Featured Author & Giveaway: Andrew Demcak

Andrew Demcak is an award-winning poet and novelist whose work has been widely published and anthologized both in print and on-line, and whose books have been featured by The American Library Association, Verse Daily, The Lambda Literary Foundation, The Best American Poetry blog, The Nervous Breakdown, and Poets/Artists. His first Young Adult (YA) novel, GHOST SONGS, was published March 13, 2014 by Harmony Ink Press. His first literary novel, If There's A Heaven Above, was published January 5, 2013 by JMS Books. His fourth book of poetry, Night Chant, was published by Lethe Press, 2011. His other poetry books are: A Single Hurt Color, GOSS 183::Casa Menendez Press, 2010, Zero Summer, BlazeVOX [Books], NY, 2009 and his first poetry book, Catching Tigers in Red Weather, three candles press, 2007, that was selected by Joan Larkin to win the Three Candles Press Open Book Award. He was a 2010 Finalist for The Crazyhorse Poetry Award. His work has been nominated for the Pushcart Prize, Lambda Award, Thom Gunn Poetry Award, both the California and Northern California Book Awards, Best of the Web, and others. He has an M. F. A. in English/Creative Writing from St. Mary's College in Moraga, CA. 


Connect with Andrew Demcak on Twitter @andrewdemcak or visit his website: www.andrewdemcak.com.

Q&A with Author Andrew Demcak:

1. In what way is your story unique compared to other books in this genre?
   
   Ghost Songs is genre bending in two ways: first, it's a GLBTQ YA novel that’s not a romance. The lead character, Todd, doesn’t spend all his time pining over some boy or worrying about his sexuality. It’s a ghost story and not someone’s diary entries. The second way is: Ghost Songs, as M/M fiction, has extremely strong female characters. Todd’s best friend Jennifer, and Todd’s mother, Eddie, are not just decorations in the background – their stories are as important as Todd’s.


2. What are your writing goals for the next five years?
   
   I’ve got two more unpublished novels finished: another GLBTQ YA novel, A Little Bit Langston, which is a speculative fiction coming out story (read: coming out = super powers) and my adult literary fiction, Limboville (it’s a farce about the most famous pulp fiction romance writer going through a divorce and cancer treatment – I know that doesn’t sound funny. But it is, as well as being very touching.) Plus I have two more completed poetry collections, Lazarus and The Excitable Gift, both ready to go. I am currently finishing my new poetry collection, Crytopedia, which is an encyclopedia of the weird and strange, all the prose poetry cut-up from Wikipedia articles.


3. Do you believe in ghosts?
   
   Yes. I grew up in a haunted house. The ghost used to jingle keys down the hallways and come and sit on the edge of beds during the night. Creepy, but totally harmless. It was like the loop of an old film that kept playing.


4. If you could have one superpower, what would it be and how would you use it?
   
   Ahhh, that’s the theme of my new GLBTQ YA novel, A Little Bit Langston. The lead character James always seems to give off a green spark of electricity when he touches his best friend Paul. I wonder what that could be all about?


5. What other interests do you have outside of writing?
   
   Knitting, collection 20th century American art pottery (Love Grueby, Rookwood, and Rose Cabat’s work), jogging, hiking, camping with my partner Roland (he’s an ex-Marine and is into all that stuff, too)


6. What would you like young readers to take away from your novels?
   
   The takeaway is a real sense that they are Okay as they are, and they do not have to do this alone. We are a large supportive community. Also, I like to think my books impart a kind of hope, or at least, a positive outlook, in spite of their heavy-duty subject matter.

Now Available from Andrew Demcak:

Ghost Songs It’s not easy being Todd Williams, a fourteen-and-a-half-year-old gay musical prodigy. The bullies, Bob and Ari, at his fancy private school make his life a living hell. Todd’s drunken, irresponsible mother, Eddie, constantly embarrasses him and puts his artistic future in jeopardy. And now, his best friend, Jennifer, who plays clarinet with him in the orchestra, isn’t speaking to him. Maybe Leroy, Todd’s friendly poltergeist, knows what’s going on with her. To top it off, he can no longer rely on Jennifer's help in the race to solve a puzzle that could lead to a buried treasure. Todd must learn to stand alone. He’s finding out that growing up is far scarier than he ever imagined.

If There’s a Heaven Above (18+) (Nominated by The American Library Association for its 2014 Rainbow Books List) "If There's A Heaven Above" takes the reader on a tour of the Southern California demi-monde Goth scene of the mid-1980s, as seen through the eyes of 18 year-old club-kid, Matt. Andrew Demcak combines innocence with experience, sex and drugs, Love and Rockets, with just the right touch of poetry. It is a thrilling ride along the freeways and turntables of that era: when AIDS was new, Reagan was King, and hope was a wounded kitten, cared for by the creatures of the night.

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Ghost Songs and If There’s a Heaven Above Giveaway!

Andrew Demcak has generously donated a free copy of Ghost Songs and If There’s a Heaven Above for two lucky winners. To enter the drawing, please leave a comment below along with your email address. A winner will be chosen on June 1st.