Blog Tour: The Grove by @E_Guizzetti #interview #giveaway - A Life Through Books

Wednesday, September 28, 2016

Blog Tour: The Grove by @E_Guizzetti #interview #giveaway



Horror
Date Published: E-book to be published July 12, 2016 / Paperback to be published September 13, 2016
Publisher: ZB Publications



Trail Rule #5: Let Sleeping Gods lie…

Sitka’s Quay appears to be like every other coastal tourist town on Highway 101, but lurking below its southern grove of ancient spruce are three sleeping primordial gods. For an eon, their bloodthirsty dreams have radiated into the ground and restore anyone who walks within the Grove. The Keeper, Dayla Fischer, must remain in control of her magical abilities or fall into sickening madness, but lives a relatively quiet life with her husband, Oliver. That is, until the delusional, but charming Jonah Leifson comes to town with a plan to awaken the Three. Soon, children begin disappearing. With powerful suggestion spells and mind reading abilities, Jonah wins over other sorcerers, meth users, the police, and eventually even her husband. Though no one believes her and she doubts her own sanity, she must stop Jonah, before he wakes the Three and brings about the end of the world.


Interview

What is the hardest part of writing your books?

Every book is different, but I struggle with pacing since I want to create characters and settings so authentic and tangible that the reader believes they are real.

With The Grove, specifically, I wasn’t trying to add so many current issues. I planned on the antagonist Jonah being a veteran suffering from PSTD from the Iraqi Conflict, yet more of the world’s problem leaked into my book: mass shootings, gun control, domestic violence, and drug abuse. I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised, after all Jonah wants to wake the Gods in order to save humanity from ourselves. With all of that, I still wanted it to have a touch of zany fun. Hopefully I accomplished it.


What songs are most played on your Ipod?

I mostly listen to The Bravery station on Pandora. I like music to be effortless. But when I was illustrating monsters for the coloring book that I created for The Grove I listened to a lot of Amy McDonald.


Do you have critique partners or beta readers?

I used two beta readers to help me find plot holes in The Grove. I also belong to two writer’s groups. One is more of a writer’s support group, the other is an open mic group which I use to get audience reactions. The person I listen to most is my editor.


What book are you reading now?

I just finished Joe Dacy’s The Last Reunion: An Ageless Comedy which is a funny dystopian novella set in 2040. The book follows a retired comedian in a world where social security and medicare have run out of money, but lifespans are longer.

How did you start your writing career?


In my twenties, I worked as an artist creating baby room murals and I had my first awesome idea for a story that I knew I would finish: Mercenary Elves. I was right. This became my first graphic novel, Faminelands. Working with my best friend and partner-in-comics, I wrote and illustrated three more graphic novels and a comic book series. Eventually Maria took took family leave and unsure what to do with myself, I wrote my first novel: Other Systems which was published by 48Fourteen. The Grove is my third novel which I self-published, because I wanted the experience of self-publishing.  



(I wasn’t sure if you meant this project or my next project.  So I’m answering it both ways.)


The Grove is a standalone dark-fantasy/cosmic horror thriller set in contemporary Oregon. Sitka’s Quay appears to be like every other coastal tourist town on Highway 101, but lurking below its southern grove of ancient spruce are three sleeping primordial gods. The Keeper, Dayla Fischer, must remain in control of her magical abilities or fall into sickening madness, but lives a relatively quiet life with her husband, Oliver, their cat and two garden gnomes.

That is, until the delusional, but charming Jonah Leifson comes to town with a plan to awaken the Three. Soon, children begin disappearing. With powerful suggestion spells and mind reading abilities, Jonah wins over other sorcerers, meth users, the police, and eventually even her husband. Though no one believes her and she doubts her own sanity, she must stop Jonah, before he brings about the end of the world.

The Grove touches on rural methamphetamine abuse, a tourist-based economy and how magic can lower one’s quality of life.  With this book, I wanted to play with a few genre tropes, mix it with fantastical elements and a sense of humor.


As for my next project, I’m heading back to science fiction with Alien Double Feature which explore the hilarity of first contact situations.

In the short story: For The Love of Pancakes, an alien needs a cup of sugar and knocks on a science fiction fan’s window...

In the novelette, Percentage of The Saved, aliens are trying to save all intelligent life before the universe grows cold. They come to Earth and try to save us, but end up confused by societal issues and cat videos.

The stories are written and edited, I still need to hire a proofreader, do the illustrations and book layout, but I am on track for a Spring 2017 release. 


Thanks so much for having me!







Much to her chagrin, Elizabeth Guizzetti discovered she was not a cyborg and growing up to be an otter would be impractical, so she began writing stories. Guizzetti currently lives in Seattle with her husband and two dogs. When not writing, she loves hiking and birdwatching.

She is the author and illustrator of independent comics: Faminelands and Lure and a comic book series Out for Souls& Cookies! Her debut novel, Other Systems, was a 2015 Finalist for the Canopus Award. She continues to write science fiction, horror, and fantasy. The Grove is her third novel.

Contact Information



1 comment: