ℚ Serpents and Doves - G. Lloyd Helm

Today we have the pleasure of meeting up with author G. Lloyd Helm to talk about Serpents and Doves (May 2016, Rogue Phoenix Press, TBA pages), a Literary Fiction novel.

Author Q&A | Synopsis | Teaser | About the Author | Giveaway & Tour Stops

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A very warm welcome to G. Lloyd Helm; thank you for joining us on BooksChatter!

What was the inspiration for Serpents and Doves?

"My life. The book Serpents and Doves is fiction, but it runs pretty close to truth."

How much of yourself is reflected in this book, and how?

"As I said above, the book is fiction but there is an awful lot of me in it.  Not one specific character but pieces of me in all the characters."

The first thing that draws me to a book is its cover. Can you tell us about your cover for Serpents and Doves - why you chose that concept and who the artist is.

"I am particularly proud of the cover of Serpents and Doves.  I had no idea of what it should look like but I figured it should probably have a serpent and a dove on it and it should probably have people, so the cover designer started sending me pictures of serpents and as I scrolled through them this Gustav Klimt painting called "Water Serpents" came up.

It is a woman lying face down on a back ground of paisley.  I am a fan of Klimt's work anyhow and when that came up I said "THAT ONE!"  The designer said she didn't know how that got in there and she didn't know if we could use it, but I begged and she went to work and got permission.  I have been sending out cards of the cover and everyone is just knocked out by it. I'll attach one to this when I return it."

I do love that painting - good choice!  Thank you for sending it our way :-)

Why should we read Serpents and Doves and what sets it apart from the rest? What makes your book unique?

"The obvious answer to this question is that you should read it because I wrote it.  But seriously My book is based in reality.  It has its adventure and its sex and its sadness, but all of it is real and there are so many books out that are "fiction" written just for the amusement of the reader.

S&D is amusing, even heart stopping in places but it is all based in reality.  To read it is to experience what it was really like at a small religious school in Tennessee in the mid-sixties in the midst of the Civil Rights Movement and in the midst of a war."

Can you tell us something quirky about Serpents and Doves, its story and characters?

"Well, the whole book is kinda quirky.  It is a small personal story in the midst of world shaking events."

Who would you recommend Serpents and Doves to and what should readers be aware of (any warnings or disclaimers)?

"I would recommend the book to anyone who likes to read stories, and especially anyone who likes historic type stories.

As to warnings, sometimes the language gets pretty graphic--not just swear words but the N word gets bounced around pretty good--and there are a couple of pretty graphic sex scenes."

If you could / wished to turn Serpents and Doves into a movie, who would be your dream team?

"A really hard question.  I think S&D would make a good movie but I have no idea of who would play what.

A young Leo DiCaprio might play Stephen but that wouldn't be easy.  He is way too sophisticated to really play Stephen.

There are several parts for black actors to, but they would need to be younger.  Talented as Washington and Cheadle but younger."

What do you like to write and read about? Do you stick to a particular genre or do you like to explore different ones?

"I write about a lot of things.  I have five--this is the sixth--books out two of them are fantasy--not wizards and dwarfs but a different kind of fantasy, the third book is pretty much straight "soft" science fiction.  You know, the kind where the story takes precedence over the hardware.  Then I have two counting this one that are straight ahead literature."

What is your writing process?

"When I am working well I come into the office, turn on the radio and go to work. I try to get a thousand words a day. S ome days I knock that out in an hour or so, other days it comes harder and takes all day.

When I am not working well, I find reasons to procrastinate.  I sit in front of the TV, but even then I am writing.  My brain runs all the time though.  Drives my wife crazy.  I'll be grouchy and distant and she'll say "You're writing again.  Why don't you just go to the office and actually write.""

What is in store next?

"What is coming next is a step back.  I am working on a movie script taken from my first novel.  The book is called Other Doors and it is a fantasy about a man who can stop war by simply saying Stop.  It is coming along but it is also tough because there are so many small but very important things that happen in the book that are hard to address in a movie."

That's not a bad skill to have!  But seriously, I can see why things could be tricky.
Incidentally, the Other Doors is available FREE on Kindle unlimited or you can purchase it for only .99!

And as a final quirky thing, to get to know you a little bit better... do you have a pet or something that is special to you that you could share with us?

"I have a few things in my office that are kinda weird but not really.  The place looks like an explosion most of the time.  I like to have my pocket Buddha and my prayer bell handy--don't have a picture of those, but I also like to put up signs to myself. "

I can see a few of those messages :-)

Many thanks again for chatting to us.  We hope you have a great tour and look forward to Serpents and Doves in May!

"Back to you. Thanks for having me."

Serpents and Doves
Available May 2016!

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