gives him everything like he should have done all along; like he should have done every time this perfect man graced him with his presence.

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AUTHOR Bio and Links:

A professional writer for more than 20 years, A.J. DeWall began her career as a playwright. She is the ghostwriter behind dozens of nonfiction books, including several award-winning bestsellers. As a writer of fan fiction, her online titles have hundreds of thousands of reads. Forever Man is her first novel. She lives in New York with her wife and son.

Website: http://ajdewall.com/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/AJDeWall

Buy Link: http://store.interludepress.com/products/forever-man-by-a-j-dewall

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Contest Details!

The author is offering a randomly drawn $25 Amazon gift card. Follow the Rafflecopter instructions to enter. 

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