The O'Raven Chronicles!: April 2014

The O'Raven Chronicles is pleased to present this spotlight and interview for Author JB Sanders

Author Spotlight;

About the Author:

JB Sanders

The author lives with an imaginary cat, and works in computer support (you know, the day job), all in Upstate New York. He divides his time between writing humorous suspense novels, reading science fiction and urban fantasy, absorbing too much British TV (or as his roommate would say "those crappy BBC mysteries"), pondering why he didn't write a scifi or fantasy novel, and his various hobbies. No, reading isn't a hobby. It's more like a vocation. The author also wonders how people get away with talking about themselves in the third person this way. It's awkward.

[cough]

and...

I've been contributing a regular column, the Geek Month in Review, at the Magical Buffet: http://themagicalbuffet.com/

Getting to know a little more about the Author...

Interview with JB Sanders:

When did you realize that you wanted to become a Writer?

Wow, good question. When I was really, really young. It’s always been something I wanted to do. My sister and I even made our own book: wrote the story on the paper, stitched it together, and bound it in cloth. We were like 8 and 6 at the time. So, forever, basically.

Did you have the same love of literature as a child?

I’ve always been a voracious reader. As a kid, my favorite thing to do was curl up with a good book for the whole day. It was awesome! I read all sorts of things, too, though fantasy and science fiction were my mainstays. But there was also some Hardy Boys in there (you might notice that in my stuff, too!), and some Agatha Christie.

Who are some of your favorite authors and artistic heroes and or inspirations?

Rex Stout — his prose are so clean and precise, his stories so engrossing. He’s just a master. Josephine Tey, also a master of mystery, but with a more poetic bent. More recently Josh Lanyon’s stuff, although he can be a little heart-stopping with the drama. I’ve had a relatively recent love affair with Urban Fantasy, too, so authors like Jim Butcher, Kim Harrison, Patricia Briggs, and JL Merrow. For funny, I’d have to go to Keith Laumer and Terry Pratchett.

When did you write your first book and how did it come about?

I wrote the first book starting in 2009 and it came out in 2010. The book started because I’d read just one too many dark and depressing portrayals of gay guys in fiction, and it pissed me off. So I decided to write something funny and positive and with two married guys. Somewhere along the way, Glen and Tyler kind of invited themselves over, and dictated the book to me (or that’s the way it felt at the time).

I have to agree. When I was young there weren't any gai books that I knew of, much less could manage to get a hold of...and when I finally did get a hold of some they all seemed to end in tragedy, or with a death or break up! So thank you for being one of those people who are doing something about it!

I have a few questions about your process...

Is it the story concept or the characters you create first?

With Glen & Tyler, the idea for the story came to me in a general sort of way, and then developed once I met the characters. Really, some of the twists and turns in the story seemed to come out of nowhere, but really fit the kinds of the things the characters would do. Once I get going, the stories become very character-driven.

Some Authors say their characters present themselves to them as real people in their imagination... is that true for you? do your characters introduce themselves to you, or are they constructed vehicles to drive your story forward?

Totally true — like I mentioned earlier, the first book almost felt like it wrote itself, Glen & Tyler became very real to me. One of the ways I avoid writers block is that while I’m watching a movie or TV show, I go “what would Tyler do here?”, or “how would Glen get Tyler out of trouble like that?”

When you write, can you tell us a little about your specific process if there is one, or are you one of those Writers who can just sit down and churn out work without any kind of process?

I get writers block, too, but I find that the best way to avoid is to write the scenes that jump out at you, or that amuse you. In other words: screw chronology. Writing an earlier (non Glen & Tyler) work, I got hung up on writing the story in order, scene by scene. That eventually hit a wall, and I couldn’t think past the next bit. With the Glen & Tyler books, I just write whatever comes up, or whatever fun scene comes to me. The work comes at the end when I then have to logically link the bits together to make a coherent story. That doesn’t always work, and I have to toss out scenes to get them all to fit right. But I don’t throw anything away: I used a scene I had tossed away in the first book in the second.

I think that is some of the best writing advice I have ever heard! I have heard of other authors doing something similar but have never heard it put that way before.

So about your space...

Do you have a special place at home where you work?

Sort of. My computer is in my bedroom and I work on that. I used to write on a laptop down at the coffee shop — I liked the activity, and the coffee. But I didn’t get anywhere near enough done down there. Now I write on a desktop computer, and bang away. Generally.

Can you gives us a brief description of your style and also of what genre(s) you write in?

Wow, tough order. For style, I’d say I aspire to the style used by writers like Rex Stout and Gregory Macdonald (writer of the Fletch books, which are better than the movies), that is very spare, fast, and with great dialog (again, I aspire!). As for genre, I don’t think my books fit neatly into one: romance, adventure, mystery, thriller, spy, and comedy.

As an indie writer especially of Male/Male or Gai books has it been in any way harder for you to get your work out there and start getting recognized?

If I hadn’t gone self-published, I doubt my books would be out there at all. They don’t fit neatly into any one genre, and that makes them a hard sell in today’s traditional publishing environment. On the other hand, I haven’t gotten as much publicity as I’d like, and that’s (in theory) something that the traditional publisher (should) bring to the table. From writer friends I have who do have a publisher, I’ve heard stories that make me think that even the traditional route doesn’t get you extra publicity.

A unique aspect of your books is the fact that some or all of them feature a happily married gai couple...what made you want to go beyond the normal part of gai romances, that many times end with a wedding... and write about after the honeymoon is over and real married life begins?

Besides making stories about happy gay couples (which is rare enough), I also wanted to explore something that seems to be a problem even for straight couples in TV, movies and books: a married couple that has a life and adventures. It seems to me that there are all sorts of areas to explore with that, and with gay marriage (i.e. equal marriage, or just marriage) blossoming onto the scene (remember, I started this in 2009), it seemed like a good story to tell.

What messages or themes are your signature messages, and what is it that you really want your readers as people to understand about these?

The LGBTQ community needs to have more examples, more heroes, and more positive role models to base their lives on. The problem for our minority, besides violence and general derision, is that we also suffer from invisibility. Until fairly recently, there has been precious little mention of LGBTQ people in history, or the news (except in a very negative light). We don’t have main characters in movies, and in TV only in broad stereotypes (though that is changing). I wanted to create a story that would make great TV (I have hopes), and that would be very positive at the same time. I also tried for funny (without demeaning stereotypes), though that’s not always successful.

What do you think your weakness and strengths are as a writer, and how do you want to evolve?

I need to get into a better routine for writing, where I sit down and write something every day. For strengths? Hmmm. I like to think I excel at dialog. I’d like to try a few more genres (paranormal, scifi, urban fantasy) in upcoming books.

Lastly, what do you see for yourself and your work in the future? Where would you like to go from here?

I’d like to reach a wider audience. From some of my non-LGBTQ readers I’ve had a very positive response, which makes me think that maybe my books are more mainstream than I’d generally credit them.

I’d also love to get an HBO series, but I’m not holding my breath on that one.

I for one think H.B.O. would be lucky to get a hold of such a terrific concept for a show!!!

Thank you for taking time to share yourself with us, it has been a privilege Mr. Sanders!!!

Author Links:

Author Website

Author Blog

Author Goodreads page

Author Smashwords page

Author Facebook page

Author Amazon page

Book Series Spotlight;

The Glen and Tyler Adventure Series...

Book Series synopsis:

The Glen & Tyler series of adventure books are about a happy married couple getting out there and solving crimes. Or playing hockey. It depends on the day.

Featured Book Synopsis:

The third book in this series Glen and Tyler's Paris Double Cross is about to be released as an Audio-book as well.

Glen and Tyler are young, in love, and the wealthiest human beings on the planet. But when Glen's brother calls from a jail in Paris, they're off to France to tangle with spies, neo-Nazis, evil world-spanning conspiracies and French gangsters. Plus they have aromantic dinner, and find long-lost treasure. Really, it’s a fun-filled non-stop romp.

Excerpt:

All is Not Lost...

Sunday night 11:20pm

They were cooling their heels in a Paris police waiting room. It was not the most congenial of spots. The chairs were molded plastic, the floor a faded linoleum from the 60's and the walls a color that might once have been light green, but now was a brown-green color burnt into the walls with constant exposure to cigarette smoke. Other people passed in and out, either seeing someone or being released. While the constant stream of people was interesting to watch, they'd come directly here after the helicopter ride, and it was late.

Glen could tell that Tyler was starting to boil.

Finally, Tyler sighed. "Well, I suppose this is a good object lesson."

"Oh?" Glen said, feeling like he was very carefully approaching a hungry lion.

"Yes. Money won't open all doors." Tyler said, bitterly.

"You could call someone important."

"Tim is still trying to get the Minister of the Interior on the phone. It seems the French take their weekends very seriously. The man is holed up in some villa somewhere." Tyler slumped in his chair, which seemed especially designed for slumping.

"I thought he was getting the Minister of Justice."

"Turns out he runs the courts. The Minister of the Interior is the one in charge of the police."

A guy probably a little older than Glen and Tyler came in through the exterior door of the station and looked around. He was wearing a tuxedo and shaking rain off his umbrella. He smiled when he got to their group and walked right over.

"P ardon. You are Glen Merriwether and Tyler Conrad?" His English was good, though distinctly flavored with French.

Tyler stood up. "Yes."

"I'm Henri Rousseau. I'm a junior partner in Rousseau and Roth."

From behind Glen and Tyler, James cleared his throat. "The lawyers."

As always, their bodyguards had taken up station around them. It was kind of amusing to Glen how well the big, dangerous-looking guys blended into a police station waiting room.

Tyler's tired and suspicious face cleared and he offered his hand. "Ah! The lawyers! Welcome."

Henri shook. "I'm sorry I wasn't here to meet you, but I was at a party outside Paris when I got the call."

"No problem. How soon do you think you can see Lance?"

"Oh! No, I'm not senior enough to consult directly with the accused."

At this, everyone looked confused and Glen stood up.

Henri put up his hands in a conciliatory gesture. "Our senior partners are already inside with him. I'm here just for you, to answer questions and take care of things for you. I really am sorry I'm late. T rès désolé."

"M erci, Henri." Tyler replied in French. "N e vous inquiétez pas à ce sujet."

Henri blinked and smiled. He kept to his accented English. "Wow, I expected ... " He cleared his throat. "Well, uh, less articulate Americans."

"Yeah, we get that a lot. Grab a seat and fill us in on what you know."

**************

It has truly been an honor and a privilege to host this spotlight for Author JB Sanders, a writer with a truly interesting and entertaining story series unique in it's featuring of happily married gai men in love!!! Personally the series concept is one I find exciting and much overdue in being provided for The Q-Community!!! Thank you Mr. Sanders for allowing me to do this spotlight and for giving us this great series!