We are very happy
to welcome Kade Boehme to the Smoocher’s Voice blog today. Kade’s latest books,
Keep Swimming
and Going Under, are available at Amazon books.
Kade
Boehme is a southern boy without the charm, but all the sass. Currently
residing in New York City, he lives off of ramen noodles and too much booze.
He
is the epitome of dorkdom, only watching TV when Rachel Maddow or one of his
sports teams is on. Most of his free time is spent dancing, arguing politics or
with his nose in a book. He is also a hardcore Britney Spears fangirl and has
an addiction to glitter.
It
was after writing a short story about boys who loved each other for a less than
reputable adult website that he found his true calling, and hopefully a bit
more class.
He
hopes to write about all the romance that he personally finds himself allergic
to but that others can fall in love with. He maintains that life is real and
the stories should be, as well.
I had the pleasure
to meet and hang out with Kade when he attended RainbowCon 2014 this past
spring. It was great to have the opportunity to listen to his insights about
writing and character development.
Jodi: Thank you, Kade, for taking the time to answer some questions.
Tell us a little about yourself and what inspired you to become an author.
Kade: Thank you guys for having me! As far as why I
became an author, I think I've always written. I wrote a 70k word novel at 14
(which will NEVER see the light of day) and I've written over
50 short stories for...er...websites of ill-repute. Heh. Anywho. But I always
wanted to give them HEAs, so when I read my first romance with a gay pairing
back in ‘05 or ’06, I was like SHUT UP! I can get this published? Obviously I
sat on the idea for a while, tinkering with my short stories until I felt ready
to go for a full-length novel (lord knows the last one didn't turn out so well,
haha). So, wow... long way around to say I've been a writer since I was ten and
Harriet the Spy convinced me I could do it, even if I just had a notebook.
Jodi: You have a variety of books published. Although they are all in
the m/m genre, the focus of each book is very different. Do you have a favorite
book or character?
Kade: Wow. That's a tough question. Characters,
Gavin or Gianni, maybe even Kyle from Keep Swimming. Favorite books? Oy.
The dream to write that just fell together quickly and out of nowhere would #1
be Trouble & the Wallflower. That one will always
be special to me. As will Gangster
Country. And of course my baby is Don't Trust the Cut. Oy. Good
question, haha.
Jodi: Are
your characters based on real people or are they complete fiction?
Kade: Most often, they're completely fictional, though I
have been known to throw in a cameo of a real friend of mine, just for
shits'n'giggles.
Jodi: No matter how serious the subject matter of your books is, there
always seems to be an element of humor incorporated into the story. Do you feel
humor is essential to include to offset the angst?
Kade: God yes. I'm a snarky, giggly bitch and my
therapist says the reason I'm so fucking perky is because I use humor to cope.
No shit. So I think readers use it to cope with the heavy material as well, so
trying to balance it keeps the entire book from feeling maudlin and like a
stress-fest.
Jodi: What
was your inspiration for Trouble and the
Wallflower?
Kade: A friend sent me a couple of picspiration photos
and I was like “Oh, two bottoms. How funny.” Then I heard a Britney Spears song
that just made Gavin come alive. I finished the whole process in two weeks.
Every detail just popped in my head. It was effing insane, but that seems to
happen more often than not for me.
Jodi: Davy and Gavin are perfectly flawed and well developed, but the
minor characters, specifically Sean and Devon, are intriguing also. Do you have
any plans to expand on the minor characters from this book?
Kade: If the ship has not sailed, I'd love to pop back
into that world. I have some outlines for the other guys.
Jodi: Don’t Trust the Cut
is one of my favorite books. [Check out my review.] The plot and characters are intense. What was your
inspiration for this book?
Kade: I was actually getting over a “Trip to Canada”
myself then, for the same reasons as Tucker. This was my way of focusing some
of my energy on something positive, what turned out to be my first full-length
novel and my first contract with a publisher.
Jodi: Did
you have to do research on bipolar disorder and cutting for this book?
Kade: Well... I was a cutter because of untreated bipolar
disorder. (Yes, that's what that is on my arms for those who meet me at
conventions. This avoids that awkward question and my awkward glare.) So, I
took from personal experience a lot here.
Jodi: Let’s talk about Keep
Swimming. It is interesting that Health works as an offshore driller. What
inspired you to choose that profession?
Kade: Well, I grew up in the Florida Panhandle (we
eventually moved after Hurricane Ivan). Several of my friends from high
school's greatest aspiration was to hit the rigs. I have family members on the
rigs. It felt like the right fit for Heath. He was a southern boy who loves the
sea and is down for hard work. Plus, there was something a little sexy about
him being a roughneck, haha.
Jodi: In this book, as
well as Wood, Screws & Nails, one of the main characters has not openly admitted to being
gay until he was older. Why have you chosen to explore that aspect of sexuality
in your characters?
Kade: Because it's reality. Less so, I think, for my
generation, but people who were teens in the ‘90s still have that AIDS
generation stigma to being gay. There's something in giving them a voice. I've
heard from many closeted or recently out gay men over 30, mostly after the release
of Wide Awake, and it's breathtaking how much love those recently out men, the older
men, give me for writing “their” story. It's probably the most humbling
experience about writing, thus far.
Jodi: Tell
us a little about Heath and why he is afraid to open about his sexuality at
work?
Kade: I knew drilling was a slightly conservative job. So
I asked my cousin (who works as an engineer on an oil platform in the Gulf)
what it'd be like if one of the guys came out to them. First he asked if I
meant on his particular rig or in general. I went with his particular rig,
thinking, hey at least I'll have a model for Heath's work environment. He asked
me “You know on a boat, when they drop off the trash and sharks just come out
of nowhere and fuck it up?” I nodded yes. “There you go. There was one boy they
thought was queer. They called him shark bait.” So, yeah... Heath couldn't be
out on that rig.
Jodi: When Heath and Cary get together it is hot, but neither man is
looking for a relationship. They have a magnetism that keeps them getting
together. Tell us a little about Cary and his fears of getting involved with
Heath.
Kade: Well, first he's got to worry about Gus. He's a
daddy, and he doesn't just want to have a revolving door of guys for Gus to get
attached to, only to have them disappear. Then there's the fact he got royally screwed by
Marshall. I mean, that sucked.
It'd be hard to trust after that, plus the fact Heath makes no bones about the
fact he doesn't want kids and he's a closet case. Whether they have hot sex or
not, for Cary that's a lot of effing baggage.
Jodi: Tell
us why Heath’s pause during the confrontation is so significant?
Kade: Because it's that awful moment when you want them
to say “No, of course I'd never do anything
to hurt you.” But Heath had to think
on how far he would have gone. Now, of course, we know he wouldn't have done
it, but it was just that moment that Cary needed Heath to not be afraid for
even just a split second. No better way to scare off someone who's insecure
about something than to act insecure yourself.
Jodi: In
Going Under, Kyle, who is Heath’s best friend and business partner, is a
bit jealous of the relationship between Heath and Cary. Kyle has been burned by
past relationships, especially by men who are closeted. Yet, he takes a chance
on Eddy. Why?
Kade: I think it was just really hot sex at first, but in the end, I
think it was hard for him to see someone go through what Eddy was going
through. And Eddy saying, “Don't give up on me...” That was probably the first
time one of these “closet cases” had ever ASKED him to stay, and for more than
sex.
Jodi: Tell us a little
about Eddy’s inner struggle with admitting he is gay.
Kade: I think, honestly, he knew. He was gay, always wanted to be
out, but after SO MANY negative consequences of being gay, he just was afraid.
I don't think it was weakness, in his case, so much as that the world had just
beaten all the hope out of him.
Jodi: Do you think his
situation is typical today?
Kade: I think it's way less common than it once was. It's definitely
gotten better. I'm sure it does happen still and people still have that fear,
but kids don't seem to seek parental approval as much as say someone in the
60s, nor do we get married or any of that stuff as early, so the pressure isn't
quite as heavy to have babies and marry right out of high school. Many parents
teach their kids to focus on career, being able to support themselves before
popping out kids; therefore, people are closer to 30 when marrying age comes
around and by then... fuck it? What'll they do? Take away your house that they
don't pay for? We've just gotten more independent and less traditional, as far
as most gay men I've met. I can count on one hand the guys I know who were
closeted a long time or who married, and the majority of those men are over 35.
Jodi: There is a
surprising twist to this story regarding Kyle’s and Eddy’s pasts. Without giving
away any secrets, was there something that inspired you to delve into that
situation?
Kade: Actually, someone told me a similar story (without our gay
little twist) and I was like “How powerful.” To realize that in doing that, the
bullied became the bully. You just never know what someone else is going
through.
Jodi: Is
there a moral or lesson you want people to take away from your books?
Kade: Love, the real, lasting kind, isn't always easy.
Forgive, respect, give second chances. Life's short and beautiful and not all
of us find our Person.
Jodi: What
projects do you have coming up next?
Kade: Allison Cassatta and I wrote two novels together, Teaching
Professor Grayson (out November 1 from Dreamspinner Press) and We Found
Love (also from Dreamspinner Press, coming in Jan/Feb 2015). There will be
a third book in the Keep Swimming series sometime in the spring :)
Going
Under
Ex Coast Guardian Kyle
Bevins is a joker, a friend, and unlucky in love. His friends know he’s a good
guy to turn to if for nothing other than a much needed laugh, but he rarely
heeds his own advice. He’s content as the new co-owner of his friend’s charter
fishing company in Pensacola Beach, Florida, but he’s missing the companionship
of having a significant other and tired of the old hookups. Eddy Jiminez is unlucky, period. He’s been dealt most every negative consequence of being gay. He’s also an ex-con, so he figured he’d play it safe, keep working hard and trying to forget that it was men he craved. But when he meets Kyle, he can’t stop going back for more, but tired of the lies and hurting, he doesn't want to give Kyle up.
Kyle would do anything to keep Eddy from drowning again, so he decides to see him safely into the big world of being Out but a past connection may ruin everything. Will there be a second chance for both of them, or will their relationship go under?
Keep Swimming
After
his partner dumped him with a pregnant surrogate four years ago, Cary Whitmore
was forced to play single parent while starting up a new business. With the dog
bakery now semi-successful and his son healthy, Cary thinks he may be ready to
date again.
Heath
Cummings is trying his damnedest to get his charter boat service off the ground
and dreams of one day soon being able to quit his job as an offshore driller.
Paying off his dream requires making it through a couple more years, which
means being open about his sexuality isn't in the cards just yet.
When
the two take their flirting to the next level, Cary wonders if he can handle
another guy who might take off, while Heath has to decide if he can risk his
dream of a laid back life—and giving up his long-held and much enjoyed bachelor
status while taking on a child when being a father was never on his to-do list.
Will they sink, or will they keep swimming?
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