Top 5 Ask Me Anything: London Book Fair, Authors, Novels, Food, Travel

As promised, I have accumulated the top 5 questions from my valued readers.  In the "Ask Me Anything" challenge, some of you came up with really interesting questions that made me blush. I am happy to say, those are not in the top 5 most asked questions, so I dodged a bullet.  That is the number 1 reason I issue the challenge, then give a quick turn around on the time frame.

I limit your ability to organize!  It's a self-preservation thing.

Without further ado, here are the questions and answers in order of least to most asked.

5) When did you first become fascinated by the mafia?  This question was first asked by a lady from Oklahoma, and then we had several more issue a variation of the same question from Oregon, Mississippi, and New Zealand.

I first became fascinated by the mafia through movies and family stories.  My family is from the New York area with historical roots in Palermo, Sicily. There are no shortages of tales about run-ins with mafia members, friends who were "hit", and guys who knew guys.  I remember being fairly young, maybe twelve or so, and watching Goodfellas and The Godfather. I couldn't help but root for the anti-heroes. From there, it was as if some part of my Italian heritage identified with the more normal aspects of the families in those movies.  The big family, the pasta dinners, the music, it all felt familiar but with this shroud of secrecy and tension that made those normal events seem more interesting. I was hooked.

4) You often talk about The London Book Fair.  As an author, what happens there and is it that valuable, did you go this year, and will you go next year?  This question was issued in three parts from a few different people.  The cities that combine to make this question are New York, Oxford, Boise, Chattanooga, Tampa, and Cardiff.

Yes I have gone to the London Book Fair several years in a row.  It is a great place to go and to meet people in the industry.  They have stations set up where you can gather information about every aspect of writing and publishing. Usually, I mingle with a few clients from my publishing business, Pubshelf while my counterpart, Thomas Humphreys makes new contacts and does the handshaking and kissing of babies.

I really enjoy it because London is such a nice city and the hotels are lovely, not to mention you can make so many connections.  This year the hotel of choice was Kensington Close Hotel and Spa.  I holed up with the fine people of Peracto Prepress there for about five days, going through all the "ins and outs" of, well you name it. You literally lock the doors, order room service, and get down to business. We did manage to escape the expo and the hotel long enough to explore the Westfield Mall in London, where one of the editors literally bought 1.5 kilograms or 3 lbs of a variety of nuts!  No lie.

The London Book Fair at Olympia, West London

Taking pics of someone taking pics of room service

At Westfield's Mall, London

3) Favorite author and why?  This question came from all over.  Eleven different cities asked this question, so I will just list the first one as a shoutout.  Christy Lawson got the question in first, out of Tennessee.

I actually have so many favorite authors but there are a few that I remember as most significant. J.R.R. Tolkien was the first author to really capture my imagination, followed by R.A. Salvatore, C.S. Lewis, and most recently G.R.R. Martin.  The world crafting is something that I admire. Outside of fantasy fiction, Dennis Lehane is one of my favorites for gritty crime fiction as well as Michael Connelly.

Author Michael Connelly and Author Nicholas Denmon

2) What is my favorite meal?  I should have known this would be asked a lot with all the "food porn" that I post. I am fairly simple as a meat and potato guy.  A nice filet mignon with maybe a few grilled shrimp, some broccoli, and garlic mashed potatoes really makes a perfect meal. Put a scotch or a glass of Malbec next to it and you have a happy man.

Perfect dinner

1) When is Ashes to Ashes coming out?  I hear you.  It has been forever.  I promise it is closer than you think. Hey, I even have the artwork done.  I am putting out The Hundred Heartbreaks of Harlan Halifax, and then soon after Ashes to Ashes will be out. Tentatively? I think August is realistic.

Ashes to Ashes Cover

Thanks so much for participating! I never thought so many of you would have questions.  Here are a few of the more humorous ones to come in:

Have you ever seen a chicken strip?

Boxers or briefs?

Why do men have nipples?

Are mermaids real?

Why do dogs eat grass if it makes them throw up?

...and a variety of crude things I won't replicate even though they made me laugh.

-TTFN Denmonites!

Punch Cancer In The Mouth!

It is that time of year again.  I am doing the Relay for Life tonight and can use any support that the Denmonites can offer.  Whether or not it is merely sharing the link below, or if it is donating some of your hard earned money for a great cause, I thank you.

 

We all know of a loved one that has succumbed to cancer, and this is our way to punch cancer right in the mouth, where it hurts.  We hit the track tonight at 6pm EST and every dollar counts.

What is Relay?

 

In May 1985, Dr. Gordy Klatt walked and ran for 24 hours around a track in Tacoma, Washington, ultimately raising $27,000 to help the American Cancer Society fight the nation’s biggest health concern cancer. A year later, 340 supporters joined the overnight event. Since those first steps, the Relay For Life movement has grown into a worldwide phenomenon, raising nearly $5 billion to fight cancer.

 

What We Do:

• Organized, overnight community fundraising walk
• Teams of people camp out around a track
• Members of each team take turns walking around the track
• Food, games and activities provide entertainment and build camaraderie
• Family-friendly environment for the entire community

How Can I Donate?

 

Simple!  Just cut and paste the link below or click here.

 

http://main.acsevents.org/goto/PunchCancerInTheMouth

 

Once again, thank you for everything!

 

-ND

 

TTFN Denmonites!

Joseph Grant: Face of War

My buddy Joseph Grant recently had a piece, Face of War, published in Writing Raw. In thirteen pages, Grant is able to take the reader through the mind's-eye of a soldier wounded in battle. Many pieces of literature have revolved around this familiar subject matter, but Joseph Grant takes the idea and brings a very unexpected twist.

Suffice it to say, the short story will have you searching your own face in the mirror. You'll wonder how people are able to overcome the mental trauma of losing themselves when the most crucial elements with which they associate their identity, are taken away.

Face of War
By Joseph Grant

It's been said, that in war, you never hear the shot that kills you. But you never hear the one that almost kills you, either. Nor do you hear the roadside bomb called an IED for Improvised Explosive Device when it goes off nearly dead center beneath your supply truck. But if you are somehow fortunate to wake up in a hospital afterwards, you will hear the ringing in your ears for weeks. The screaming of the dying soldiers around you never quite goes away.
"You're one of the lucky ones." is what they tell as you lay in the hospital bed but you don't consider yourself lucky at all. You feel like hell as your body fights to stay alive, fluids oozing through gauze everywhere. The bed is a mess and they have rounds where they pick you up as you scream in pain so that they can change the bed, change the tubes and the dressings, put you back together again before the morphine kicks in again. No, you don't consider yourself lucky. You're pieces of your former self. The lucky ones have all died, for they no longer have to live with the memory of war.

CLICK FOR THE PDF

-TTFN Denmonites

-ND



Harlan Halifax Complete...

...and off to the editor!


As I announced on my Facebook page, I have recently finished my third novel The Hundred Heartbreaks of Harlan Halifax. I have occasionally dropped snippets of the novel on my page as well, but thought it might be a good idea to share the "book jacket" synopsis with all of you while it rolls onward to the editor.

I know many of you are awaiting the third book in my mafia trilogy, An Upstate New York Mafia Tale, and please know that Ashes to Ashes is well on the way to being completed. I needed a break from the storyline of AUNYMT to try my hand at a different theme and at a different style. I have many stories kicking around in this rust-bucket head of mine, and I know that with the adventure of The Hundred Heartbreaks of Harlan Halifax behind me, I will approach the ending to the trilogy with the vigor that you all deserve.


The Back of the Book:

The Hundred Heartbreaks of Harlan Halifax is a story set in the cornfields of Indiana. In Trinity, Indiana, a small community that is practically owned by the ancient and reclusive Harlan Halifax, young Addison Yates lives in the shadow of the Halifax mansion.

With his mother recently deceased, and a father who is on the ropes financially, Addison's world consists of his friends and an aging farmhand who now resides at the Yates' home. After an unfortunate lapse in judgment, Addison's path crosses with that of Harlan Halifax. He learns how the other half lives as well as the secrets behind Harlan's desire to remain a shut-in.

Through Harlan, Addison meets a girl from Afghanistan who is a refugee of the war torn country. Captivated by a pair of brown eyes under a hijab, Addison is thrust on an inward journey that causes the small events in Trinity to take on a much larger significance.

In this coming of age tale, the desperation of poverty meets the legacy of wealth. Youth clashes with age. Knowledge battles ignorance. Friendships attempt to withstand abuse, prejudice, and loss.

In a world ripping at the seams, Addison learns of love's many forms, while also awakening to the hatred that ignorance can breed.

Quote From the Book:

"On a dust covered road with his light-blue Univega Gran Rally laying on its side and dirt clinging under his fingernails he saw her part two stalks of corn like Moses parting the sea. Her dark eyes, chestnut skin, and long amber hair made the rest of the world seem all the more grey and bland. Yet he understood, now, why the sun bothered to shine at all, why birds sang, and flowers bloomed. The eyes, he remembered the eyes from Harlan’s house, from walks to town and back. Only he had never seen them before without the headscarf that made her so foreign to the rest of Trinity and made her an oddity prone to ridicule in the sleepy and eternally preserved town."




TTFN Denmonites!

-ND

Author Spotlight: Allison Christie

Allison Christie, a Twitter connection of mine, has long been trumpeting the independent author horn as loud and often as she is able.  She has read and reviewed countless writers over the last few years and that is why I was happy to hear that she was jumping into writing her own story.


Her debut offering has received eight reviews of 5 stars and I have a feeling she is just getting started.


It is with great pleasure that I spotlight her here:

The most pink ever on this blog?

The back of the book -

Set in the fictitious British seaside town of Humburley, Abigail Milan, now 86, regales her home health aide with her younger self’s story of how she meets her first love, Allen Marco Eaton. Abby tells a story that breaks taboos, bristles with the electricity of first love and physical passion. Her tale is one of heartbreak that will take you on an emotional journey not to be missed.

About her -

Allison Christie Keeps Calm and Carries on by writing.  When Allie is not spending time with her family, you'll find her writing romantic fiction for the modern woman.

While it's often said, it's five o'clock somewhere, in Allie’s time zone that means hanging with the horses she loves; her retired Scottish highland pony Monarch and her little rescue, the very naughty Ferris.

Cost:

Kindle Edition

£1.99

Paperback

£5.89

BUY IT HERE

Find Allison -

Twitter: 
@allisonsarah16

Blog:

allisonsarah16.blogspot.co.uk

Facebook:

facebook.com/allisonsarah16