Good morning, everyone! Please welcome author William A. Glass to Full Moon Dreaming today! He is here to discuss his new release, Crossing Day! William will be awarding a $25 Amazon/BN GC to one randomly drawn commenter via Rafflecopter during the tour. The more you comment, the better your chances of winning! To find the other stops on the tour, go here. Don't forget to look for the Rafflecopter at the end of the post!
CROSSING DAY
William A. Glass
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
GENRE: Young Adult/Alternate History
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
BLURB:
It's
been one hundred and sixty years since the Confederacy won its independence at
the Battle of Altamaha Crossing. Slaves of African descent still perform most
of the work in the South. This seems normal to Ryan Walters and his friends who
attend high school in Huntsville, Alabama. Like teens everywhere, they enjoy
sharing videos, playing sports, and hanging out with friends. Jaybird's
drive-in is their favorite gathering place. There, they befriend Mish, a slave
girl who works as a car hop. When the drive-in’s owner sells Mish to a dirty
old man, Ryan and his friends awaken to the injustice around them. Despite the
danger, they decide to help Mish escape. Will they succeed?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
EXCERPT:
Melanie wanders into the dining room and finds her parents
already seated at the table with their personal slaves standing behind them.
Her mother, Dorothy, takes a sip of orange juice and replaces the glass on the
lace tablecloth. Her servant, Natty, immediately gets a pitcher from the
sideboard and refills the glass. Meanwhile, James is smiling at Melanie.
“Morning, Miss,” he says. The white-haired Black man pulls out her chair. Once
she’s seated, he spreads a cloth napkin over her lap.
“What was all the ruckus at Jaybird’s last night?” Dan Montgomery
asks. He’s the mayor of Huntsville and knows everything.
“A German boy started it,” Melanie says defensively.
“Yes, and his father already called me to complain. He’s a
big wheel at The Space Flight Complex.”
“Sorry!”
Montgomery points to the syrup. His slave, Parker, reaches
for it and then pours. “Enough,” Montgomery snaps. He turns back to Melanie.
“You and all the others will have a week of detention.”
Melanie gasps. “What about cheerleading practice?”
“You should have thought of that before you went to the
drive-in. That’s where all the delinquents hang out and you with them.”
“I won’t go anymore. Please.” Melanie bats her baby blues at
her father. His expression melts. “Go to detention after school today, and
maybe we’ll see about tomorrow.”
“Thanks, Dad.”
Montgomery cuts off a bite of pancake and pops it into his
mouth. That reminds Melanie to eat as well. It’s almost time for the bus.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
AUTHOR Bio and Links:
Bill
is a retired business executive who now lives in a small southern town with his
wife, Bettina. She’s a retired high school German teacher. Bill coaches soccer
at a small college. Often, Bettina, who has a commercial driver’s license,
pilots the soccer team bus to away games.
Bettina
and Bill have three sons, Alex, Robert, and Gordon who have all graduated from
college and moved away to pursue careers. Instead of having an empty nest,
Bettina and Bill now host three rescue dogs. They enjoy finding promising
hiking trails to explore with their dogs.
Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/william.glass.50767
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/williamasaglass
Twitter:
https://twitter.com/WilliamAGlass3
LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/william-glass-1281609/
Goodreads:
https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/20170818.William_A_Glass
LibraryThing:
https://www.librarything.com/profile/Glaswa4611
Amazon:
https://www.amazon.com/Crossing-Day-William-Glass-ebook/dp/B0CW8HBGV4/ref=sr_1_1
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Q. You’re marooned on a small island with one person
and one item of your choice—who is that person and what item do you have?
A. If I was marooned on a desert island my choice for the
one person to be with would be my wife, Bettina. She is a very resourceful,
competent person who would help make the most of the situation. The one item I
would want to be sure of having is my fishing rod. That would enable me to
either catch fish or at least look like I was doing something constructive
while actually goofing off!
Q. Which musical would you say best
exemplifies your life – and which character in that musical are you?
A. I think the musical “South Pacific” would best
exemplify my life. It’s about the interactions between US military personnel
and the local population of the Pacific Island where they are based. The
musical came out in the late 40’s about the time I was born into a military
family. My first memories are of living in an exotic foreign country. “South
Pacific” was controversial when it came out because of its forthright treatment
of racial prejudice. I lived on army bases and attended integrated army schools
in Europe at a time when strict racial segregation was the norm in the American
South. Many students my age went on to protest in favor of civil rights. The
“South Pacific” character I would most identify with is Luther Billis. In the
musical Billis provides most of the comic relief. In high school I was always
the class clown and like Billis evinced little respect for authority.
Q. Take these three words and give me a 100
word or less scene using them: hammer, saucer, traffic lights
A. With a sigh, Jake lets in the clutch and downshifts. Should
have taken the bypass, he thinks as he comes to a stop, how can a town
this size have so many traffic lights? The signal changes and Jake gets the
motorcycle back into gear. He passes a brick building and with a glance
ascertains that it’s the town library. Further down a neon sign hanging in the
window of a modest building promises liquid refreshment. Might as well
hammer a couple of beers, Jake decides and downshifts again.
Inside the dimly lit establishment three grizzled heads
seated at the far end of the bar swing in unison to gaze at Jake as he enters.
Disappointment at not seeing another regular is written on their faces.
Sullenly the old timers turn back to concentrate on their drinks. A woman
holding a whiskey bottle pushes through a pair of swinging café doors and Jake
gets a glimpse at the tidy kitchen behind her. Setting the bottle on the bar
the woman dries her hands with her apron. “What’ll you have?” she asks Jake.
You! Jake thinks, staring into
her sparkling green eyes. He bites his tongue to keep from blurting out that
thought. “What’s on draft?” he manages to get out.
“All we got is PBR.”
“That’ll do.” Dave lays a five-dollar bill on the counter
to prove he’s not a deadbeat. The woman reaches for a mug in an overhead rack
accentuating her slim figure. She turns to the beer tap.
Jake is smitten. Red hair and green eyes! What’s she
doing in a place like this? He watches her carefully top off the mug with
just the right amount of head. “What’s the cat’s name?” he asks pointing
to the tabby licking a saucer of milk in the corner.
Q. What is your idea of how to spend romantic
time with your significant other?
A. My wife and I both enjoy quiet evenings at home with
our assortment of rescued dogs and cats. We love to curl up in bed surrounded
by our furry friends who are happy to watch whatever is on PBS with us. Our
evening probably wouldn’t impress outsiders as overly romantic, but we’re
happy!
Q. When you start a new story, do you begin
with a character, or a plot?
A. I almost always start with a character or in the case
of my new novel characters. I had an idea for the theme I wanted to develop
with Crossing Day in mind for a several years, but was unable to find
the right approach to take until one day, it hit me to put a group of high
school students in a story that would bring out the topic. Once I began writing
about these characters, they helped me develop the plot.
Q. If they were to make the story of your life into a
movie, who should play you?
A. Without a doubt I would want Adam Sandler to play me
if they were to make a movie about my life. He is a great actor who in several
movies has shown that he can convey the sort of give-a-damn attitude I had
growing up!
Thank-you for featuring my novel Crossing
Day on Full Moon Dreaming today!
