Saturday Author Spotlight: Chris Ethan #Interview #Giveaway

My spotlight author this Saturday is Chris Ethan who just released The Guy With The Suitcase. We will take a look at that book in a moment and also take a look at his other work under his other pen name Rhys Christopher Ethan. One man, two powerhouse talents. So, sit back, chill out, enjoy the post and enter the giveaway at the end.

Pierce is homeless.
Young and strong-willed Pierce has been living in the streets of New York City for six months, since his parents kicked him out of their perfect, Christian, suburban house. Pierce is gay. And he is suffering the consequences for being true to himself.
Rafe is homeless.
He is also sick. Impressionable, but far from innocent, Rafe ran away from home almost a year ago. His sickness is slowly killing him. But Rafe is not a hopeless case. He has learned to get by. Nights of paid passion turn to sheltering warmth from the imminent New York winter.
And then there’s a suitcase. Pierce’s suitcase, which holds secrets from everyone including its owner.
When their worlds collide, their lives intertwine and when the world seems bent on bringing the two souls to their knees, fate has other plans for them.
Caution: Contains adult language, New York City streets, tough life choices, sexual tension, stubborn brutes and swoon-worthy romance.

The classic tales you know, the characters with secrets you don't
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Blurb:
White has a secret. One he has shared with his family to no avail. When he meets the Prince of his dreams, he decides he can no longer live a lie, but in order to do so, he will have to face his worst nightmares.

Queerky Tales is a series of classic fairy tales retold with LGBT characters. Snow White & the Seven Angels is about fighting for your happy-ever-after, whatever shape it comes in.

For children and adults alike.

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Also by Rhys Christopher Ethan:
The Little Mermaid & the Dry Lands (Queerky Tales #2)
Sleeping Beauty & the Magic Curse (Queerky Tales #3)
Cinderella & the Fairy Secret (Queerky Tales #4)

Dorothy meets universe in this stellar adventure of pain, survival and freedom and in the middle of all, a girl trying to find her place among the chaos and death that threatens her politically corrupt galaxy.

Yv is forced out of her home planet after a tragic incident, but before she has time to grieve for her loss, she is up against the lethal flora of the moon she is imprisoned at.
Yv is completely unprepared for the wonders and treachery of the universe. Will a childhood memory save her life or get her into bigger trouble than she already is?

Rhys Ethan presents Blood and Roses, a sci-fi serial adventure like nothing you have ever read before

Interview

Rhys, I want to thank you so much for being my spotlight author this Saturday. Hopefully my interview won’t make you run for the hills. I like to think these questions help us better get to know you. So, let’s get this started.

Aside from all the books WE’VE seen you write, what was the very first thing you ever wrote and did you know in that moment you would be a writer?

The first thing I ever wrote that I clearly remember of is a story directly inspired and influenced by Harry Potter (it was basically fanfiction in today's terms) and while that story didn't go any further than a few chapters, it inspired the next series and the one after it and I knew then that I loved writing and I wanted to be one when I grew up. I fondly remember myself and my cousin sitting at our grandparents summer house during summer holidays, in our teens, writing books in fancy notebooks, sketching our characters and their worlds, writing lyrics for our characters' bands and talking to each other about our ideas and reading each others chapters as we finished. I also distinctly remember our gran repeatedly asking us why wouldn't we go out and play and what on Earth we were writing so passionately. A few years later, when we were in our late teens and maybe too cool for writing, she would ask us why we kept going out and why wouldn't we sit down and write like we used to. All we wanted to do then was smoke and talk about our oh-so-troublesome lives. Haha. Good times.

Do you write every day, and do you have certain rituals?

I'm in the process of making that work, but I haven't managed to discipline myself just yet. Basically since I finished The Guy With The Suitcase I've been slacking off, making excuses that I need to edit, to promote, to plan and what-not. But, like I said, I'm getting myself into a regime. Slowly. Very slowly.

I remember seeing you at the Rainbow Book Fair last year, will you be attending it this year or any other conventions?

Do you? Oh my God! Why didn't you say anything? Where were you? And to answer your question, yes! I will be there. I loved the vibe and the experience (as well as the city) last year, so I'm coming back bitches! I will also be attending the 2nd EuroPride Con in Berlin (June 2016), and UK LGBTQIA Meet in Southampton (September 2016), like I did last year. I just can't wait to see all my friends again and make new ones. I love conventions! I'm a convention whore.

If you could pick one of your books to make it to the big screen which would you pick and why?

It would be one that hasn't been published yet, and I'm guessing it won't be for another decade at least. It's the book I've been writing since I was 12 and although it has changed so much than the airy-fairy it was back then, it's the book closest to my heart and the characters are my first crushes. It' a book series about friendship, magic, the battle between good and evil, and about oligatchy and theocracy. I think it's going to be my masterpiece, so I'm keeping it to myself for now, until it's ready.

Which one of your characters are most like you and how?

Aside from my semi-autobiographical fiction WIP "Tate & Ricky", which stars a nastier, phonier version of me (lol), I'd say Pierce is closest to my personality. I'm very hard to read and a bit of a grump at times (i.e. I was goth in my teen years...extra lols), and I judge people pretty fast only to have my opinions reversed as soon as I get to know them. But all of Pierce's features are things I used to embody a lot more during my late teens and things that I'm shedding off as I approach my mid-twenties and that was one of the reasons that I pictured Pierce as he is, because I wanted him and Rafe to appear as foolish and inexperienced as I was when I entered adulthood.

What’s more important to you, characters or plot?

If you asked me a couple years ago, I'd say characters. If you asked me five years ago, I'd say plot. Now, I'll say both. You can't have interesting characters doing nothing much for 250 pages as much as you can't have stupid characters go on immense, fantastical adventures for 400 pages. One doesn't work without the other. As an author you need to find a balance between the two and figure out when it's time to develop the character and when to move the plot forward.

What are you currently reading?

Much like my writing, I've turned into a multi-reader, so I'm reading several books at the same time. I just finished a light-hearted lesbian witch book by Diana Morland called "In A Witch's Hands". I'm reading L.A. Witt's "Writing Faster F.T.W" which gives advice on boosting your productivity, Ana J. Phoenix's "For Never And Always", a beautiful story about two friends who meet on the train to afterlife. Vanessa North's "Blueberry Boys", a love story in rural America. And lastly, listening to Patrick Ness's "The Ask And The Answer", the sequel to the "Knife of Never Letting Go". Phew! Gosh! That took a while.

Can you tell us about what you have in store for all of us in your future writing?

It will be my pleasure. I've just finished the outline for the sequel to "The Guy With The Suitcase" titled "Pretty Little Red" (out in August 2016) for which I actually made up a temporary blurb which I'm guessing I can share with you and your readers.

"Red is a high class trans escort with one of the most prestigious escort companies in New York City. He can make all your fantasies come true. He's got the muscles, the stamina and the right holes to drive any sexually-deprived man crazy. But he's also got a secret. He hates his job. But if he's going to pay for his gran's chemo, he has no other option.

Killian Wolfe is a millionaire CEO with bouts of depression and incredible cycles of loneliness. When he feels at his lowest, he hires an escort for the boyfriend experience, but he gets more than he bargained for and more than he would ever dream of getting when Red is the one to knock on his door.

Two broken souls unite under the strangest circumstances and go on a ride that will bring both men closer to each others heart."

I'm also working on Men of Spring, a shifter novella, the first in the Season Lovers series. It will contain four "episodes" into the lives of different shifters and their loved ones. And the last piece of work from Chris Ethan to hit the stores, will be book 3 in "Once Upon A Guy" series and I can only reveal the title for it, which will be "Frogs and Princes" (November 2016).

Under the Rhys pen name, I'm hoping to publish Beauty and The Guardian Beast in the Queerky Tales series this year, the fifth and penultimate in the series

Do you have any pet peeves, writing or otherwise?

Whenever I write, I've got to have certain things open on my browser to be able to function and feel as if I'm actually writing well. The first would be Thesaurus.com, 'cause there's nothing tht bugs me more than having a word at the tip of my tongue and not being able to remember it. The second would be Google Translate for various reasons, either because my characters are not entirely English/American or because occasionally my brain will want to use a Greek word that I can't remember its equivalent or to make up names on the go. The third tab I have open is a map of NYC especially writing the Once Upon A Guy series, which is set in the City, and because I like referencing actual places and calculating how long it would take to go from one place to the other. The fourth is just plain Google search page for trivia questions and research. Having said that, I try not to use the Google tab too much 'cause it can be way too distracting, and if something is not important to the narrative I will just put a (?) so I can replace after my writing session or during editing.

How can your readers/ fans follow you? Twitter, FB, Website…

You can visit my facebook page at facebook.com/chrisethan.author for sporadic updates, or visit my brand new website rcethan.com/chris which contains everything you need to know about my Chris Ethan persona and my other writing persona. Lastly, you can follow on twitter @Rhys_Ethan (twitter.com/Rhys_Ethan) for some updates and news.

Thank you, Rhys, for being here today! It’s been a blast!!

Thank you for having me and I had a fantastic time.

Giveaway

Rhys/Chris is going to do a $5.00 Amazon Gift Card Giveaway!

Want in on the fun? Simply fill out the rafflecopter below!!

Contest will run until March 11th.

Winner will be contacted via email so please check your spam.

BIG thank you to Rhys for being here today! Make sure you check out not only his Chris 

Ethan book but also his Rhys Christopher Ethan books as well!

 

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