Interview with Brian West

I've been lucky enough to meet another talented gay erotica/fiction author. His name is Brian West. I had a chance to chat with him about his ebooks and life in general.

Here's Brian!

1. How did you get your start writing gay fiction and/or erotica? Please tell us a bit about your background and early beginnings.

I've always been drawn to erotica (stories and pictures alike). At my blog http://www.dirtyhunk.com/ you'll find tons of erotica there (like gay cartoons – love those – and now, short stories). When I was growing up, I used to devour dirty stories in porn rags just as surely as I did the graphic content! I've always been a writer at heart (I've got an overactive imagination) and fiction has always been of interest to me. It just took me a while to get started. The recent eBook explosion definitely got me interested in exploring this passion of mine, hence the Dirtyhunk Books Collection.

2. What inspires you?

A sexy and provocative picture gets me going. When I see a photo that I like, story ideas begin to flood into my mind. The guy in the photo comes to life and I start to wonder what ‘his story’ is and then the fantasy (or premise) for the story starts to take shape. Similarly, when I see an attractive man out and about (around town, at a mall, a restaurant, etc) the 'what if' questions take over, which leads me to the dirty ideas! I have my iPhone handy at all times, just in case inspiration strikes. Those inspired moments are fleeting so it’s important to capture them as they come.

I'm inspired by all sorts of stories and situations between two men, sex stories and romances alike. What I have been writing about is inherently promiscuous by nature as the concepts are rooted in fantasy but I am also drawn to gay romances. I’ve got a few ideas for romances in the works in which I will focus more on the relationship between two guys than just pure sex but so far I’ve been writing primarily gay sex stories and erotic romance novellas.

3. What do you hope to accomplish with your writing?

I hope to remain inspired so that I can keep writing! It would be nice to have a large library of short sex stories (those are always fun to write) and a collection of book length romances.

Whenever I am in a bookstore and I see those Harlequin novels with the sexy guys on the covers, I can’t help but look at them and I wish that there were titles available for readers of gay fiction. Since they’re not available, I decided to write my own stories and although I’ve been writing mostly gay sex stories up until now, we’ll see how it goes with the romances I’ve got planned (they will be more like the Harlequins you see in bookstores). Perhaps Dirtyhunk Books will become a gay version of Harlequin one day in the future!

Ultimately, I would have to say that I feel satisfied with what I have accomplished thus far, thanks to the incredible eBook publishing platforms that are now available. With eBooks, I’ve been able to publish my stories immediately, I have a blog that I use to give my readers tons of extras (like pictures of the guys on the covers, etc.) and I am able to connect with readers faster and more efficiently than ever before. And social media is helping as well. It’s great! I love it when a reader writes back to me... To know that a story satisfied a reader just as much as it satisfied me to write it is the greatest prize. To that effect, I put out a newsletter to keep in touch with my readers directly. The newsletter can be found at http://www.dirtyhunkbooks.com/ for anybody that’s interested in joining :-)

4. What do you see for yourself in the future?

I'll definitely keep on writing and see where this new project takes me. It's been so much fun!

I would like to travel more and explore different places and people, which will no doubt enrich my writing. It would be nice to have some exotic storylines and situations to bring to my future books.

5. It's time to play a game called celebrity hunks. What's your fav male actor? Singer? Model?

Really – only one hunk in each category?

I had to mull over this for a while, and I find it impossible to mention only one hunk in each category, but these are the guys that I think are hot (of course, there are a lot more but in the interest of keeping this sort, LOL):

Actors:

Mark Whalberg, Ian Somerhalder, Matthew Fox, Channing Tatum, Edward Burns, Josh Duhamel, Henry Cavil, Gerard Butler, James Franco, Kellan Lutz, Ryan Gosling, and many more... There’s just too many to list in this category!

Singers:

Usher, Ricky Martin, Enrique Iglesias, Michael Buble

Models: 

Christiano Ronaldo, Gene Murphy, Craig Malozzi, Nacho Figueras (the polo guy), some of the guys at allamericanguys.com... Again, there’s a lot more, I just can’t think of them at the moment. I got a bunch posted at Dirtyhunk.com!

Nathan: Thanks, Brian!

Check out Brian's books: http://www.dirtyhunkbooks.com/

And on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Brian-West/e/B007APAC9W/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_2

Andrew Grey's Artistic Pursuits

The talented Andrew Grey, a friend of mine, is also one of the reasons I got into writing gay fiction. I read a few books of his and was immediately hooked on the mm romance dynamics.

Andrew has a new release called Artistic Pursuits. I strongly urge everyone to check it out.

Frank Jennings is an FBI agent looking for redemption. Leslie Carlton is an Interpol agent looking for a thief. Attraction flares from the moment they meet on a case searching for a stolen triptych of unique Tiffany windows, but after a single night of stunning passion, Leslie is called back to London to continue his search there.

When the case heats up again, Leslie returns to the States—and to Frank—but their investigation is complicated by their tumultuous feelings. Is it possible for two dedicated detectives to pursue each other while they’re tracking down stolen art and the unscrupulous man who steals it?

Purchase from Dreamspinner Press: http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=2774

Amazon:  http://www.amazon.com/Artistic-Pursuits-Art-series-ebook/dp/B0078PK2MG/ref=zg_bs_172503011_33

Rainbows All Around Us

Dear friends,

I'm pleased to announce that I have finished writing Rainbows All Around Us, a gay love story.

Here's the blurb:

Deeply closeted and lonely, Justin spirals into a depression when he has no one to turn to. When compassionate and sexy Lucas enters the picture, he changes Justin into a confident and happy young gay man. But tragedy strikes when Lucas gets involved in the gay rights movement and attracts homophobic bigots. Can Justin protect his true love? Or will they be torn apart forever?

Set amid the gay marriage movement, Rainbows All Around Us is an uplifting and inspirational gay love story about the difficulties of being both gay and masculine in the modern world, the importance of being yourself, and most importantly, the power of love to change your world.

Here's the link to it on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Rainbows-All-Around-Us-ebook/dp/B007G1BRTY/ref=sr_1_48?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1330709489&sr=1-48

Thanks everyone! I couldn't do this without my friends and readers!

Lisa Worrall's Latest: Laurel Height

My good friend, the lovely and talented Lisa Worrall has just released a new novel, entitled Laurel Heights. Check it out!

Blurb:
A shot rings out in the dead of night and leaves two residents dead in the exclusive, gay gated housing community of Laurel Heights, an apparent murder/suicide, but not everyone is convinced.

Detectives Scott Turner and Will Harrison are sent undercover to dig beneath the surface and discover answers. There’s only one problem: Scott and Will are not out of the closet at work. Now they are two gay men, pretending to be straight, who must pretend to be gay in order to stop a murderer.

Will the two closeted officers be able to hide their attraction while believing the other is straight? And is the killer living among them waiting to claim his next victim?

Buy link...
https://spsilverpublishing.com/product_book_info/laurel-heights-ebook-p-75