I am thrilled to be hosting a spot on the NO WAY BACK
TODAY by Eric Shoars Blog Tour hosted by Rockstar Book Tours. Check out my post and make sure to enter the giveaway!
About the Book:
Title: NO WAY BACK TODAY
Authors: Eric Shoars
Pub. Date: November 22, 2019
Publisher: BookBaby
Formats: Paperback, eBook
Pages: 336
Field of Dreams + This Is Spinal Tap =
No Way Back Today. Midlife demands some reckoning and Eric realizes he can wait
no longer. As Eric hurtles headlong toward the big 5-0, he realizes there is
unfinished business and is determined to find his childhood friends, convince
them to form their own rock and roll band, and to go on tour! He searches out
Todd, Laurel, and Lorelei so he can fulfill that dream. The story of four
Midwestern grown-ups and their childhood desires to create No Way Back Today in
the face of improbable odds and middle age will have you both laughing and
cheering as you recognize your own unfulfilled dreams. No Way Back Today is the
incredible story of the improbable journey of a reunion tour for a band that
never was!
Reviewed by Anne-Marie Reynolds for Readers' Favorite
No Way Back Today by Eric Shoars is a hilarious, bittersweet tale
of childhooddreams and middle-age. It isn't just a novel, it's about not
letting go of yourdreams, of taking second chances when you get them and of
never lettingyourself down. The friendships between the four main characters
were amazinglydeveloped, an inspiration to us all, and real people that we can
all relate toin some way. This story will make you laugh and it will give you
hope as itsteadily marches towards the end; you will be cheering them on, you
will beholding your breath but, most of all, you will be compelled to read to
the veryend and you will find yourself thinking back on your own dreams,
especially theones that you never realized. Anything is possible if you just
put your mind to it. A fun read!
Reviewed By Sherri Fulmer Moorer forReaders' Favorite
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It was a compelling novel not only
about secondchances and pursuing your dreams but about friendship and
self-worth as youmove through different stages of life. I'm a bit younger than
the protagonistsbut so much of what they felt resonated with me as I found
myself wondering ifthere are any dreams from my youth that might be worth
pursuing as I entermid-life myself. The evolution of the relationships with
Eric, Todd, Laurel, andLorelei was amazing and inspiring and shows that
friendship can remain nomatter how much life changes. It also seemed to me that
they "bonded"and their relationships matured as they shared their
experiences and as newopportunities arose for each of them as a result of
pursuing this dream. No WayBack Today is an excellent novel of inspiring
redemption and shows thatmid-life doesn't have to be a crisis at all - in fact,
it can rock! Great work,Eric Shoars! I loved this novel!
Book Trailer:
Interview:
Hey Eric!!
First I want to say welcome to Two Chicks on Books I’m glad you could stop by
for a chat! NO WAY BACK TODAY sounds AWESOME and I can’t wait for everyone to
read it!
Thanks for the opportunity to chat
and to share! My website is www.onionsreunion.com
People can get more behind the scenes access plus see some of what the group
experienced on their journey.
For the readers: can you tell us a
little bit about the NO WAY BACK TODAY and the characters?
The four
main characters are Eric, Todd, Laurel, and Lorelei. They were childhood
friends who drifted apart. As Eric approaches 50, he gets the idea to find his
friends, reunite them, and convince them to live out a rock and roll dream they
had as 4th graders. A reunion tour for a band that never existed.
While their outward goal is doing a tour, their journey becomes one of what the
next phase of their lives look like as they are turn 50 with a healthy bit of
nostalgia thrown in.
Eric has a
wife and two adult daughters. He is one to take a risk. He’s not afraid to
shake things up. I like to describe him as spontaneous in a planned sort of way
with more than a hint of mischief. He’s smart, creative, and idealistic which
can sometimes lead him to shoot before he aims…which can get him into trouble.
Todd was
Eric’s best friend until he moved away after 8th grade and never
spoke to Eric again. We learn why that is as the book moves forward. Todd owns
an implement dealership. He’s big, gruff, and irascible. He is a loner and
alone. His great pain comes from letting “the one” get away. He never married.
Laurel is a
wife and mom to three boys – the last of which is about to head off to college,
leaving her as an empty nester. She struggles with her identity. Who is she if
she’s not a mom? Laurel is intelligent, very down to earth, very warm, but she
is logical and methodical. She thinks everything through.
Lorelei is a
widow having lost her husband to cancer a few years earlier. She has two adult
twin daughters. Lorelei has an unpredictable personality which knocks people
off balance but always in a positive way. She is someone who is impossible to
dislike. Very magnetic. Though Lorelei has a good life she struggles to find a
purpose for her life after her happily ever after died.
One of the
secondary themes that runs through the story is: “what do I get out of this?”
Eric gets the rock and roll band he always wanted but the others have to figure
out what this journey means for them during the tour but also once the tour
ends.
What are you working on now?
Actually,
I’m working on the Onions At A Crime Scene album. Even though No Way Back Today
is fiction, I wanted to make it as real and as meaningful as possible. I worked
with a freelancer to collaborate with me on eight original songs that are
specific to the life experiences of Generation X. The songs became plot points
in the story. The lyrics are in the book and on the OnionsReunion.com website.
I decided that I should work with a recording studio to record the songs and
make them available on iTunes later this year. I’m excited to bring the songs
to life.
Were any of the characters in the
book inspired by people from your real life?
All of the
characters in the book are inspired by people from my real life. My wife, daughters,
family members, the friends are all inspired by actual people. I hope I did
everyone justice.
Who was your favorite character to
write? What about your least favorite?
Favorite
character to write would have to be Lorelei. My goal was to make each friend’s
personality unique and I needed one of them to be a “live wire” and Lorelei
definitely is that for this group. She was a blast to write because I never
really knew what was going to come out of her mouth. She surprised me often.
Least
favorite…that’s a tough one because I tried to make everyone likeable in some
fashion. I would probably say the most difficult character to write was Todd
because of the tension/baggage between him and Eric. Trying to get him to share
what he was really feeling and thinking was challenging at times. He’s not a
touchy-feely guy and when the four are going through a journey that is
emotionally charged, it made Todd an enigma for most of the book. He did not
want to let people in or show emotion other than losing his temper now and
again. As a writer, that was a tough balancing act.
What is your favorite passages/scenes
in NO WAY BACK TODAY?
Oh, come on,
that’s like asking me what my favorite kind of pizza is! I will say that probably my favorite scene is
The St. Louis show in Chapter Seven which, ironically, involves a revelation for
Todd. I can’t go into detail without spoiling but let me say this: from the
moment I was in my car writing the scene in my head to this moment I get
incredible chills when I think of that scene, let alone read it. There’s a huge
payoff that comes out of nowhere for the characters and it’s so real and so
satisfying to me plus it caught me off guard which, as a writer, is just the
best.
What kind of research did you have to
do for the story?
Early on the
greatest obstacle Eric has to face is just finding the friends. One friend he
graduated with while the other two moved away in junior high and he has no idea
where they are. The research I had to do as a writer was – to make this
authentic – figuring out how in our internet era to go about trying to find
people you’d lost track of and how far was too far to go in trying to locate
them. What is the line between searching and stalking?
The other
research I did was largely on the venues at which the band played and
television shows on which they made appearances. Again, this book is fiction
but I want the characters’ experiences to be so real for readers that they
question if what they’re reading actually happened.
Who are some of your favorite
bands/musicians?
Joan Jett
and the Blackhearts, Sheila E., Duran Duran, Jim Croce, Foo Fighters, Pat
Benatar, Queen, Linkin Park, Rage Against the Machine
What inspired you to write NO WAY
BACK TODAY?
A few years
ago a close friend who is like my sister invited me to speak to her high school
English classes on the subject of storytelling. One of the stories I shared was
my rock and roll dream that never happened. Not long after that, as I was
approaching 50, I realized that dream would go forever unfulfilled. It was then
I concluded I had the power to write that story and – in literary form – tell
the tale of a reunion tour for a band that never was. No Way Back Today was
also my 50th birthday present to myself.
Lightning Round Questions
What are you reading right now? Or
what do you have on your TBR that you’re dying to read?
I’m reading
Sheila E.’s “Beat of My Own Drum”. Dying to read Ready Player One.
Instagram, Twitter or Facebook?
I’m on all
three. I’d have to say Twitter is my favorite because the things and people I’m
interested in are more often found there.
Favorite Superhero?
Batman.
Since I was four years old.
Favorite TV show?
Legends of
Tomorrow. It is so flippin’ out there, I love it. Close second – Zoey’s
Extraordinary Playlist.
Sweet or Salty?
Sweet.
Any Phobias?
Snakes. I
hate snakes.
Song you can’t get enough of right
now?
“Talk Dirty
to Me” - Poison
2020 Movie you’re most looking
forward to?
Black Widow.
Love her in comic books. Love her in movies. Love Scarlett Johannson.
Thanks so
much Eric for answering my questions! I can’t wait for everyone to read NO WAY
BACK TODAY!
About Eric:
Eric Shoars is a serial
storyteller who considers the English language his playground and who never met
a pun he didn’t like. Eric is a modern day Walter Mitty with a serious twist.
His writing style is best described as “fly on the wall” putting the reader in
the shoes of the lead character experiencing what he does as he does. His
heart’s desire is to have a personal narrator for his daily life. It works in
comic books so why not in the real world?
No Way Back Today is Shoars’
first foray into fiction. His non-fiction works include Women Under Glass: The
Secret Nature of Glass Ceilings and The Steps to Overcome Them and Evil Does
Not Have The Last Word.
Giveaway
Details:
3
winners will receive a personalized, signed finished copy of NO WAY BACK TODAY,
US Only.
Tour Schedule:
Week One:
6/29/2020
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Interview
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6/29/2020
|
Excerpt
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6/30/2020
|
Interview
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6/30/2020
|
Excerpt
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7/1/2020
|
Guest Post
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7/1/2020
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Guest Post
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7/2/2020
|
Excerpt
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7/2/2020
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Guest Post
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7/3/2020
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Instagram Post
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7/3/2020
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Guest Post
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Week Two:
7/6/2020
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Review
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7/6/2020
|
Guest Post
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7/7/2020
|
Review
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7/7/2020
|
Review
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7/8/2020
|
Review
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7/8/2020
|
Review
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7/9/2020
|
Review
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7/9/2020
|
Review
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7/10/2020
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Review
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7/10/2020
|
Instagram Post
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