Author Interview and Giveaway with Dianne Hartsock

Welcome to the Party Pavilion where Dianne Hartsock is making a special stop on her Virtual Book Tour. Dianne will be awarding a $10 All Romance E-Books gift card to a randomly drawn commenter during the tour, so either ask her a question or leave a comment to be entered. Enjoy the following interview with Dianne:

Tell us something about yourself-- Anything that you think your readers would like to know?

I'm a floral designer for a locally owned gift shop in the town I live in. Besides having a wonderful time creating lovely arrangements and making people happy, I have the pleasure of people watching. We have such an eclectic group of customers! Not only do they give me inspiration for my characters, they've also set up some almost unbelievable scenes for me to use.

Why do you write?

I can't help smiling at this question. I write because there's nothing I enjoy doing more! I love creating worlds and meeting new characters. I usually have a vague idea for a story and where I'd like the characters to end up, but it's always a new and exciting journey for me as, hopefully, it is for my readers.

What are your ambitions for your writing career?

I hope that I become a better story teller with each book I write. I've been writing mostly short stories (under 20k) but I'm going to try to expand into the novella range with my next endeavors. I'm also going to try my hand at longer fantasy stories. The two I've written have been fun and I think I can take the ideas and turn them into novels.

Do you have any authors that inspired you to become a writer?

It was Ray Bradbury who did it for me. I started reading his stories in my early teens. He blew me away! His descriptions are so unique and involved. He drew me into worlds I'd never dreamed of and made them real for me. I decided then that I wanted to write just like him. I'm not there! But he inspired me to try and to keep at it.

Are you reading any books at this moment?

Omorphi by Cody Kennedy
Odd Thomas-Apocalypse by Dean Koontz
Retribution by Laura Harner

What attracted you to writing?

Once upon a time when I was in first grade, I wrote my first story. I remember it had a giraffe in it and we went to visit him at the zoo. My teacher pinned it to the board for everyone to read and I thought, I like that! I liked writing a story and having people read it. I still do! I enjoy the whole process, dreaming up an idea, working out the plot, fleshing out the characters. I especially like working with an editor to fine tune the story. Also, seeing the finished book cover is a treat.

Tell us what inspired you to write The Dark Bokor?

One of my publishers, Breathless Press, put out a call for zombie stories for their Halloween anthology. I didn't give it much thought at first. I'm not a huge fan of the zombies that can't be killed and go around eating people. But I've always been intrigued by the hoodoo culture down in Louisiana, particularly in New Orleans. This was my chance to write my own story on hoodoo magic and the zombies they create, but add the romance that I love to have in my stories.

What was the hardest part of writing The Dark Bokor?

I had a great time writing this story. The hardest part for me was the deadline. The story needed to be submitted to my editor by a certain date, which of course was fair, since they wanted it for October. But there's a lot more to this story that I'd like to tell, so much more that happens after that last scene in the book. I'm planning a novella length sequel to it for the near future.

If you could write a soundtrack for your novel, what two songs do you think would be most important to your main characters?

Chasing Cars by Snow Patrol for Jesse and Every Time You Turn Around by Daughtry for Matt

If a movie would be made of The Dark Bokor, who would play the leading roles?

I'd have Chris Pine play Matt and Jay Ellis for Jesse.

Are you working on anything new right now?

Oh my yes! I'm in the middle of writing the sequel to my psychological thriller novel ALEX. I've also started a m/m contemporary romance and also a Christmas story for next year. I'm one of those writers who's happiest when I have two or three projects going at once.

Dianne is the author of m/m erotic romance, both contemporary and fantasy, the psychological thriller, and anything else that comes to mind. Oh, and a floral designer. If she can’t be writing, at least she has the chance to create with the beauty of flowers and bring a smile to someone’s face. Currently Dianne lives in the Willamette Valley of Oregon with her husband, and both her children have chosen to attend colleges close to home, for which she is forever thankful. You can find out more about Dianne here: Blog, Facebook, Twitter, Goodreads, and Amazon Author Page.

When it comes to the dark weavings of hoodoo magic, only a few can survive.

It's started. Bodies have been found in the French Quarter, torn limb from limb. The undead have been seen walking. For Detective Matthew Rieves, this is the worst news he can imagine. Having spent his entire life in Orleans Parish, Matt's no stranger to the bizarre. Though, despite the growing evidence, he still has a hard time believing in the occult. But when two hoodoo bokors vie for supremacy, it's the innocent civilians that pay the price.

For Jesse Dalembert, he'd left New Orleans to sever his ties with hoodoo. But when a friend is brutally murdered by the bokor's zombies, he returns, falling at once into danger and into Detective Rieves's bed. With their lives on the line, their simmering attraction flares into a passion they can no longer deny.

Working against time, can the lovers find a way to stop the hoodoo war, or will they fall victim to the dark magic, maybe becoming zombies themselves?

Buy the book at Breathless Press.

Philip's Watcher: What Makes a Hero + Give-away!

The first Hero:

Hero (mythical priestess), in Greek mythology, priestess of Aphrodite, goddess of love, at Sestos, a town on the Hellespont (now Dardanelles). Hero was loved by Leander, a youth who lived at Abydos, a town on the Asian side of the channel. They could not marry because Hero was bound by a vow of chastity, and so every night Leander swam from Asia to Europe, guided by a lamp in Hero's tower. One stormy night a high wind extinguished the beacon, and Leander was drowned. His body was washed ashore beneath Hero's tower; in her grief, she threw herself into the sea.               

-Wikipedia

In this legend, it seems to me that Leander was the true hero, risking his life to be with the person he loves. I think this holds true for every hero I’ve ever fallen in love with. A hero not only has to be strong and brave, but also caring for those he protects. I write m/m erotic romance and this seems to be especially true for my heroes. No matter how wonderful they may be, there must be that touch of gentleness and vulnerability to make them real.

In PHILIP’S WATCHER, my hero is the stone gargoyle Adrian set on the walls of the Agenor castle to protect the young heir Philip from his enemies. To involve the reader and make Adrian’s part more believable, I began the story by putting Philip in danger. I wanted to gain sympathy for the young heir right from the start, so when he accepts the wonder that is Adrian the reader will also.

After this, I wanted to bring Adrian from stone into living flesh. This is a hard feat to accomplish! How to make a fanciful creature not only become real to a reader but also believable. I really wanted to keep away from the flash and glitter of movies. So I had it happen without magic at all, but by a ‘gift’ all Watchers possess, part of their nature. And to breathe life into this gargoyle I decided to make him as flawed as the rest of us with his own insecurities and strengths, joys and heartbreaks. A person we can relate to. My story, Philip’s Watcher’ is about two young men caught up in a war neither is prepared for but find the strength to succeed in each other.

In PHILIP’S WATCHER my hero gives everything he has for the man he loves. What more can anyone want in a hero?

GIVE-AWAY! Please comment for a chance to win a PDF copy of PHILIP'S WATCHER!

Philip’s Watcher
m/m erotic fantasy

Amazon
Barnes & Noble
ARe Books

Blurb:

Darkness is spreading in the world with only the powerful Agenor family to oppose it. In the guise of a stone gargoyle atop the castle walls, Adrian has protected Philip, the young heir, since birth, watching him grow from childhood into a strong but lonely man without love.

When the clan chief, Philip’s father, is murdered by those he trusted, Adrian resumes his human form to better protect his beloved Philip. And finds his love returned. As lovers, their passion is all-consuming, but as they fight against treachery from within, will their love be enough to stem the dark tide sweeping the land? And will it be enough to keep Adrian’s heart alive…          

Excerpt:

Philip chewed his lip as he watched the storm clouds gather in the leaden sky. The wind picked up, cold and heavy with rain. It whipped the hair from his face and distracted him from the study of the desolate landscape spread below his feet. How he longed for spring! But winter lingered long past when it should have given way to new growth in the valley. He guessed the reason for it, and a cold finger of dread touched his heart.

An icy gust buffeted him on the exposed balcony, and Philip gathered the long strands of his hair and tied them at his neck. He bit hard on his bottom lip to stop its tremble and welcomed the pain against the ache in his heart. “He’s not coming back, is he?” he whispered as the first fat drops of moisture struck his face. He pounded a fist on the stone railing in frustration and impotent fury. “Father should have let them come to us, where we’re prepared.”

But their enemy had thrown down the gauntlet, and in his pride, Philip’s father picked it up. Jonathon Agenor had always been that way, as far back as Philip remembered. He supposed the gravity of being the Agenor Chief had made his father distant. The man kept his own council and wouldn’t listen to Philip’s cautions against a trap. The bait had been a threat against Philip’s life, something the proud man couldn’t tolerate. His life had been the forfeit. Philip closed his eyes and let the grief wash over him.

 The rain swept against the walls of the stronghold, and Philip leaned his head against the stone statue on the railing beside him. “I still have you, and that’s a comfort.” He turned his gaze to the familiar face. There were many gargoyles on the high balconies of the castle, but this was his favorite. The onyx eyes glittered as if in sympathy. Distraught, Philip trailed a finger along the crack in the stonework from the creature’s forehead to its muscular chest. He flattened his hand over the cold heart and willed it to beat as he had hundreds of times before. The stone stayed firm under his palm.

“I know one of you is my Watcher,” Philip said, and he searched the stone eyes for any flicker of life. They remained fixed on some distant point, and he sighed. He rested his head on a powerful shoulder, which supported the draping wings and ran his fingers up and down the strong arm nearest him. Philip remembered arms holding him, once upon a time, soft and warm and comforting. He’d felt safe and loved in his mother’s embrace. Philip tilted his head to the creature’s ear. He’d whispered his secrets to this gargoyle all his life and saw no reason to stop now.

“I miss her,” he confessed. “Every day. I’ve been…lonely. But more than that, I could use her wisdom, now more than ever. With Father gone, my enemies will come here. What if I’m not strong enough to hold them back? They can’t be allowed to make a stronghold here.” A frown creased his forehead. “Why are we enemies, Gargoyle? Can you tell me that? Mother explained good and evil to me. Good wants to protect and cherish the earth. Evil would seize power and bend nature to its will. But which am I? I don’t know the earth. I’ve lived my life in these protected walls. Perhaps evil lives in me as well.”

Philip turned his head, hoping to catch a response to his outrageous statement. The stone remained cold, and a fey mood came over him, desperate. “You remain silent?” His gaze swept the heights of the castle. Dozens of statues stared down at him or looked out over the land his family protected. He laughed, and it sounded bitter to his ears. Rain pelted the castle and struck his face, and Philip railed against a fate he had no control over. Was he a mere puppet in this war for power? He had seen his family killed one by one. Would he be next?

In defiance, he climbed up on the balustrade and opened his arms. The storm seemed to increase in fury. Rain pounded against him, the wind seemed bent on pulling him from the wall. He shouted and shook his fist at the sky.

“If I fell, Gargoyle, would my Watcher catch me?” Rainwater poured from the spouted demons on the towers down to the valley far below. Mother had said he had a Watcher, a protector given to him at birth, but he’d never seen him. Never felt his presence. Alone, bereft, Philip wondered if he shouldn’t step off the edge…

At once a blanket of warmth engulfed him. He was cherished, guarded, needed. And beneath that he sensed love, deep and pure. “Come down.” A voiced thrummed inside him, full of fear. Philip climbed onto the balcony and stood with his back to the storm. He hung his head, ashamed of the childish, dangerous act.

“I’m sorry,” he whispered. The knowledge that his protector was near was a balm to his sore heart, and he straightened. He took a steadying breath. “Evil is moving in the world, Gargoyle. Father had gone to see the wise woman in the village to see if she knew who threatened me. Perhaps I should go see her myself, when the storm passes.”

He ran a hand over his face, cold and discouraged. He touched the gargoyle’s arm. “I’m young and naive to the ways of the world. I need guidance, and if you are my Watcher, dear friend, then it’s cruel not to tell me.” Philip sighed when he received no answer and retreated to the empty rooms within the thick walls of his home.

Dianne Hartsock

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