Ain't No Messiah by Mark Tullius Book Tour and Giveaway :)
Ain't
No Messiah
Tales
of the Blessed and Broken Book 1
by
Mark Tullius
Genre:
Psychological Suspense
“God has chosen Joshua to bring forth his new kingdom on Earth.”
From
the day he was born, Joshua has found himself the recipient of
death-defying miracles. His earliest memories include his own father
proclaiming him the second coming of Christ. However, Joshua has
wrestled with serious doubts about the validity of this claim all his
life. How could he not, having survived a childhood filled with
physical and emotional abuse at the hands of his earthly father.
Now, one way or another, Joshua is going to show the world who he really is.
"A
compelling, if sometimes-lurid, picture of a faith gone wrong."
- Kirkus Reviews
"Ain’t
No Messiah is a beautifully-written book about one man's effort to
find himself - and maybe even a bit of happiness - in a world bitter
enough to greet even a supposed Messiah with abuse and scapegoating."
~Catherine Langrehr for IndieReader
I
was looking at the sad stack of pines piled on the ground that’d
become someone else’s firewood, the only way we were able to ever
afford meat. “I got a better idea.”
He
dropped the rope. “Where you going?” I
changed direction so he wouldn’t follow, as the side of the church
was strictly forbidden ever since Blackie was snatched. “What
are you doing?” “Why,
you going to tell on me again?” I didn’t wait for his answer, and
walked past the wall with the boarded-up windows that’d been
painted white at least five times. FAKE MESSIAH
covered
up but ever-present there underneath. Father
camouflaged the bear traps with twigs and leaves, easy for me to
spot, but not a demon doing work under the cover of night. One of
these days, Father said, we’d catch us a nonbeliever. He said he
wanted to hear who they’d be praying to with one hundred pounds of
pressure crushing their leg. The safest form of vengeance, he argued,
was hurting others before they could hurt you.
Mark Tullius is the author of Unlocking the Cage: Exploring the Motivations of MMA Fighters and dark fiction which includes Ain't No Messiah, Twisted Reunion, 25 Perfect Days: Plus 5 More, Brightside, and the Try Not to Die series. An Ivy League graduate, Mark lists Chuck Palahniuk and Stephen King as the authors who most influence his own writing. He attests that attending Tom Spanbauer's Dangerous Writing workshop marked the turning point in his career. In addition to his writing, Mark is the host of the podcast Vicious Whispers.
Mark
resides in Southern California with his wife and two children.
Advice they would give new authors?
Write what you want
to read. Believe in yourself and embrace your distinct voice. Don’t
stop.
Describe your writing style.
My writing has
always been dark, but now it’s getting more efficient. I recently
went through and reworked a selection of short stories, many of which
had already been published. It was difficult reading my old prose,
not because of the story, but in the way I told it. On average I cut
30% of the words, unimportant details I assumed the reader needed. So
now, instead of it being like a slow bleed to death finale, I’m
going for more of a blade being driven straight through your heart.
With maybe a kiss to send you on your way because I’m kind and I
care.
What makes a good story?
Real characters in
shitty situations. It’s easy to make the right choice when there is
one, but what do you do when both ways suck?
What are they currently reading?
The Brain that
Changes Itself by Norman Doidge, M.D.
What is your writing process? For
instance do you do an outline first? Do you do the chapters first?
I am a very visual
person and start most of my ideas on a large piece of paper. I vomit
everything I can onto that page and slowly scrub it into shape,
creating a rough storyline and then developing chapters. Although I
like having the outline, I add and delete scenes regularly and allow
the book to follow the course it needs to.
What
are common traps for aspiring writers?
One of my biggest
problems starting out was feeling that I need the first draft as
clean as possible. That’s such a waste of time since many scenes,
characters, and such may be deleted. Now I try to fly through the
first draft and each subsequent pass I add to it and slowly polish
it.
The belief that all
you need to do is write and you’ll find an audience is another
misconception with many young authors and another one of my
downfalls. I still err on the side of writing instead of marketing,
but I understand the importance of both and am working on finding the
right balance.
What is your writing Kryptonite?
Distractions. I
need to block everyone out if I want to disappear in my imaginary
world. If someone disturbs me while I’m in the middle of a scene it
can be difficult easing back into it.
Do you try more to be original or
to deliver to readers what they want?
I never worry about
what the reader wants until after the book is finished and it’s
time for reviews. I have no desire to write for the masses and only
want to write the stories as they come to me. The thought of being a
sellout and specifically writing a certain way to gain more readers
is something I’d be ashamed of. I understand that individuals will
do that and claim it is a smart business move, but to me it seems so
disingenuous. I strive to be an artist and don’t believe that will
ever change.
If you could tell your younger
writing self anything, what would it be?
Embrace your voice
and don’t doubt yourself. Pour everything you have into the writing
and you’ll be rewarded.
What’s the most difficult thing
about writing characters from the opposite sex?
I’ve struggled
with writing female characters because there are so many differences
with our minds. Reading The Female Brain by Dr. Louann
Brizendine helped me understand some of these things but whenever I
write a female character I turn to my wife or female friends for
their input. With my upcoming Try Not to Die: In Brightside I
co-authored with my friend Dawna Gonzales because I knew she would be
able to create a much more realistic 16-year-old female than I would
on my own.
How long on average does it take
you to write a book?
I don’t believe
I’ve ever written a book without several distractions along the
way. Because I have so many projects going on, both fiction and
nonfiction, and several coming up with co-authors, it is hard to stay
on task and know exactly how long one book would take. I’m
averaging about one book a year but I’m aiming to increase this
number.
Do you believe in writer’s block?
I don’t believe
in writer’s block. I believe in writer’s laziness,
procrastination, and burnout. There are times where I’ll be spent
and feel like I have very little creative energy, but that’s when
I’ll switch hats and work on editing or another aspect of the game.
I think writer’s block is an excuse for people that have trouble
committing and become overwhelmed by taking on such a big project.
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