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GIVEAWAY ENDEDA JOLLY GOOD FELLOW
BY STEPHEN V. MASSE
Two weeks before Christmas, Duncan Wagner gets into his car for another attempt at kidnapping the son of his most despised enemy, State Representative Win Booker. When he drives into the wealthy Boston suburb, he is surprised to find the boy hitchhiking.
So begins Wagner’s quest for revenge as he finds himself face to face with a real boy, and without a clue about how to run a kidnapping. Wagner, a self-styled charity Santa Claus, comes to realize that eleven year old Gabriel Booker is truly a runaway, much more curious than scared. Gabriel has no idea who Duncan Wagner is—or could be.
Stephen V. Masse was born in Boston, Massachusetts. Educated at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, he studied creative writing and historical biography, and was the author of a weekly column, “Out of Control.” His first novel, Shadow Stealer, was published by Dillon Press in 1988. When not writing, he restores and renovates homes in the Boston area, and serves as an ambassador each year in the Santa Claus Anonymous fundraising benefit. You can visit his website at www.ajollygoodfellowthebook.com. I am so happy to have been able to interview Stephen V. Masse for my blog today. Stephen's book A JOLLY GOOD FELLOW is the Winner of the 2008 Independent Publisher Book Awards Silver Medal for Best Regional Fiction in the U. S. as well as Winner of Honorable Mention in the 2008 New England Book Festival, Best Books of the Holiday Season in Fiction.
In that I have family in Amherst, I am very well aware of the prestige that comes along with being a graduate of U.Mass and of winning an award in any area of New England where I do believe you can find an accomplished author every fifty feet! I was sorry I missed my first day of the tour and as I told Stephen yesterday, I could say I missed the plane but really I was having to much fun in the E. R. so hopefully you all can get lots of information about Stephen and his wonderful book today. And, yes, I will also try and make up for it with my own special giveaway in his honor today!
Now on to Stephen. Can you tell us, if it isn't a secret, what you have been working on lately?
Just last Friday afternoon (December 4) I signed the final proof for my latest book, Short Circus, which is now being printed for January publication.
What have you just finished reading?
Garrison Keillor’s A Christmas Blizzard. A very engaging book, humorous and thoughtful.
I have heard that. So what books would you say have made the biggest impression on you, especially starting out?
Probably Harper Lee’s To Kill A Mockingbird, Mark Twain’s Huckleberry Finn and Pudd’nhead Wilson.
That's some very good choices. How about what gets you started on a new book? A character or story idea or….?
This is a great question, because I think it’s a combination of things that gets me started. Probably first is the story idea or inspiration, second is a blend of characters and situations that help construct the plot, and the third is the desire to see what unfolds as the story is written for the first time ever.
On a more personal note, what is something about you that you would want people to know about you that we probably don’t know?
By day I’m a self-employed home remodeling contractor, and have supported my writing habit for 30 years by this profession.
Now that just takes away all my excuses for not having time to write. With new writers in mind, what is your best advice to anyone, including young people, who want to be writers?
Get a good day job! No joke – even though I might wish for great success for every writer, the reality is that one in a thousand writers makes a living just by writing.
I think you are the first author to give me such a practical answer and I appreciate that. Lastly, what is something you would like to share with us about writing your favorite genre in general?
My favorite genre mixes up biography, suspense, drama, and some romance all into a pot which I call “reality fiction.” The story should feel real, as if it really happened. One of my most gratifying moments was when a reader told me, “I know all those characters,” after he read A Jolly Good Fellow.
I want to thank you for your time and wonderful interview. I hope all my readers will be able to read your work very soon. Much success to you, Steven, and have a happy holiday season and wonderful New Year!
THANKS TO PUMP UP YOUR BOOK
PROMOTIONS FOR A COPY OF
STEPHEN'S BOOK
A JOLLY GOOD FELLOW
I AM A GENTLE READER AND
BECAUSE YOU ALL WERE SO
KIND TO EXCUSE MY LATENESS
AND ABSENCE I AM GOING TO
PASS THAT LIKE-NEW COPY ON
TO ONE OF MY LUCKY READERS.
IN ADDITION!
ONE LUCKY WINNER WILL RECEIVE
A COPY TO STEPHEN'S NEW BOOK
SHORT CIRCUS
CLICK THE COVER FOR MORE INFOTHIS BOOK IS DUE OUT IN
JANUARY AND THE LUCKY
WINNER WILL RECEIVE A BOOK
I PERSONALLY WILL BUY AND
SEND TO THEM.
OF THE TWO WINNERS,
THE FIRST ONE WILL HAVE
THEIR CHOICE OF WHICH
BOOK THEY WANT!
RULES!
--U.S. RESIDENTS ONLY
--NO P. O. BOXES PLEASE
--EMAIL ADDRESS MUST BE INCLUDED
IN YOUR ENTRY
--ALL ENTRIES MUST BE SEPARATE OR
ELSE THEY COUNT ONLY AS ONE!
HOW TO ENTER:+1 MORE ENTRY: GO TO STEPHEN'S WEBSITE AND READ ABOUT HIS BOOKS AND COME BACK AND TELL ME SOMETHING ABOUT EITHER A JOLLY GOOD FELLOW OR SHORT CIRCUS
6 PM, EST, DECEMBER 16
13 comments:
From reading about A Jolly Good Fellow at Stephen's website, it sounds like the kind of book where the kidnapper gets more than he bargained for in kidnapping a runaway boy, but also a story where he and the boy will help each other out, even if that wasn't the original intent. Thanks for the giveaway.
glenn_pessano AT yahoo DOT com
Sounds like a fun plot! Would you say the "villain" is actually a likable character? And do you generally see the good in people?
janemaritz at yahoo dot com
I would ask....
Do you ever put personal experiences into your books, or give book characters the characteristics of friends?
mtakala1 AT yahoo DOT com
A reviewer said Jolly Good Fellow was a heartwarming story of friendship between a young child and a lonely adult. This sounds like a good holiday story.
mtakala1 AT yahoo DOT com
I would like to know how long does it take to complete a novel from research topublication, considering that he has a full time physical job.
enyl(at)inbox(dot)com
I would like to ask Stephen about his relationship with his editor, and why he selected the one he did.
bgcchs(at)yahoo(dot)com
On Stephen's website I learned that A Jolly Good Fellow was the winner of the Silver Medal in the 2008 Independent Publisher Book Awards
Best Fiction -- U. S. Northeast Region and it received Honorable Mention in the 2008 New England Book Festival for Best Books of the Holiday Season -- fiction.
Karen, it is so generous of you to give up your own copy.
bgcchs(at)yahoo(dot)com
I would ask Stephen....
Have you started a new book yet or is there down time in between books? do you get story ideas from the people you do work for?
dcf_beth at verizon dot net
Jolly Good Fellow sounds like such a good book. I really want to know why the kidnapper wanted to kndnap the child in the first place. Why that child?
dcf_beth at verizon dot net
I would ask him what inspired him to start writing.
aksimmo@brainerd(dot)net
Short Circus is set in a small toen north of Boston and the main character is named Jem Lockwood.
I would like to ask him what is something he did in school when he was a little kid that got him in trouble.
nancyecdavis AT bellsouth DOT net
Short Circus is about the author's adventures with his big brother Jesse
nancyecdavis AT bellsouth DOT net
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