1. Tell us about your
newest release.
“Before I Wake” is a m/m romance story with a fairy tale theme. It’s about a nurse’s aide named Jonesy who
befriends a young man in a coma who was the victim of a hate crime. The story is from Jonsey’s point of view. He’s a huge man who’s not terribly book smart
but he’s very compassionate. He falls in
love with Michael (the coma patient) along the way and has to convince Michael
that life is worth fighting for. The
story has a dark and lyrical mood, like a traditional fairy tale. You can probably guess what fairy tale this
is based on!
2. Can you tell us a
little about your favorite scene in the story?
I wrote a few scenes from the POV of Michael, the coma patient. I thought it would be interesting to try to
imagine what would be going on in his mind. He’s a big Lord of the Rings fan,
so in his mind he’s lost in a dungeon. Having
someone like Jonesy who cares about him ‘out here’ in the real world gradually
helps make that dungeon a less terrifying place.
3. What was one of
the most surprising things you learned in creating your story?
I learned that I really like working in 1st person POV, which I
haven’t done much of in the past.
Writing Jonesy’s voice was a wonderful challenge, and I felt it really
made his personality come alive. I also
did some research on the recovery of coma patients. Their chances of recovery are so much better
if they have family and friends who continue to try to talk to them and touch
them. A lot of that went into the story.
4. What authors or
friends influenced you in helping you become a writer?
In high school I was an avid reader of horror—Stephen King, Dean Koontz,
John Saul, Anne Rice. That was the
period in which I decided I wanted to write.
More recently, I’ve been a passionate reader of all things romance. I got into m/m romance heavily about a year
ago. My favorite authors in this genre
are Amy Lane, Z.A. Maxfield, J.L. Merrow, and Andrew Grey, just to name a few. Those authors helped me find my ‘sweet spot’,
the things I most like to read and write, which are contemporary m/m romances
with a good dollop of sweetness, humor and a twist of dark angst.
5. What does your
family think about your career as a published author?
Although this is my first published m/m romance title under this name, I
have been writing professionally for about twenty years. So my family is quite used to it. My husband has always been very supportive of
me pursuing whatever floated my boat, and the m/m romance is no different. He doesn’t care to read it, but he supports
me writing it! As for my siblings, they
probably think it’s a little weird, but then, they’d expect nothing less from
me.
6. Besides writing,
what other interests do you have?
My husband and I live on a farm where we have a few bulldogs, chickens and
cows. I love that life. I also enjoy hiking and volkswalking. But honestly, I read a TON. So I spend a lot of my spare time doing that.
7. How can readers
connect with you online?
&&&&
Blurb for BEFORE I WAKE:
Jonesy is a nurse’s aide at St. Mercy
Hospital. One night the victim of a hate crime in brought onto his ward, deep
in a coma. Rejected by his homophobic
parents, and seemingly friendless, Michael has no one to stick up for him as
his life support is turned off. Jonesy
encourages Michael to keep breathing and, miraculously, Michael does. As the
months pass, Jonesy stays by Michael’s side, talking to him, reading to him and
encouraging Michael to wake up. Jonesy
may be a big galoot, and he may not be the smartest guy in the world, but he
knows someone who needs a friend when he sees one. And if he also thinks Michael is the most
beautiful thing he’s ever seen, well, Jonesy knows better than to hope for
things that can never happen.
Author
Bio for Eli Easton
Having been, at various times and under different
names, a minister’s daughter, a computer programmer, a game designer, the
author of paranormal mysteries, a fan fiction writer, an organic farmer and a
profound sleeper, Eli is happily embarking on yet another incarnation as a m/m
romance author.
As an avid reader of such, she is tinkled pink when
an author manages to combine literary merit, vast stores of humor, melting
hotness and eye-dabbing sweetness into one story. She promises to strive
to achieve most of that most of the time. She currently lives on a farm
in Pennsylvania with her husband, three bulldogs, three cows and six chickens.
All of them (except for the husband) are female, hence explaining the
naked men that have taken up residence in her latest fiction writing.
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