Exciting news!

Exciting news!

If you're not following SR on Twitter (why not!) I'll share it here...

@sylvainreynard If you've written to me to ask for a third book about the Professor, I'm listening. (And I might have begun to write ... )

I hear you squee'ing!


A few other points that have been emailed to me and I wanted to address them all at once!

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Bookmarks, bookplates, autographed books, oh, my!

REVIEWS: If you leave a review on either Amazon, BN, Powell's, Chapters, etc.

PLEASE email me the link to the review and your mailing address and I'll send you a bookmark for whichever book you've reviewed!

Many people are discussing SR's novels as being must-reads on their Summer Reading Lists! If you see someone (anyone, whether celeb, friend or co-worker) looking for recommendations on Twitter, Facebook, the hair salon or even next to you on a beach towel, perhaps you'll recommend Gabriel's Inferno or Gabriel's Rapture?

If you do, let me know! Email Enn

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Bookplates or autographed books

If you own a paperback copy and are interested in a bookplate, email me with your name & mailing address. *FYI, this is the most affordable method as the international shipping envelopes are apparently expensive. Email Enn

If you want the actual BOOK autographed, follow these instructions

Don't forget! There is always the Kindlegraph!

New Social Media locations for SR/Novels, etc.

We're working on a lot of fun giveaways with The Professor, if interested, please follow the fan pages/sites below and/SR's twitter account

The first one...

Take The Professor on Vacation :)

If you take The Professor on your Summer Vacation, either send us a picture of the book/kindle/nook, etc. or upload it to FB or Twitter and 'tag' SR so we see it!

GI/GR Series Facebook Fan Page

GI/GR Series Twitter Account

SR's Facebook Fan Page

xoxo
Enn

Enn@omnificpublishing.com

Twitter: @Ennbocci

Interview with Sylvain Reynard - Part V

Dear Everyone,

Since "Gabriel's Inferno" and "Gabriel's Rapture" entered USA Today's Bestseller list last week, they've each been afforded a page on the USA Today website.

Here's the link for a description and reviews of "Inferno:"  http://books.usatoday.com/book/sylvain-reynard-gabriels-inferno/l47145

Here's the link for a description and reviews of "Rapture:"  http://books.usatoday.com/book/sylvain-reynard-gabriels-rapture/l47258


What follows is the fifth and final instalment of my interview with Serendipitous, a long time reader. Her words are in bold below:

You’ve posted teasers for "Gabriel's Rapture" on several blogs, including your own.  Is there any other information you can give us about it?

 “Gabriel’s Rapture” was released 22 May 2012. Here is the summary: 

Professor Gabriel Emerson has embarked on a passionate, yet clandestine affair with his former student, Julia Mitchell.

Sequestered on a romantic holiday in Italy, he tutors her in the sensual delights of the body and the rapture of sex. But when they return, their happiness is threatened by conspiring students, academic politics, and a jealous ex-lover.

When Gabriel is confronted by the university administration, will he be forced to share Dante’s fate? Or will he fight to keep Julia, his Beatrice, forever?

Since the publication of “Gabriel’s Inferno,” you’ve been actively advocating on behalf of charitable work.  You promote different charities on Twitter every day, and you encourage your readers to volunteer or otherwise donate.  What inspired you to promote these good causes?

Several causes are charities I’ve supported for years. Some of them are newer charities that I was introduced to through my readers. In all cases, my goal is simply to encourage charitable giving and volunteerism and to encourage my readers to do the same through their social media accounts. Working together we can make a difference.

And now for something completely different: a short list of your favorites...

Season?  Fall

Holiday?  Christmas

Pair of shoes?  Black, made by Florentines

Movie?  I think today it’s “Casablanca.”

Quote/saying?  Angelfucker.

Time of day?  Morning.

Snack?  Pain au chocolat

Sport/recreational pastime?  Hockey.

I'd like to thank Serendipitous once again for conducting the interview. It was a pleasure.

For my Canadian readers, I should mention that "Gabriel's Rapture" is now available on Amazon.ca and Chapters.ca.

Also, a group of readers have put together a Twitter account for readers to share information, photos, music, art, etc., related to the books. You can find them here.

Thank you for your continued support and for telling your friends and family about the novels. I truly appreciate it.  All the best,

SR

www.sylvainreynard.com

Interview with Sylvain Reynard - Part IV

Dear Everyone,

I'm pleased to announce that both of my novels have been included in the USA Today's Best-selling Books list of 7 June 2012 (representing combined print and e-book formats).  "Gabriel's Inferno" is ranked #108 and "Gabriel's Rapture" is ranked #113.  This week, "Gabriel's Rapture" earned the #2 spot on the Brisbane Courier Mail's Best-selling list of e-books, up from #4 last week. Thank you, everyone, for reading and recommending my stories.  Thanks to you, I'm receiving messages from people all around the world and I'm very grateful to you all.

I have a favour to ask you, however. If you are on social media, will you join with me in trying to raise awareness about the many charities, causes and organizations around the world that are working tirelessly to make the world a better place? I have a few that I support and I'm sure you do as well. Together, we can spread the news of their good works and their needs to a wider audience. Thank you.


What follows is the next instalment of my interview with Serendipitous, a long time reader.  Her remarks are in bold.

Julia is a woman of some contradiction.  She has insecurities and low self-esteem, though her innate charity never wavers.  And there are times when she stands up to Gabriel, for her own sake as well as his.  What are they key qualities you thought were necessary for the woman who would pierce Gabriel’s hard exterior?

I envisioned Julia as having the character qualities that would inspire someone to love her. I pictured her as being gentle and kind, giving and loyal, and having the intestinal fortitude to protect herself.

Gabriel and Julia spend a lot of time in bed together before they become fully intimate.  It seems easier for them to speak from the heart when they share a bed innocently, and allows them to have some very necessary conversations as their story progresses.  Do you think sex would have ruined their early, fragile relationship - or at least, got in the way?

Gabriel needed to woo Julia, especially after he’d treated her so badly.  She didn’t trust him, although she certainly cared for him.  If they’d had sex immediately, it would have short-circuited the strides he needed to make in order to repair his relationship with her and she would have assumed he wanted from her what he wanted with all the other women he’d slept with.

He won her love, but winning her trust was a whole different matter. Gabriel seemed to understand that once they grew closer. And he had to work hard at it. I think it was part of his journey.

It must be difficult to maintain a consistent tone when you’re writing a book.  Your mood and inspiration can be different each time you resume your work (unless you’re able to write it all in one sitting...).  Do you find it challenging to slip back into a particular frame of mind when you write?

It can be challenging, but since the character of the Professor is so strong I find it easy to write him. I can hear his reactions and my head (which is slightly disturbing).

Quite a few readers would gladly take your place if it means having the Professor around all the time!

Can I quote you on that? He’s quite the annoying neighbour and is constantly borrowing milk.

The final chapter, set in Florence, is exquisite.  You’ve often said you love the city, and you showed your readers its extraordinary beauty through the couple’s eyes.  Are there other reasons you chose this location?  It seems significant that Gabriel and Julia became intimate in a place that’s far removed from the highly charged atmosphere of the university.

To me, Florence is the epitome of a beautiful city. There are fantastic restaurants, magnificent vistas and a large treasure trove of Renaissance art. 

What would you like your readers to take away from reading “Gabriel’s Inferno?”

The central idea is that redemption is possible even for two broken people.

I'd like to thank Serendipitous once again for interviewing me and agreeing to share our questions and answers with you. I'll be posting the final instalment of our conversation on Tuesday.

All the best and enjoy your weekend,

SR

www.sylvainreynard.com

Interview with Sylvain Reynard - Part III

Dear Everyone,

Thank you for your continued support of me and my writing. I'm pleased to say that Heather Huffman and I are in talks about co-authoring a romantic comedy whose royalties would be donated to charity.  More details will be forthcoming. If you haven't read Heather's novel, "Throwaway," please do. Not only is it a compelling and redemptive read, Heather donates a portion of her royalties to combat human trafficking. I'm honoured to be able to work with her on a project that will continue to support those efforts.


What follows is the third instalment of my interview with Serendipitous, a long time reader. Her words are in bold:

There are many references to art, literature and music throughout “Gabriel’s Inferno.” Did these works inspire the scenes you wrote? Or did the writing come first, to be complemented by art?

In some cases, the artistic elements were part of my original idea. The works of Botticelli and Holiday’s painting of Dante and Beatrice were part of my outline.  As the story progressed, pieces of music and literature were added in order to illustrate a point or to signal something to the reader.

You created your characters with a very sure eye. Their mistakes, their failures, and their victories are perfectly in line with what we come to know about them.  How much character development was done before you began writing? Was it challenging to adjust when they took an abrupt turn from what you’d planned?   

When I began the story, I outlined the arc of the narrative from beginning to end. But the way in which the characters interacted and the things they said emerged through successive drafts. The character of Professor Singer, for example, wasn’t in my original outline. But when I envisioned Professor Emerson’s public lecture, I saw her sitting in the audience and I knew they would have a history.

I can’t imagine the story without her.  She’s vile, but she plays a certain role in the progression of Julia and Gabriel’s relationship.  Gabriel is rather vague when Julia questions him on what happened with Professor Singer. Did you prefer leaving it to the reader’s imagination?

Yes. The reader can decide for his or herself what happened between Gabriel and Singer.  For Gabriel, those encounters were self-destructive and desperate and that wasn’t a place I wanted to go within the context of the narrative.

Paul treats Julia with kindness from the start, and he makes it clear he’d like to be more than a friend. But Julia’s heart knows only one direction, and it leads to Gabriel:  someone who acts remote, cold, and even cruel to her on occasion.  Do nice guys finish last, even if they’re Virgil?

I don’t think nice guys ever finish last, including Virgil.  If someone is good, he is rewarded by being good. No amount of failed relationships or unrequited love can ever diminish that.  Certainly, the historical Virgil didn't finish last. He spends eternity in the Vestibule with Homer and Ovid. (Parenthetically it should be noted that readers shouldn’t give up on Paul so quickly. There is much more in store for him in the sequel)

It’s good to hear that, because Paul deserves happiness and someone who truly appreciates everything he has to offer.  Thanks for the little glimpse into the next book! 

I'll be posting more from our interview soon.


All the best and thanks for reading,


SR

www.sylvainreynard.com

Interview with Sylvain Reynard - Part II

Dear Everyone,

What follows is part II of my interview with Serendipitous, a long-time reader. Her words are in bold.

There is a lot of humor in “Gabriel’s Inferno:” professors possibly collecting shrunken heads of graduate students; Gabriel wishing he had a camera to record Julia so he could twitch in private; Gabriel coining the term “Angelfucker.”  It lightens up what is often an emotional, dark story. How important is humor to you and your writing?

Humour is very important to me and, I think, also to my readers.  The story could have been very dark without the use of the narrator and his snarky asides, or the quirkiness of several characters.  The humour is also meant to communicate to the reader that the Professor takes himself too seriously.

Gabriel and his Beatrice started out in their own dark woods at a time when he’d “lost the path that does not stray.”  What is it about Dante and his works that inspired you to tie Gabriel and Julia’s story to them?  

In La Vita Nuova Dante makes it clear that he admires Beatrice from afar, apart from few brief encounters. I’d always wondered what it would be like if the story was reversed – if Beatrice admired Dante from afar. Worse still, I wondered what it would be like if Dante was oblivious to her existence.

I’ve wanted to ask you about Chapter 14 of “Gabriel’s Inferno” for a very long time. So much of the subsequent story hinges on its events because of what is revealed.  But what affected me the most is how Julia finds her voice with Gabriel.  Everything she held inside herself for six years breaks wide open.  It was enormously satisfying to read it.  How did it feel to write it?

I enjoyed writing it immensely. Julia is not a doormat. She chooses her battles very, very carefully, and in this case, she decided to tell him what she thought of him. It was very satisfying to write it.

In general, is it easy or difficult for you to write anger? Do you have a “favorite” emotion to write?

Anger is enjoyable to write because it provides opportunity to let the character’s inner musings fly. It also provides an opportunity for humour.

I'll be posting more of my interview with Serendipitous next week. Thank you, Serendipitous, for the opportunity to speak with you about my writing. And thank you for reading.

If you haven't discovered the website Goodreads yet, you might want to look at it. It's a great resource for finding new and interesting books and for interacting with authors and other readers.

All the best,

SR

www.sylvainreynard.com