Archive for the ‘MLR Press’ Category

Welcome Readers!

Join us in meeting some of the new authors on the scene every Friday.  Hear what the newbies have to say and discover the voice of a new author.

How well do you really know your characters? 

I’d say very intimately, although none of my characters are autobiographical.  (Sometimes I wish they were!)  For me to immerse myself in my writing, I need to make the characters come to life.  They become my friends, my family members, even my adversaries.  I talk about them in present tense over dinner – evoking raised eyebrows from my partner.  I dream about them.  And, I both worry about and celebrate their problems and their victories.  I’d say it’s comparable to an actor staying in character even when he or she is not performing.  Fortunately, no one has called for a straight-jacket for me – yet.

How likely are people you meet to end up in your next book?

I believe anybody is fair game, even if I don’t even know them.    It could be a friend, an acquaintance, or even a person I don’t know.  I travel often on business so sometimes play a mental game in airports as I people-watch.  I imagine details about their lives and create small little stories about them.  It’s both amusing and entertaining and helps me with the sometimes lengthy wait times.  In “Home” I knew exactly who my villain was but I think it’s safe to say that secret will go with me to my grave.  As an amusing aside, my partner and I have taken an annual beach vacation for ten years with the same group of about eight friends.  I’ve threatened to put them all in a murder mystery about one of our vacations that goes badly wrong.  Now, they love the idea but let’s hope they’re still my friends once I get it written.

What classic novel would you like to see turned into a movie?

 Well, I think my first choice has already been made into a movie but I’ve never seen it nor do I think it was anything more than a straight-to-dvd release.  I just finished re-reading Patricia Nell Warren’s “The Front Runner” for the umpteenth time since I first discovered it while in college back in the Seventies.  Yes, it’s probably considered cliché by some but it also never fails to make me cry.  (I won’t say why in case you haven’t read it.)  I’d like to see it produced by a major studio and made into the next “Brokeback Mountain.”

What makes your first book naughty?

The sex scenes are rather explicit.  So much so that my 78 year-old mother still doesn’t know her son writes books like this.  But that said, “Home” is more a falling-in-love and constructing-a-life story than just a series of erotic scenes. Readers who want steamy, occasionally edgy situations will find them.  But what I hopefully achieved was a good plot balance between the raw and the romance.

What is the scariest part of sending out that first book?

Not knowing if you’re good enough.  Hoping, even fantasizing about the acceptance letter that says “Where have your talents been hiding all this time?  We loved it!”  And, being prepared for the more realistic likelihood of a generic, one-paragraph rejection that ends with “Best of luck in your future endeavors.”  When I received the e-mail from MLR responding to my first submission, I just kept re-reading the simple but beautiful words: “We like your book … and would like to offer you a contract.”  I’ve been smiling ever since.  

William Neale is a writer of m/m erotic romance fiction.  His newly published book, “Home,” is the first in a series of three.  An excerpt is available at either the publisher’s or the author’s web site.

The second book in the series, “A New Normal,” is due for release from MLR Press in late 2010 or early 2011.  MLR Press will also soon release a short story by William titled “Got Your Back” on its upcoming new “quick reads” division. 

William lives in Cleveland with his partner, their two dogs, and hopefully soon, a newly adopted son.  William Neale books are available at MLR Press, Amazon.com, and other major booksellers.

Thank you for joining us William you can find out more about William Neale at www.williamneale.com and at www.mlrpress.com