Today my guest is Sean Kennedy.
Sean is giving away a prize to two lucky winners so don’t forget to leave a comment on the post for your chance to win. Also, check out the Rafflecopter.
I love Christmas and always look forward to it. What’s your favourite holiday of the year and what makes it so special?
I do love Christmas, but my favourite has to be Halloween. Even though it is still not a big thing here, it always was to me as I come from an Irish family. It’s a Celtic tradition, goddammit! The Yanks just stole it. Anyway, one of the best times in my life was actually being in Ireland for Halloween and seeing the streets full of people dressed up, and then going to the local park afterwards for a bonfire and fireworks. I would love to see it here, but once again, we’re out of sync with the seasons and would be sweltering rather than rugging up. Last year for a party I dressed up as a plague doctor and had to ditch the costume after half an hour because I was sweating to death under the mask and the eye lenses were fogging up from the heat.
Do you and your family/friends have any special holiday traditions?
Does obsessively playing Elvis’s Blue Christmas album over and over again count? And I always have to watch Meet Me In St Louis, which is my traditional Christmas film.
What’s your biggest gift giving disaster?
There is none to tell. I am an EXCELLENT gift giver. It’s, like, my superpower.
Awesome! I wish I shared your power. 🙂
Christmas carols. Yes or no?
Yes! I’m an agnostic borderline atheist but I will still belt the shit out of any Christmas carol with all my heart.
Do you watch Christmas movies? If so, what’s your favourite all time holiday movie?
As above, Meet Me In St Louis. It’s not a Christmas film per se, as it follows every season in the life of a family but it has Judy Garland singing “Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas” while Margaret O’Brien beats a bunch of snowpeople to death with a bat. It pretty much sums up all the mixed emotions of Christmas in one perfect scene.
I love reading stories set in the holiday season and I especially like seeing stories set all over the world. I love seeing how others celebrate and I love reading about guys getting their special holiday happy ever afters. Do you read holiday romances? If so, do you have a favourite you’d like to recommend to your readers?
I’m terrible because I love Christmas ghost stories instead. I think it’s once again having an Irish family as any family get together results in ghost stories being told. My favourite one would have to be Henry James’s “The Turn of the Screw” in which a story is told on Christmas Eve between friends about a governess and the haunted house she works in.
Do you have a YouTube clips of a holiday song you’d like to share?
Calling on Mary by Aimee Mann. One of my favourite singers and this song is just gorgeous and should become a Christmas classic.
The end of the year is often a time for making New Year’s Resolutions. Do you have any you’d be willing to share? After all, they do say you’re more likely to achieve a goal if you share it 🙂
I’d like to write a lot more next year. But I say that every year.
I think your readers will be crossing their fingers for that resolution 🙂 What does 2017 hold for you on the writing front? What can your readers expect to see from you?
I’m hoping to work on Books 3 and 4 of the GetOut series and complete that storyline so I can work on the fourth Tigers and Devils book but I also want to try and write something outside that universe between them.
There are many people who aren’t as fortunate as me and this time of year is always a time where I reflect on how lucky I am. It’s a time for giving back and I do so by supporting my favourite charity (Twenty10 who provide support for LGBT youth) financially and with their Christmas Hamper drive. Is there a favourite charity or not-for-profit organization you’d like to call out and raise the awareness of?
As everybody will probably mention really good LGBTQ charities, I want to plug two causes really dear to my heart: refugees and cats. The ASRC (Asylum Seeker Resource Centre) do really good work in the face of our barbaric treatment of refugees and I always try to help them out as much as I can. Then there’s my local cat shelter, the Shenton Park Cat Haven, which is where I got my two little furballs from. Christmas is a bleak time of year for both charities.
Check out a couple of Sean’s books…
Blurb: An Australian Christmas in New York
Vince has been living in New York for the past four years with his partner Chuck, but as Christmas approaches, Vince finds himself missing the weather, smells, and other traditions of the Australian holiday. With Chuck being a little distracted, Vince is feeling sorry for himself, until the day itself arrives….
Buy Link
Dreamspinner Press
Blurb: The Ongoing Reformation of Micah Johnson
Micah Johnson is out of options.
Following a stint as a runaway after the cruel revelation of his sexual orientation, Micah vows to get his life back on the right track. But there are roadblocks between him and his goal of making the national draft and having a shot at becoming an AFL player, including struggles with other students both on and off the football field. Hiding behind sarcasm will only protect him from so much, and Micah knows just making it to graduation will be an epic battle. If only Micah could find a fraction of the faith that his mentor, Declan Tyler, has in him, but he can’t seem to see what Declan does.
Micah is trying to reform, but the end of the road is a long way off, and it’s clear the process is ongoing.
Buy Link
Dreamspinner Press
GIVEAWAYS
To enter just comment on this post and a winner will be randomly chosen after 27th December.
1st prize: $20 Amazon GC, 2nd Prize: $15 Amazon GC (courtesy of Meg Bawden), $10 ARe GC (courtesy of Beany Sparks), and 4th Prize is a bundle of 4 ebooks (1 back list title from Renae Kaye, Penny Brandon’s “His Heart’s Desire”, LJ Harris’ “The Haunting of Angus MacGregor”, and a backlist title from N.J. Nielsen)
About the author
Sean Kennedy lives in the second-most isolated city in the world, thinks there are thylacines still out in the wild, and eagerly awaits the return of Twin Peaks in 2017.
Twitter: @sean__kennedy
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sean.kennedy.58511
crozzy67cinders says
Amazing interview and love the books!
kennsea says
Thank you so much! Merry Christmas.
Tanja says
Hi Sean, thank you for the interview. I love Meet me in St. Louis with Judy Garland too. I forgot that the song Have yourself a merry little Christmas came from this movie. Thank you for the reminder.
Love your books btw.
kennsea says
Thank you! In fact, I’ll probably be watching it tonight or tomorrow night. Merry Christmas!
jenf27 says
Thanks for the great interview! I love Christmas Carols, too, even though I am also agnostic/atheist. My kids are kind of confused when I sing along with the religious ones. Good to keep them on their toes. 😉
kennsea says
It does get kind of confusing for people when you belt out “Mary’s Boy Child” with gusto. Merry Christmas!
Jenn Donald says
Great interview – now I want to see Halloween in Ireland! That sounds like so much fun! Happy Holidays! 🙂
kennsea says
It would be interesting to see what it is like now, as I was there during The Troubles. Merry Christmas!
heath0043 says
I love the interview. I always like to hear about author’s lives and way of thinking. Halloween in Ireland sounds great! Both books sound great, I will add them to my list.
kennsea says
Thanks, Heath! Merry Christmas!
susana says
I wish I had your superpower, Sean. I am a disaster at gifts. Thank you for the interview, and the giveaway! 😉
kennsea says
It truly is the one thing I’m good at. Merry Christmas!
H.B. says
I’m a horrible gift giver. I never know what to gift. I wish I had such skills.
Jennie LovesBooks says
Hi, great interview. I really enjoyed your Tiger & Devils series.
Kim says
Great interview , Aimee is new to me, so stalking YouTube
Tim says
I wish we could get Tigers and Devils made into a cable TV mini series. Enjoy the Holidays!
Nic Starr says
And the lucky winners are Jenn Donald and Jennie LovesBooks! Sean will be in contact soon with your prizes. Congratulations 🙂