Interview & Giveaway: FIELD OF SCREAMS by J.D. Gordon

 

 

 

 

I have author J.D Gorden here with me today! Let's get to know him a little better.

 

Let's start with some fun questions. 

 

J.D do you prefer .... Milk chocolate or Dark?  

Milk

 

Coke or Pepsi?

Pepsi

 

Almond Joy or Mounds? 

Mounds

 

Romance or a Thriller?

Thriller

 

Mystery or Horror?

Hmmmmm good question…..a mixture perhaps?

 

Can you tell us about yourself?

I’m a 41, almost 42 year old fella born and raised in the city of Chicago. I now live out in the burbs with the family, a wife and two kids, a son and daughter, my girl is 9 and the little guy is 7. I’ve been writing for about ten years now. My first choice of career was that of a professional firefighter/paramedic. I stuck with that gig for about 14 years. I left the service due to injuries sustained in the line of duty. These days, I do the writing. I umpire high school baseball and take care of the kids, even with the injuries I feel that I’m a pretty lucky guy.

Did you always want to be an author?

 

No, never in a million years did I think I’d be writing books. I was the dude in the back of the class avoiding the teachers gaze. I did my homework on the school bus and in study hall, always made sure I had at least one of those during the day. It took ten years to finish two years of college. It really started as a challenge, in a way. When folks ask me how I got into writing I respond with, I fell into it, literally. I tumbled from the side of a train breaking my knee in the process. I needed surgery and would have to be away from the firehouse for quite some time. During a visit my peers asked what I would be doing with all of my time away, cause healing didn’t cut it right, physical therapy and all that. I had always been a big reader and for some reason, I might write a book popped out. My shift mates laughed their asses off, and with good reason. At the time the only thing I ever needed to write were reports for the calls I responded to. I wrote them in all capital letters and skipped on most of the punctuation. I felt challenged, hate backing down to those. I went home, fired up the computer and started typing, here we are now….

 

What authors had an impact on you growing up and as an adult?

 

Growing up, authors were nothing more than enjoyment, a pastime type of deal. My tastes wandered, as they still do. Example, my two favorite books…The Hobbit and Brave New World, total opposites, I think anyway.

 

Did anyone in your life influence you or encouraged you to be a writer?

Well, obviously my family is supportive and on the top of the list. But, at this point in my life I really don’t a lot of encouragement. I enjoy doing it, exercises my mind. Otherwise, as I mentioned, I never set out to be a writer. It’s just something I do. Will I always and forever? We’ll see.

 

What is your writing atmosphere like? 

I think we come in right around 21% oxygen. No, um I write on a lap top so the environment changes often. However, I do must of my writing during the day especially during the school year. I don’t write much in the summer. My kids won’t be little forever, they still like spending time with their parents so I guess I feel I should take advantage of that while I can. At the same time my wife works from home quite often. When she does she hogs the ‘official’ computer space. She’s on the phone blah blah, I need to get out to concentrate. So I head out for a quiet spot, my favorite local saloon, yeah, real quiet there huh? It works, they save a place for me at the end of the bar. I like the background noise. I’ll join in on conversations when I need a break, I’m not totally isolated from the world. It works, it’s a noise but a different kind I have going on at home.

 

 

What is your favorite aspect or writing? Your Least Favorite?

Least favorite, editing, re writes. Favorites, fan mail, emails from readers, meeting folks at book signings.

  

Your current book your promoting is? 

Field of Screams!

 

 

 

~*~*~*~

 

BLURB:   

While baseball is the game of the day for Andy Biggs, an evil force lurks beneath the old Maryknoll Stadium. A ghostly witch doctor is turning teens into zombies to help summon the demon Jumlin into humanity. It’s up to Andy and his band of paranormal sidekicks to save the world and thwart the witch doctor and even Jumlin himself!

  

REVIEW SOUND BYTES 

"The perfect follow-up to Kritterkreep, Field of Screams is the book you'll find your child reading under the bedcovers with a flashlight. And if truth be known, you'll be reading it when they're done."
— Kerry Frey, author of Buried Lie: A Young Ace Roberts Adventure

"Jimmy has taken every boy's baseball fantasy of being in the big game and taken it to an entirely different world!"
— Dan Griffin, president, Glen Ellyn Little League

"Andy Biggs and his best friend, Juan, are at it again, fighting off a triple play of zombies, ghosts and evil spirits. But will they be able to save the girl, save the day and still save the game?"
— Lisa Motola Hudon, author of Watch Your Step At The Wishing Well and Just Another Day In Paradise

AUTHOR INFORMATION:

Firefighter and paramedic-turned-author Jimmy (J.D.) Gordon was born and raised in Chicago where he developed a taste for the finer things that the Windy City has to offer - pan pizza, live blues and the Cubs. 

Jimmy dropped into the world of literature, literally. After falling off a train and breaking his knee Jimmy had to spend quite a bit of time recuperating. While visiting the firehouse his peers asked what he planned to with all that time away. This when Jimmy said the words that he now claims to have changed his life. "I should write a book."

Despite some skepticism from his peers ("You don't even use punctuation on your run reports!"), he completed a novel, Island Bound, and made it a point to use punctuation throughout.

Another injury, sustained on the job, ended his career in the fire service. Aside from writing Gordon spends his Spring and Summer as an umpire for high school and youth baseball. He now lives with his wife and children in Glen Ellyn IL, a suburb of Chicago.

LINKS:

www.jimmygwrites.com

http://www.facebook.com/jimmy.radzinskijdgordon?ref=tn_tnmn

http://www.newleafbooks.net/

http://www.amazon.com/Field-Screams-J-D-Gordon/dp/1930076142/ref=sr_1_4?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1341550396&sr=1-4&keywords=field+of+screams

 ~ Giveaway~

 J.D. will be sending to one randomly drawn commenter an autographed copy of each book in his backlist, an autographed copy of a book his daughter wrote, a $20 Barnes andNoble gift card, and his/her name used for a character in the next book in theseries!

 

Wow, that is a great prize! To enter to win just leave a comment with your email addres below.

 

For more chances to win folow the FIElD of  SCREAMS Tour:

http://goddessfishpromotions.blogspot.com/2012/07/virtual-book-tour-field-of-screams-by.html.