BUY LINKS: Dreamspinner Press | Amazon | Amazon UK
Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words is happy to host B.G. Thomas here today to talk about many things including his latest release, Getting His Man. Welcome, Ben.
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Hello Constant Readers!
My name, for those of you who don’t know me, is BG Thomas. But I prefer to be called Ben.
I wish I had gone with my first name when I started in this wonderful business, but it was a time where interviewers for jobs frequently Googled prospective employees, and I didn’t want anyone to get the wrong idea. And sadly, if they saw that you wrote gay romance, they immediately jumped to the wrong idea and concluded that you wrote porn.
Geeze! One of my best friends introduced me to a group of his friends by telling them I wrote porn that made you cry and smile and…etc. I pulled him aside and asked him why he did that. “If I wrote heterosexual romances would you have told people I wrote porn?” He shamefaced told me no, and that he was sorry. But the kicker is—he is gay!
Things have changed enough that today I wouldn’t be concerned with a possible employer Googling me. Heck! I don’t care who knows what I do. And if they think I write porn, I don’t care. Except that if you are buying my new book, Getting His Man, or any of my books, for the sex, you’re going to be disappointed. Not that I don’t write good sex. I think I write hot sex. But it is also sweet, and doesn’t come into the story until the very right moment!
Here are some questions that Scattered Thoughts and Rouge Words asked me to answer. I hope you enjoy…!
STaRW: How much of yourself goes into a character?
Ben: Well, it depends on the character. Some yes, some no. For instance, in my new book, there is a lot of me in Artie. In fact, the whole part where he gets arrested for drug dealing could very well have happened to me. My first roommate was quite the druggie and blasted his music and when you walked into the apartment building, you could often smell the pot smoke downstairs. I was scared to death I would get arrested. I used the scenario and how I would have reacted if I actually would have gotten in trouble with the law. Then with the other character in the book, August, well I am no fearless bounty hunter! LOL! August is more of a dream man hero, or even the kind of man I wish I could be.
STaRW: Have you ever had to put an ‘in progress’ story aside because of the emotional ties with it? You were hurting with the characters or didn’t know how to proceed?
Ben: Oh yes! Most of my novels take me two to four months to write. Winter Heart took me over a year. The main character, Wyatt, was very much a reflection of me and what I went through with an emotionally and mentally abusive ex-spouse. It kept bringing up so much hurt and pain I had to set it aside. But it was also cathartic and helped me work through it all, and heal as well!
STaRW: Do you like to write HFN or HEA? And why?
Ben: Again, it depends on the book. But I can tell you as the writer, pretty much any story I end with for a HFN? It is a HEA! The book just doesn’t go on long enough for the reader to know that for sure. That is why my characters are bound to show up in other books so readers can see that the lovers from one book are still happily together weeks, months, and even years later! 🙂
STaRW: Ever drunk written a chapter and then read it the next day and still been happy with it? Trust me there’s a whole world of us drunk writers dying to know.
Ben: LOL! Would you believe it if I said, again, that it depends on the scene/book? See I have written scenes where my character got drunk or stoned or whatever and I got pretty darned tipsy to feel what they were feeling and wrote it from that angle. In another story was sort of a paranormal experience they were having. The “drunk” state helped me write the scene with that “feeling.” And I was surprised (and happy) how very little editing I had to do. And as some famous person once said, “Write drunk, edit sober!”
STaRW: If you could imagine the best possible place for you to write, where would that be and why?
Ben: A beach house. OMGosh yes! With lots of glass. And a big deck. I am a water baby and that connection to the sea would be unbelievable. A house that is not crammed up against the next house. Not a mile away mind you! Oh no. I am way too social an animal for that. I like people. So I’d want the ability to have privacy, but also to have coffee with a neighbor. And I wouldn’t mind if I had lots of gay neighbors. The commonality would be wonderful and a constant influence and inspiration.
STaRW: With so much going on in the world today, do you write to explain? To get away? To move past? To widen our knowledge? Why do you write?
Ben: Yes. That is exactly what I do and why.
STaRW: What’s next for you as a writer?
Ben: In several of my novels some of my characters have gone to a vegan restaurant called Café Namasté. I am finally writing the story about the man who owns that place. I am learning a lot. And it is going to be a book that explains, lets you get away, to move past and to widen your knowledge. And it is going to make you laugh and cry too. And get all gushy inside. And maybe turn you on too!
And there! I hope you liked my answers. Now here is the cover blurb of my new book!
GETTING HIS MAN
A love story worthy of an old movie… with a new twist.
Artie needs a hero, a man like those he’s always revered in Golden Age films. His drug-dealing jerk of a roommate got him arrested, and since his savior isn’t likely to sweep in and save the day, Artie calls a bail bondsman.
August has always imagined himself a hero from a black-and-white movie, but he’s never found a man willing to let him play that role—at least not until he gets the call from Artie.
Both of their dreams might come true, but not before August must use his skills as a bounty hunter as well as a bondsman. Artie is on the run for his life, and August must protect him and help him clear his name. Only then can they both finally get their man.
And hey, after you’re done reading it, I would love to hear what you think!
Love, Namasté, and Happy Holidays!
BG “Ben” Thomas
About the Author
B.G. Thomas lives in Kansas City with his husband of more than a decade and their fabulous dogs Sarah Jane and Oliver. He is blessed to have a lovely daughter as well as many extraordinary friends. He has a great passion for life.
B.G. loves romance, comedies, fantasy, science fiction, and even horror—as far as he is concerned, as long as the stories are character driven and entertaining, it doesn’t matter the genre. He has gone to literature conventions his entire adult life where he’s been lucky enough to meet many of his favorite writers. He has made up stories since he was a child; it is where he finds his joy.
In the nineties, he wrote for gay adult magazines but stopped because the editors wanted all sex without plot. “The sex is never as important as the characters,” he says. “Who cares what they are doing if we don’t care about them?” Excited about the growing male/male romance market, he began writing again. He submitted a novella and was thrilled when it was accepted in four days. Since then the romantic tales have poured out of him. “It’s like I’m somehow making up for a lifetime’s worth of story-telling!”
In 2015 he made an entry every day in his blog “365 Days of Silver,” where he found something every day to be grateful for. You can find it right here: https://365daysofsilver.wordpress.com/
“Leap, and the net will appear” is his personal philosophy and his message. “It is never too late,” he testifies. “Pursue your dreams. They will come true!”
Website/blog: bthomaswriter.wordpress.com
Kyle is struggling to run his coffee shop on his own after his partner walked out on him. He has his eye on Steven, who comes into the shop each day, but hasn’t worked up the nerve to express his interest. When Steven asks Kyle to help out with Christmas lunch at the homeless shelter where he works, Kyle is too exhausted to agree. He donates his tips but still feels he’s blown his chances with Steven and made himself look like a selfish jerk.
