Interview with Laura Stone for The Bones of You @StoneyboBoney

A life-long fan girl, Laura Stone takes a leave of absence from the glamorous life of motherhood while the kids were in school, devoting her days to writing full-time. In the past she's worn the hat of actress, Master Gardener, and computer geek, but now sticks mostly to a Texas Ranger's ball cap as she raises her children. They're not fully raised, but then again, she would say that she isn’t either.

She began telling stories to her parents at the age of four. She was so successful in catching her parent's attention that her father actually dislocated his back, trying not to sit on her imaginary cat, Doka.

She lives in Texas as proof that it's not totally populated by hard-line right-wingers—and because that's where the good tamales are from.

Connect with Laura:

http://wwwlaura-stone.com

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What is it that you loved about the main characters in your story?

I love how much they care for each other, how they show it in these little unspoken ways even though the future of their relationship is so uncertain. Gestures such as adjusting someone's tie or smoothing a shirt down, something little such as handing over a fresh napkin when you both sit down for a meal in a cafe, remembering who prefers being the little spoon.

Oliver in particular is very tuned in to the likes and needs of his lover, Seth. It makes him happy to know that he can make someone else happy. He's a courteous, mannered sort, and it fits his worldview to demonstrate affection with these types of attentions to detail toward the people in his life. I just love dear, thoughtful people like him.

I've also been called a people pleaser, and it's something I like about myself. I—like Oliver—enjoy making people who I care about smile. I love to make them feel special and important by remembering a favorite wine or restaurant, a book they've wanted to start reading but keep forgetting to pick up at the shop, sending a funny card to a friend who's having a rough time.

For Oliver, this people-pleasing that he can't help backfired in certain ways, ways that sent him on a completely different trajectory in his life than he'd planned. He couldn't please both his boyfriend and his father, well, he couldn't satisfy the legacy his father had planned for him. As a result, he ended up disappointing both of them. One of my favorite arcs in this story is how Oliver slowly awakens to realizing that it's okay to please himself.

Well, that could be taken in a decidedly naughty way, but I mean that Oliver learns that he matters. He learns that it's perfectly okay to put yourself first. That what he wants for himself, for his career and for his heart are all good, worthy things. He just has to figure out how to achieve it.

Seth is a perfect match for Oliver in many ways because Seth understands that it makes Oliver happy to think of others first. There's a scene where they're going to take a shower, and Oliver makes a point to use specific toiletries, knowing how persnickety Seth can be. Seth, having been on his own in the harsh, cut-throat world of New York theater, absolutely melts at the tiny but thoughtful gesture. He also thanks Oliver in a particular way, but you'll have to read to find out just what that is....

Seth is someone the reader slowly comes to learn about, so I can't say too much about him without giving away the story. But I can say that Seth understands Oliver better than Oliver even understands himself. He's the person who sees how Oliver is denying himself a full life because of the people-pleasing element, and is the one person who knows how to encourage Oliver to finally be self-focused in a way that is positive and truly helpful.

People who on paper clearly belong together, but for whatever reason—timing, location, school, careers, what have you—can't seem to make a relationship work are so painful to me, and so fascinating to write about. Hopefully the readers will agree!

 

Blurb:

Oliver Andrews was wholly focused on the final stages of his education at Cambridge University when a well-meaning friend up-ended his world with a simple email attachment: a clip from a U.S. morning show.

The moment he watches the video of his one-time love Seth Larsen, now a Broadway star, Oliver must begin making a series of choices that could lead him back to love—or break his heart.

The Bones of You is full of laughter and tears, with a collection of irritated Hungarians, flirtatious Irishwomen, and actors abusing Shakespeare that color Oliver and Seth’s attempts at reconciliation.

Excerpt:

Oliver fumbled with his smartphone and pulled up his email. He tapped on the video link in Gus's message and handed the phone over. It wasn't easy to hear over the din of the crowd, but she'd get the idea well enough. “Wait for the hosts to stop talking. That's him.”

Moira held the phone close, her head cocked to pick up the sound over the bar's noise. Oliver watched her face, not the video. Her eyes widened as Seth began to sing, and after a moment she was smiling, entranced.

“Yeah, he has a tendency to do that to people,” Oliver said softly, taking a long drink.                      

“Hmm?” She could barely tear her eyes away from the performance to respond.         

He toyed with the coaster under his beer as she finished watching the clip. She exhaled loudly and handed him back his phone. “You knew this bloke?”                  

“Knew him? Um, intimately. That's rude; I'm sorry.”

She cackled. “And here I was wondering if you were a monk.”

Laura will be awarding A $25 Interlude Press GC to one randomly drawn winner and digital copies of THE BONES OF YOU to ten randomly winners via Rafflecopter during the tour 

 

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