Welcome to my weekly Author Spotlight. I’ve asked a bunch of my author friends to answer a set of interview questions, and to share their latest work.
Today, L.M. Brown – L.M. Brown is an English writer of gay romances. She believes that there is nothing hotter or sweeter than two men in love with each other… unless it is three.
Thanks so much, AUTHORNAME, for joining me!
J. Scott Coatsworth: What fantasy realm would you choose to live in and why?
L.M. Brown: As much as I love the Game of Thrones series, I am pretty sure I wouldn’t survive for long in Westeros, so I would have to choose somewhere else.
Maybe the world of Harry Potter, which at least gives me the option to step back into the muggle world as well, so I get the best of both worlds.
JSC: When did you know you wanted to write, and when did you discover that you were good at it?
LMB: I first decided I wanted to write back in upper school (age 13/14 for the US) when we had an assignment in English that was to write a story about a journey. I did a fantasy type story and got very carried away, writing at least four times the minimum page count. In the class where we got the assignments back with our marks the teacher decided to read my story out to the class. This was a torture we all suffered at some point or another in this particular lesson. Anyway, my teacher was still reading this overly long story when the bell rang for the end of the lesson and she had to stop. Another student, who wasn’t a particular friend of mine, came up to me after class and asked to borrow the story to read the end of it.
Unfortunately, since I am a dreadful procrastinator it was many years before I actually did any writing after I left school, and even longer before I decided to send anything to a publisher.
I couldn’t say when I discovered I was good at writing since I let the readers be the judge of that. I am my own worst critic.
JSC: If you were stuck on a desert island all alone with only three things, what would they be?
LMB: Since I am a bit useless in the outdoors I would have to have some sort of brilliant survival guide that would tell me what was good to eat, how to build a shelter, basic first aid, etc.
A toolkit would be handy too, but would that count as more than one item? Maybe one of those fancy all in one tools would have to suffice.
I would also want my Kindle, though suspect I would not have time to read anything since I’d be too busy trying to survive.
JSC: How would you describe your writing style/genre?
LMB: I tend to gravitate towards the paranormal genres, though have written the odd contemporary. I also have notes and ideas for a historical that is always on the back burner.
Even though I write in a popular genre, I like to mix things up a bit for my stories. My dragon shifter is probably the sweetest hero of my stories, my ghosts don’t just play matchmaker, and relationships aren’t always limited to two people.
JSC: Were you a voracious reader as a child?
LMB: Oh yes. I have always been known to have my nose stuck in a book. Back in first school I was one of the students who got to go on the library bus. For those who don’t know, the library bus used to go to schools and pick up books and drop off new ones for the next term. This way there were always new books for students to read each term. At my school they would like two boys and two girls go onto the bus each term to pick the selection and I loved being able to do that.
In middle school (age 9 -12) I was a school librarian for nearly two years.
At home I had LOTS of books. I was a huge fan of anything by Enid Blyton and had a lot of the Sweet Valley High books. Unfortunately I never did manage to complete the series of the latter ones as my local branch of W H Smith never had the greatest selection and it was hit and miss as to whether there would be any new ones when I went there to spend my pocket money. Thankfully, there were plenty of other authors for me to spend my cash on instead.
JSC: What was your first published work? Tell me a little about it.
LMB: My first published story was Touch of a Ghost. It is a Halloween novella and is still available, albeit not from the same publisher who originally took a chance on it. In fact, it is my only story to be on its third release.
It is the story of a psychic and a sexy ghost who simply can’t be ignored.
JSC: What pets are currently on your keyboard, and what are their names? Pictures?
LMB: I have two cats who I am constantly steering away from my keyboard with limited success, as you can see from the pictures. They are sisters named Alice and Allegra. Allegra has the full black mask and Alice is the one who gets right in your face.
JSC: What’s your writing process?
LMB: I am the sort of writer who binge writes day after day for weeks and then doesn’t get a word down for six months. I am dreadful and I really need to try to learn to pace myself.
The process of getting my stories written tends to vary from story to story. Some are planned and plotted down to the tiniest detail. I have one story that isn’t even started yet, but has notes, character profiles, maps, timetables, timelines, and all sorts ready for when I start it. Others just flow from my fingers without any sort of plan other than to get the words down before I lose them.
The plotted stories I tend to write out of order, as and when each scene pops into my head. The other kind, I write from start to finish without scene jumping.
Once the story is written, I put it aside for a while before I go back to it and edit it to death, before it goes anywhere else.
JSC: Would you visit the future or the past, and why?
LMB: I would like to visit the past and look into some of the mysteries of the world and see things that are long since lost. Only one of the seven wonders of the ancient world still survives to this day. Getting to see the others would be amazing, as well as other buildings that are gone or in ruins.
JSC: What are you working on now, and when can we expect it?
LMB: At the moment I am in a bit of a rut with my writing and haven’t actually written anything in a few months. I have several stories in various stages of completion including the fifth of my merman stories, my final fairy tale story, and a sequel to To See the Sky, my futuristic dystopian story.
Shifting Currents, the fourth of my mermen stories is the only story I can safely say when to expect since it is with the publisher and scheduled for release in March/April 2017. That story is very much a game-changer for the series and I firmly believe that readers are either going to love it or hate it.
Giveaway
L.M. is giving away an ebook copy of Between Heaven & Hell, which is the first book in the Heavenly Sins trilogy, and which my new release is a stand alone spin off from.
And now for AUTHORNAME new book: Falling into Darkness:
A male/male paranormal romance.
Their love could save the soul of a fallen angel or damn an archangel to an eternity in Hell.
The realm of angels was created as a paradise where angels could watch over the earth as mankind took his first steps. For the archangel Michael, it is the only home he has ever known and he could never envisage another life. Michael’s life changes the day his path crosses that of the favoured son of the morning. From the moment he sees him, Michael wants Lucifer for his own. When the two angels come together the passion surprises them both.
Their love is forged in Heaven, but is doomed the moment Lucifer falls from grace to become the leader of an army of demons.
Separated by war, the former lovers know the time will come when they must face each other in battle.
Their confrontation will set in motion events that neither could have foreseen. For Lucifer it is the chance to persuade Michael to stand at his side, as his partner as leader of the demons. For Michael, it is a mission to save his lover’s soul, while risking his own.
Torn between his love for Lucifer and his duties as an angel, Michael walks a fine line, where one wrong step could result in his own fall from Heaven, and an eternity in Hell.
Buy Links
Excerpt
“Michael, I knew you’d come,” Lucifer said. “I trusted you would make the right choice.”
“Tell me this is a mistake,” Michael begged. “They say you’re barred from this realm, and that you’ve turned away from Him.”
“Barred?” Lucifer chuckled. “There are no barriers that can keep me from you.”
“And have you forsaken the light?”
“This is the new world order,” Lucifer replied. “And you have a place in it, ruling at my side.”
“I don’t want to rule anything. I never did.”
“Then I’ll rule the world and you’ll be my consort.”
Michael shook his head. “Are you even listening to yourself? What has happened to you? Why have you turned away from Him?”
“My eyes have finally been opened,” Lucifer replied. “Come with me and see for yourself.”
“No.”
Lucifer held out his hand. “Michael, you know how I feel about you.”
“Do I?” Michael asked. “You’ve never spoken of your feelings. For all I know you consider me with as much contempt as you do the rest of the angels.”
“How could you think that?” Lucifer said and Michael could hear the shock in his voice. “You are everything to me. I care for you more than anyone or anything in any world.”
“Do you? Then come back to me, undo whatever you’ve done to the other fallen angels, beg forgiveness, and be restored to the light.”
“That’s not possible,” Lucifer said. “The past cannot be rewritten and each of my demons made their own choice. Only they can choose to return to what they used to be. They are not my slaves. They have the free will to make their own decisions.”
Michael had a feeling Lucifer spoke the truth, though it didn’t make it any easier to hear.
“I won’t join you,” Michael said. “I stand with the rest of the archangels.”
Lucifer’s blue eyes flashed red for a moment and Michael stepped back in horror. “You would strike against me?”
Michael raised his sword and pointed the blade at Lucifer’s throat. “I would not want to, but, if I have to, I will.”
“Such weapons cannot harm me, any more than they can you,” Lucifer said.
Michael stepped closer and let the sword nick the skin of Lucifer’s neck, drawing a tiny drop of blood. “This is no ordinary sword. It has the power to bring you down and, while it would pain me to do so, I will if I have to.”
Lucifer casually brushed the sword to the side and shook his head. “You will not harm me, Michael. Not after all we’ve shared.”
“Turn back to the light, Lucifer,” Michael begged. “Don’t leave me.”
“I’m not leaving you,” Lucifer replied. “I’m right here. All you have to do is take my hand and we’ll be together for the rest of eternity. Together, we would be formidable.”
Michael closed his eyes and blinked back the tears he didn’t want his lover to see. Lucifer was lost to him and he didn’t know how he would go on without him. For one terrifying, fleeting moment, Michael considered taking Lucifer’s hand and accepting all he had to offer.
Author Bio
L.M. Brown is an English writer of gay romances. She believes that there is nothing hotter or sweeter than two men in love with each other… unless it is three.
When L.M. Brown isn’t bribing her fur babies for control of the laptop, she can usually be found with her nose in a book.
Thanks for having me here today.
Glad to! xoxo
It was nice learning more about you in this interview. <3 I feel like I know you a bit better than when I read your Facebook posts-so thanks for hosting her Scott- then again FB is not the greatest when it comes to updating my news feed so it could be that you reveal much more about yourself through your posts and I'm missing it. One of my favorite genres to read is paranormal so it's not a big shocker that I like your books. And ha. If I were on a desert island I would probably die and not for lack of trying. I get sick often. I have always been obsessed with books. The first book I remember reading that triggered my addiction was a Bridge to Teribithia and I ugly cried and thought how amazing it was to be able to use a book as a means to let out the many emotions I was holding in as a child and still to this day. I didn't have the best upbringing and have a lot of issues in my life so to be able to use books as a process of healing is pretty great. It's really nice to get to know the authors I read books from. Sort of like meeting an unconventional therapist of sorts. It sucks that you're having issues writing but if this helps, I can't seem to write anything even though it's what I want to do. That probably comes from the fact that it's hard to get out of my own head a lot of the time unless there is specific trigger(which don't come often for me). But I hope you don't stress it. The muse works on its own time. Normally forcing things don't work out for the better. I hope you get your groove back though. I'm sure that's always a great feeling when it happens. This book has been added to my TBR list. It's so hard to keep track of all the readers I purchase from, so blogs help remind me to check out works so may have missed.
Hi Ileana
Thanks for stopping by. As a very private person, I don’t share a lot through Facebook, so you aren’t missing much.
My muse appears to have returned. The interview was done before Christmas, when I was stuck in a very long rut. However, since then I have written a complete short story and am now working on adding some scenes to one of my out of print short stories to extend it into a novella.
I too have always had a love/obsession with books and love using them as a form of escape from the real world. I hope that you too continue to enjoy books as much as I do.
I love when people have quirky hobbies. Did you ever think of tracking down those missing Sweet Valley High books to see how it ended? Or is that series still going? I remember my sister and years later her daughter both reading those books.
I will have to check out your books, epic romance with a fallen angel sounds fascinating.
Hi Brian
After I got on the internet it was very tempting to go track them down. I am not sure if the series is still going or not, though I do keep wondering whether to buy a new(ish) book that came out about them once they are adults. On the plus side, the twins’ older brother came out as gay. On the downside, one of the twins seems to have ended up with one of the most dislikeable characters in the series. LOL I will probably pick it up at some point I am sure, even if it is just to satisfy my curiosity.
Thanks for considering checking out my books. I hope you enjoy any you may pick up.
Talk about a forbidden love!
Oh yes, it doesn’t get more forbidden than that. Unfortunately I couldn’t use that title as it was too close to one of my other stories (Forbidden Waters) and I know that sooner or later I would put the wrong title in the wrong place.
this sounds awesome!
Thanks Lee. If you check it out, I hope you enjoy it.