Welcome to the Of Time and Place by B.K. Freemont blog tour. Today I'm hosting a stop with a Spotlight including a guest post, Q&A and an Excerpt from the book. If that wasn't enough awesomeness in one tour stop then check out the Giveaway at the end. One copy of Of Time and Place by B.K. Freemont is being given away. B.K. Freemont welcome to my blog and thank you for fantastic Spotlight on my blog and giveaway. As always, a Big thanks to Tribute Books for having me on this tour.
Guest Post:
After reading Of Time
and Place, a person may conclude that I’m a pessimist. The main characters
don’t fully succeed in what they’re trying to accomplish. Life in the middle of
the twenty-first century is constricted by a reduced supply of petroleum energy
and an economy that never fires on all cylinders. This “new normal”, which some
economists now postulate, appears to be entrenched in the nation’s psyche.
I hope the reader can look past these first impressions. A
better lesson to draw from the book is that government cannot remain adrift and
avoid the larger, long-term issues. I’m not advocating big government or small
government, but rather effective government. Infrastructure improvements, a
rational energy policy, and an overall balance between revenue and spending
need to be agreed upon and adopted. People of goodwill must come together, not
forced apart.
Therefore, I would prefer that Of Time and Place not be an accurate prognostication of the future
but rather a lesson in what course must not be followed. Government
somnambulism and “kicking the can down the road” will not enable the nation to succeed
and prosper.
Early in the novel, James Lendeman, the narrator/protagonist
responds to a question from his prospective boss, Kate Hastings. He states that
the time for a comprehensive energy policy solution has long since passed. Kate
and James’s conversation takes place in the year 2053. James suggests the time
for action had been early in the century. In other words, that time is now.
Questions and Answers:
Please tell us about your current
release.
Of Time and Place is set in the
middle of the 21st century. At that point most countries, including
the United States, are continuing to experience a strained economic climate, in
good part due to a restricted supply of petroleum energy. In these
circumstances success for the individual is difficult to achieve. Kate
Hastings, an iconoclastic and enigmatic rising star in the Federal Energy
Department recruits James Lendeman, a capable technician, to aid her campaign
to improve the energy picture for the country, but they find that results are
not easily achieved.
Can you tell us about the journey that led you to write your
book, Of Time and Place?
In the 1980s—shortly after the second gasoline supply crisis
of 1979—I came to realize that energy supply and cost problems would place an
ever-increasing burden on the country. I completed a novel bases on this theme
in the 1990s. I then put the work aside. Early in this century, I realized that
the petroleum energy problem was growing more acute as developing countries,
such as China and India, were placing an increased strain on supplies. Added to
the mix was the perpetual instability in the Mideast and other petroleum
producing countries. I went back to my old, unpublished novel and completely
rewrote it. The result is: Of Time and
Place.
Can you tell us about the story behind your book cover?
The title of the book—Of
Time and Place—refers to the various locales where the action takes place
over a number of years. The cover—with fluttering calendar pages and icons of
cities critical to the plot—complements the title. I suggested the overall
concept to the cover designer, and she developed a wonderful cover.
What approaches have you taken to marketing your book?
Marketing is occurring on two fronts—via the Internet and
through traditional modes. There is both a website (www.royaloaklit.com) along with a Face
book page (OfTimeandPlace) for the book. I am seeking interviews and reviews
from book bloggers. Media interviews and book reviews, and book signings are
being planned.
What book on the market does yours compare to? How is your
book different?
I’m unaware of any book on the market that’s similar to
mine.
What would you say is your most interesting writing quirk?
I sometimes work on multiple projects concurrently, writing
a number of chapters of a book and then switching off to write an essay or
short story. Perhaps that’s why it took me nearly ten years to write Of Time and Place—and that’s after
having written the first version a decade earlier.
Open your book to a random page and tell us what’s
happening.
Once upon a time, a cow, coming down a road, met a little
boy. The boy was called baby tuckoo. Oops. Sorry. I opened the wrong book. My
Freudian slip probably reflects my reluctance to summarize and/or dissect an
isolated page of text. I’ve written each page—and indeed the entire novel—to
the best of my ability. I would commend the work in its entirety to the reader.
Do you plan any subsequent books?
Yes. Now that Of Time
and Place is published, I’ll get back to some of the other projects I’ve
been working on.
Tell us what you’re reading at the moment and what you think
of it.
I’m reading Majesty
by C. J. Sansom. It’s an historical mystery set in the reign of Henry VIII.
Having majored in history, I enjoy this genre. The author’s understanding of
this period is quickly evident. He combines knowledge of the big events of the
16th century with an appreciation of the details of everyday life.
Mix in an intriguing plot and you have a lively, readable work. A prospective
reader should start with Dissolution,
the first book in the series.
Of Time and Place by B.K. Freemont
As the global energy crisis of the 21st century wears on, James Lendeman searches for answers – both for the country and for himself.
Working in the Federal Energy Department for the iconoclastic and enigmatic Kate Hastings, James is at the center of a world of political intrigue and personal conflicts. Unsure of whether he can go along with Kate’s plans for the country (and for him), he is forced to steer his own way through a maze of personal and professional problems.
When we meet James a few years later (through an ingenious weaving of dual timelines), he is in Savannah, working as a contractor for the government and debating the merits of a flirtatious college student who lives in his boarding house.
Nimbly moving forward and backward through James’s personal timeline, Of Time and Placeleads its readers on a journey through the twists and turns of life in a kind of historical novel of the future. From a tumultuous romance and marriage to a romantic spring in Florence and the adversities along the way, James finds himself debating both his own life and the feasibility of maintaining a viable US economy in the mid-21st century.
Drawn from very real issues of global import, and playing out in some of the most storied cities in the world, Of Time and Place will leave every reader pondering the future – and the present.
Buy Now:
Excerpt:
Chapter 1
Savannah, 2060
I was returning from one of my distasteful, although fortunately infrequent, visits to Washington. In order to justify the payments I received, I needed to perform a bit of consulting work, and from time to time be in contact with a continually changing nonentity in the Federal Energy Department. I had taken the train to save money. As usual, it was running late, taking nine hours to make a six-hour trip. We did encounter a one-hour power-down in North Carolina, but, still, a three-hour delay is a three-hour delay.
Elsewhere, trains could travel at four hundred kilometers an hour. In this country, even on the faster intercity routes, two hundred was a top speed. Our trips tended to be longer; all the more reason for trains to be faster. Why had we not invested in the necessary infrastructure? Worst of all, through our outmoded rail system we were wasting energy—and this particularly bothered me.
In Savannah, the train station was located a few kilometers from downtown in a rundown area of scrub brush and litter. A poorly maintained bus carted passengers from the inter-city train station to downtown locations. I got off at Drayton Street where I needed another vehicle—a street tram—to take me south, out of the historic district.
About B.K. Freemont:
B.R. Freemont was born in New York and has lived in the Savannah area for over a decade. He holds a B.A. from Columbia and an M.A. from New York University. During his business career, Freemont filled a number of management assignments and briefly worked for government entities.
Over the years, his interests have included: astronomy, domestic and foreign travel, dog breed club administration, wine tasting, and avidly reading both fiction and non-fiction.
He is married and has a son and two daughters.
Find B.K. Freemont:
Giveaway:
Enter to win a copy of Of Time and Place by B.K. Freemont by using the rafflecopter form below. This giveaway will be running until the end of the tour, September 30th, 2012. To win you must be a follower of my blog, all other entries are optional. This giveaway is US addresses only. Once a winner is chosen through rafflecopter I will email the winner and they will have 48 hours to respond before I will have to choose a new winner. Good luck and thank you for being part of the giveaway.
