Welcome Sci-fi and fantasy author, Tony Ruggiero, to Love Romances & More. We are excited to have the opportunity to speak with you and learn more about your work.

Hi Penny, thanks for having me here and the opportunity to talk with you and your readers!

How long have you been writing; was it something you have always wanted to do?

I have been writing for about nine years now. It was just something that I discovered I enjoyed doing. Of course this all came in stages but I think that my desire to write stemmed from my love of reading fiction as well.

What influenced you to get published? How long did it take you to get your first book published?

One day I read a story—and it was so bad—I said to myself what so many of do on those occasions, “even I could do better.” So I started writing and submitting short stories. Then one day, a man named Jim Baker sent me a note scribbled on an index card asking to publish one of the stories I submitted. I jumped at the opportunity, which paid contributors copy only, and as they say, the rest is all history from there. I owe so much to Jim, as so many other writers do. To make a long story short, (no pun intended), Jim was somewhere between 70-75 years old and worked at whatever jobs would hire him so that he could get the money to publish his magazines. When he died, a true supporter of new writers, as well as a friend was lost. There is a webpage about his life on myspace at:  http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=201985594

The first book was Team of Darkness, published in 2002, which later was revised and became Operation Immortal Servitude and the lead book for my vampire series. There were a countless number of drafts of the original Team of Darkness and at times I thought it would never see the light of day but eventually it did.

What do you enjoy doing when you are not writing?

Reading, house projects, movies—pretty much just about anything.

I love your book covers viewable at your website http://www.tonyruggiero.com Who is your cover artist?

The cover artist of the latest book, due out in about two weeks on April 24th, is Christina Yoder. The funny story here is that I knew Christina from a convention that was held in New Jersey, which unfortunately came to an end. Anyway I did not know she was doing cover art work for my publisher, Dragon Moon Press so it was just a coincidence that it worked out that way. My other covers have had various cover artists which I have to admit I have been very happy with them.

OPERATION SAVE THE INNOCENT is recently released and it sounds very intriguing. Can you give us a brief synopsis of this story?

Here is the back cover blurb:

In his follow up to the critically acclaimed Operation: Immortal
Servitude, award-nominated author Tony Ruggiero weaves a tale
of intrigue, secrecy and choices.

Everyone thought the Team of Darkness operation finished, and the
vampires dead. Everyone but General Stone, who secretly proceeded
with two special vampires. Two young, innocent girls, who should have
spent their childhood playing with dolls and chasing boys. Instead, the
girls, now full-fledged vampires, are trained to be the perfect assassin,
ready to serve the General’s personal ambitions.

When Stone is murdered, a secret government organization sets out to
contain the project—their way. And just as he begins his teaching career,
John Reese is recalled to active duty to hunt down the two young vampires,
gone missing from the ‘training’ facility. But he must do it without
revealing his secret: the Team of Darkness vampires still live, and likely
freed the girls. If the secret gets out, his very freedom is at stake.


“...Operation: Save The Innocent is a bitingly good supernatural
thriller that keeps readers on the edge of their seats.”
~ SFREVU.com


This is the second book in the series. The first book was Operation Immortal Servitude which I used the tagline: 

“What if Anne Rice and Tom Clancy had a child.”

How did you come up with the Team of Darkness Series?

During my twenty-three years on active duty, I spent a four years working with the Navy SEALs. There is a justifiable mentality with any of the Special Forces—to be the best and most efficient killing machine. My thoughts took this concept and asked: “How could you improve upon this?” The answer was the vampire. With that utterance of one word, the Team of Darkness idea was born. What a superb and perfect killing machine that a vampire could be if you could control it. That was the key to making this all work—how would they control the vampires.

Often a writer’s first book is the toughest to write. Was this true for you? If so, what helped you get through it? If it wasn’t the first, which one was the most difficult to write? The easiest?

Actually I think the sequels get harder because you have to stay true to your character that you created and believe or not—we forget too sometimes what itr was they did or said earlier. You have to be careful with this because readers, God bless them, will come back and tell you that your character didn’t or wouldn’t so such a thing.

The easiest was probably my short story collection, Aliens and Satanic Creatures Wanted: Humans Need Not Apply, because the stories, all 39 of them were already written. Still its one of my favorites because the stories touch on so many genres and readers get to run the entire gambit of funny to scary and bleak to romantic.

Do you write a first draft before editing or do you edit as you write?

I am definitely a write the first draft and then worry about editing somewhere along in draft 2 or 3. I really do not get along with editing!

I see you are retired from the military. Did you do a lot of traveling? If so, where?

I did my fair share of traveling but because I was an East coast sailor my entire career, I focused mainly on Europe, South America and some Northern Atlantic areas. I also lived in Italy for two years. Some of my favorite places were Monte Carlo, Norway, Italy and Spain.

Your website tells us that you teach at several colleges. What do you teach?

I teach English; the basic composition course, argument and literature.

Have you always written in the Sci-Fi, horror, and fantasy genres? Is there another genre that you have dabbled in?

As much as I love those genres you mention, I also have been dabbling in the mystery or thriller/suspense areas. I am currently marketing a manuscript for a witch story, titled Coven.

Who is your target audience?

My target is a very diverse group. Speaking in terms of the vampire series, I attract readers of military SF, mystery and suspense readers as well. In some cases even mainstream readers. The reason why I cross so many lines with the vampires is because the stories deal more with the drama of being a vampire rather than just the traditional killers or crazed sexual vampires. My vampires are philosophical and actually feel that they are being oppressed. Many of my readers side with my vampires rather than the humans—it makes for interesting debates at times.

Where do you envision your writing career in the next 5 years?

I, like many of my fellow writers, am hoping for that break into the world of the large press publishing. If not, well I plan to keep doing what I am doing until it’s not fun anymore. I love getting out and meeting people and sharing my work with them.

Are you working on anything right now? Can you tell us a teaser about these projects?

My current project that I am working on is finishing the first draft of a novel that will involve both werewolves and vampires and how they will save humanity from destruction. I’m also working on Book III of the vampire saga.

Any final advice to aspiring authors?

Its better to have a 100 people read your work rather then a few or none. The big NY publishers are not for everyone, but they are a worthy goal. Still, if it doesn’t work out, go to a small press and use that to perfect your craft and then try again.

Thank you so much for spending time with us at Love Romances and More. We wish you the greatest success in all of your future endeavors.

My pleasure and thanks for having me! I hope your readers will stop by my website at www.tonyruggiero.com. I also maintain a webpage on Facebook as well as Myspace.


Some of my other work:

Alien Deception: Something to keep in mind with the upcoming presidential election: Nothing is as it appears…nothing. Your whole life you think you understand who and what you are and then one day you learn that it is all a lie. So what do you do? You have lunch with the leading candidate for President of the United States…you and your alien friends.

Alien Revelation: Death has many meanings. For some it is an end, while for others it is a beginning. Yet, for one human/alien hybrid, it is a way to have one final chance to try and save his home, Earth, a son he has never seen, and find an enemy that just won’t stay dead. The exciting conclusion to Alien Deception.

Aliens and Satanic Creatures Wanted: Humans Need Not Apply. Aliens, Satanic Creatures, and other alternate life forms have gathered together to make a stand for literary fairness. Move over pesky human...a change is coming. An anthology of short stories where the center character is not human; includes the award winning story, Lucky Lucifer’s Car Emporium, as well as Electronic Bliss, Invasion or Subversion, and Going up?

I also have a short story called, Perspectives in the military anthology, Breach the Hull. In addition keep an eye out for a humorous tale called, The Importance of Undergarments & Science Fiction Conventions, which will be appearing in the Writers For Relief Anthology II.