It’s short today. As it sometimes happens real life interferes with the blog. Between vet visits and Father’s Day, dog instructions, medications and plans, well, sigh, where did the time go?
I’ve been busy bathing dogs and celebrating with my father. I hope everyone has had a full and happy day. So life is a bit frazzled and scattered today. It will come together tomorrow. In the meantime. Check out all the marvels that await you this week and know we (sigh, I) will be pulling it together.
Enjoy!
This Week at Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words
Sunday, June 17:
Father’s Day! This Week At Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words
Monday, June 18:
DSP Dreamspun Promo Bru Baker on Under a Blue Moon (Camp H.O.W.L. #2
Review Tour – Annabelle Jacobs – Butterfly Assassin
Review Tour – Overtime – V.L. Locey Signal Boost Promotions
An Alisa Review: Stowaway Heart by Suede Delray
A MelanieM Review: Butterfly Assassin by Annabelle Jacobs
A Barb the Zany Old Lady Review: The Recruit by Addison Albright
A Barb the Zany Old Lady Review: Damage Control by Kate McMurray
Tuesday, June 19:
DSP Promo Payne/Tortuga
Blog tour the Best Worst Honeymoon Ever by Andrew Grey
New Release Tour for Murder, Romance, and Two Shootings by Todd Allen Smith
A Lucy Review: The Best Worst Honeymoon Ever by Andrew Grey
A VVivacious Review: Just A Week by Jena Wade
A MelanieM Release Day Review: Under a Blue Moon (Camp H.O.W.L. #2) by Bru Baker
A Stella Review: Home Skillet (Culinary Kings #1) by Cate Ashwood & Sandra Damien
Wednesday, June 20:
BLITZ for The Merchant’s Love by Antonia Acquilante
Demon Familiar by Bellora Quinn and Sadie Rose Bermingham -Book Blitz and Review
DSP Promo Sandine Tomas
A Barb the Zany Old Lady Review: Denim by KC Wells
A MelanieM Review: Demon Familiar by Bellora Quinn and Sadie Rose Bermingham
A VVivacious Review Just A Year by Jena Wade
AN Alisa Review: Expecting (Pine Wood Falls #1) by Sarah Havan
Thursday, June 21:
DSP Promo KA Mitchell
DSP Publications Promo Michael Ruptured
Release Blitz Expecting by Sarah Havan
A Jeri Review Wash Out (Anchor Point #7) by LA Witt
A MelanieM Review: Life Itself by Elizabeth Bones
A Lila Audiobook Review: Once Upon a Wolf (Wayward Wolves #1) by Rhys Ford and Derrick McClain Narrator)
A MelanieM Review: Three More Nick Nowak Mysteries (Boystown #2) by Marshall Thornton
Friday, June 22:
DSP Dreamspun Promo Andrew Grey
Falling Awake 2 by Kage Alllen Indigo Blog Tour
Release Day Blitz Something About You by Riley Hart
A MelanieM Review: Pack Up Your Troubles by Charlie Cochrane
A Stella Review Catch Me by Beth Bolden
An Alisa Release Day Review:Mystic Man by E.J. Russell
A Melanie Audiobook Review Off the Ice (Hat Trick #1) by Avon Gale and Piper Vaughn/Kirt Graves (Narrator
Saturday, June 23:
RELEASE BLITZ – Professor Hot Pants by Ember-Raine Winters\
Rescues are wild in the Alaskan terrain. So is romance.
Sun-kissed California guardsman Dan Farnsworth might be at home in the water, but he’s out of his element at remote, rugged, and freezing Staggered Cove Station. Acclimating proves hard enough, but he’s also digging into how the station’s previous rescue swimmer was lost at sea. Was it an operation gone bad or something more sinister? Add to that the instant tension between him and his partner—no-nonsense Alaska-born Karl Radin—and Dan has his hands full.
As his investigation heats up, so does the attraction between Dan and Karl, even if they don’t completely trust each other. But as suspicious events escalate to sabotage, Dan starts to fear that he and Karl won’t get the chance to become more than reluctant coworkers.
This was an alright story for me, more focused on the mystery than the romance between the two men. Dan is trying to find out what really happened to his brother while not trying to bring any attention to what he is doing. Karl can be a bit grumpy but wants to keep those under his watch safe and there seems to be something about Dan that’s not adding up.
I felt bad for Dan as he realized the full depth of his brother’s actions and to find out that the only family you had you never really knew. Karl is very no nonsense and when Dan realizes he can trust him is willing to help him find answers. I didn’t really see the relationship between these two building except for some off handed thoughts about attractiveness or how safe they felt with the other. It takes extreme circumstances for them to do anything together or acknowledge it. These two didn’t know each other long but were quick to jump together and go from there and I just couldn’t feel the connection.
Colin Darcy did a nice job narrating this story. For the most part I was able to easily keep track of the story with the voices he used for each character though the voices didn’t connect with how I really saw the characters.
Cover art by Bree Archer is nice and gives a visual of the background for this story.
We are still merrily swinging along mid June with our romances and finishing up with our Royals….recommendations of course! Cheeky! More below from our wonderful readers who came up with some simply great books for everyone to read. I put my own recs back in as well and hopefully by the end of the month will merge of all them into one big royal recommendation list for one and all.
I read and reviewed a story this week which fits in perfect with our romance theme, Made in Portugal by Ana Newfolk. Two men, who had their first kiss as teenagers and best friends and then were abruptly separated for years meet once again when one returns to the land of his birth. Its lovely, layered, and romantic. I loved it.
Then oddly enough, a series which is the antithesis of romance. Gritty, noir, the sex impersonal, the mc often unlikable, and yet the writing is so well done (as are the mysteries) you just have to keep reading…yes, that would be Marshall Thornton’s award winning Boystown Series. What was thinking putting them here? I definitely need a Noir Month.
Do we even have enough LGBT Noir Books?
There’s a question for you!
But the sun is shinning on our romance stories, so let’s concentrate there. More stories to come as June contineues. In the meantime.
Here is another winner of our Royal Recommendations Contest: Purple Reader. Please contact Stella for your gift card at scatteredthoughtsandroguewords@gmail.com
Royal Recommendations and Love Stories – Part II
Historical
Crofton Hall series by Rebecca Cohen (with some contemporary stories too)
Contemporary:
Wake Up Married Series by Leta Blake and Alice Griffiths
Suddenly Yours by Jacob Z. Flores
Marriage of Inconvenience by M.J. O’Shea
The Greek Tycoon’s Green Card Groom by Kate McMurray
First Comes Marriage by Shira Anthony
Tall, Dark, and Deported by Bru Baker
Science Fiction:
Mate of the Tyger Prince series by Shannon West (shifter aliens, humans, mpreg)
Supernatural/Paranormal:
Mage of Inconvenience by Parker Foye
Fantasy:
The Gryphon King’s Consort by Jenn Burke
Purple Reader:
There’s already some good recs here. Like H.B., I don’t keep track of weddings in books, but I did remember a few that I thought were good … they aren’t all just about the wedding, but it does figure into the story:
– Fantasy:
THE LAST GRAND MASTER by Andrew Q. Gordon
THE LODESTAR OF YS by Amy Rae Durreson
THE ENGINEERED THRONE by Megan Derr
– PNR:
TRIED & TRUE by Charlie Cochet
GUNS N’ BOYS: HE IS MINE by K.A. Merikan
– Sci-Fi/Futuristic:
MY FAIR CAPTAIN by J.L. Langley (the original unless you want yours kink free then go for the 2018 version)
IMPERFECT MATCH by Price, Jordan Castillo
Oh, I thought of a few more, so why not add several to our list 🙂 … (again, good stories where even if it’s not all about the wedding, it plays a part):
– Historical:
INTO DEEP WATERS by Kaje Harper
DAYS WITHOUT END by Sebastian Barry
– Contemporary:
A MORE PERFECT UNION – Anthology by B.G. Thomas, Coatsworth, Fessenden, Michael Murphey
WILL & PATRICK WAKE UP MARRIED by Leta Blake
PIECE OF CAKE by Mary Calmes
THE HEART OF TEXAS, and TEXAS WEDDING by R.J. Scott
THE MARRYING KIND by Jay Northcote
– Mystery/Suspense:
CRASH & BURN by Abigail Roux
HERE COMES THE CORPSE by Mark Richard Zubro
ALOHA CANDY HEARTS by Anthony Bidulka
– Purple Reader, TheWrote [at] aol [dot] com
Foxling Toka has served the Soldati king for centuries, and now he attends to the kingdom’s cherished Soldati prince. It’s a position of honor, and as Toka helps the once-human prince adapt to their magical realm, he finds joy in their friendship. He also grows bolder in his encounters with Rayner, Soldati warrior and the king’s second. But the laws are clear: servants and Soldati are not permitted to mate. It doesn’t matter that Toka lost his heart to the dashing cad long ago.
Rayner never imagined he would fall in love with a servant, but the clever and beautiful foxling has ensnared him, and he resents the regulations keeping them apart. When an arrogant and spiteful king visits from a neighboring realm, Rayner is in danger of losing everything. But Soldati warriors don’t surrender, and he intends to fight all the harder to keep Toka where he belongs—in Rayner’s arms.
This was a nice continuation in this series. Rayner has spent centuries admiring Toka and just as he begins to admit what he feels he is torn away from him. And since it threw me a bit I think there should be a warning of attempted rape.
I really liked Toka in the last book, he was just do sweet and that doesn’t change in this book, you can see him willing to give his happiness in order for Rayner’s. I could feel Rayner’s pain and determination to get Toka back when the king takes him away. This story really gave some more depth to the world they live and it’s left open to more stories in this series.
Manuel Pombo did a great job narrating this story. I could easily feel of the characters’ emotions while listening. The different voices he used for the characters helped me keep up with what was going on.
I love the cover art by LC Chase is nice and gives a nice visual of Toka.
Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words is happy to host JL Merrow here today talking about her new release Wight Mischief. Welcome, JL.
Modern Explorers
Hi, I’m JL Merrow, and I’m delighted to be here today as part of the blog tour to celebrate the release of Wight Mischief, a romantic suspense novel set on the island I grew up on, the Isle of Wight.
We’re all familiar with tales of exploration from history. There’s (to name but a few) Leif Eriksson, who made it to America five centuries before Columbus; Gertrude Bell, who pioneered the novel idea of preserving relics of antiquity in their home locations; Marco Polo, whose 24-year travels were a 13th-century inspiration to explorers who came after him; Sacagawea, who was invaluable on the Lewis-Clark expeditions, despite being presumably somewhat inconvenienced by giving birth en route.
You might think the spirit of adventure and exploration has died out in modern times. Hasn’t everywhere already been mapped? But that spirit, that urge to discover and to document, lives on—and you can find it on the internet.
Some key scenes in Wight Mischief take place on or around a tunnel that leads down from Marcus’s fortress home through the cliffs to a staircase ending on the beach. Now, this fictional route is based on a real tunnel, constructed as a supply tunnel to a 19th-century Palmerston fort built to defend the island against French invasion. I can remember the excitement of making my way through this tunnel as a teenager, and the nervous drop from the rusted-off end of the staircase to the rocks below.
Of course, these days health and safety wouldn’t allow such perilous pursuits, and in any case, the land is now in private hands and fenced off. So I wasn’t, alas, able to refresh my decades-old memories by revisiting the site.
Other, however, have been bolder. There are forums online for these modern explorers to discuss, and to document, their visits to all kinds of off-the-beaten-track places which lie forgotten and falling into decay. They see this as an important preservation of our heritage. Some specialise in subterranean exploration. Others focus on the derelict in a race against time to document buildings and other structures before they are lost forever.
You may not agree with their methods—it’s fairly clear not all of them trouble to get the landowner’s permission before they strike out on their expeditions of discovery—but you have to admire their spirit of adventure.
Question: Another favourite playground of my youth was a tumbling-down fort on Culver Cliffs. Do you have fond memories of somewhere derelict or forgotten where you played as a child?
Giveaway: I’m offering a prize of a $10 Dreamspinner Press gift certificate to one lucky commenter on the tour, who will be randomly chosen on Friday 15th June. Good luck!
Wight Mischief
A ghost of a chance at love.
Personal trainer Will Golding has been looking forward to a getaway with his best friend, Baz, a journalist researching a book on ghosts. But on the first day of their camping trip on the Isle of Wight, Will takes a walk on a secluded beach and spies a beautiful young man skinny-dipping by moonlight. Ethereally pale, he’s too perfect to be real—or is he?
Lonely author Marcus Devereux is just as entranced by the tall athlete he encounters on the beach, but he’s spent the years since his parents’ violent death building a wall around his heart, and the thought of letting Will scale it is terrifying. Marcus’s albinism gives him his otherworldly appearance and leaves him reluctant to go out in daylight, his reclusiveness encouraged by his guardian—who warns him to stay away from Will and Baz.
The attraction between Will and Marcus can’t be denied—but neither can the danger of the secrets haunting Marcus’s past, as one “accident” after another strikes Will and Baz. If they don’t watch their step, they could end up added to the island’s ghostly population.
Wight Mischief was previously published by Samhain, but has been completely re-edited and given a lovely new cover for this second edition by Dreamspinner Press.
Author Bio:
JL Merrow is that rare beast, an English person who refuses to drink tea.She read Natural Sciences at Cambridge, where she learned many things, chief amongst which was that she never wanted to see the inside of a lab ever again.
She writes (mostly) contemporary gay romance and mysteries, and is frequently accused of humour.Two of her novels have won Rainbow Awards for Romantic Comedy (Slam!, 2013 and Spun!, 2017) and several of her books have been EPIC Awards finalists, including Muscling Through, Relief Valve (the Plumber’s Mate Mysteries) and To Love a Traitor.
JL Merrow is a member of the Romantic Novelists’ Association, International Thriller Writers, Verulam Writers and the UK GLBTQ Fiction Meet organising team.
I’m about to do something huge, and it could change… everything.
I met Matt in second grade, and we’ve been inseparable ever since. We went to the same schools, studied at the same college. When we both got jobs in the same town, we shared an apartment. And when my life took an unexpected turn, Matt was there for me. Every milestone in my life, he was there to share it. And what’s really amazing? After all these years, we’re still the best of friends.
Which brings me to this fragile, heart-stopping moment: I want to tell him I love him, really love him, but I’m scared to death of what he’ll say. If I’ve got this all wrong, I’ll lose him—forever.
I’m having a terrific contemporary fiction week! BFF by KC Wells is a warmhearted, feel good story of discovery, friendship, and love. It’s got a sort of tone to it that caught me off guard that I attribute to its format. I almost had to read the first couple of paragraphs twice to make sure it was part of the story and not an author’s forward. Well, it was an author’s forward. But it didn’t come from K.C. Wells but rather from David, our narrator of this story.
You see BFF is the coming of age, coming out story that charts two men’s friendship from their first meeting as second graders where they became the Dynamic Duo, through high school, all through roommates at college and after graduation as they start their various careers…always together. As the best of friends.
But David is recounting it at the beginning of novel, he’s writing it all down as a story, complete with notes and reflections on his behavior towards Matt at the time (hindsight is everything). It gives the book an immediate and intimate feel as his thoughts and feelings come tumbling out along with the memories. Through David’s eyes, both Matt and their families come alive as does their long, blended history together. If the two boys were always side by side so too were their parents (and siblings), matching them for support and love, even in the toughest of times.
Oddly I’m talking financially here. This wonderful story has these families carry with them many of the strains most modern families do….job security, moving, eduction issues, and learning disabilities. Even sex education and tolerance in the nicest of ways. What it doesn’t have? Extreme angst of any sort. This is a gentle, moving story of a journey of a friendship and a deep love towards a final revelation and HEA.
KC Wells really got to me. Even when she had David remarking on his own dialog as a kid (too smart) in his story, to his interactions with Matt throughout the years, I was there with them, throughly invested in their relationship, their happiness. That included their families. I tell you I loved both sets of parents and when you read this story, you will too.
Honestly, that blurb gives you one idea of the plot line. But the story is so much more than that. It’s bigger, warmer, decades in these mens lives and a touching, joyous journey to love. Trust me, I really didn’t want to let them go. I highly recommend this story. It left me smiling and with a happy heart. Doesn’t that sound like a grand afternoon?
Cover art: Reese Dante. This cover is perfect in every way. That’s David and Matt and an importation location. Love it.
Drew Beaumont is bored of the same old roles: action hero, supervillain, romantic lead. He’s not going to let a fresh gay buddy comedy languish just because they can’t find him the right costar. No, Drew bats his eyelashes and convinces everyone that the movie’s writer should play Drew’s not-so-straight man.
Aspiring writer Steve Sopol has never had a screenplay optioned. Now one of Hollywood’s hottest properties wants to be in a movie Steve hasn’t finished writing—and he wants Steve as his costar. Turns out the chemistry between them is undeniable—on and offscreen.
Drew swore off dating in the biz, but Steve is the whole package: sharp, funny, humble, and cute. For Steve, though, giving in to the movie magic means the end of the privacy he cherishes. Will the credits roll before their ride into the sunset?
Sometimes all you want is an extremely well written angst free romance. One completely lacking in murderous ex lovers, psychotic stalkers, or even the normal life driven “why did it happen to me/them” elements that realistically thread through some contemporary novels these days. Sometimes, I just want happy. A well plotted story, full of multidimensional characters who were easy to connect with, and, had a journey towards HEA that just pulled me in for hours.
His Leading Manby Ashlyn Kane is that story. Two intelligent, nice, hardworking men who find each other at the right time in their lives and it works. It was so enjoyable! I fell effortlessly into the tale of actor Drew Beaumont and writer Steve Sopol on the set of Steve’s low budget movie Dog Gone that he’s written. It’s Steven’s first screen play and his big break into movies as a writer. For Drew? This low budget film represents something different. Smartly written, dialog his loves, as well the the comedic character and tone of the story? And LGBT storyline? It’s something he’s been looking to play.
Ashlyn Kane brings us right into the dynamics of creating a low budget movie, writing a screenplay and acting, all the while as two men discover each other and fall in love. We get both points of view, a cautious relationship that moves from friendship to dating to love, and with each step, I fell in love with this couple and this story even more.
I first read Ashlyn Kane from her hockey books but it had been a while since I’d last turned a page of one of those. What a delight to rediscover her and her stories again in His Leading Man. This just showed me what I’ve been missing. Now I’m off to see what else she’s been writing in the interim.
Do you love contemporary romance? One’s guaranteed to reach into your heart with a sweetness and lightheartedness that will make your day? Then I recommend His Leading Man by Ashlyn Kane to fit the bill.
Cover art: Bree Archer. Light, fun, and romantic. It works for the character and tone of the story. Perfect.
ebook, 222 pages
Expected publication: June 5th 2018 by Dreamspinner Press
Original TitleHis Leading Man
ISBN139781640801080
Edition LanguageEnglish
URL
Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words is happy to host Charlie David here today. Charlie is talking about Shadowlands, his collection of short stories that’s now a miniseries, directed by Charlie David! Welcome, Charlie!
♦︎
Shadowlands is a book of short stories and now a TV miniseries exploring the heartfelt, and sometimes heartbreaking passion and pain of gay sexuality. Ancient myths are re-imagined with an exciting queer twist masterfully depicting the charged, fragile relationships of urban life today.
Charlie David is the director, writer and producer of the Shadowlands series based on his book of short stories. Shadowlands was his first time directing a scripted show so we sat down to discover the highs and lows of the process.
Shadowlands is available on OUTtv and OUTtvGO in Canada and on Vimeo for our friends around the world.We’d like to offer the readers at Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words 25% off a rental or purchase of the Shadowlands series on Vimeo using promocode Dreamspinner.
What was your inspiration for these three stories?
Charlie David: I’ve always loved Greek and Roman mythology and really used that passion as a springboard to write my book of short stories, also titled Shadowlands.
And in terms of cinema I appreciate a well-crafted anthology film. I saw Wild Tales by director Damián Szifron and it was so incredibly well done. It inspired me to revisit my stories in Shadowlands and re-imagine them for the screen.
Why did you opt for this triptych style of presentation?
Charlie David: I’m sure the rule and magic of the number three has been ingrained in many of us from a religious standpoint – every major religion has numerological references and ‘3’ being ever present among them.
I think it’s also inherent to human psychology to understand that there is a natural order to the number three. Our modern and ancient story structure is most often presented in a three act structure – whether that’s television, film, books or other media.
There’s something innately satisfying when that triptych structure works – it leaves us feeling a sense of completion. And when it’s not followed, that’s often when we walk out of a film or set down a book once finished reading and feeling complacent, unmoved or unchanged.
The playwrights in Ancient Greece wrote for their audience to experience catharsis, they wanted to invoke an emotional response in the people watching because that’s how to incite change. An emotional response will provoke conversation after you leave the movie theatre, turn off the TV or put down a book.
To me that is our goal as creators – to leave our audience moved, educated, and emotionally open. In ancient Greece they held a large festival called the Dionysia and three full days were devoted to the performances of three playwrights – each presenting a set of three tragedies.
My inspiration for many of the Shadowlands stories both in the book and the TV miniseries were these ancient myths. Though I’ve told them in modern settings, I still wanted to honor as many details as I could from their story roots and that included their presentation in a tragic trilogy.
What’s the connection between the three stories that form Shadlowlands?
Charlie David: Shadowlands is an anthology style series that explores love in three separate stories – a couple renegotiating a relationship, a narcissist grasping to comprehend it, and star-crossed lovers mourning its loss.
The series begins in 1928 with Alex, a plastic surgeon hell-bent on perfection, hosting a house party with an assortment of colorful guests. Amid romantic misfires it becomes apparent that the only person Alex is interested in is himself.
Fast forward to 1951 and a gay military couple exploring the idea of opening their relationship while on a remote camping trip when they encounter a mysterious stranger.
The stories conclude in 2018 with a painter who in mourning the loss of his lover, becomes obsessed with creating a realistic painting of him. The resulting piece is so beautiful and life like that he is drawn under its spell.
What does Shadlowlands tell us about love?
Charlie David: Love to me is like the face of God or of the unknown. It’s a multi-faceted diamond and each way you turn it in the light you will see something different.
In Shadowlands I’ve explored three stories of characters gazing into different sides of this multi-faceted diamond. Each of them is seeing and experiencing love, the loss or expansion of love in a different way. Just as I hope each person who watches the show will see aspects known and unknown to them reflected back.
The first story, Narcissus is really about someone who has not exercised his emotional toolbox enough to comprehend empathy and love – like many of us in our youth.
The second story, Mating Season is about a couple negotiating the often prickly subject of non-monogamy or polyamory. Is it possible to fully love another but also have room in your heart to expand beyond the traditional norms of our society? Does the addition of new experiences diminish the already present love in a relationship or can it multiply it?
The final story, Pygmalion Revisited is about the tragic loss of love – something that all of us will face in life whether it be a family member, friend or lover.
What was the production process? How long to write? How long to film? Was it difficult to find the locations you needed?
Charlie David: I wrote the Shadowlands book over the course of a year. The adaptations for screen took another year in writing amid doing several other projects. Pre-production including financing, development, casting, and all the other myriad jobs that go into prepping a show took another 6 months. We filmed a total of 20 days. Editing and post production was 6 months.
The locations were challenging to find. I had a vision in mind and if you have a massive budget that’s one thing – you can just go into studio and build sets until you get it right. But that wasn’t the case here.
I had restrictions based on my funding that required I shoot outside of the Toronto studio zone, in fact at least an hour’s drive outside Toronto in any direction so my scouting consisted of a lot of road trips to various other cities and towns in Ontario to try find what I was hoping for.
In the end I’m super happy with our locations and there really are so many inspiring places. More often than not, even when I didn’t find the perfect match for Shadowlands, I’d find myself feeling the inspiration for other stories in these smaller cities and beautiful landscapes.
What was the casting process?
Charlie David: I worked with Jason Stroud from Fade to Black casting and we saw a lot of actors based in Toronto. That’s one of my favorite parts of the film making process. As an actor myself, working as a producer and director has given me so much insight into production.
I can’t tell you how many times you have really equally talented people as options for the same role and it comes down to the most inane things – a comment on hairstyle from a network exec, height matching with another actor, the list goes on.
If you’re an actor reading this, please just keep bringing your authentic self to the work and when you’re done the audition leave it at the door. There are so many factors that come into casting that are absolutely subjective. The toughest lesson an actor has to learn is to not take the rejection personally, to disintegrate the ego – there’s going to be a lot of rejection no matter who you are – most of the time it has absolutely nothing to do with you.
That’s why I think actors are some of the craziest people on the planet and why I love them so much. They pay for ongoing classes, they spend hours memorizing and living other people’s words in preparation for auditions, they drive all over town repeatedly to go to job interview after job interview, they are constantly physically and emotionally scrutinized. Most have multiple jobs to simply juggle the demands of living in a major city in order to pursue their passion and the lucky few actually get to work from time to time.
It’s also why I think it’s incredibly important to continue creating scripted content with an LGBTQ+ focus. Most of us within this space are still learning the ropes, we’re still figuring it out because we’re finally getting the green lights and more importantly finally giving ourselves the green lights to actually go out and make the stories we want to make – the ones where we see ourselves and our lives reflected on the screen.
What do you hope that people feel when watching Shadlowlands?
Charlie David: Something. Just something! Seriously, I never want to inform or telegraph to an audience what they should feel. My goal when creating is to make you think outside of your comfort zone. I want to push the envelope and as Rumi so perfectly stated, to go ‘Out beyond the ideas of right and wrong, there is a field. I’ll meet you there.’
Who are some of your film heroes or inspirations?
Charlie David: Xavier Dolan. Absolutely. He’s my fellow Canadian director of course and the guy is brilliant. He knows fashion, pop culture, has so much emotional depth and just understands what makes us tick.
I’ve watched and re-watched all his films many times and they never stop teaching me about the art of film-making. When he was making his latest film, The Life and Death of John F. Donovan I was asked to come photo double and stand-in for Kit Harington. I jumped at the opportunity because even though I wouldn’t be acting in the film myself, it was an incredible learning opportunity. I got to be in the room during the rehearsals and blocking with the director, cinematographer and actors.
And since Kit was the lead, his scenes were with Kathy Bates, Susan Sarandon, Michael Gambon, and Jessica Chastain to name a few of the star-studded cast. The film was also shot on film so that was an exciting process to witness.
Seeing Xavier Dolan work is humbling, provocative and just really fucking cool to watch. Obviously I don’t compare the level I’m working at with Xavier’s – they are apples and oranges in terms of budget, scope and talent. I’m just really grateful for the opportunity to witness and work in that arena once in a while as it’s incredibly inspiring.
What next for Charlie David?
Charlie David: A camping trip with friends. I love the great outdoors. 😉 In my work life – there’s always lots of projects on the go. Right now I’m producing a dating show, a cooking show, 2 documentaries and writing my next scripted show. You can stay up to date with me on my social and website.
Charlie David’s celebrated collection of short stories explores the heartfelt, and sometimes heartbreaking passion and pain of gay sexuality. Ancient myths are re-imagined with an exciting queer twist masterfully depicting the charged, fragile relationships of urban life today.
Jonathan Vallen has never felt good enough. A gentle musician who loves to garden, he’s woefully unsuited to running Vallen Industries, the family business. When his father hires a hotshot executive, Marco Pellegrini, to save the company, Jonathan moves away and leaves his humiliation behind. A year later and forty pounds lighter, Jonathan runs into Marco on an LGBT cruise. Marco doesn’t recognize him, the sparks fly, and Jonathan pretends to be someone else for the week—Jonah Rutledge—someone good enough to be loved.
Marco Pellegrini has always been driven. He rose from poverty to the pinnacle of business success, and he’ll do anything to protect his reputation—including hiding his bisexuality. Having saved Vallen Industries, he’s weary of the rat race and ready for a more meaningful life. When Marco meets his soul mate for that new life—Jonah Rutledge—on an LGBT cruise, he prepares to stop hiding and start living.
Back on land, the romance crashes when Marco discovers his perfect man is not only a lie but the son of his boss, Frederick Vallen. Jonathan resolves to win Marco back, but Frederick takes vengeful action. Jonathan and Marco must battle their own fears as well as Frederick’s challenge to get to the future that awaits them on the horizon.
This was a fun and enjoyable story. The blurb does a good job of explaining the plot. The romance is well done and I enjoyed both of the main characters. They’re a bit flawed but still good guys. They each have a quirky side character which I also thought added to the story.
The story was narrated by Tim McKeirnan and I thought he did a good job on it. I enjoyed the way he did both of the main characters as well as the side characters. I thought the narration added to the overall story. I had not listened to this narrator before but will definitely try him again.
Overall this was an entertaining audiobook. The plot was fun and sweet and had really likable characters and the narration was also good. It’s relatively short and would make for a great summer pool side listen.
The cover was done by L.C. Chase and I think it was well done. It fits the characters and the overall plot well.
Audible Audio
Published April 19th 2018 by Dreamspinner Press LLC (first published November 23rd 2016)
Original TitleAll the Way to Shore
ASINB07CGQG495
Edition LanguageEnglish
SeriesStories from the Shore #1
Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words is happy to have Ashlyn Kane here today talking about her latest contemporary romance, His Leading Man. Welcome, Ashlyn.
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Hi all! I’m Ashlyn Kane, and I’m here as stop one on the His Leading Man blog tour. Thanks so much to Stella and Melanie for hosting me! If you haven’t heard about the book, here’s the blurb:
He wrote a comedy. Fate directed a romance.
Drew Beaumont is bored of the same old roles: action hero, supervillain, romantic lead. He’s not going to let a fresh gay buddy comedy languish just because they can’t find him the right costar. No, Drew bats his eyelashes and convinces everyone that the movie’s writer should play Drew’s not-so-straight man.
Aspiring writer Steve Sopol has never had a screenplay optioned. Now one of Hollywood’s hottest properties wants to be in a movie Steve hasn’t finished writing—and he wants Steve as his costar. Turns out the chemistry between them is undeniable—on and offscreen.
Drew swore off dating in the biz, but Steve is the whole package: sharp, funny, humble, and cute. For Steve, though, giving in to the movie magic means the end of the privacy he cherishes. Will the credits roll before their ride into the sunset?
If I’m doing my job right, just enough to get me into their mindset for writing, and not so much that they all start to sound alike. That was a bit tricky in my newest book because it features Steve, who’s a somewhat private writer, so of course we’ve got that in common: the desire to tell stories, particularly unique ones. But Steve’s leading man (or vice versa depending who you ask) is Drew, who’s a flashy movie star—very different on the surface, until you realize that is just another way to tell stories.
Do you feel there’s a tight line between Mary Sue or should I say Gary Stu and using your own experiences to create a character?
I grew up in fandom mumble-mumble years ago, which gives me a knee-jerk reaction to those names. To me Mary Sue or Gary Stu doesn’t mean just a self-insert but a character who’s “too perfect,” and when people use the term that way I want to go off on a tangent about how male power fantasies are allowed (Bruce Wayne, anyone?) but female ones get called out as two-dimensional. But to answer the question I think you mean: this isn’t something I personally struggle with. I’m a deeply boring person. No one would read a book about me, and I wouldn’t want to write it!
Has your choice of childhood or teenage reading genres carried into your own choices for writing?
Hmm, I think only in that I’ve always been eclectic. As a kid I read everything I could get my paws on, from the Bunnicula series and Nancy Drew to Harry Potter to The Green Mile. The first romance novel I ever read was about a woman with superpowers. I write a little bit of everything too (except historical, which is too much research!), the flashy Hollywood romance sort of books but also the quieter, almost pedestrian ones, and even paranormal. My next book after this is magical realism, which is a fun universe to write in and I’m debating revisiting it. The only thing I haven’t really done yet is sci-fi, which I read a ton of growing up but I think I’m too—lazy? intimidated? uninspired? all of the above?—to try writing. I mostly write for fun, so I prefer not to have to think too hard. Thinking is for editing!
Do you like HFN or HEA? And why?
HEA all the way. This is why sequels make me nervous! What if you take the happy ending away from them??? No, thank you!
What traits do you find the most interesting in someone? Do you write them into your characters?
A sense of humor is so important. Life can be brutal and tragic and lonely and hard. I think that it’s important to share it with someone who can cheer you up. That could come in the form of kindness too, rather than humor, but it’s usually the humor people notice first. Kindness is quieter, but also important. I think, in this genre, a lot of what people are looking for boils down to levity and kindness, so I try to make sure each book has a good portion of each, however that works out character-wise.
Ever drunk written a chapter and then read it the next day and still been happy with it? Trust me there’s a whole world of us drunk writers dying to know.
Oh sure, only every time I’ve ever gotten stuck on a sex scene!
With so much going on in the world today, do you write to explain? To get away?To move past?To wide our knowledge?Why do you write?
Because I need to tell stories. I’ve been writing since I was six years old. My parents used to read me bedtime stories; once they turned off the lights and closed the door, I’d lie awake and make up more stories to tell myself. It’s a part of me that’s always been there—some kind of self-soothing behavior, maybe. It’s like watching TV, except backwards.
What’s next for you as a writer?
Well, I’ve got another book coming with Dreamspinner late this summer, and then we’ll see! I have a few ideas floating around, but none of them has taken quite firm enough root yet. Ask me again in two months—maybe I’ll have a better answer!
ASHLYN KANE is a Canadian former expat and current hockey fan. She is a writer, editor, handyperson, dog mom, and friend—sometimes all at once.
On any given day, she can usually be found walking her ninety-pound baby chocolate lapdog, Indy, or holed up in her office avoiding housework. She has a deep and abiding love of romance-novel tropes, a habit of dropping too many f-bombs, and—fortunately—a very forgiving family.
Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words 