Say hello to Sage Marlowe. You’ll love meeting her and love her books. Join me as we get to know this very talented author.

Oh, and leave a comment to win a $10 GC to Amazon or B&N. Winner’s choice.

I know everyone asks this but why did you decide to write romance?

I didn’t really decide to write it, it just happened, but I thoroughly enjoy following my characters through all the ups and downs and the twists and turns of finding—or keeping—their loved ones.

What was the hardest thing you had to do when you started?

Two things, actually. The first was to decide that my manuscript was finally polished enough and fit to be seen by another person. The second was writing a query letter and hitting send. 

What was the easiest thing?

 In retrospective—writing the book.

How long did it take you to finish your first manuscript and where did the idea come from?

My first ever finished manuscript, which has yet to be published, took roughly three months to finish. It’s a 130K MM vampire story and the idea for it… Well, let’s just say I had read a vampire book and was a bit peeved that no one seemed to write vampires the way I wanted them. Around the same time a very pushy character turned up in my bedroom at two am and started acting out some rather disturbing scenes in my head. When he hadn’t quit after two weeks, I decided it was time to write down his story before I went crazy and incidentally, I got my vampires the way I wanted them.

Tell me about your first contract?

My first contract was a nice surprise as I was convinced that I’d have to deal with at least a dozen rejections before maybe, hopefully, someone would agree to publish “Sub-Mission”. Fortunately Total-E-Bound, the first and only publisher I sent it to snatched it up right away.

Do you base any of your stories on real people or places or events?

Of course not. All characters are fictitious and similarities are strictly coincidental. Okay, yes, I do, but you wouldn’t recognise a person I know. I only take the odd feature or quirk to add some colour to a character. Some scenes are based on actual events or anecdotes, but again, I doubt anyone would recognise them.

What gets you in the mood to write?

I’m hardly ever in the mood not to write. I might have trouble focussing after a particularly hectic day but usually all I need is my laptop or phone and I’m ready to go.

Where do you see yourself 5 years from now? 10 years?

I have absolutely no idea. Like many writers I have this surreal dream of quitting the day job and making a living with cooking up stories, so five or ten years from now, I will be either still chasing or living that dream.

What do you enjoy most about being an author?

The moments when I am so deeply engaged in my characters’ story that I can live it with them and see their world through their eyes. Those moments are rare but magical.

Okay, quick fun questions:

Favorite ice cream

Chocolate chip, straciatella

Favorite music

Alternative rock

Favorite movie

There are several I like, but I can’t narrow it down to a favorite.

Favorite time to write

Any. I’d write all day long if I could but as it is, I mostly get to write in the evenings.

If you could be stranded with a movie or television star who would you pick?

Just one? Hmm… Good question. Difficult question, as he wouldn’t have to just look good but would have to be someone I could talk to as well. I’ll get back to you on this!

If someone played you in a movie who would it be and why?

Possibly Natalie Portman because she looks a bit like me and her performance in Black Swan was really impressive.

 And now….the book! Don’t miss it.

Sub-Cultureby Sage Marlowe

MM erotic romance / BDSM / contemporary, novel (sequel to Sub-Mission)

Published by Total-E-Bound

Heat rating: Total-e-melting

  
Blurb

When life gets on top, delving into a sub-culture may be just what it takes to keep a sinking relationship afloat

Five years after the bumpy start to their relationship, Noah and Pierce have settled well into their lives as a happy couple. The arrival of a new child should have made their matrimonial bliss complete, but the strain of raising a baby and a teenager, combined with a lot of pressure in their jobs, is beginning to take its toll.

In the midst of what already is a potentially explosive situation, Noah’s younger brother Jonah comes to stay with them, forcing Noah to face the issues he still has regarding his homophobic parents and adding to the emotional pressure he is under.

When Noah starts behaving oddly and Pierce just can’t seem to put his jealousy to rest, the cracks in their relationship become too severe to ignore any longer. They struggle to keep their sinking love afloat but as Noah craves the comfort a certain sub-culture can offer, Pierce finds himself wondering just how far he is willing to step out of his own comfort zone to save their love.


Story excerpt

“Fuck, not again!” Shifting, Noah snatched the duvet under his arm, turned around and buried his head in the pillow.

“Uh, it’s your turn, love,” Pierce reminded him, struggling a little to recall how to work his voice, if only he wasn’t so incredibly, mind-numbingly tired. He dragged an eyelid open and glanced at the clock on the nightstand, but only because it was there anyway, straight in his blurry line of vision. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have bothered.

An assembly of cool, greenish dashes informed him that it was half past two. That meant he would have three more hours of sleep until he had to get up. Noah would have four—in theory.

“No way!” Noah’s protest was muffled by the pile of pillows and duvet he’d buried himself under, but was nonetheless vehement. “It was my turn last night already.”

“Sorry,” Pierce mumbled, half apologetic, half relieved and completely anaesthetised with fatigue. “That was the night before last.”

“Fuck.” He felt the mattress bounce as Noah sat up. There was a noisy inhalation of breath—Noah yawning. “Shouldn’t he be able to make it through the night without another feed by now anyway?”

Right on cue, another long, heartbreaking and ear-splitting wail sliced through what was left of the night’s peace and quiet.

“Try telling him that,” Pierce retorted.

“Pheebs stopped needing night feeds—”

“When she was six months old. I know. But Phinneas just isn’t Phoebe. He is who he is and he happens to need his milk at night so we have to give it to him. You have to give it to him.”

“Yeah, right,” Noah grunted but pushed to his feet. “Coming,” he grumbled on the way out into the hall, then, seconds later, his voice sounded much gentler as he said, “Well, hello, you little sleepless gremlin. Got the munchies again, haven’t you?” More words followed, but they were too low for Pierce to make them out. Knowing Noah, it was a mix of sweet little nothings and good-humoured insults, which was his usual way of dealing with the baby whenever he was overtired and needed to vent some of the resulting grumpiness. Noah would never allow himself to let the fiery side of his temper show around either of their two children. It was what made him a wonderful dad—part of it, anyway. He was patient, generous, funny… Pierce found it increasingly hard to focus on the noises Noah was making in the kitchen while he was preparing the baby’s bottle.

No, they weren’t in the kitchen any longer. Already, Noah’s light-hearted chatter was growing louder as he approached their door on the way back to Baby Phin’s bedroom. Listening to the soothing, familiar tone of Noah’s voice, Pierce let the sweet melody of the faint accent in it lull him back to sleep.

The peace didn’t last long. Thirty minutes, according to the cool, greenish dashes on the alarm clock. The mattress bounced again but, instead of Noah’s six foot tall, hard-muscled body, something—or rather someone—significantly smaller, and also a lot bonier, crept into Pierce’s bed. A tiny, but pointed elbow hit him in the ribs with an accuracy that would have made a professional wrestler proud.

“Fu—Phoebe!” Pierce gasped as the air left his lungs a lot faster than he’d intended it to. “What are you doing here?” He rubbed the spot just left of his sternum. It was going to turn into a nasty bruise.

“Phin woke me up,” Phoebe complained.

“That’s no reason to be out of bed at this time,” Pierce pointed out.

“But I can’t sleep.”

“No, of course you can’t sleep when you’re walking around and—Oi!”

Occupying the space Noah had deserted only half an hour ago, Phoebe had snatched the duvet in a very good imitation of her father. Just like he had earlier, she turned around, buried her head in his pillow and started snoring. So much for not being able to sleep.

Pierce knew he should move her, but the notion of getting out of his warm, almost comfortable nest was more than he could face. Besides, his own limbs felt like lead. How he was supposed to move with the added weight of a twelve-year-old if even his own body was too heavy for him to drag out of bed was beyond him. He was still contemplating whether or not he should try to carry her back into her own bed or simply ignore the late-night visitor and go back to sleep when Noah returned. Another half-hour had passed, as the numbers on the alarm clock pointed out.

“Taken,” Pierce warned and indicated Noah’s side of the bed.

“Fan-fucking-tastic!” Hovering in front of the bed, Noah glared down at his sleeping child. “Why didn’t you tell her to go back to her own room?”

“Couldn’t. By the time I realised what was happening, she was already rolled into that duvet, tight as a tick. What was up with Phin? You’ve been gone quite long.”

“I know.” Noah let out an exasperated sigh. Or maybe it was just another yawn. “I had to change him after I fed him, then he was awake and wanted to play, puked on himself, so I had to change his clothes again—the usual.” He watched Phoebe for another moment, then he murmured, “What do you think I should do about her now?”

Buy link

Sub-Culture will be available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, All Romance e-books and various other distributors on January 28th.

 

About the author

Sage is a multi-published author of gay erotic romance and loves taking romance to the edge. The edge of passion, the edge of pleasure, the edge of propriety.

Hopelessly in love with books from a very early age on, Sage has dreamt of writing one for years while working on the day job instead. It took a very persistent character in the company of a much-adored Muse to finally get the first novel going. The fact that this gorgeous guy was gay came as a bit of a surprise, but it explained a lot.

Ever since, Sage has been the willing slave to all the fascinating guys who just keep queuing up and want their stories told. This has resulted in several published books and countless manuscripts at various stages of completion, so there’s always something to work on—preferably at night when the rest of the house is asleep.

Sage’s characters often have a dramatic and sometimes traumatic past and need to battle some demons to be with the one they love. But don’t worry, they get quite a lot of naughty action along the way to keep them happy and there will always be a happy end!

Contact and buy links

Explore Sage’s world on www.sage-marlowe.com

Twitter: @SageMarlowe

Amazon: www.amazon.com/author/sagemarlowe

For all books published with Total-E-Bound, go to: http://www.total-e-bound.com/authordetail.asp?A_ID=224

For all books published with Siren-BookStrand, go to: www.bookstrand.com/sage-marlowe