Emotion in Motion
  • Home
  • Circles
  • El Corazon
    • Scintilla
  • Sentries
    • The World of Sentries
    • Marked Yours (Book #1 of Sentries)
    • Together Bound (book #2 of Sentries)
    • Chained Hearts (Book #3 of Sentries)
    • Collared Souls (Book #4 of Sentries)
    • Tethered Pair (Book #5 of Sentries)
    • Ringed Love (Book #6 of Sentries)
    • Free Read--Take What's Yours
    • Free Read: Heart, Home & Hearth
    • Free Read: Fox Tails
    • Sentries series reviews
  • The Sleepless City Shared Universe
    • Shades of Sepia (book #1)
    • Electric Candle (book #2)
    • Family and Reflection (Book #3)
    • Shifting Chaos (book #4)
    • Free Read: This Crazy Little Thing
    • The Guys!
    • Location, Location, Location
  • The Vampire Guard
  • Edge Jump
  • For the Long Run
  • High Test
  • Whiskey and Moonshine
  • Pain and Pleasure
    • Home Coming
    • The Art of Domination
    • The Freedom of Submission
    • Love and Lust
    • No Regrets
  • Strays
  • 29 Hours to Eternity
  • Subscribe to my Newsletter
  • About Me
  • Thoughts and Things Blog
    • The Amazing Adventures of The Great White Hunter and Princess Paws
    • Finn's Log
  • French Translations
  • Book Bundles
  • Free Reads
  • My Fan Fiction Collection
  • Complete Privacy Policy

On books, dogs, the pursuit of astronomy and good coffee

newsletter

Palace Dog by R.E. Nelson

6/15/2015

 
Picture
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press Cover Artist: Paul Richmond

Today I'd like to welcome R.E. Nelson. I asked about personal experience in writing this novel.



The setting for PALACE DOG came directly from my experience as an English Language Instructor in the Palace Dog Program in Vietnam in the early 1970’s.  Like Michael, the main character, I joined the Air Force to keep from being drafted into the Army and thus keep out of Vietnam.  And like Michael, that wasn’t how it worked out. 

As I was writing the book, I began to feel like one of Michael’s friends there, sort of a silent fellow palace dog invisible in the backdrop of the barracks and school.  I have hundreds of photographs I took while there—at the school, in the barracks, at the zoo, in downtown Saigon—and that helped my memory.   I had noted the dates and names and places on the photos.  Also I had kept a pocket calendar that was useful in reminding me of events that happened while I was there.  And my family and several friends in the US gave me letters I had written while over there.  All of this helped me to piece together the background and setting for the story.  

As I was writing the story, I listened to the music I remembered from when I was there.  Hearing Cher sing “Gypsies, Tramps, and Thieves,” I vividly recalled walking between our barracks and the dining hall with the sound of that song blaring from behind the screened barracks walls.  When I heard Simon and Garfunkel sing “Cathy’s Song,” I found myself in the MACV Annex USO club early one morning after being on the night shift of the Perimeter Defense Force.   Some of the songs found their way into the story, but there were many others that did not, but they were equally important in helping capture my time there.  It was definitely a case of “The Song Remembers When” (as Trisha Yearwood sang years later). 

The story of Michael and Thao is fiction.  It is not my story or the story of anyone I knew.  But we had shared experiences and they are in the book as a blend of fact and fiction. Some of the things that happened, such as the friendly fire episode, were made up. 

Likewise, the final part, the return to Saigon in 1975 as it was falling, was something I did not directly experience.  I have a close friend who was there at that time and was able to help some Vietnamese friends get out.  He was kind enough to provide me with the detail of what that was like and I used my imagination to work out what might possibly have happened when Michael  returned to find Thao.  I also used THE VIETNAM WAR, AN ALMANAC (published by World Almanac Publications) for some specific detail I needed that I may not have directly experienced.

I began returning to Vietnam in 1991.  At that time, much of Saigon was the same as when I had left almost 20 years earlier, and that helped revive the memories and places.


Meet R.E. Nelson


R.E. Nelson was born in Texas and raised in Southern California. He has been writing for as long as he can remember. One of his earliest recollections related to writing is winning an essay contest in sixth grade--something patriotic about the American flag. When he travels, his preference is staying in select areas for an extended period of time and learning about that place. He has lived in both Vietnam (twice, actually) and Saudi Arabia, and also spent time in Egypt, South Korea, Shanghai (his only China visit thus far), and Dubai. Now he is happy to call San Francisco home.

twitter

PictureCategories: Gay Fiction, Historical, M/M Romance
Excerpt:

The cyclo had bumped across the bridge, following the curve in the road, then moved quickly down the final straight stretch, past houses and shops, past rows of trees and walls and occasional open spaces, past vendors who lined the street’s edge selling gasoline in glass bottles. Motorcycles, Lambretta mini-buses packed with people, cream-and-blue Renault taxis, pedestrians with baskets and boxes—all crowded the street. Noises, smells, and smoke came from everywhere, and as the driver increased his speed, I smiled, gripping the metal frame tighter and pushing slightly with my feet as the moist wind rushed around me.

Speeding through the streets of Saigon, wearing the green Air Force-issued jungle fatigues, my life of a year ago seemed unreal.



Purchase on Dreamspinner
paperback
ebook

amazon

Tour Dates: Mondays April 6 – July 20

 

Tour Stops:

6-Apr

Inked Rainbow Reads

13-Apr

Sinfully Addicted to All Male Romance

20-Apr

Scattered Thoughts & Rogue Words

20-Apr

Iyana Jenna

27-Apr

Hearts on Fire


4-May

Love Bytes

11-May

Multitasking Mommas

Prism Book Alliance

18-May

MM Good Book Reviews

25-May

My Fiction Nook

1-Jun

Bayou Book Junkie

8-Jun

Multitasking Mommas

15-Jun

Emotion in Motion

22-Jun

Rainbow Gold Reviews

29-Jun

BFD Book Blog

6-Jul

TTC Books and More

13-Jul

3 Chicks After Dark

20-Jul

Cate Ashwood


a Rafflecopter giveaway

Picture

Comments are closed.

    RSS Feed

    Picture

    Welcome to My World
    Elizabeth Noble

    Mystery, action, chills, and thrills spiced with romance and desire. ELIZABETH NOBLE lives by the adage "I can't not write." She doesn't remember a time when she didn't make up stories and eventually she learned how to put words on a page. Those words turned into books and fan fiction that turned into a genuine love of M/M fiction. A part of every day is spent living in worlds she created that are filled with intrigue and espionage. She has a real love for a good mystery complete with murder and twisty plots as well as all things sci-fi, futuristic, and supernatural.

    When she's not chronicling the adventures of her many characters, Elizabeth is a veterinary nurse living in her native Cleveland, Ohio. She has three grown children and now happily shares her little, brick house with two spunky Cardigan Welsh Corgis and their feline sidekicks. Elizabeth is a fan of baseball, basketball (go Cavs and Cleveland Guardians!) and gardening. She can often be found working in her 'outside office' listening to classic rock and plotter her next novel waiting for it to be dark enough to gaze at the stars.

    Elizabeth has received a number of amateur writing awards. Since being published, several of her novels have received Honorable Mentions in the Rainbow Awards. Jewel Cave was a runner-up in the Gay Mystery/Thriller category in the 2015 Rainbow Awards. Ringed Love was a winner in the Gay Fantasy Romance category of the 2016 Rainbow Awards.

    Picture

    Categories

    All
    Astronomy Stuff
    Blog Hop
    Chained Hearts
    Circles
    Electric Candle
    Fba
    Fun Stuff
    Guest Post
    Gywo
    I-am-writing
    Interviews
    It's On Sale!
    Marked Yours
    Owi Tour
    Pain And Pleasure
    Rainbow Con
    Rainbow Snippets
    Reader Corner
    Reviews
    Scintilla
    Sentries
    Taboo Tuesday
    Tethered Pair
    The Sleepless City
    The Vampire Guard
    Todd & Nick Ruger
    Together Bound
    Tuesdayteaser

    Picture

    Archives

    March 2023
    February 2023
    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    July 2012
    June 2012
    May 2012
    April 2012
    February 2012
    January 2012
    December 2011
    October 2011

    RSS Feed

    Picture

    Categories

    All
    Astronomy Stuff
    Blog Hop
    Chained Hearts
    Circles
    Electric Candle
    Fba
    Fun Stuff
    Guest Post
    Gywo
    I-am-writing
    Interviews
    It's On Sale!
    Marked Yours
    Owi Tour
    Pain And Pleasure
    Rainbow Con
    Rainbow Snippets
    Reader Corner
    Reviews
    Scintilla
    Sentries
    Taboo Tuesday
    Tethered Pair
    The Sleepless City
    The Vampire Guard
    Todd & Nick Ruger
    Together Bound
    Tuesdayteaser

    Picture

    RSS Feed

All contents copyrighted 2011
  • Home
  • Circles
  • El Corazon
    • Scintilla
  • Sentries
    • The World of Sentries
    • Marked Yours (Book #1 of Sentries)
    • Together Bound (book #2 of Sentries)
    • Chained Hearts (Book #3 of Sentries)
    • Collared Souls (Book #4 of Sentries)
    • Tethered Pair (Book #5 of Sentries)
    • Ringed Love (Book #6 of Sentries)
    • Free Read--Take What's Yours
    • Free Read: Heart, Home & Hearth
    • Free Read: Fox Tails
    • Sentries series reviews
  • The Sleepless City Shared Universe
    • Shades of Sepia (book #1)
    • Electric Candle (book #2)
    • Family and Reflection (Book #3)
    • Shifting Chaos (book #4)
    • Free Read: This Crazy Little Thing
    • The Guys!
    • Location, Location, Location
  • The Vampire Guard
  • Edge Jump
  • For the Long Run
  • High Test
  • Whiskey and Moonshine
  • Pain and Pleasure
    • Home Coming
    • The Art of Domination
    • The Freedom of Submission
    • Love and Lust
    • No Regrets
  • Strays
  • 29 Hours to Eternity
  • Subscribe to my Newsletter
  • About Me
  • Thoughts and Things Blog
    • The Amazing Adventures of The Great White Hunter and Princess Paws
    • Finn's Log
  • French Translations
  • Book Bundles
  • Free Reads
  • My Fan Fiction Collection
  • Complete Privacy Policy