Catriona’s Curse
A.
T. Weaver
Genre: M/M romance, paranormal,
historical, fiction
Date of Publication: Dec. 2011
ISBN: 1470039168
ASIN: B0060QDEP2
Number of pages: 239
Word Count: 73,600
Cover Artist: Brad Shaw and Ken
Clark
Book Description:
Although Sunny Nelson was raised
in a dual theology family, he doesn’t really believe in reincarnation nor does
Jeff Davis. However, the visions and dreams Sunny keeps having lead them to be
regressed where they discover they have at least two past lives together.
With Jeff’s sister April, they
discover and attempt to dispel the spell cast by Sunny in one of these past
lives. Along the way Sunny and Jeff fall in love. Jeff finds Sunny’s Pagan
practices and the idea of reincarnation unsettling at first, but eventually
decides to accept them if he wants to be with Sunny.
Available at Amazon Smashwords
Excerpt:
Boonville, Missouri, June 17, 2009
SUNNY
“Granddad, what
have you gotten me into now?” I thought as I drove down the gravel driveway
lined with majestic oak and walnut trees toward the one-hundred-fifty-year-old,
three-story rock mansion.
My name is Sunshine
Nelson, thanks to my hippie parents. Actually my first name is Matthew but,
since my dad was Matt, I’ve always been called Sunny. I’m almost thirty-five
years old and live in Los Angeles, California. My parents have known for nearly
twenty years I’m gay. They aren’t really happy with the fact, but have accepted
it.
My father’s
father died and left me this house my fourth-great grandfather built just prior
to the Civil War. My parents insisted I take a few days off work, fly to
Missouri and check out the place. In Mom’s words, “Getting away from California
and Dan will help you get over him.” After three months, I thought I was over
Dan, but seeing him at Dino’s Restaurant last week with his little bear cub
hurt more than it should have. After all, you don’t get over eight years of
loving someone overnight.
About
the Author:
A. T. Weaver is the pen name of a
divorced grandmother of eleven, great-grandmother of one. She lives with her
cat, Cleopatra, in downtown Kansas City, MO.
When she was growing up, the word
gay meant happy and carefree and homosexuals were called queer or
‘one-of-those’. However, she never heard those terms until she was married and
a mother. When two men moved in down the street from their mobile home, her
husband had to explain they were queer. As far as she was concerned, they were
just a couple of men sharing a trailer.
In 2003, through a TV show called
Boy Meets Boy, A.T ‘met’ over 3,000 gay men in a Yahoo group. These men
educated her as to the inequalities suffered by the LGBT community and she
became a staunch ally. She visited one of the men in San Francisco who lived
just up the street from the Castro. As he showed her around, they stopped in
front of what was once Harvey Milk’s camera store. Her question, “Who was
Harvey Milk?” started her education into Gay history.
A. T.’s aim is to move you in
some way. Whether you laugh or cry, love it or hate it, she welcomes all
comments, whether good or bad.
Interview
Where are you from?
I was born in Trenton, MO, but my mother always told
me I’d lived in 25 states and 1 providence of Canada by the time I was 9. At
that time we moved back to Trenton and I lived there until I graduated high school.
Since 1960, I have lived mostly in the Kansas City area.
When and why did you begin writing?
I began writing in 2003 while I was without a job.
When did you first consider yourself a writer?
I’m not really sure I consider myself a writer yet.
I’m still learning more about writing with every book.
What inspired you to write your first book?
In talking with a gay friend, I mentioned I’d like
to try writing a book. Mind you, this was 2003, before the M/M craze hit. Even
before Brokeback Mountain. At that time, very few gay novels were HEA. He said
he’d like to read a book where ‘the boy gets the boy and they ride off into the
sunset together.’
Do you have a specific writing style?
I know a lot of writers start with ‘Chapter 1’ and
go straight through to ‘the end’. I write in bits and pieces. If I know
something I want to happen three chapters down the road, I’ll leave a blank
space, go and write a scene, and then come back to where I left off. I
sometimes have four or five pieces that I need to work together.
How did you come up with the title?
That I can’t say, any more than I can say where I
got the idea. I could say I dreamed it, because a lot of my ideas come in that
little bit of time just before I fall asleep. The title was originally supposed
to be ‘Sunshine and Granny’s Ghost’. Then I decided to make Sunny a
reincarnation, and you can’t have a ghost and a reincarnation of the same
spirit.
Is there a message in your novel that you want
readers to grasp?
There are a couple of my books in which I see
messages, but not Catriona’s Curse. Although in most of my books, I try to
portray gay men as being no different from straight men. They all want to be
accepted and loved for what and who they are.
One question I would ask the reader, “Is Cat’s curse
revenge or justice?”
How much of the book is realistic?
The historical facts are as realistic as I could
make them. Also, the Pagan parts. My youngest daughter is a Pagan. She was very
upset with me for creating a harmful curse. “Mom, you know the first rule of
Wicca is ‘an it harm none.’ I had to check with a couple of priestesses I know
to make sure I wasn’t breaking some rule.
Are experiences based on someone you know, or events
in your own life?
No. I used to have an accounting boss who would say
she found figures on the ceiling of her office. I guess my ideas come from the
ceiling of my apartment.
What books have most influenced your life most?
It’s hard to say any have influenced my life. I’ve
read since I was about 5. I know what I like, but to say they influenced me, I
don’t know. Unless you mean whose books gave me the thought ‘I can do that’. I
would have to say Nora Roberts and Jude Deveaux.
If you had to choose, which writer would you
consider a mentor?
A true mentor? Would have to be the writer who
encourages me most. Andy (A. M.) Burns who beta reads for me. Also, Theo
Fenraven has been a great help. He’s always ready to answer questions.
What book are you reading now?
I haven’t been doing a lot of reading, but I do have
two that I’ve started on my Kindle. One is ‘The Glass Apple’. It’s a sci-fi
book about three children by Robert J. Franks that I downloaded free the other
day. I haven’t made up my mind about the series – it’s a bit far out there. I
also started re-reading Outlander by Diana Galbaldon.
Are there any new authors that have grasped your
interest? I always enjoy reading A.M. Burns/A.J. Marcus, Kimi D. Saunders who
writes under Leona Windwalker, and Theo Fenraven.
What are your current projects?
I’m working on a Christmas novella I hope to have
available the beginning of December, and also a sequel to First Impressions
Don’t Count about four cousins who were introduced in that book. CoolDudes
publishing is getting ready to re-release Shifter Born as well as a Christmas
short story called Old Spark/New Flame.
I also just released a sci-fi, time-travel book on
Amazon that is quite a change for me. It isn’t gay.
What would you like my readers to know?
It’s never too late to try something new. Also my favorite
quote: “Better to write for yourself and have no public, than
to write for the public and have no self.” Cyril Connolly (1903 - 1974)
Tour
giveaway
2 print copies any book on AT
Weaver’s backlist
(winner’s choice)
3 ebook copies any book on AT
Weaver’s backlist
(winner’s choice)
I would love to win Catriona's Curs
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