Would you like to know what inspired me to write my m/m romances? Boredom, to start with! My husband and I had taken a trip to Glacier National Park last summer. Beautifully romantic trip. But the long drive through the Idaho desert would have done me in, if it wasn’t for my sometimes naughty imagination.The air conditioner wasn’t able to keep up with the close to 100 degree weather outside. We were in a desert in the middle of nowhere! Not another living soul on the road. Hot, dry, burnt landscape around us. Scrubby brush and stones baking in the sun. Heat waves rippling across the road. Humid, sultry air in the car lulling me towards sleep…
I’d recently written a short ghost story, The Trials of a Lonely Specter (MuseItUp Publishing, due out in October) and I began to wonder what my two men had done when they were alive. How had they met? Who would they be in the new story taking shape in my mind?
Nev
il came first. Handsome, sexy, witty. Do you know the song ‘Last of the Famous International Playboys’ by Morrissey? That’s my Nevil.And who would be special enough to win his heart? Someone shy and beautiful, unsure ye
t alluring in his own way. Definitely a temptation. Lovely Shelton.Now to get them together. Yum. But I couldn’t just start with them in bed, however much as I’d like to! Should I start with their first meeting, where Shelton falls helplessly for Nevil’s charm? Come on, who wouldn’t!
Too predictable, though even as I’m writing this, I picture their first encounter in my mind, Shelton meeting Nevil’s burning glance across the room, his bones melting as the gorgeous man seemed interested in him…
But no, I wanted their relationship to be special. So I started later, with Shelton already hopelessly in love, his happily ever after still achingly out of reach. ‘Shelton in Love’ is about Shelton’s struggle to win Nevil’s elusive heart and not break his own. ‘Shelton’s Promise’ takes place six months later, with Shelton just as much in love as ever, and Nevil just as carefree as before.
Dianne Hartsock
Blog
Good point, Dianne! You can never be bored if you allow your imagination to roam. :))
ReplyDeleteSusanne, it does help pass the time. :)
ReplyDeleteStarting when they've already been together for a while certainly is unexpected! Good luck with your stories, Dianne! :)
ReplyDeleteThanks, Julianne. I've signed for the third book, 'Sheton's Goodbye'. I probably could have put them in one long story, but I hadn't thought of writing sequels until after the first one came out. It's been fun, anyway!
ReplyDelete