Between Dark and Light 2013 Blog Tour: Guest Post and Giveaway with D.A. Adams

Hi, everyone!

I am pleased to participate in D.A. Adams' Between Dark and Light 2013 Blog Tour hosted by Seventh Star Press.

About D.A.:

D. A. Adams is a novelist, a farmer, a professor of English, and in my estimation, a true gentleman. His breakout fantasy series, The Brotherhood of Dwarves, transcends genre and illuminates the human soul in all its flashes of glory and innumerable failings.

He is active on the Con circuit and has contributed writing to literary as well as fine art publications, and maintains his active blog, "The Ramblings of D. A. Adams". He lives and works in East Tennessee, and is the proud father of two boys, Collin and Finn.

His ability as a storyteller breathes life into every character, and his craftsmanship as a writer makes these stories about relationships; human or otherwise. 

CONNECT WITH D.A. ONLINE: 

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads

Welcome back to Darlene's Book Nook, D.A.!

D.A. has written a guest post, so I will now turn the floor over to him.

I’m currently teaching a class called “The Human Adventure,” a humanities course that examines the art, architecture, music, literature, and religion of the major Western and Near East civilizations from Mesopotamia on.  We’re covering the ancient Greeks right now, and one aspect of their culture I had somewhat forgotten was their focus on finding balance in all aspects of life.  Though often remembered today for his promiscuity and fits of rage, Zeus was revered by the Greeks more for his intelligence and strategy than for his physical prowess and ability to hurl lightning bolts.  Yes, those were part of his mystique, but for the most part, the Greeks sought balance between the extremes of human behavior.

Right now, we’re torn between extremes.  In this era of 24 hour, sensationalist, profit-driven news media – I refuse to call it journalism because it’s the antithesis of true journalistic reporting – our society has splintered into cells of extremism.  At least once a week, sometimes more frequently, there’s a new outrage, a new cause that must be championed immediately or else the very foundations of society will collapse.  Meanwhile, as the participants in this theater of distraction whip themselves into a fervor over Chik-Fil-A or Beyonce or whatever the hell else is being drummed at that moment, our infrastructure continues to erode, our economy becomes more akin to a third world nation than the wealthiest superpower on the planet, our education system implodes, and our civil liberties evaporate in the guise of fighting terror.

We have to rediscover balance, sensible approaches to solving real problems instead of chasing whatever distraction mass media tell us is important at that moment.  We have to rediscover open dialogue and move beyond these petty shouting matches that pass for debate.  We have to stop this frenetic madness we call politics and begin listening to each other again.  If we don’t, and soon, our system, our way of life, is going to topple off the cliff.  Not long ago, we were the nation that sent people to the moon and developed the microchip and advanced scientific thought.  Today, we’re “Honey Boo Boo” and “Jersey Shore.”

I believe we need to find balance between free enterprise and regulation;  balance between energy consumption and environmental conservation; balance between corporate profits and individual wages; balance between civil liberties and national security; in short, balance on every single divisive issue we currently face.  Too far in either direction, and our economy stalls.  Our founders believed we could find this balance by talking to one another, by discussing issues openly and in length, but today, we don’t have discussions.  A conversation is equal parts listening and talking.  Today, each extreme is only interested in shouting their beliefs and then holding their breath and stamping their feet while the other side shouts.  They ridicule each other with sharp wit and clever memes, each side proudly playing the “gotcha” game.  The most glaring problem with this approach is that each side dehumanizes the other, and when one side views the other as less than fully human, they cease to value the lives of their opposition.  The end game of this cycle is typically bloody conflict.

If you are interested in seriously changing things in this country, first and foremost, turn off the sensationalist news cycle.  Their sole purpose for existence is to keep you tuned in to make profit from advertising.  Stop feeding them, and they’ll have to adapt and change.  Then, open up dialogues with people who have opposite views from yourself.  Together as individuals, try to find common ground on which you could both exist.  Listen to and respect their beliefs, no matter how absurd they may seem to you.  Be open to the possibility that you might be the one who is wrong.  Otherwise, we’re heading directly on course with a violent resolution to our problems.  We must, through dialogue and discourse, rediscover balance, or like so many civilizations before us, we will topple.

Thanks so much for joining us today, D.A.! 

Grand Prize (Canada/US): One lucky winner will win a paperback copy of the fourth book in D.A.'s highly-acclaimed The Brotherhood of Dwarves series, Between Dark and Light.

Runner-up Prize (Worldwide): Digital copies (mobi or ePub format) of Books #1-4 in The Brotherhood of Dwarves series by D.A. Adams.

 

TITLE: Between Dark and Light

SERIES: The Brotherhood of Dwarves, Book #4
AUTHOR: D.A. Adams

PUBLISHER: Seventh Star Press

DATE OF PUBLICATION: January 23, 2013

FORMAT: Paperback, 280 pages

GENRE: Fantasy

ISBN: 978-1937929787

The stakes are higher than ever in the fourth installment of the popular dwarven saga!

The Great Empire has surrounded the Kiredurks and are preparing to conquer the kingdom, but unknown to them, Kwarck, the mysterious hermit of the plains, has his own plan in action. To the east, he has summoned an elven army and charged Crushaw with leading them into battle. To the south, Roskin will gather an army from the fractured Ghaldeon lands. But to the west, an ancient and powerful evil stirs. The Great War is about to erupt, if Roskin can overcome the Dark One...

Buy Links:

Amazon Paperback /Amazon Kindle

Other Books in the Series:

 

To enter the giveaway, please fill out the Rafflecopter entry form below.

This giveaway is open worldwide, but the Grand Prize is available to Canada/US mailing addresses only. This giveaway will close at 12:00 AM CST on March 15, 2013.
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Tour Participants

2/18 I Smell Sheep                                  Guest Post
2/19 Watch Play Read                            Interview
2/20 Read 2 Review                                Character Interview
2/21 Page Turner Book Tours                 Contest/Giveaway
2/22 The Oaken Bookcase                      Excerpt
2/22 Louann Carol                                    Promo/Spotlight
2/23 GMTA UK                                          Interview/Excerpt
2/24 The Independent Review                  Review
2/25 From the Bootheel Cotton Patch      Excerpt
2/26 Beauty in Ruins                                 Guest Post
2/27 Full Moon Bites                                  Character Interview
2/28 Ali’s Bookshelf                                    Review
3/1 Bee’s Knees Reviews                         Review
3/2 Bookishly Me                                       Excerpt/Spotlight
3/3 SpecMusicMuse                                  Review
3/4 GMTA                                                   Excerpt
3/5 Angela Meadon                                     Interview
3/5 D Renee Bagby Presents YA First Chapters        Excerpt
3/6 Pandragon Dan                                    Review
3/6 A Book Vacation                                   Excerpt and Contest
3/7 Lost Inside the Covers                         Review
3/8 Darlene’s Book Nook                           Guest Post
3/9 Sheila Deeth                                         Guest Post
3/10 John F. Allen                                       Promo/Spotlight
3/10 Spellbindings                                      Review
3/11 Workaday Reads                               Review
3/12 Celticlady’s Reviews                          Promo/Spotlight
3/12 Horsham Writers Circle                     Review/Interview
3/12 The One Saga                                    Review/Excerpt
3/13 WTF Are You Reading                       Review
3/13 Beagle Book Space                            Promo/Spotlight
3/14 Urban Fantasy Reviews                     Guest Post
3/15 The Cabin Goddess                            Fourth Wall Friday
3/16 Jess Resides Here                              Review