author interview

Dare Not – Special Guest Post by Author Joseph Dispenza

January 25, 2013 By Brandon Leave a Comment

Joseph Dispenza and Mike Herbert - sepia by Barry Shapiro When I read recently about Jamie Kuntz, the 18-year old who was kicked off his football team for being in relationship with a 65-year old man, I thought of a phrase that was first used more than a hundred years ago: “The love that dare not speak its name.”

What is the love that dare not speak its name? Most of us, on hearing the phrase, would reply quickly, “Homosexuality, of course…gay love.”

That would be right—up to a point. The “love” in question actually has a specific meaning, born of an interesting historical event: one of the four trials of poet, playwright, and wit Oscar Wilde in the spring of 1895 in London.

Four years earlier, in 1891, Wilde had fallen in love and begun a relationship with the 22-year-old Lord Alfred Douglas, nicknamed “Bosie”. Wilde was 38. The two of them were discrete, mostly—remember that in England at the time homosexuality was a criminal offense—but Wilde was a flamboyant celebrity whose private life was under constant scrutiny. [Read more…] about Dare Not – Special Guest Post by Author Joseph Dispenza

Interview with author Amelia C Gormley (with a bonus excerpt)

October 18, 2012 By Brandon 4 Comments

I’m talking to Amelia C. Gormley today whose debut book Inertia (Impulse #1) is garnering great reviews. We’re chatting about her book, her future plans, her next book in the series, and her goal of aiding the Ruth Ellis Center in Detroit.

Inertia (Impulse #1) is the story of Derrick Chance, a man who lost his heart once and isn’t willing to risk it again. (But you know that never works out, no matter how much we try.)

B: One of the first things that struck me about your MC, Derrick, is that he felt like an old soul, and was not a fashionista, which I find all too (stereotypically) often in M/M romance. Externally he appears quite comfortable with his life, but internally…that’s a different story. How did you develop his character? [Read more…] about Interview with author Amelia C Gormley (with a bonus excerpt)

Interview with Author David-Paul Erhart

September 6, 2012 By Brandon 3 Comments

Today I’m talking with author, musician and NYC marathon runner David-Paul Erhart. Mr. Erhart taught at the Royal Conservatory of Music and the University of Toronto Faculty of Music, authored Sound & Symbol (The Rudiments of Music Complete in Two Volumes), and ran in and completed three NYC marathons. His latest project is InnerBouquet, a website devoted to celebrating the lives and accomplishments of LGBT artists, activists and athletes.

B: I read from a piece you had written in 2007 that in a meeting about finding out who your biological parents were, you saw your adoptive mother show a burst of emotion and it made you change how perceive people. Is that reflected in what you’re trying to do now with InnerBouquet? [Read more…] about Interview with Author David-Paul Erhart

Interview with Indie filmmakers Cati and Mike Gonzalez

July 24, 2012 By Brandon 2 Comments

Today I’m talking with internationally known Indie filmmakers and photographers Cati and Mike Gonzalez, and you know me, if it’s raw and gritty any media can hook me pretty quick. This team of filmmakers had me hooked in about ten seconds. Not only are they well known in NYC and around the world, but it’s pretty rare that I come across someone that has a project that so closely matches my own concerns with LGBTQ youth.

Let me tell you about their film first. Prince & Ekaj hits on so many levels it’s not even funny. This is not some lame Glee view of what it means to be LGBTQ but a hardcore look at what it is to be growing up Latino, gay, and homeless in the hard city. (You can see the trailer below and a longer clip on their website.) [Read more…] about Interview with Indie filmmakers Cati and Mike Gonzalez

Author Interview with Allen Renfro

July 12, 2012 By Brandon 2 Comments

I’m talking with Allen Renfro today, author of The Raised and Snap. Allen, like me, looks at the darker side of things, so I’m sure my own readers will enjoy his work. I certainly did.

B: I know you’re a button pusher, I could tell that just by reading Snap, and the book is certainly a no-holds-barred look at how homophobia affects a person in the most extreme sense. One line stuck with me because I’ve seen its privileged condemnation repeated over and over again (especially recently) in the commentaries and actions of LGBT media about bullying, coming out, and homophobia. What are your thoughts and where did this come from? I see the character that made the statement was actually a homeless gay kid trying to survive on the street. Do think that’s reflective of how homeless LGBTQ kids are perceived or think they’re perceived?

It’s always so easy for someone who’s got it made to think that the scum always chooses the darkness. [Read more…] about Author Interview with Allen Renfro

Questions from readers

April 11, 2012 By Brandon Leave a Comment

I’m getting more and more questions from readers so I thought I would create a blog post that answered some of the most common. If you have a question, please feel free to contact me via my website or one of my social media sites. I may answer you personally, or make a blog post about it, or both.

You stated in an interview that some of the characters in The Value of Rain were based on real people, can you tell me which ones?

Many of the characters were based on real people, the character Snow was one of them and the real person he was based on had a literal pelt of scars from his shoulders down to his wrist. Snow was a stark, beautiful young man whose voice haunted me until I gave him a voice in Rain.