{"id":89579,"date":"2026-03-05T09:00:43","date_gmt":"2026-03-05T14:00:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thelaurelofasheville.com\/updatestage\/?p=89579"},"modified":"2026-03-05T09:00:43","modified_gmt":"2026-03-05T14:00:43","slug":"book-feature-the-marriage-bed","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thelaurelofasheville.com\/updatestage\/arts\/book-feature-the-marriage-bed\/","title":{"rendered":"Book Feature:<\/strong> The Marriage Bed<\/em>"},"content":{"rendered":"

Tommy Hays, Author<\/p>\n

Like his previously published works, Tommy Hays\u2019 latest novel, The Marriage Bed,<\/em> solidly reflects\u2014and is shaped by\u2014place, in this case his own resident city, Asheville. \u201cPlace is very important to me, in my life and in my writing,\u201d Hays says. \u201cI always have an emotional response to place, which is probably why I\u2019ve never set a book in a place I haven\u2019t lived.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"Hays says that readers will recognize Asheville\u2019s personality and locales on the novel\u2019s pages. \u201cAsa, the main character, is an English teacher who writes poetry and teaches at UNCA,\u201d he says. \u201cAsa\u2019s wife of 25 years, Betsy, teaches creative writing and literature at Asheville High. They live in an old house in Montford. Much of the novel is set in that wonderful old neighborhood. There are several scenes in Riverside Cemetery.\u201d<\/p>\n

Narrated by several characters, the story follows family relationships and the struggles within Asa and Betsy\u2019s marriage. \u201cI think having several points of view gives a greater sense of the community,\u201d Hays says. \u201cIt also provides rounder characterizations of the main characters because we see them through various characters\u2019 eyes.\u201d<\/p>\n

Inspiration for the story came to him from an unexpected source, he says: \u201cour neighbor\u2019s ailing hemlock\u2014combined with my never-ending tendency to catastrophize.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Marriage Bed, March 2026, fiction, hardcover, $27.95, by Tommy Hays, and published by Blair Publishing, Durham, NC. Keep up with readings and events this spring at TommyHays.com\/appearances<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Like his previously published works, Tommy Hays\u2019 latest novel, The Marriage Bed, solidly reflects\u2014and is shaped by\u2014place, in this case his own resident city, Asheville. \u201cPlace is very important to me, in my life and in my writing,\u201d Hays says.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":14,"featured_media":89581,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[47,110],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-89579","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-arts","category-literature"],"yoast_head":"\nBook Feature: The Marriage Bed - The Laurel of Asheville<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Like his previously published works, Tommy Hays\u2019 latest novel, The Marriage Bed, solidly reflects\u2014and is shaped by\u2014place, in this case his own resident city, Asheville. \u201cPlace is very important to me, in my life and in my writing,\u201d Hays says.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/thelaurelofasheville.com\/updatestage\/arts\/book-feature-the-marriage-bed\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Book Feature: The Marriage Bed - 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