ROAM has finally traveled from my dreams into the real world! Thank you so much to all of you that made the release week such a wonderful experience either by purchasing a copy, sending a lovely message, or both! It was the busiest week my notifications have ever seen and I truly appreciate all of you taking the time to show your support. It was also a week full of interviews, guest posts, and features.
With any big event there are always a few hiccups and one was entirely my fault. I scheduled a Launch Party for ROAM on Facebook and it was my first time to host an Event on that platform... I didn't realize that it was set up as a "private" event. Oops! So, to anyone that had a hard time accessing it or even figuring out where to go, I do sincerely apologize. I think next time I host a similar event, I'll just do it out in the open on Twitter. But to make up for it, I've compiled all of the segments from the Launch Party here in case you missed out!
*~ Launch Party Recap // Topics & Answers ~*
Discussing the Synopsis of the Book:
For those that are here to get familiarized with the book, ROAM is a M/M Dreampunk novel published through NineStar Press. I'll talk a little more later about the Dreampunk genre but here's the synposis of the story:
“Ethan Roam suffers from night terrors and vivid daydreams, which lead him to the doorstep of the eccentric Dr. Grady Hunter, who thrusts him into a world of supernatural misfits. Ethan quickly learns that there’s more reality to his dreams than he suspected.
As Ethan unravels the truth behind his nightmares and falls into his first experience with love, he also finds himself the target of a sinister plan.
Ethan’s trust in his new companions will be tested and he’ll have to decide who he can rely on and who he must defy in order to survive a fatal Halloween night.”
ROAM is about self-discovery and self-acceptance...also werewolves and vampires. :) It also takes place around Halloween so I'm thrilled it was able to get an October release.
Character Introductions:
Ethan Roam is the main protagonist of the story. He knows there's something different about himself and he's been struggling to bottle it up and ignore it but reaches a point where he conceeds that he will finally have to open up and face his fears. That's where the mysterious Dr. Grady Hunter comes in. Fascinated by his charm and the supernatural world he's engulfed in, Ethan becomes obsessed with unraveling the truth about his new companion and, in turn, learns the truth about himself.
A friend of mine said that they are a “Power Couple” and I love that idea. They do compliment each other very well. I think that's because they're virtually opposites in every possible way except in what matters most. Which is that, at their cores, they both want to do great good for the world. They're both have unique strengths and, as a team, that extrapolates. Grady is an endless resource of knowledge and has deep connections to the supernatural world. He's charismatic, quick-witted, agile, and calculating. I don't want to give away spoilers, so I'll just say, Ethan brings a lot to the table once he figures himself out. Grady's personality is much darker than Ethan's. Ethan is, essentially, the light in the darkness. He's this big ball of eternal optimism but he's also naïve and insecure. By accepting and trusting one another, they balance each other out and make each other better men than they were before they met.
ROAM's Supernatural Side:
ROAM is filled to the brim with supernatural creatures. From sandmen, to vampires, to werewolves; there's also a healthy dose of witches and ghosts. I really wanted to emphasis the level at which Grady had immersed himself into the paranormal at this stage in his life. He's not only constantly surrounded by these beings but, in many cases, they defer to him. I want the reader to ask themselves the same questions that Ethan is asking along the way. “Why is that? How can an ordinary human command such obedience from creatures, essentially, more powerful than him? And most importantly, why does he want to?” I hope that reason ends up be as shocking to the reader as it is to Ethan.
I pay homage to my favorite time period in literature in this way. That Victorian era with Gothic notions was enthusiastically explored. Monsters morphed into metaphors and humans transformed into predators. The most influential books to my own writing are “The Picture of Dorian Gray” (1890) by Oscar Wilde and “The Vampyre” (1819) by John William Polidori.
Discussing Dreampunk:
One of the settings of this book is the Dream World. In the ROAM mythos, the Dream World is a real (or surreal) place that serves as a gateway to not only the universal subconscious but also other planes of existence. It functions much like an alien planet and is pulsing with magical energy. It's the first stop on a journey for any dream traveler.
Writing Dreampunk is incredibly satisfying because it's still a relatively young subgenre and there aren't many established rules. In fact, “no rules” is essentially one of its rules since, just like dreams, the only limit is how far you can push your own imagination. For a story to constitute as Dreampunk it only needs to have its plot or setting centered around dreams in some way. A few people feel that it needs to utilize dreams as a form of science but, overall, most fans of the genre don't feel that's absolutely necessary. However, Dreampunk does tend to show up most in Science Fiction with Horror as a close second. ROAM utilizes dreams as a supernatural element and dream travel as a superpower.
* ~ End of Launch Party ~ *
Other things you may have missed during release week:
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Thank you again for showing your support on release week! If you've already finished reading ROAM, please consider leaving a review on Amazon and/or Goodreads. The amount of reviews a book gets (no matter what star rating) helps authors immensely with getting the book in front of more readers. I appreciate all of you that take the time to do this. It doesn't have to be a long review. One sentence. Even one word helps. :)
And if you still need to grab a copy, I've got you covered!
~ Dez ~
