Wednesday, October 12, 2011

Welcome Sam Singer

Good Morning!

Welcome to Michael's. Today I'm happy to have on Sam Singer with an interview on her release day!

Woohoo. Please enjoy our virtual sitdown

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How long have you been writing?

I have been writing since my second year or elementary school.  So, pretty much all my life.  I remember as a kid and then on through high school scribbling in my notebooks, be it stories or notes for my stories.  Always my classmates would ask “well, what are you doing?”  I’d answer ‘writing’, and without fail they would ask ‘why’?  I would answer “because I like to.”  I still like, love, to write.  Even when it’s hard, I love it.  It makes the reward that much better.

What made you decide that you wanted to put yourself out there to publish?

*laughs* It’s always been a dream to be published.  For years, I said “I want to be a published author, but I didn’t know quite how to go about it.  Granted, I was young and wanted to be “Stephen King”. *smiles* But over the years, the last couple to be more specific, I found the genre I am passionate about, and that’s gay romance.  I say that I didn’t make the decision to put myself out there, my friends had all this faith in my talent and I thought well, if they think I can I’ll give it a try.  So, that’s what I did.  I submitted “Reconnecting” to Dreamspinner and waited for inevitable rejection, but it didn’t come.  So here I am, published.

Before you started, had you done any fanfiction? If so, what fandom?

I did.  It’s a great way to get feedback, be it positive or negative, on a story.  I’m in the “Supernatural” fandom and I’ve made some great friends because of it.

Are you in agreement that writing fanfiction is a great way to practice ones craft, why or why not?

I am in complete agreement with that.  If it hadn’t been for me trying fanfiction, the friends I made because of it, and their constructive criticism I don’t think I would have developed as far as I have.

Is there one that you haven’t tried that you see yourself doing in the future?

I would love to write in the western subgenre, I love cowboys, or historical subgenre, specifically the Regency period.  Both of those have an allure and an appeal I can’t explain.

Would you ever write a hetero romance? Why or why not?

I have written hetero romance.  Way back, like when I was still scribbling in notebooks in the back of History class or Math class, I was writing epic, sweeping, hetero romances, or so I thought back in high school.  *laughs*   But they didn’t ring true for me.  As a bi-sexual woman, the world homoerotic romance is something that has a pull on me.  It speaks to my experience, my heart, and my loves.

Your first published book?

It’s called “Reconnecting” and is due out on October 12th.

What are you working on now?

A few things.  My WIP folder is very full!  But just recently submitted a story I am very proud of called “Just as You Are” to Torquere Press and I’m waiting to hear back from them.  I’m also trying to finish up my first novel.

If you write gay romance or erotica, just how descriptive are you in their sex scenes?

For me, it depends on the overall tone of the story or novel they are a part of.  If the tone of a story is more rooted in the emotional, I tend to shy away from the graphic detail and focus on what’s happening in the hearts and minds of the characters.  On the other hand if a scene is more passionate, in the ‘need it’ ‘want it’, ‘gotta have it now’ sense then I get more graphic.

What books are you reading at the moment? It’s okay to give a fellow author a plug!
I love Sue Brown’s “Lost Cow” Series.  I fell in love with the boys of “Morning Report” and can’t wait for the sequel.  I also read RJ Scott, I thinks she terrific, as well as Carol Lynne’s “Cattle Valley” series.

When creating your characters, do you have models in mind or are they totally fictional?

I’m a visual person.  So, when I’m thinking of characters I usually have someone real in mind.  Like, if this was cast as a movie who would play this role, kind of a thing and I build around that.

Do you think it’s time for publishers to begin calling gay fiction/erotica what it is instead of m/m? Why or why not?

I think it is.  People focus too much on labeling things and trying to shove things into neat little categories.  Love is love, be it straight or gay.  And who doesn’t love a love story?

Your favorite gay tv show or movie?

Is it cliché to say “Queer as Folk”?   I love that series, the American version as it’s the only one I’ve seen.  As for movies, I love “Mambo Italiano”  “My Beautiful Laundrette” “Love! Valor! Compassion!” “Bent” and “Do Começo ao”.

For the men in your books, commando or underwear?

Undies!  Boxer-briefs to be specific!

If you’ve watched gay porn, tell me your favorite movie and or star.

I watch an embarrassing amount of gay porn!  But I call it “inspiration” or “research”.  I love Roman Heart and Benjamin Bradley.  As well as Brent Everret, Brent Corrigan, and Cameron Lane.

Blog and other social media links:
Buylink @ Dreamspinner

Blurb:
Grant knows he hasn’t been a stellar boyfriend to his partner Ben. It’s tough starting a new business, and he has to work longer hours than he’d like to keep things going. He really tried to be home on time tonight, but there’s just no excuse for missing their six-year anniversary. Grant is sure he’ll have to do some serious damage control and a healthy dose of groveling to get back into his lover’s good graces. But Ben’s reaction isn’t at all what Grant expects.
Excerpt:
Grant flicks on the light and looks around. Everything is neat and tidy. He walks over to the dining room and kitchen. There are no signs Ben cooked an elaborate meal, no dirty dishes or even a hint of scent lingering in the air to suggest any cooking had gone on. Maybe Ben had been so devastated he didn’t eat before he turned in. Grant sighs and runs his fingers through his hair, feeling like the world’s biggest ass and a failure as a partner.
He drops his leather messenger bag, a very expensive gift that Ben had bought for Grant when Ben published his first novel, on the large white sofa and trudges upstairs, head bowed like a man walking the last mile.
He reaches the upstairs hall and his fear, guilt, and uncertainty gnaw at his guts. Accepting the inevitable, he goes to the guestroom on the left and slowly, quietly, opens the door. The room is dark, and Grant can only make out the queen-sized, plain, cherry wood bed. And it’s empty. Grant lets out a relieved breath and feels a silly smile pull up his lips. So maybe Ben isn’t so angry at him that he isn’t sleeping in their bed. He takes a few deep breaths, hoping to calm the thundering of his heart.
He closes the door to the guest room as quietly as he opened it and continues on. He passes Ben’s office, the half-bath, and the linen closet until he’s standing in front of their bedroom. The door is closed, but seeping out from underneath the door is a soft, flickering light. Grant’s brows come together in a puzzled frown.
He reaches out and opens the door. And gasps. The room is bathed in the soft glow of candlelight, and a fire is popping cheerfully in the fireplace. There is a small table and two chairs off to the side. On the table sit two candles, two place settings, two covered plates, and an open bottle of wine.
What was all this? Did Ben do this? For him? If he did, then why? Grant had forgotten what today even was until Lizzie, his bubbly assistant and the one good employee he has, reminded him.
“There you are.” Ben’s rough, smoky voice, still with the hint of Texas drawl, reaches Grant’s ears. It’s kind of amazing how even just the sound of his man’s voice sets Grant’s heart to racing. What’s even more incredible is the fact that Ben’s voice doesn’t sound angry or resentful. Grant wonders what he did to get this saint of a man he has in his life.