Today on my site we have the wonderful Jaime Samms with her intensely emotional new release, As Advertised. Characters with deep-seated issues find love after many roadblocks in this gutwrenching read that you'll be learning more about today. First up is Jaime talking about the appeal of the m/m genre...
What has led to the massive proliferation of m/m books being released? What do you think makes them so popular? What draws readers to the m/m genre?
Well, those are all good questions. I’m not even sure I’m very qualified to answer them, because truth be told, ever since the very first books I wrote (and I’m even being generous with myself, calling them books) way back when I was fifteen, had very definite m/m leanings. They weren’t what I would ever call best seller material, or anything, but they were my version of the high fantasy I grew up reading, but with a bit of a twist.
I never set out to write books with gay protagonists, and it wasn’t until very recently, like the last four or five years that I really sank my teeth into the whole romance side of things, but the fact is, I just always have written about bromances, men needing, loving and wanting each other. I can’t really explain it.
Why do so many people suddenly seem to want to read these stories? I have no idea. Maybe they always did want to read them, but the problem was, no one was writing them. Well. Now we are. And I, for one, would not have it any other way because even though our believed little genre is looked on as a niche market, I truly believe there is nothing niche about it.
I think there is nothing setting romances, mysteries, fantasy, paranormal, you name it, any book with a man who loves other men as the main character, apart from the rest of the literary world. If there is a perception that it might be a niche market, I think that perception is based only on the fact that for so long, there have been so very few writers willing to put it out there and take the chance. Or that perhaps there have been so few venues to market these books. Perceptions change all the time. When I was a teen, Science fiction and fantasy were still considered niche. Paranormal was unheard of. Go look in any library on the young adult shelf and find me a contemporary novel. Be prepared to do a little digging. Fantasy, sci-fi and paranormal are thick on those shelves now. It’s only a matter of time before the world at large understands that the orientation of the main character in all those books doesn’t make any difference to how well it’s written or how entertaining it can be, or even how much you’ll love the character, once you start reading.
In fact, I think it’s been well established: If you write it, they will read.
Tyler’s life perked up when he met Jake. So what if long-time friend Marty can’t stand him and his landlady has no use for his new beau. Tyler’s determined not to see the dark side of his lover. It’s his own fault for believing people don’t go around keeping secrets and lying.
Tyler should know better. He’s an ad executive. He knows the packaging is what sells, and Jake is quite a package. His lover is no slouch when it comes to false advertising, either, and when Tyler finds out the truth, it hurts. Weathering Jake’s lies and secrets gets easier with the help of new friends, Libby and Steven. In fact, Tyler figures that maybe a lot of things would get easier with Steven.
Tyler should have known better. Not even someone as seemingly perfect as Steven Jessop is completely as advertised.
This time, though, Tyler has to make a decision. After all, sometimes, even if what you see is not what you get, what Tyler’s uncovered in Steven might just be what he’s always wanted.
EXCERPT:
Steven turned to face him and placed his hands on Tyler’s hips. “I had a fantastic night, Tyler.”
Tyler nodded, his butterflies back and brushing delicate, frenetic wings in his throat. Swallowing hard, he moved a step closer. “Me too.”
Steven’s lips, soft and firm on his, sent the butterflies up in a flash of heat, and he opened his mouth to the tongue that flicked against his lower lip. The contact was all too brief. In a moment, Steven was pulling away, stepping back and dropping his arms. “Can I call you?”
Tyler still struggled to gather his spinning wits. “Uh— sure. Yes.”
Steven’s face lit with an expression of pleasure that sent a thread of desire weaving through Tyler.
“Good.” He ran a thumb over Tyler’s close-cropped goatee. The smile slanted a fraction to one side. “I kind of like the feel of this. I imagined I would.”
“Thank you.” The idea Steven had imagined kissing him was even more thrilling than the compliment.
Steven put his hand on the door, but didn’t pull it open right away. “Do you need a cab? I can have Paul call one for you.” He indicated the man behind the counter on the other side of the glass.
“No, thank you.” Tyler found his manners beneath the smoldering nerves and took a few backward steps toward the street. “It’s nice. I can walk.”
“Be careful.” A delicate line delved between Steven’s brows.
“I will.” Tyler raised a hand and turned to walk away. He would have expected disappointment at being left on the street, but Steven stood at the door and watched him walk off, waiting until he reached the corner to wave a final goodbye.
He wasn’t being dismissed, then, and that put the butterflies to rest for good.
AUTHOR BIO & LINKS:
Jaime has been writing for various publishers since the fall of 2008, although she's been writing for herself far longer. Often asked why men; what’s so fascinating about writing stories about men falling in love, she's never come up with a clear answer. Just that these are the stories that she loves to read, so it seemed to make sense if she was going to write, they should also be the stories she wrote.
These days, you can find plenty of free reading on her website. She also writes for Freya’s Bower, Loveyoudivine Alterotica, Pink Petal Books, Dreamspinner Press and Total E-Bound.
Spare time, when it can be found rolled into a ball at the back of the dryer or cavorting with the dust bunnies in the corners, she's probably spending reading, drawing, gardening (weather permitting, of course, since she is Canadian!) or watching movies. Well. She has a day job or two, as well, and two kids, but thankfully, also a wonderful husband who shoulders more than his fair share of household and child care responsibilities.
She graduated some time ago from college with a Fine Arts diploma, with a major in textile arts, which basically qualifies her to draw pictures and create things with string and fabric. One always needs an official slip of paper to fall back on after all....
Website: http://jaime-samms.
Livejournal:http://
Deviantart: http://
Twitter: https://twitter.com/#!
Amazon Author page: amazon.com/author/
**********GIVEAWAY**********
Jaime and Wild Child Publishing will be awarding a $10 Wild Child Publishing GC to a randomly drawn commenter during the tour.
-Giveaway is OPEN TO EVERYONE!
-To be entered, MUST leave a comment, ALONG WITH YOUR EMAIL ADDY.
-One commenter will be chosen randomly from all comments made throughout the tour, so the more tour stops you make a comment on the greater your chances of winning. A list of all participating blogs can be found here.
-Giveaway ends at 11:59 PM CST on 10/26.
Love the blurb and excerpt!!
ReplyDeleteKassandra
sionedkla@gmail.com
Very nice excerpt.
ReplyDeletebn100candg(at)hotmail(dot)com
Thanks, Kassandra and all. :)
ReplyDelete