Interview with Adam Blumer, Author of The Tenth Plague, and Softcover #Giveaway

 

Today I’d like to re-introduce you to a fellow author (and fellow Bob Jones University grad!), Adam Blumer. I have interviewed Adam before about his novel, The Tenth Plague, but it has recently released in softcover format, so we’re celebrating that today with some new questions and a giveaway! Read to the end and comment for a chance to win!

And now, a bit more about Adam:

Adam Blumer edits other people’s books to pay the bills. He writes his own to explore creepy lighthouses and crime scenes. He is the author of two suspense novels, Fatal Illusions (Lighthouse Publishing of the Carolinas) and its sequel, The Tenth Plague (Kirkdale Press). A print journalism major in college, he works full-time from home as a book editor after serving in editorial roles for more than twenty years. He lives in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula with his wife, Kim, and his daughters, Laura and Julia. You can learn more about Adam by visiting his website: http://www.adamblumerbooks.com. Here are other ways to reach him:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AdamBlumerNovelist

Twitter: https://twitter.com/adamblumer

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/2315682.Adam_Blumer

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/adamblumer/

E-mail: adam [at] adamblumerbooks.com

Interview with Author Adam Blumer:

HG: Welcome, Adam! Nice to talk with a fellow Bob Jones University grad. I remember when your first novel, Fatal Illusions, released, and it is such a great suspense read! Now you are releasing a softcover version of your second novel, The Tenth Plague. Tell us a bit about the setting of that one and who the main characters are.

AB: Thanks for the opportunity, Heather, and I’m glad you liked Fatal Illusions. The Tenth Plague is set in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula (UP), where I live. I think this remote but beautiful location is often overlooked in fiction, so I like to feature it in my books. After adopting their son, Marc and Gillian Thayer, the same husband and wife team I feature in Fatal Illusions, intend to enjoy a relaxing weekend at a picturesque UP resort. That is, until their friend turns up dead and the resort becomes a grisly murder scene.

A killer begins reenacting the ten plagues of Egypt on the resort and everyone in it, including a Bible translation team already drawing angry protests for proposing to merge the Bible with corresponding passages from the Koran. Water turns to blood. Gnats attack the innocent. As plague after plague appears, the Thayers must make sense of how their story intersects with those of others at the resort—and of their own dark pasts. Will they uncover the killer’s bitter agenda and stop him before the tenth plague—the death of the firstborn son?

HG: Could you share a bit about your journey to publication? You have switched publishers along the way, correct? Also, the cover of your first novel has changed—it looks great! I’ll post pics of the old and new covers below!

 

 

AB: My path is rather unconventional, but it has God’s fingerprints all over it. My love for storytelling began with pirate stories when I was a kid, and the love continued all the way through college, where I studied novel writing and journalism. I also published a number of short story and newspaper articles. After a layoff from a Bible college, where I had served as an editor for a decade, I was contacting various Christian publishing houses, looking for editorial work I could do from home, when an editor at Kregel Publications noticed on my resume that I enjoyed writing novels. He asked to see my latest manuscript, and just like that God opened the door for the publication of Fatal Illusions. I had no need for a literary agent at the time.

Unfortunately, the recession made sales a struggle for any author releasing novels during that period, and frankly Christian publishing hasn’t recovered since (nor has some of its authors). Though Fatal Illusions made Kregel’s best-seller list, sales still weren’t good enough to entice the publisher to buy the sequel, The Tenth Plague, but Kirkdale Press (Logos) jumped at the chance to publish it as an e-book. Now they are releasing it as a paperback. Meanwhile, Lighthouse Publishing of the Carolinas picked up the rights to Fatal Illusions in 2015, and I love working with them, too.

My publisher and I agreed that it was time for Fatal Illusions to get a new look. Too many folks associated the old one with vampires and horror novels, but those topics don’t have anything to do with what I write. It was time for a change. I love the new cover too.

HG: What do you think about the changing climate of publishing? Do you have another book release in the works?

AB: These are tough days for both publishers and authors. I wish I could be more positive about traditional publishing. A recent article from a Christian literary agent illustrates how things have changed. She said authors need to have at least ten thousand Twitter followers, eight thousand Facebook likes, and thirty thousand unique website visits to impress publishers. I don’t personally connect with any Christian novelists who come close to achieving those standards. It’s statistics like those that make being independently published more attractive all the time. I think it’s why so many author friends are going that direction. Unless you’re Frank Peretti, getting through the door of traditional publishing is simply becoming too difficult for most of us. Though I’m weary of the very long wait when a publisher is considering a book, I’m not ready to jump the traditional ship just yet.

Yes, I have a third novel in the works, a departure in style from the first two, and I’m very excited about it. I ran Drone, a speculative thriller about mind control, through the ACFW Scribes critique group last fall, to very favorable reviews. The story is close to my heart, because the inspiration came from my father, who passed away from brain cancer in 2011. I’m currently seeking a literary agent for this project, and one interested party has been in touch. Hopefully God will show me His clear direction soon so I can move forward.

HG: Drone sounds very intriguing! Who are your favorite suspense authors and why?

Frank Peretti grabbed me by the throat when I was in high school and showed me the power of using Christian fiction to illustrate spiritual truths. His influence is frankly why I believe in “meaningful suspense,” my tag line. He inspired me to try my hand at writing my own novels. Since then a variety of authors, both secular and Christian, rank among my favorites. When I was getting started, Mary Higgins Clark taught me a lot about how to craft suspense. I’ve also learned a lot about writing thrillers by reading Steven James, author of the Bowers Files. Other Christian authors, including Ted Dekker, Brandilyn Collins, and Terri Blackstock, always provide inspiration and challenge me to raise the bar in my own storytelling.

HG: I was big into Peretti, too. What three words would you use to describe your writing style?

AB: “Meaningful” and “sleep depriving.” At least that’s what a number of readers have told me. Thanks so much for hosting me at your blog.

HG: Always a pleasure to have you visit, Adam! All the best with your releases!

 

The Tenth Plague: Water turns to blood. Flies and gnats attack the innocent. Marc and Gillian Thayer’s vacation resort becomes a grisly murder scene, with a killer using the ten plagues of Egypt as his playbook for revenge.

When their friend turns up dead, Marc and Gillian put their vacation on hold, enlist the help of a retired homicide detective, and take a closer look at the bizarre plagues as they escalate in intensity. Meanwhile, a stranger is after the Thayers’ newly adopted baby. Will they uncover the truth behind the bitter agenda before the tenth plague, the death of the firstborn son?

***Readers, have you ever visited the Upper Peninsula in Michigan? Have you read one of Adam’s books before? Comment with the answer to one of these questions below for a chance to win a softcover of The Tenth Plague–winner will be announced in one week back here on my blog!***