About Graham Parke
Graham Parke is responsible for a number of technical publications and has recently patented a self-folding map. He has been described as both a humanitarian and a pathological liar. Convincing evidence to support either allegation has yet to be produced.
No Hope for Gomez! is Graham’s fiction debut. You can visit his website at www.grahamparke.com.
The Interview
Could you please tell us a little about your book?
Gomez Porter is many things; a reluctant antiques dealer, an experimental drug trail participant, a stalker-stalker (someone who stalks other stalkers), but now he has become a fugitive as well. Exactly who is after him, he isn’t sure. He decides to help the police infiltrate the drug trail, as many of its participants are going missing. But when the chief investigator himself disappears, Gomez decides it’s best to strike out on his own. Hounded by a meddling neighbor, a phone-sex salesman (someone who… no idea), and a crazed stalker, he tries to stay alive long enough to discover the truth behind the mysterious events in his life.
Oh yeah, and there’s also a nurse with big boobs!
In the last year have you learned or improved on any skills?
I think every book brings with it a great opportunity to improve your writing skills. Every story dictates its own set of characters, its own mood and, if your lucky, its own voice. No Hope for Gomez! was a story that commanded a very high pace and a constant stream of ideas and philosophies. It was a real joy to write.
Do you have any rituals you follow when finishing a piece of work?
I like to leave bits of writing lying around. Passages, chapters, entire novels. I don’t look at them for about three months, then I go back and reread. It’s much easier to spot problems this way, and to finish off the polish. You don’t always feel you have the time to do this, but I’ve found that it’s definitely worth it.
What do you feel is your biggest strength?
I guess that would be descriptive writing.
Biggest weakness?
Definitely descriptive writing!
What are you currently working on?
I’m working on several projects. One will probably be a much darker tale, more of a suspense novel with bits of current-day Cyberpunk. Another project that’s taking on shape right now is a prequel to No Hope for Gomez! It will tell us more about how Gomez became Gomez, and highlight the supporting characters. Here a small sample:
“Hicks finally arrived at 10:12 a.m. I asked him how his weekend was.
“Had a blast,” he said. “I discovered a new particle.”
“A new particle?” Had I heard that correctly? “That’s amazing! I didn’t even know you were into physics.”
Hicks hung up his coat and joined me at the counter. “Yeah, I picked up this book at a garage sale two weeks ago. Haven’t been able to put it down. It’s just a little hobby, but I really enjoy it.”
“But still,” I said, “an entirely new particle…”
Hicks waved it away. “It’s nothing, really. It’s all very theoretical. You just need to crunch the numbers. When you think about it, the particles themselves are already there, it’s just fun to be the first to point one out. I’ll probably end up writing a small paper on it and then forgetting about the whole thing.” He looked around for his broom, seemed surprised not to find it near the counter.
“But surely you could do more with it,” I said. “I mean, it’s a whole new piece of matter! Who knows what practical applications it might have?”
Hicks shrugged, clearly more worried about his broom. “It’ll take scientists decades to actually create it.” He looked behind the counter, then traced his gaze along the back wall. “Double that to stabilize it and put it to use. I’ll expect to be thoroughly dead by then.”
Hicks located his broom behind one of the shelving units and breathed a sigh of relief. “Well,” he said, “better get down to sweeping the store.”
Is there anything else you would like to share with us?
I’ll be giving away signed copies of a limited edition novella set in the Gomez universe. It’s not available for purchase and I’ll be sending copies off to readers periodically from my forum. You can get there thru; www.grahamparke.com
No Hope for Gomez! by Graham Parke (click on cover to purchase at Amazon)
About No Hope for Gomez!
It’s the age-old tale:
Boy meets girl.
Boy stalks girl.
Girl already has a stalker.
Boy becomes her stalker-stalker.
We’ve seen it all before, many times, but this time it’s different. If only slightly.
When Gomez Porter becomes a test subject in an experimental drug trial, he is asked to keep track of any strange experiences through a blog. What Gomez isn’t ready for, is so many of his experiences suddenly seeming strange; the antiques dealer trying to buy his old tax papers, his neighbor boiling salamanders on his balcony at midnight, the super sexy lab assistant who falls for him but is unable to express herself in terms outside the realm of science.
But when one of the trial participants turns up dead and another goes missing, Gomez begins to fear for his life. No longer sure who he can trust and which of his experiences are real and which merely drug induced illusions, he decides it’s time to go underground and work out a devious plan.
Now, years later, his blogs have been recovered from a defunct server. For the first time we can find out firsthand what happened to Gomez as he takes us on a wild ride of discovery.
Read the Excerpt!
“Sure,” the nurse told me. “In fact, they’ve just started.”
“Great. So I can just walk in?”
“You can,” she said. “Who did you want to see?”
“A Mr. Miller. Mr. Joseph Miller. He was brought in two days ago.”
The nurse consulted her computer, frowned, then shook her head. “No, I’m sorry,” she said. “Mr. Miller is dead. He died late last night.” She looked up from her screen. “Would you like to see somebody else?”
“What? No! I really need to talk to Mr. Miller. Are you absolutely sure he’s passed away?”
“I can recheck if you want.” She typed away. “Sometimes this program mixes up some of the… ah, I see what I’ve done now.” She gave me an apologetic smile. “Stupid little me,” she said. “I had the stats of several files mixed up.”
I breathed a sigh of relief. “So he didn’t pass away then?”
“Oh, no,” the nurse said, shaking her head, “he’s still dead, but he died this morning rather than last night.” She held up her hand with a small amount of space between her thumb and index finger. “You missed him by that much.”
“I see,” I said. “Does it at least say what he died of?”
She browsed her screen, bit her lip, and mumbled, “Yes, no, wait a minute. I saw something about…. Ah, yes. Yes, it does.” She looked up again. For a long moment we stared at each other. When I finally arched an eyebrow, she said, “Are you a relative? I’m not supposed to give out this kind of information to just anybody.”
I tried to think fast. I really needed that information, but I didn’t know Joseph other than from the trail waiting area. We’d never even spoken. Then, out of nowhere, the perfect answer just occurred to me. I told her, “Yes!”
“Okay then.” She was about to tell me when her face clouded over again. “You really should be getting this information from his doctor, though.”
I waved it away, told her it would be fine.
“Well,” she said, reading from her screen, “it says here he died of dehydration and malnutrition.”
“He was found passed out in his apartment,” I told her. “Apparently he’d been out for a while. Does it say what caused him to lose consciousness in the first place?”
The nurse perused the file for a long time, then shook her head. “No, sorry,” she said. “I’ll have to get the doctor for that. Just a moment.” She reached for the phone.
“That’s okay,” I said, not wanting to get into trouble for impersonating a relative. “I need to go. Pressed for time. Thank you.”
As I turned to leave, the nurse called after me, “Are you sure you don’t want to visit anyone else? There are some really nice people up on the second floor. Much nicer than Mr. Miller. They’d love to talk to you.”
Here’s what critics have to say!
This book was very much a mystery to me as I read it. Most books you can make a pretty accurate guess at what is going to happen, this book left you very much on the edge as you get to follow through with this part of his life. For those who are mystery/suspense or even Medical Suspense this book would be perfect for you.. A very good quick read book. Well put together.
–Star Shadow (read rest of review here)
Extremely witty and clever writing that contains keen insights into human nature…
– California Chronicle
The antics in this book will leave the reader laughing. Graham Parke is a genius…
– Readers Favorite
A quick and unputdownable read that flies in the face of reason, and smashes against the wall of detective novels. It’s a Coens Brothers’ film formatted in book form.
– Book Review
No Hope for Gomez! by Graham Parke is a very funny book; a veritable page turner of nonstop laughs. Buy a copy and find out for yourself!
– Reader Views
No Hope for Gomez! Tour Schedule
Monday, April 5
Interviewed at Beyond the Books
Tuesday, April 6
Interviewed at Blogcritics
Wednesday, April 7
Guest blogging at The Story Behind the Book
Thursday, April 8
Book spotlighted at Examiner
Friday, April 9
Book reviewed at Star Shadow
Monday, April 12
Interviewed at Book Marketing Buzz
Tuesday, April 13
Book reviewed at Literarily Speaking
Wednesday, April 14
Interviewed at Personovelty
Thursday, April 15
Interviewed at Working Writers
Friday, April 16
Interviewed at Review From Here
Monday, April 19
Interviewed at Pump Up Your Book
Tuesday, April 20
Book reviewed at Broken Teepee
Wednesday, April 21
Guest blogging and book giveaway at Suspense Insider
Thursday, April 22
Interviewed at Broowaha
Guest blogging & book giveaway at This Book For Free
Friday, April 23
Interviewed at As the Pages Turn
Monday, April 26
Book reviewed at Reading at the Beach
Tuesday, April 27
Book reviewed at Book Lover
Wednesday, April 28
Guest blogging at The Book Connection
Thursday, April 29
Book reviewed at Jen’s Book Talk
Friday, April 30
Book reviewed at Dan’s Journal
Monday, May 3
Guest blogging at Books R Us
Tuesday, May 4
Book reviewed at Books R Us
Wednesday, May 5
Interviewed at Examiner
Thursday, May 6
Guest blogging at Southern City Mysteries
Friday, May 7
Book reviewed at Simply Stacie
Monday, May 10
Book reviewed at Libby’s Library News
Tuesday, May 11
Guest blogging at Readaholic
Wednesday, May 12
Book reviewed at Busy Moms Who Love to Read
Thursday, May 13
Guest blogging at Cafe of Dreams
Book reviewed at Readaholic
Friday, May 14
Book reviewed at The Life (and Lies) of an Inanimate Flying Object
Monday, May 17
Guest blogging at As the Pages Turn
Book spotlight at The Plot
Tuesday, May 18
Guest blogging at The Plot
Wednesday, May 19
Book reviewed at Book Reviews by Buuklvr81
Thursday, May 20
Book reviewed at Musings of an All Purpose Monkey
Friday, May 21
Interviewed at Literarily Speaking
Monday, May 24
Book reviewed at Satisfaction for Insatiable Readers
Tuesday, May 25
Interviewed at The Hot Author Report
Wednesday, May 26
Guest blogging at Beyond the Books
Thursday, May 27
Guest blogging at Blogging Authors
Friday, May 28
Guest blogging at Island Chick Travels
Interviewed at American Chronicle
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