Welcome to Raine and Debbie visiting Love bytes on their blog tour for new release “Leaving Flowers”!
They kindly gave us some great answers to our questions , share an excerpt and there is a giveaway to participate in!
Welcome Raine & Debbie 🙂
Author Name: Debbie McGowan & Raine O’Tierney
Book Name: Leaving Flowers
Release Date: May 1, 2015
Publisher: Beaten Track Publishing
Cover Artist: Natasha Snow
Pages or Words: 67,000 words
Blurb:
Shy and awkward since childhood, Aidan Degas is now a man lost. His twin—Aidan’s other half, Nadia—died tragically young, leaving him with nothing to get him through his days but his job at the prestigious Grand Heights Luxury Apartments and the flowers he lays upon her grave. When Aidan is assaulted on the job by a tenant, it’s the graveyard he turns to for strength and solace.
Patrick loves being assistant groundskeeper at the sprawling cemetery where he tends graves and offers a bit of comfort to mourners. When he sees a sad young man lingering over an old grave, his curiosity is strangely piqued for reasons he doesn’t understand. He’s never done this—struck up a friendship with a mourner. But soon that friendship blossoms into a romance.
It’s not going to be easy for the pair. Aidan is so damaged, like petals crushed in an angry fist, and even with Patrick’s warm heart and Irish charm, it might not be enough to bring him back from the edge.
Categories: Contemporary, Fiction, Gay Fiction, M/M Romance, Romance
Sales Links:
Beaten Track Publishing (Paperback)
How did this collaboration start?
RO: Well, I said, “Debbie, would you like to collaborate?” and she said, “Absolutely! Let’s put it in the pipeline…” And then I IMMEDIATELY sent her chapter one with no regard to our previous responsibilities. She read it and IMMEDIATELY sent back chapter two. And thus, the most reckless of collaborations was born.
DM: Yep, what Raine said! When that first chapter arrived, I recall it was accompanied by a message along the lines of “We don’t have to work with this idea necessarily,” but the idea sparked something within me that commanded, “Write this NOW!” And what can you do, but abandon everything and follow the dream?
What was it like working together? Who did what?
RO: Freaking magic. Debbie McGowan is the most talented human being on the planet. She’s also kind and understanding. (And no, I’m not brown-nosing.) But really, our brains just sort of melded into one creative brain and cool things happened. Should we tell who did what chapter, Debs? It’s interesting because even our close friends and husbands couldn’t tell who wrote what!
DM: *blush* Thusly I contend, as the (arguably) most talented human being on the planet, we are now the most talented hybrid person on the planet (like the human caterpillar, but shorter and far less scary). J It is very much a magical process. Alchemy. We turn words into…more words, haha. Hopefully we turn them into beautiful stories. I think it’s true for both of us that some of our other independent work needs a bit of a kickstart at times, but collaborating is like running at high revs, and if you stall you’re already going fast enough for the engine to restart. It’s constant inspiration, and whilst we had the basic ideas plotted out, the finer detail just happened. Our planning was frequently hijacked by our characters. They’re very strong-willed, you know. Especially that Aidan Degas.
What was your inspiration for Leaving Flowers?
RO: Sad guy + Irishman = love. Honestly, I don’t remember much past Patrick’s brogue. *Swoons*
DM: *waves the smelling salts under Raine’s nose* My inspiration was Raine. The spark came from her. Actually, she’s all sparks. She sparkles. Even after the initial idea was out there and we were into the swing of the story, it was that gift each morning of a new part of the story that kept inspiring me onward, plus it’s all the fun of reading a favourite author and writing at the same time! Double win!
Would you like to work together again?
RO: So we took a…what? Three week (if that!) break from writing together and then leapt recklessly into a new collaboration. We’ve done 35K in 2 weeks at the time of this interview, which is totally amazing. UNFORTUNATELY…we have even more responsibilities now than we did before!
DM: Yep, what Raine said…again. This time I believe it went along the lines of, “Let’s just take it nice and slowly, write as and when we can fit it in…” Then BAM! Story, story, story, story. Which is ace! When the story’s flowing it’s got to be written. Our work in progress is nothing like Leaving Flowers, other than being written by the most talented hybrid person on the planet.
For each of you, what is your favorite movie and why?
RO: Shaun of the Dead! I enjoy Simon Pegg like all the muches, but it’s not just that! This movie is so brilliant in its homage to zombie movies. Zombies scare the hell out of me, but I feel like I could survive the zombie apocalypse …if I move to England? I’m not sure. J
DM: Ghostbusters. I saw it three and a half times at the cinema, bought the video, then the DVD… I have no idea how many times I’ve seen it (I lost count somewhere in the hundreds). I groaned the first time I …Venkman: Call it fate, call it karma… Deb: Oh no, not another musical. It wasn’t. It was just the best film ever. Funny, sarcastic, supernatural, psychology-ish, Bill Murray…that is all!
Can you each tell us what you are working on now?
RO: Right now I’m working on my 2015 Don’t Read in the Closet free fiction called Sing Me Your Love Song, also the sequel to Bowl Full of Cherries, and of course my new collaboration with Debs McG J
DM: The aforementioned collaboration, of course. I’m also working on my 2015 Don’t Read in the Closet story, When Skies Have Fallen. It’s the story of two airmen who meet during WW2 and fall in love. I’m also working on Checking In and Taking Him On, both of which are sequels to Checking Him Out, plus the usual shenanigans with The Circle, i.e. my ongoing soap opera in book form, Hiding Behind The Couch.
Somehow, in spite of the need to go home and shower off the grottiness of digging earth for half a day, Patrick didn’t feel he could take his usual subtle approach. Nadia’s passing was not recent; her grave was not new; yet here was this young man, kneeling at her feet, his eyes closed, hands resting in his lap, oblivious to the sun’s slide from the sky, the increasing briskness of the breeze, Patrick’s presence…
“Hello there,” he said quietly, stopping on the path a few feet away. The man was too far into his own mind to startle. Instead, he slowly came to, his shoulders lifting slightly as he twisted to see what had disturbed his meditation. Patrick smiled. “I’m afraid we’re locking up for the evening.”
“So soon?”
“It’s going on for seven o’clock, sir.”
“Seven…” The man’s voice petered away, his expression indicating he had no idea how long he had been kneeling there. If he doubted Patrick’s word, the confirmation came when the man tried to stand, and staggered, numb-legged. He automatically reached out to steady himself, catching hold of the front of Patrick’s coveralls, and then almost collapsed again, unable to bear his own weight.
Without a second thought, Patrick quickly grasped the man by the forearms to steady him. “There’s no rush now. You just take your time. All right?”
The man nodded and swallowed hard. “Thank you. I only came to leave the tulips.” He gestured toward the vase of closed tulips in front of the grave and in the midst of the red and white carnations.
Patrick kept his hold on the man and looked down at the flowers. “They’re beautiful,” he said. “Really lovely.”
“Thanks. Nadia loved flowers so much.” A glimmer of a happier time lit up the man’s features for just a second, before it was blotted out once more by the heavy cloud of sorrow.
Patrick felt that sorrow in his heart. He wanted to offer comfort, warmth, security, to soothe with his touch, his kiss… Oh my—no, no, Patrick. You’re way over the line. You’re standing at the grave of this man’s wife, and all you can think of is kissing him? But it wasn’t that sort of kiss he had in mind. It wasn’t about passion, or lust; just a desperate desire to take away the pain.
The man seemed a little more steady on his feet and Patrick gently released him. “OK now?”
“I think so.” He took a long, deep breath and exhaled slowly. “Thank you for your patience. I’m sure you’re eager to go home. It can’t be fun working here.”
Patrick shrugged and smiled. “I love my job. Fresh air, peace and quiet—”
“But it’s a cemetery.”
“Well, yeah,” Patrick said, the slightest hint of a chuckle in his words. It was enough to prompt the other man to lift his head. For the first time, his eyes met Patrick’s, and something bloomed inside, a heat radiating from somewhere he couldn’t quite pinpoint. It rose up through his chest, into his throat, filling his mouth and his nose, as he gazed into those incredible steel-gray eyes. There was so much pain there, and loss—anger—and yet there was more, so much more, that Patrick could almost hear the emotion, like a distant cry for help from someone who was drowning.
About the authors:
DEBBIE MCGOWAN is an author and publisher based in a semi-rural corner of Lancashire, England. She writes character-driven, realist fiction, celebrating life, love and relationships. A working class girl, she ‘ran away’ to London at 17, was homeless, unemployed and then homeless again, interspersed with animal rights activism (all legal, honest ;)) and volunteer work as a mental health advocate. At 25, she went back to college to study social science— tough with two toddlers, but they had a ‘stay at home’ dad, so it worked itself out. These days, the toddlers are young women (much to their chagrin), and Debbie teaches undergraduate students, writes novels and runs an independent publishing company, occasionally grabbing an hour of sleep where she can!
Twitter: https://twitter.com/writerdebmcg Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DebbieMcGowanAuthor and http://www.facebook.com/beatentrackpublishing YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/deb248211 Tumblr: http://writerdebmcg.tumblr.com LinkedIn: http://uk.linkedin.com/in/writerdebmcg Google+: https://plus.google.com/+DebbieMcGowan Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4401329.Debbie_McGowan Website: http://www.debbiemcgowan.co.uk
RAINE O’TIERNEY lives outside of Kansas City with her husband, fellow author, Siôn O’Tierney. When she’s not writing, she’s either playing video games or fighting the good fight for intellectual freedom at her library day job. Raine believes the best thing we can do in life is be kind to one another, and she enjoys encouraging fellow writers! Writing for 20+ years (with the last 10 spent on gay romance) Raine changes sub-genres to suit her mood and believes all good stories end sweetly. Contact her if you’re interested in talking about point-and-click adventure games or about which dachshunds are the best kinds of dachshunds!
Homepage: Raineotierney.com
LGBT Author Interviews: http://raineotierneyhatparty.blogspot.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/RaineOTierneyAuthor
Twitter: https://twitter.com/RaineOTierney
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7770350.Raine_O_Tierney
Tour Dates & Stops:
1-May
4-May
5-May
6-May
7-May
Scattered Thoughts & Rogue Words
8-May
11-May
12-May
The Fuzzy, Fluffy World of Chris T. Kat
13-May
14-May
Vampires, Werewolves, and Fairies, Oh My
15-May
Wicked Faerie’s Tales and Reviews
Rafflecopter Prize: $20 Amazon gift card
Congratulations Raine and Debbie on your new book!
Congratulations, Raine and Debbie!
Congrats on the new release Raine and Debbie. Thank you for the interview!
Congratulations on your newest release and much success to you both. This story sounds quite appealing.
taina1959 @ yahoo.com
Raine and Dibbie congrats on the book.