Blog Tour Stop, Interview & Contest: L.A. Witt’s After the Fall

Welcome to the Riptide Publishing/L. A. Witt blog tour After the Fall, part of the Tucker Springs series!

Every comment on this blog tour enters you in a drawing for a choice of two eBooks off my backlist (excluding After the Fall) and a $10 Riptide Publishing store credit. Entries close at midnight, Eastern time, on October 13th, and winners will be announced on October 14th. Contest is NOT restricted to U.S. entries.

Note: It should come as no surprise that I am once again traveling during a blog tour, this time to California so that Cat Grant and I can go see 30 Seconds to Mars. Twice. I will still make every effort to post responses as often as possible, but I can’t promise they’ll be terribly coherent on the concert days (October 11th and 12th) because…30 Seconds to Mars. But I will definitely stop in as often—and as coherently—as I can!

What’s the one question you wish people would ask you when you tell them you’re a writer?

The one that isn’t “Do you write stuff like Fifty Shades of Grey?”

Where do you get the names for your characters?

All kinds of places. I have a very worn baby name book that’s always within arm’s reach when I’m at my desk, as well as a dictionary of deities from all different cultures (which is awesome for naming characters in fantasy stories). Sometimes a name will just come to me, or it might be a name I’ve always liked.

Have you ever named a character in your book after someone you knew?

I plead the fifth…

Have you ever written to music? What music do you write best to?

I always listen to music when I write. And I have notoriously terrible taste in music, so it’s usually some kind of pop drivel. Some of the less embarrassing stuff would be 30 Seconds to
Mars (which is my favorite band and the inspiration behind my latest tattoo), Fall Out Boy, Emma Hewitt, Erasure, Adam Lambert, not to mention loads of country artists like Luke Bryan (nom nom nom…).

How hard is the editing process?

When Riptide is involved, I liken it to performing an appendectomy on one’s self with a band saw, a pencil, and a bottle of whiskey while trying to ignore a persistent Charlie horse.

What do you think of the Fifty Shades of Grey craze?

I think it’s the result of a transaction involving the ownership of someone’s soul.

How do you decide which kinks your characters like?

I know it’s a lame writer answer to say “the characters tell me,” but it’s the truth. The thing is, by the time I get to a character’s kinks, I know his/her personality pretty well. They’re a fully-formed set of traits and quirks, and if I try to make them do something that doesn’t jive with that set of traits and quirks, the scene stalls. The character isn’t literally standing their with his arms folded across his chest, quietly shaking his head and refusing to do anything, but he might as well be. Sometimes a sex scene will absolutely grind to a halt until I realize that this character is actually a submissive, or this one doesn’t like pain after all, or really, really hates having his hands tied.

What was the most surprising thing you learned about yourself while writing this book?

That I desperately needed a horse. The more I realized how much Nathan had been dying to get back in the saddle, the more I realized I had been too. I ended up leasing an Appendix Quarter Horse (Thoroughbred + Quarter Horse) for a while, but we weren’t quite a match, so I’m looking again. Because, man, you can take the girl out of the barn, but you cannot take the barn out of the girl.

Which one of your characters would you date?

Well, putting aside the fact that I’m married and most of my dudes aren’t into women… probably Anthony from Where There’s Smoke or Seth from Covet Thy Neighbor. Anthony’s just hot. I can’t even explain it. And Seth, well…dude’s covered in ink and he’s got a sarcastic streak a mile wide. What’s not to love?

Have you ever written outside the romance genre? If not, do you ever plan to?

I actually cut my teeth writing epic fantasy, then switched to romance and found my niche. I’m starting to write sci-fi again, and will probably write some fantasy as well, with and without romantic elements. Just recently, a SFF plot bunny has been gnawing on my skull, though it can’t seem to decide if it wants to be fantasy or sci-fi. Seriously, bunny. Star Wars or Game of Thrones. PICK ONE ALREADY. *huff*

Do you write het stories too?

I do indeed! My alter ego, Lauren Gallagher, writes hetero (including All The King’s Horses, Damaged Goods, and The Princess and the Porn Star) and bisexual romances (such as Who’s Your Daddy?). She’s been kind of lazy the last couple of years, but that probably has to do with L.A. being overrun with more plot bunnies than she can handle. She’s currently working on a bi ménage, though, which will hopefully be catapulted over to Riptide in the next few months.

What made you decide to publish with Riptide?

Rachel Haimowitz approached me and convinced me to give it a go. And by “approached me” and “convinced me”, I mean “made generous use of some cables and a car battery.”

Okay, just kidding. Sort of. But in all seriousness, Rachel explained Riptide’s business plan, as well as her and Aleksandr Voinov’s publishing experience, which got my attention. When she told me there would be hardcore editing, the likes of which I had never experienced, I was definitely intrigued. So I wrote them a novella to test the water, and now I have over a dozen books with them. And a residual fear of car batteries…

What does it mean to be a Riptide author?

An extraordinarily high pain tolerance.


Title: After the Fall by L.A. Witt
A Tucker Springs Novel
Publisher: Riptide Publishing
Genre: Contemporary, Erotic, Romance, M/M
Length: 206 pages.Word Count: 54,000

Summary:

After years of saving every penny, Nathan has finally managed to buy the horse of his dreams. He’s looking forward to a summer of exploring the Colorado mountain trails above Tucker Springs with Tsarina. But on their very first ride, a motorcyclist makes a wrong turn, scaring Tsarina into bolting and leaving Nathan with a broken leg, a broken hand, and a ruined summer.

Ryan is a loner and a nomad, content with working odd jobs before moving on to the next town. Feeling guilty for causing the accident that leaves Nathan in two casts, Ryan offers to keep Tsarina exercised until Nathan heals.

Despite their bad start, Nathan and Ryan soon become friends . . . and then much more. But with a couple of nasty breakups in his past, Nathan doesn’t want feelings getting involved—especially knowing that Ryan will never settle down. But since when do feelings ever listen to reason?

After the Fall is available October 7th from Riptide Publishing, and is part of the Tucker Springs series.

Author Bio

L.A. Witt is an abnormal M/M romance writer currently living in the glamorous and ultra-futuristic metropolis of Omaha, Nebraska, with her husband, two cats, and a disembodied penguin brain that communicates with her telepathically. In addition to writing smut and disturbing the locals, L.A. is said to be working with the US government to perfect a genetic modification that will allow humans to survive indefinitely on Corn Pops and beef jerky. This is all a cover, though, as her primary leisure activity is hunting down her arch nemesis, erotica author Lauren Gallagher, who is also said to be lurking somewhere in Omaha.

L. A.’s backlist is available on her website, and updates (as well as random thoughts and the odd snarky comment) can be found on her blog or on Twitter (@GallagherWitt).


Contest

Every comment on this blog tour enters you in a drawing for a choice of two eBooks off my backlist (excluding After the Fall) and a $10 Riptide Publishing store credit. Entries close at midnight, Eastern time, on October 13th, and winners will be announced on October 14th. Contest is NOT restricted to U.S. entries.

Follow the rest of the tour HERE.

22 Comments

Filed under Blog Tour, Contest, Interview

22 Responses to Blog Tour Stop, Interview & Contest: L.A. Witt’s After the Fall

  1. Shirley Ann Speakman

    Hi
    I enjoyed reading your interview I loved the answer to…
    What does it mean to be a Riptide author?
    An extraordinarily high pain tolerance.
    Great answer!!! Please count me in for the giveaway. Thank you.
    ShirleyAnn@speakman40.freeserve.co.uk

  2. kek219

    Love your books! Count me in. Thanks

  3. Thanks for stopping by, and thanks to Book Reviews and More for having me!

    And yes, working for Riptide does mean an extraordinarily high pain tolerance. LOL I say that with love, though. They put my books through the editing ringer, but it’s well worth it to get that end result. I adore them. 🙂

    L.A.

  4. KR Nord

    I’ve enjoyed every book by LA Witt that I’ve read, and would love to win an opportunity to read even more.

  5. Marie

    Thanks to you both for such a fun interview! Please count me in. Thank you!

  6. Suze

    I’ve enjoyed the Tucker Springs stories so far, so looking forward to another!

  7. Jess1

    Fun and funny interview. I especially liked your responses to the editing process with Riptide and being asked the Fifty Shade of Grey writing question.

  8. Sarah

    Great interview & good luck with finding another horse 🙂 I did love Seth (the tattoos & the sarcasm) and was glad he got his HEA and I’m looking forward to reading more Tucker Springs 🙂

  9. Sounds interesting. I’d love to read the story. Please count me in.

  10. Karl

    Please count me. Thanks.

  11. Natalija

    Great interview! I love Tucker Springs series. Please count me in 🙂

  12. Christine LaCombe

    Great interview, and I love the sound of After The Fall. I finally got to own a horse after my husband and I met and got married. It was his. Eventually, we had to sell him though, was costing more to feed and take care of him than money we had. Thanks for the giveaway. lacombejc@suddenlink.net

  13. Maya

    Great interview! I do love an author with a sense of humour! 🙂

    Please count me in for the giveaway…one can never have too many L.A. Witt books!

  14. Ashley E

    Star Wars or Game of Thrones, huh? Why can’t it be both? *bats eyelashes*

  15. sally halliday

    Please count me in. Thank you.

  16. Trix

    I love the “which character would you date” question, especially since the answer leaves Alex from THE CLOSER YOU GET for me (yes, that pesky orientation issue aside)…

  17. H.B.

    Great interview. Your Fifty Shades of Grey answer cracked me up…the things I imagine in my head at that response.

    Star Wars or Game of Thrones? Why not both, separately or combined. It’s bound to be good.

  18. Landry

    I enjoyed getting to know you better and enjoyed the interview. Your new book looks great and I look forward to reading it. I wish you much success!

  19. Penumbra

    Horses and men, a perfect combination 😉 Count me in please!

  20. Antonia

    Great and really funny interview! Thanks for the chance to win!