Author Interview & GIVEAWAY: A. J. Rose

 

We at “The Blog of Sid Love” are incredibly happy and honored to have author of  bestselling novels  “Power Exchange” & “Safeword”- AJ Rose – joining us for an interview today!

Thank you A.J for coming over to visit and taking time out of your very busy schedule to drop by.

AJ: Thanks for having me.

 

First let’s talk about your incredible success.

After releasing Power Exchange, you went from one of many writers to a bestselling author

What was the impact on you and your life?

AJ: At first, I didn’t believe the response. I thought the numbers I saw on my sales reports had to be mistaken, but after they didn’t disappear, I realized no, it was true, and more people than I’d ever thought possible were reading my book and talking about it. In many ways, it’s been a relief to know this dream of mine that I’ve had since I was a kid is possible. I’m within honest-to-god reach of my goal of writing for a living without a supplemental job to pay the bills, and it’s fantastic. In other ways, it’s been eye-opening regarding the balance of what I put in public about myself and what I keep closer to the vest.

 

After Power Exchange came the sequel Safeword and that settled the deal I think

Author AJ Rose was there to not go away .

How did you experience things after the release of Safeword and seeing it at the very least equal the succes of Power Exchange?

AJ: Safeword’s success far outstripped Power Exchange, and I was absolutely not prepared. I had never seen my cover on a bestseller list before, let alone at the top spot, and it took my breath away. I kept pinching myself, and refreshing my phone screen in disbelief, and thanking everyone I could find who had read, liked, shared, and reviewed the book. My success is absolutely due to the readers, these incredible readers who take time out of their own lives to say a kind word about what I’ve written. The uptick in email and private messages and tweets I’ve received since Safeword’s release has been, at times, overwhelming, and unfortunately, it’s coming to a point where I can’t respond to everyone individually anymore. It makes me sad, but it’s necessary so I can keep the books coming.

Was it hard to deal with the succes of being a popular author and the impact it had on your life?

AJ: The hardest thing has been that I’ve always been somewhat guarded, not letting people in until I’m comfortable, and the increase in my social media presence has required some balancing on my part. It’s easy to get overwhelmed by the sheer volume of interaction, and I’ve had to back off some to be able to deal.

 

 

The expectations of your new release Queers were  extremly high, I can only imagine how stressful it must have been.

Can you tell us a bit about that time? Writing , reading people looking forward to this new release etc.?

AJ: I had set the release date to December 2013 (December 1st, if I was on schedule, with a 4 week cushion if things got bumpy in editing) and needed to finish the story by October 31st to make that happen. Halfway through October, I hit a major writer’s block and didn’t make significant progress on the story for a month. For weeks, each reader asking how it was going was a reminder I was pushing it, going to miss my deadline, hadn’t written near enough and worse, didn’t know where the story was headed. It was not a fun time, but a group of close friends brainstormed with me and I found the thread again. Even though I was a month late, I managed to finish and release something I’m proud to put my name on, something I’m excited for people to read.

 

Talking about Queers. What made you want to write this particular story?

AJ: I saw a YouTube video about grief and loss and it touched me deeply. I couldn’t get the guy in the video out of my mind, and I wondered what life would be like for him years down the road. Would he be able to move on? Would he find love again? What would it take for him to find love? The other characters of the book were all supposed to be secondary, but as I was going along, they had louder voices than I anticipated, and instead of 2 main characters, I ended up with 7.

This story has many different people in it, different characters and stories to tell. Was that a well thought descision or did it just come to you while writing?

AJ: That was the product of the secondary characters taking over scenes, not following my plot outline, and in general, demanding to be given greater roles in the story. I would be typing along, and someone would say something outlandish and impossible to fit into the current plot, but it was so pursuasive, I couldn’t bring myself to delete it to force them into their appointed role. That’s when the magic of writing happens, when the characters are so alive, they become autonomous, with their own opinions and demands. That’s when they take over, and I just channel their story, however it comes out. It’s when they fall silent that I have trouble.

People might think it is a risk having more than one main pairing centrered. I personally like the fact that there are more stories to tell and I think it shows great interest and capability if you can make it work

What is your opinion on it?

AJ: I was petrified I wouldn’t be able to pull it off. The higher and higher the word count went, the more I realized the sheer size of the story required to do these characters justice. What if people love one pair but hate the others? Would they DNF the book because it wasn’t about their favorites? Was it risky making one of the couples f/f, when I’ve seen before many readers saying they weren’t interested? But the characters had their story, and it was what needed telling, so I set aside my reservations and poured myself into it like I do everything I write. I do try to give the readers what I know they want to read, while at the same time, obeying the muse.

Is there a character in Queers or in one of your other stories you can relate to or perhaps even resembles you in a way?

AJ: There are pieces of me in every character I write. From Queers, specifically, I shut down like Brad when I’m pushed, get lost in music like Duff, protect my friends like Moonshine, am loyal like Jackson, and make stupid decisions like Garrett.

I saw you posting pics of your tattoos on fb. Care to tell us the story behind those?

AJ: The tattoos I got yesterday were in honor of Ben and Gavin and the beginning of my writing career with the Power Exchange series. I have decided to get a tattoo for each book I release and have an appointment for my Queers tat in a couple weeks.

To come to an end I had a reader from our blog mentioning your name and added: “I would like to know what makes him ‘Tick’”

So AJ Rose what makes you “Tick” ?

AJ: Darkly funny things, touching words, haunting music, the connection people have with one another, and my friends. And sarcasm. LOTS of sarcasm.

Is there anything you would like to share with your fans out there reading this interview?

AJ: I would like to add a sincere thank you to everyone who has read my books, reviewed them, or recommended them to friends. This wouldn’t be possible without each and every one who has supported me. Thank you.

 

About AJ Rose:

It began with a Halloween themed short story assignment from a second grade teacher, and from then on, AJ Rose fell head over heels in love with writing. Even an active social life through school, learning to play the piano in a passable imitation of proficient, and a daring cross country move couldn’t stop the tall tales about imaginary people that refused to be ignored. With college experiences came a change in perspective to romance and passion. A propensity to slash favorite TV characters brought AJ to today, writing mostly M/M for publication. But don’t be surprised if the occasional ghost still pops up. AJ tweets as @_AJRose and blogs at http://andrewjrose.wordpress.com

Buy Queers or any other title of A.J Rose at Voodoo Lily Press here:

http://voodoolilypress.wordpress.com/

 

Queers Blurb : Within her walls are stories. Love. Laughter. Tears. Lives lived to the fullest, and sometimes cut short before they really get started. She’s seen it all, from homelessness to super-stardom, boys dressed as girls, girls dressed as lamps, and boy, does she have secrets she could tell. Her one truth is that everyone who darkens her doors is accepted with open arms and a song.

Her name is Queers, and for one of L.A.’s few dueling piano bars, she has a lot of heart. On her stage, the beautiful voice of Duff McKinley rings so true he captures the shattered heart of his boss, Brad Mosely, who checked out of life three years ago. But even lifelong dreams have untold consequences.

Duff came to L.A. to chase his musical aspirations, but his best friend Garrett Slater accompanied him to chase a wish of his own: finding The One, his white knight. He believes Landon Kennedy fits the bill. Suave, handsome, and powerful in the music industry, Landon can show Garrett a life he’s only seen in movies. But even as Landon helps Duff realize his dreams, he brings Garrett into a nightmare he may never leave, one from which Garrett’s roommate, Jackson Moriarty, is determined to rescue him. If Garrett repays Jackson by seeing his own charms, so much the better.

Yes, within her walls, Queers has long history. Unrequited love, sinister intentions, fame, fortune, and a group of friends and lovers who would do anything for each other no matter the cost.

 

A.j graciously allowed us to do a GIVEAWAY on his latest release “Queers”

contest will end 15th of feb

Leave a comment to enter

Good Luck

Many thanks A.J for your visit .

Good Luck on your release

Dani

Find Danielle’s review on Queers here :

http://sidlove.com/2014/02/05/current-week-review-queers-by-aj-rose/