Welcome back to the virtual book tour for Damned If You Do! I’m JL Merrow, and our lovely host has been kind enough to interview me about life as an author today. I made sure to bring along a giveaway—leave a comment below by 11:59 pm on 6/28 and you’ll be entered in a week-long contest to win a $10 gift certificate to Riptide! Follow the tour all week for more Damned If You Do celebrations, including more interviews, thoughts from editor Sarah Frantz, and, of course, more chances to win.
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Hi and welcome! Thanks for stopping by to visit today. We have a few fun questions about life as an author
You’ve published a ton of stories. What do you think is the best part of being an author?
I love the way research, or even just the writing process, can lead you down all kinds of alleyways you never knew existed. Books, for me, grow organically.
What’s the worst part?
Even now, it’s this: that moment of despair I get partway through every novel when I’m convinced it’s terrible, it’s full of plot holes, I’ll never get it finished and no one will want to read it even if I do.
What’s the strangest response you’ve received from people when you tell them that you are an author?
“I don’t read books.”
What gets me is that often, people appear to be proud of this!
Is there one question you wish people would ask you when you tell them that you are an author?
“Where can I buy your books?” 😉
Ha! Thank you for coming by and sharing with us today.
It was a blast! Thank you for helping me celebrate Damned If You Do. I hope everyone enjoys this story—Rael and Lars are very dear to me.
Sexy male succubus Rael has an insatiable appetite for men that gets him into all kinds of trouble. And he’s just found his favorite flavor: hunky blond detective Lars Thornsson. When those cool Nordic looks combine with Rael’s smoldering dark charms, all Hell could break loose.
Lars’s job at the Paranormal Enforcement Agency means he’s supposed to be policing demons, not falling in lust—or love—with them. But there’s something about this feisty little sex demon that hits all his buttons.
With no shortage of deadly sinners in his city, from serial-killing succubi to drug-dealing demons, all Lars can do is try to keep his private life from interfering with his work. But Rael has a knack for getting mixed up in cases that threaten both their domestic harmony and their lives.
Damned If You Do can be purchased from Riptide here.
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. Her one regret is that she never mastered the ability of punting one-handed whilst holding a glass of champagne.
She writes across genres, with a preference for contemporary gay romance and the paranormal, and is frequently accused of humour. Her novella Muscling Through is a 2013 EPIC ebook Award finalist. She is a member of the UK GLBTQ Fiction Meet organising team.
Find JL Merrow online at: http://www.jlmerrow.com, on Twitter as @jlmerrow, and on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/jl.merrow.
Thanks so much for hosting me – it’s great to be here today! 😀
I’d love to hear from readers – is there a response you dread when you tell people what you do for a living? Or one you’d love to hear, but never do?
I’m an English Major University Student and whenever people ask me what I study and tell them, the most dreaded and common question I get is: “Well, only English?” and “What can you use it for?”
It’s a sure a winner each and every time, haha. Sad thing is, I am slowly getting used to it. The last question wouldn’t be so bad, if it wasn’t because people often sound completely uninterested when they ask me. :p
I wish the more common question would be: “Interesting, what do YOU wish to do with it?” instead, because that would open a world of possibilities for me to talk about. 😉
Thank you for dropping by, JL Merrow. ^_^
It has been interesting following you on this tour and I wish you the best of luck with Riptide at your back. Now, I won’t have to ask where to buy your books. ;D
Hi Astrid! Ouch. I can see why you’re not too pleased with those reactions! Do you ever get, “Oh, that’s just reading books all day, isn’t it?” >(
I think there’s a sad tendency to undervalue arts subjects when compared with science subjects, despite the fact an awful lot of science graduates don’t go on to use their degree subject in their career – I’m a case in point! I hope you’re enjoying your studies, anyway – that’s the main thing. 🙂
“I don’t read books”?!!!!
I must admit, I laughed my head off at that one – we are a houseful of readers who have turned to nooks and kindles as there just isn’t space if we all bought paperbacks. And I can’t blame the other three – I’m the only adult in the household!!!
Would love to win voucher but am a regular a Riptide regardless!!
Hi, Skargasm! Yes, the first time I got “I don’t read books” from someone I’d known for a while and always thought to be a perfectly sensible person, I have to admit it changed my perception of them a bit! I can’t imagine not reading books, either. I’ve always lived in a house full of paperbacks and made full use of the local library besides. And yes, e-readers are a Godsend for those of us with a serious book-buying problem! 😉
Nice interview. No, I don’t
bn100candg at hotmail dot com
That “I don’t read books” anecdote is completely depressing (and I hear similar things, so I don’t know why it shocks me). I was an art history major, so I hear the “what did you get out of that?” question all the time. I think they actually smirk at me when I start telling them how it affected the way I analyze things, and think in general…sheesh.
vitajex(at)aol(dot)com
It depresses me too, how some people just don’t want their eyes opened to new worlds. 🙁
Art history fascinates me. I’ve never studied it, but I’ve read books on it, and it was a real eye-opener to see how much art reflects world view at the time. 🙂
Thanks for the heads up on this new to me author!
I don’t read much m/m, but you are one of the exceptions – I love your books! I’m an accountant, which even I will admit is not the most exciting profession in the world, but it’s really funny how many people say, “Really, I would never have guessed, you seem like so much fun!”. I mean, how am I supposed to respond to that?
Heh, as a chartered accountant myself (no longer practising, unless people ask me nicely) I’m delighted to hear you’re helping to demolish the stereotype of beancounters as dull-as-ditchwater types! But yes, a bit of a tough one to respond to gracefully. It’s a bit like when someone you see every day says “You look nice today…” 😉
I don’t know what to say to people who say they don’t read books. Maybe just, “Wow are you missing out!” Love that “one wish for a question” answer, JL!
Thanks for sharing with us!
Perhaps we should just commiserate, and point out local adult literacy courses? 😉
Glad you enjoyed! 😀
I was totally caught by surprise on reading ” I don’t read books!”
Is it even possible ???? LOL
Best Wishes,
Sydney W
Bookaddict100(AT)gmail(DOT)com
Sadly, more than one person I know well is of the don’t-read-books persuasion. And I’m still struggling to understand. Ooh, I can feel a new character brewing… 😉