**August Fog by A. L. Goulden**
Good Morning,
Everyone! So thrilled to see you all today! Today we have a fun Interview with
a new-to-me author. I love interviews because you tend to find out a lot about
the person behind the book. It’s always fun getting to know who created a story
you have read or could possibly read. Maybe it even is the reason you choose to
read a particular book. So let’s find out more! Please allow me to feature on
the blog A. L. Goulden and her latest release, THE AUGUST FOG … Plus, a GIVEAWAY!
**A. L. GOULDEN**
**BIO**
Author
of the “most realistic, often hilarious, and wonderfully romantic” (Rosie
Malezer, international best- selling author) Chasing Swells returns with
another emotionally charged and complicated love story about a Hollywood
editor struggling with depression who meets her soulmate while she's
married to her high-school sweetheart. This unique trilogy takes you
through one woman's mid-life crisis as she stumbles and falls apart before
realizing she's the only one who can put her pieces back together.
To
find out more about Ms. Goulden please visit:
**THE AUGUST FOG**
Publication
date:
August 1st, 2020
Series:
August Fog #1
Genres: Adult, Contemporary,
Romance, Women’s Fiction
**BLURB**
Monica Waters has 31 days to
choose between the love of her life or her soulmate. Juggling an unglamorous
Hollywood career and a clumsy injury with an endless cocktail of
antidepressants and dull daily routines, Monica moves through her thirties in a
fog, avoiding the pain of her damaged marriage, broken body, and fragile
mind.
Until he comes along.
When emerging artist Quinn Matthews moves next door, just
coping with the downward spiral of life is no longer feasible. Their powerful
connection ignites a relationship that will tip the boundaries of their
perfectly balanced lives, sparking a mutual obsession and life-altering affair.
Monica tosses her prescriptions, striving to be free of their
control, but with each passing summer day, dangerous secrets seep into their
quiet suburban life, inching toward disaster. Sometimes the truth is
hidden for a reason.
“This
is a contemporary tale of a woman’s struggle to navigate love and mental
illness, while defining where and how she will land on her own feet.” --Independent
Reader
"A raw and honest look at the ugly secrets behind a flawed marriage and
the stigmas of depression."
**INTERVIEW**
By A. L. Goulden
1. What does
your writing process look like? Do you know the whole story when you start? Or
do you just start writing and go with it (seat of the pants writing)? If you
plan it out, how do you do that? Outline, notecards, post-it-notes, etc?
I usually start with a theme or
relationship concept then develop the main characters that I think would
encounter these issues. For instance, in the August Fog trilogy I wanted to
address some very difficult topics that people tend to shy away from like
adultery and depression but show them in a way that gained sympathy and
understanding. My goal wasn’t to sway people to accept or condone the behavior
but to feel enough connection to the characters to empathize for their
situation. We have a tendency to avoid things that make us uncomfortable, yet
those moments of understanding are opportunities to grow. I’m a plotter but I
allow myself wiggle room to change directions. Sometimes you get into a
conversation or scene and you think, “that’s not what that character would do,”
and you realize the plan needs to be adjusted. Overall, I have an end-goal and
a structured pace I try to nail, but it’s all fluid. I use Scrivener to write
and organize my scenes but I always have a separate composition book dedicated
to each novel or series. Writing ideas out by hand is cructial to me. It
stimulates the creative part of my brain that brainstorms some crazy ideas! I
definitely have post-its all over my office but they never involve story ideas,
they’re reminders for me to mail something or post something. I love taking
them down and feeling like I accomplished something.
2.
How long
have you been writing?
I wrote my first book in 2014
when I was laid up on a couch with a broken ankle that wouldn’t heal. Yes, that
is the opening predicament Monica Waters finds herself in at the beginning of
August Fog. That series has more of me and my life in it than any other but no,
I have not cheated on my husband and no, I am not clinically depressed. I do
however have intimate knowledge of numerous people who’ve dealt with both
issues and I found their path fascinating.
3.
What common
thread runs through all of your books?
I love exploring the moment in a
women’s life when there is a fork in the road and she’s forced to make a
decision that will change her life. Taking a journey through the lens of a
woman who’s established in her career and possibly in her relationships with
husbands and kids is fascinating to me. I think we all read to escape but we
also want to relate and who can’t relate to at least daydreaming of a different
life. Even when you’re sublimely happy and it’s all roses, diving into the
what-if is fun. I also try to incorporate strong female friendships that show
the power of reinforcement because all too often female characters are pitted
towards one another as enemies when in reality that is not the case.
4.
What tips do
you have for aspiring writers?
Write every day. Read every day,
even if it’s only 3 pages. Read and learn about writing craft. Pay for
professional editing. Meet and collaborate with other authors. Don’t rush to
self-publish until you are 100% certain your books are ready. Network. Be kind
and participate in the community. It’s not enough to “like” an Instagram post,
comment and often. Comment on blogs. Growing a community of writers lifts you
up when you have those hard times… they won’t let you quit.
5.
Favorite
Genres:
I love and read thrillers and
women’s fiction the most but I love to throw in a Rom-Com and a few True Crime
or Memoirs in to make sure my reading is mixed.
6.
Favorite
Authors:
There are too many to list them all but lately my favs have been: Taylor Jenkins Reid, Janelle Brown, Riley Sager, Kiley Reid, Michael Robotham, Chandler Baker, Lyssa Kay Adams, Dennis Lehane, Nick Petrie
7. Top 5 Favorite Films:
1. When Harry Met Sally 2.
Shallow Grave 3. Fletch 4. The Big Sleep (a fav book too) 5. Tie between Zodiac
(almost anything by Fincher) & Michael Clayton
8. What is or was your “day job” before writing?
I have not left my career as a
Production Designer in film and television. I have a designer and art director
for over eighteen years and I still love it. I just have to find balance and I
do not take as many projects as I used to.
9. Has your “day job” influenced your work as an author?
Definitely. I get inspiration
for pacing, lighting, mood, tension, décor, etc. from entertainment all the
time. Above all, I love a story. I’m always designing the environment a
character will inhabit whether it’s a physical world for an actor or an
imaginary one for a reader. I consider both equally important.
10. Dream Cast for August Fog?
In a dream world, Kate Winslet
or Christina Hendricks would be the ultimate choice for Monica Waters. Both are
curvy and can carry a gloriously flawed character to redemption. As for Alex,
you can see on my Pinterest board that I always imagined Jason Statham for that
role but there are a lot of actors who can fill his strong, conflicted shoes.
And Quinn… well maybe William Levy or Colton Haynes, although there’s a joking
reference to Chris Pine in the book and despite his age being a little past the
character, he’d be amazing in the role. Quinn’s body has to be well defined to
show off the one, infamous body tattoo and his blue eyes need to glow. He
should also need to be taller than Monica.
11. Has your “day job” influenced your work as an author?
Definitely. I get inspiration
for pacing, lighting, mood, tension, décor, etc. from entertainment all the
time. Above all, I love
12. Links to Book+Main bites
If you’re a romance fan and
you’re familiar with Book+Main bites, here's a link to my bites.
13. 5 Things I learned while writing August Fog:
1. I did a lot of research on
medications used by chronically depressed people and was intrigued by the
side-effects. Those horrible conditions that are blitzed by us in
pharmaceutical commercials are so daunting when incorporated into a character’s
life. I learned what doses and time frames each medication takes to affect
various outlets of a person’s life like sleep and sex drive. It only deepened
my sympathy for those who struggle to live with the disease. 2. I went down a
Tears for Fears wormhole one day. I remembered the songs on one of their albums
was based on a psychologist’s therories but I had no idea even the band’s named
was derived from The Primal Scream, psychologist Arthur Janov’s detailed theory
of neuroses that adults carry from repressed childhood trauma. To me, even
though this was deeper than I planned to go, the nerdy fact fit Monica’s
younger personality. I used this knowledge to connect to Quinn’s own intellect
and fuse them into a serious conversation about the past. 3. Love really is
complicated. I spoke to a few people I knew that went through infidelity and
asked them about their feelings looking back on the affair. There was never a
cut and dry answer and never one without threads to other problems. I used the
idea of those threads in Quinn’s art and in his observation of Monica’s eyes.
Little details to show how intricate our connections are and how easy it is to
overlook them. 4. I can’t write to what the market wants or expects. The
subject of infidelity and love are seldom tackled in a realistic way in
mass-market fiction but I’m okay with that. I needed to get this story out of
me and create this epic love-story that is never easy. It’s never neat and
clean. But it’s so right that all the wrong turns to capture it are worth the
risk. 5. Humor is inherently part of my writer’s voice. Even when the story is
at its most serious, I instinctually throw in humor or sarcasm. I was raised to
laugh even at the bad stuff and when I’ve tried to stifle that part of me, my
writing becomes stale and robotic. I usually have at least one character that is
a bit of a smartass, but in this one, you’ll get a few who’ll make you smile.
14. If you could travel in a time machine where would you go back to
the past or into the future?
As a music lover, I’d have to
say the past. I would have loved to have seen Queen at Wimbley or Bob Marley
anywhere. Maybe I’d even want to go to Woodstock and feel the love.
15. If you were stranded on a
desert island what 3 things would you want with you?
Books. (Can that be one thing?
Like a loaded kindle or a few hundred paperbacks?) My husband. (Not a thing but
he’s amusing and handy.) A notebook w/pen (again I’m breaking the rules because
that’s actually two things but they go together like peas and carrots.)
16. What is one book everyone should read?
Where The Crawdads Sing and mine
of course J
17. If you could have any superpower what would you choose?
Is peacemaking a superpower?
Seems like it these days since we have a void in leadership in so many facets
of life.
18. What is your favorite thing to eat for breakfast?
Smoked salmon on a bagel with
all the fixins
19. What books are reading now?
I read a lot so follow my
Instagram page and BookBub recommendations to always know what I’m into. I’ve
been doing the #StampedFromTheBeginning buddy read and just finished a Riley
Sager backlist read before tackling his latest book, Home Before Dark.
20. What’s your favorite season?
Fall. The colors. The flavors.
The scares. I love it all.
21. Any pet peeves?
How long do you have? Lately
it’s the sound of my dogs licking themselves but I think this pandemic has
decreased my threshold of tolerance in a lot of areas. I have an acute sense of
smell that people around me either hate or find amusing but it’s a curse. I can
smell things, unpleasant things, from so far away. Often my peeves lean into
this area.
22. Beach or Pool?
Both have water so I’m in.
23. M&Ms or Skittles?
M&Ms
24. Favorite Ice Cream?
Ben & Jerry’s New York
Superfudge Chunk
25. Other books in the works?
Yes. After this trilogy, look
for my first thriller series, Fate of the Unwilling, to release under my other
pen name Amy Lee, then watch for my historical thriller in 2021, The Fires
Before Dawn. (Synopsis of both below) Fate of the Unwilling by Amy Lee –
Release November 24, 2020 Erin Brockovich + Michael Clayton After New York
attorney, Emma Brayden, blows the whistle on a large baby food company, she
wakes in the woods of Washington State with no memory of who she is, or how she
got there. She is captivated by Silas Wayland, a deaf man in the small harbor
town who feels familiar and gives her comfort, but his secret career as a
foreign surveillance agent forces him to conceal their previous connection.
When his brother shows up with a badge and a lot of questions, both discover
their secrets are only as warm as the lies they tell. As disturbing, violent
memories return linking Emma to a corporate cover-up and blackmail, her
vindication lies in obtaining the evidence to take down the men who wanted her
silent. Silas, the only person qualified to help, wavers between her and loyalty
to our country until he discovers their atrocities affected his four-year-old
daughter. The Fires Before Dawn by A.L. Goulden – Release date TBD 2021 A love
story doomed by the ill-fated city from which it bloomed. In 1906 San
Francisco, Lillian Rutledge dared to be a lawyer and a voice for change,
knowing she had to play the political game better than the men in order to
achieve her greatest ambitions. Austin Whitmore was a newspaper playboy who
knew the only way to save his great city from the depths of corruption was to
call-out political liars to his friends in DC. They were from two different
worlds, viewing justice and law from two very different angles, yet they could
not resist flirting with the balance of power, or each other, once their spark
was lit. Together they embark on a partnership to expose the city's unfettered
graft and give in to a passionate love affair, unaware their western metropolis
is about to be hit by the most destructive natural disaster in American
history. When the great earthquake and fires plow through the city, Lillian
learns the men she worked with are far more dangerous than any catastrophic
event and will not hesitate to eliminate them both in a lawless town. Their
dangerous quest leaves them hunting powerful adversaries as the smoke settles
to reveal how corruption left half the city homeless and prove to the world
that San Francisco will survive on equal ground. Fast-paced and riveting with
historical detail, Quake and Fire invokes the Gilded Age of San Francisco in the
days before it all fell apart. Journey through a love story that questioned the
price of power and a woman's place in it, only to bring about the most
astonishing rebirth of any city in the world.
Buy Links
**TRAILER**
**EXCERPTS**
Despite having just eaten, her stomach felt empty when his smile faded and his steady gaze grew intense. This man was not afraid of a stare but, of course, he excelled at it. His waters ran deeper than she could wade so she pulled back. “I always imagined painfully slow dance movements that were not just seductive but Cirque du Soleil kinda shit. I mean, if you’re going to fantasize about that sort of thing, might as well go for epic skill.” Her attempt to make light was ignored. He hit play and watched, daring her to fall deep into the dark dream she created. While he may have been imagining her twirling around a pole, she felt exposed in a very different way. The dark song about change and selfdestruction had been a reflection of her college self every bit as her right now. She felt transparent like he could see every weakness. And she let him. At one point, his mouth opened to take in the thinning oxygen. He looked vulnerable and obedient but by the end of the fiveminute song, she lost all control to him. In the past, when Monica dared to do something scary, like move to a new city alone or get married, she did a physical challenge that usually involved testing her fear of heights. It resulted in bungee jumping from a crane or skydiving but not even a space flight could counter what she was about to do. The next song was no accident or random shuffle but it was a message tailored to her. Radiohead’s “All I Need" sauntered between them and he motioned to his drawing pad. She nodded and when he slid his easel over, she stood to drop her dress. She never felt more terrified, nor more alive. Quinn’s expression was new. It wasn’t lust or admiration or even pleasure… it was devotion. How pure it seemed. She never knew this kind of connection. No matter what happened, he would always be the one. The only soul in this world who really examined and accepted her. The burgundy lace panties stayed. It felt like the moment to take them off gracefully had passed, so if he wanted them gone, he would have to make it happen. “How do you want me?” she asked. He cleared his throat a few times, breaking his usual coolness. “You can stay there… on the futon. If you want. Whatever’s comfortable.” He tried to sound professional, pretending to itch his leg and fidgeting with his paper. “Like in Titanic?” she said, flashing a smirk. She turned away from him and crossed the room without a strategy or plan, but she loved the power. The distance helped too. She took a stance by the window, leaning her shoulder against the dormer’s angled ceiling, reminiscent of the final Venus painting they admired at the Getty. There was no Cupid or Mars with her though. She was all alone in the colorful light, safely away from his strings. That’s what she thought at first anyway. He ripped through sheet after sheet of paper until he settled into a sketch that consumed him. His jaw flexed and he used his fingers in frantic motions, shading and perfecting his vision. But his ability to be lost in that moment, in her, removed all control. Her arms fell asleep as her nerve whittled and she eyed the dress still hanging halfway off the futon. “Please come lie down,” he said. She dropped her arms with a shake before crossing them over her chest, defeated. Shyness was sinking in and she was wilting. Quinn adjusted the futon backs, so they laid flat, then sat back behind the easel. He flipped the page and waited for her to settle onto the hard leather island in a pool of light. She was tempted to put the dress back on, but that would be a wrap. She pondered her pose and settled for one leg bent, one hand on her stomach, and the other playing with her hair spread across the bed. “Perfection,” he whispered. She could feel him breathe at first, even five feet away, then he started drawing and became invisible. Only the feverous scratching of charcoal fought for attention over the flawlessly timed Sade. The leather warmed to her skin and soon the perk of her breasts started to relax. When she pinched them firm and he stopped, she felt a rush. Her hands folded back into position with her nipples high and firm so he resumed. She ran her fingers across her stomach, just above the lace and he stopped again. “We should take a break.” She wasn’t sure if a break was code for ‘put her dress on,’ but she didn’t move when he got up. It had been childish to taunt him, but everything between them felt like a game. She waited to see if he’d go downstairs but he wiped the black charcoal from his hands and scrolled through his phone. “Are you okay?” she asked. “I am. Are you?” “Yes.” A complete lie. “Do you feel ashamed when you’re naked?” That question prompted her to turn onto her stomach. It was too heavy to answer upside down. “Why?” she asked, looking at her nails. He tapped a book on his desk that she couldn’t see. “I’ve been reading about shame and how it’s taught to boys and girls differently. It’s ingrained in religion and survival and…” He turned towards her and crossed his arms, leaning against the desk. “It’s just interesting to me.” “Is this little session supposed to lessen my shame? Get a woman naked to build confidence?” “I didn’t tell you to take off your clothes.” His words were sharp, but not angry. “You didn’t get upset when they were gone either.” His head shot back. “Of course not. Do you have any idea how beautiful you are? I’d stare at you for days—years—if I could.” His last words faded but instead of running or distracting with a joke the way she would, Quinn uncrossed his arms and gave in to his vulnerability. The temperature in the room did not soothe her anymore. She had to peel her skin from the leather to stand. Her feet moved towards him without consideration. She was on autopilot, ready to crash land. “I don’t ever want you to feel pressured or obligated to do anything,” he said. She reached for his shirt. “I’m here because I want to be.” She lifted the piece of clothing that was intentionally worn to make her feel safe and tossed it on the desk behind him. He closed his eyes when she ran her hands up his chest, absorbing his warmth, and gave a slight shake of his head as he whispered, “I could’ve found a way to live with just admiring you from a distance.” “But I couldn’t.” She gripped the waistband of his jeans and pulled until his hands cupped her face. Their lips came together slowly, testing where they would land for the first, then second time. Like everything between them, each attempt only got better, but she wasn’t prepared to want this forever. In all the years that she toyed with the fantasy of a revenge affair or one-night stand, Monica worried that each kiss or touch would lead to comparisons, which in turn would ruin the seduction. But, Alex never entered her mind. From the moment she felt Quinn’s skin, he consumed her.
**GIVEAWAY**
Blitz-wide Giveaway (INT)
$25 Amazon Gift
Card
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