I’m thrilled to host the wonderful and talented Garrett Leigh today. She’s multitalented—not only does she write lovely books, she’s a graphic artist as well! She’s one busy gal, but I managed to get her all to myself for a short interview.
Thanks for visiting, Garrett!
Charley: How much do you know about the story when you start to write a first draft?
Garrett: Each book is different, but generally I know the beginning (obviously) and the end, and a basic history/personality for each main character. It’s the bit in the middle that often foxes me. I get half way through and realize I have to find another 20k of plot before I can write the punchline I’ve been dreaming of since the book’s conception.
Charley: I’m horrible at titles—how do you choose yours?
Garrett: I’m a big fan of one word titles (as you might have noticed) and I always try and find a word that resonates with in the story. With Slide, it was Pete’s theory that letting things go…letting them slide…had been his biggest mistake with Ash. That his complacence was somehow to blame for things getting as bad as they did. And from Ash’s POV, he kinda figured that without Pete holding him up, he’d slide away into nothing.
Charley: Tell me something about one of the characters in Slide that I can’t get from reading the book.
Garrett: Ash isn’t as alone in the world as he thinks. This plot point is explored in Rare, the second book in the series. In fact, this is probably a good place to tell you that the entire series is being released in audiobook format this autumn, hence Slide coming back out on tour.
Charley: What are you working on now?
Garrett: This week? Edits, mainly. I have a book out with Riptide (Misfits) in the spring that’s in line edits right now, and I’ve just proofed the galley for Heart, that is out with Dreamspinner Press October 27th.
Writing wise, I’m working tentatively on a YA book. Whether it sees the light of day or not remains to be seen, but, who knows?
Cover art wise, I’m working on something top secret for Aleks Voinov.
Charley: What question have you always wished someone would ask in an interview?
Garrett: What are you wearing? ‘Cause the answer is probably nothing. I’m a great believer in walking around the house nekkid.
Just kidding…or am I???
Thanks for having me!
Slide, by Garrett Leigh
Excerpt:
Ash was Texan by birth, but his southern roots only laced his speech when he was too tired to repress them… too tired to block out all the horrible shit that kept an invisible barrier between us.
He was just seventeen when his friend Ellie found him drawing on the streets of Philadelphia. He was homeless and drew comic book characters on the sidewalk for money. The way she told it, he was one of the best street artists in the city, but he said he just did it to survive. Ellie was in college at the time, and she spent the next three years trying to get him to go to a shelter. Eventually, she got her way, and when she moved back to Chicago a few months later, she asked him to come with her. It took him a year of procrastination and pulling his shit together, but after finishing his tattoo apprenticeship in Philly, he did just that.
Living together was a huge adjustment for both of us. Some days I thought we’d cracked it, but others….
I draped the comforter over us and tucked it around his shoulders. He settled against me with his arm stretched out across my torso. I ran my hand absently along his bicep and enjoyed the rare moment. Though he could be tactile when his mood was right, he rarely cuddled up to me so freely. Most times, he preferred our positions reversed—him on his back with his arms around me.
Curious, I pressed a kiss to the top of his sweat-dampened head. “You okay?”
“Yeah, I just missed you.”
I smiled into the darkness. “I missed you too.”
A light hum was his only answer, so I held him a bit tighter and made the most of having him curled against me. After a while, I felt him shift. I opened my eyes and quirked an eyebrow, too mellow to speak. He just stared at me, but his blazing eyes told me what I knew he found so hard to articulate.
I put my hand to his head and nudged it back down with a sad smile.
Rafflecopter Prize: E-Book copy of Slide
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Or, if you’re into instant-gratification, you can buy your copy here:
Tour Stops:
9/12: Rainbow Gold Reviews, Nephylim, Iyana Jenna
9/19: Parker Williams, Velvet Panic, Jade Crystal
9/26: MM Good Book Reviews, Smoocher’s Voice, Cate Ashwood
10/3: EE Montgomery, Inked Rainbow Reads, Regular Guys, Hot Romance
10/10: My Fiction Nook, Book Reviews and More by Kathy, Scattered Thoughts & Rogue Words
10/17: Emotion in Motion, Queer Town Abbey, Foxylutely Book Reviews
10/24: Fallen Angel Reviews, The Blogger Girls, Love Bytes
10/31: Amanda C. Stone, Prism Book Alliance, The Novel Approach
Garrett Leigh is a British writer and book designer, currently working for Dreamspinner Press, Loose Id and Black Jazz Press. Her protagonists will always always be tortured, crippled, broken, and deeply flawed. Throw in a tale of enduring true love, some stubbly facial hair, and a bunch of tattoos, and you’ve got yourself a Garrett special.
When not writing, Garrett can generally be found procrastinating on Twitter, cooking up a storm, or sitting on her behind doing as little as possible. That, and dreaming up new ways to torture her characters. Garrett believes in happy endings; she just likes to make her boys work for it.
Garrett also works as a freelance cover artist for various publishing houses and independent authors under the pseudonym G.D. Leigh. For cover art info, please visit blackjazzpress.com
Contact Garrett:
Website: http://garrettleigh.com
Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/Garrett_Leigh
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/garrettleighbooks
Cover art enquiries: blackjazzdesign@gmail.com
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Cover Artist: G.D. Leigh
Charley Descoteaux 