Sitting down with author Rick R. Reed/Win an e-book

Welcome to Love Romances & More Reviews, Rick R. Reed. Comfortable? Let’s begin, shall we? Please tell us a little bit about yourself.

Were you an avid reader as a child? What type of books did you enjoy reading?

Oh my God, yes. I was forever being admonished by my parents to go outside and play. They could never understand why I wanted to sit in the house with my nose in a book. I’m still the same! And, believe it or not, in addition to kid’s stuff like the entire WIZARD OF OZ series, I also read grown-up books like ROSEMARY’S BABY and DIARY OF A MAD HOUSEWIFE. It explains a lot….

Tell us a bit about your latest book, and what inspired you to write such a story.

It’s called Raining Men, and it’s a sequel of sorts to Chaser, my chubby-chaser love story. In Chaser, one of the supporting characters, Bobby, was despicable—promiscuous, duplicitous and an all-around horrible person. After I wrote Chaser, I couldn’t get Bobby out of my head. His story demanded to be told. Why was he so horrible? Could he be redeemed? The answers are in Raining Men. Here’s the blurb:

The character you loved to hate in Chaser becomes the character you will simply love in Raining Men

It’s been raining men for most of Bobby Nelson’s adult life. Normally, he wouldn’t have it any other way, but lately something’s missing. Now, he wants the deluge to slow to a single special drop. But is it even possible for Bobby to find “the one” after endless years of hooking up?

When Bobby’s father passes away, Bobby finally examines his rocky relationship with the man and how it might have contributed to his inability to find the love he yearns for. Guided by a sexy therapist, a Sex Addicts Anonymous group, a well-endowed Chihuahua named Johnny Wadd, and Bobby’s own cache of memories, Bobby takes a spiritual, sexual, and emotional journey to discover that life’s most satisfactory love connections lie in quality, not quantity. And when he’s ready to love not only himself but someone else, sex and love fit, at last, into one perfect package.

Buy Links for Raining Men

Amazon (Kindle) http://www.amazon.com/Raining-Men-ebook/dp/B00D3XHMFW

Amazon (paperback) http://www.amazon.com/Raining-Men-Rick-R-Reed/dp/1623807220/

Dreamspinner (paperback): http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=3873

Dreamspinner (ebook) http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=3826

Do you have another book in the works? Would you like to tell readers about your current or future projects?

 Actually, I have two: the first, Hungry for Love is right now going through the editing stage with Dreamspinner Press. It will be out in September, just in time for GayRomLit in Atlanta in October. I also am just finishing up January release, Legally Wed.

Here’s what Hungry for Love is about:

Nate Tippie and Brandon Wilde are gay, single, and both hoping to meet that special man, even though fate has not yet delivered him to their doorstep. Nate's sister, Hannah, and her kooky best friend, Marilyn, are about to help fate with that task by creating a profile on the gay dating site, OpenHeartOpenMind. The two women are only exploring, but when they need a face and body for the persona they create, they use Nate as the model.

When Brandon comes across the false profile, he falls for the guy he sees online. Keeping up the charade, Hannah begins corresponding with him, posing as Nate. Real complications begin when Brandon wants to meet Nate, but Nate doesn’t even know he’s being used in the online dating ruse. Hannah and Marilyn concoct another story and send Nate out to let the guy down gently. But when Nate and Brandon meet, the two men feel an instant and powerful pull toward each other. Cupid seems to have shot his bow, but how do Nate and Brandon climb out from under a mountain of deceit without letting go of their chance at love?

 If the world was to end tomorrow, what three things would be on your bucket list? 

Oh wow. Would I have time to get to Sicily? I have always wanted to see where my maternal ancestors came from, which is a little town in Sicily called Ciancianna, a little rural village near the Mt Sicani chain of mountains. So, that trip would be number one. I’d also love to sit down with John Waters and Lily Tomlin and have a lively discussion about humor with them. And last, I’d just want to gather around me my husband, my dog, my son and son-in-law and just bask in how lucky I am to have them all in my life.

Are there any authors who have influenced your work? 

I have been a long-time fan of some really good authors who celebrated rich characterization as well as the dark and quirky side of life: Ruth Rendell, Flannery O’Connor, Patricia Highsmith, and Stephen King.I have read each of them so widely that I’m sure they all must have had an influence, if only by osmosis.

What comes first for you: Setting? Storyline? Characters? 

Characters. I need to know them and love them in order to tell their story. Once I have a handle on who they are, half the work is done. The characters become real people for me; they make me laugh, they make me cry and they consistently surprise me in what they decide to do and say. If that sounds a little bit nuts, well, so be it. It works for me.

How do you balance family life with your writing? 

Family comes first. Maybe it’s the Sicilian in me, but nothing matters more. Writing is vital to me and something I’ve always done (since I was a kid), but I always make time for my family and being with them. What’s the point in any success if you don’t have loved ones with whom to share it?

GIVEAWAY INFORMATION: To win a pdf e-copy of Raining Men, please leave a comment and your email address within the comment for Rick. Contest will go to Sunday July 21st with the winner being announced in the comments of this post on Monday afternoon.

Rick R. Reed Biography

Rick R. Reed is all about exploring the romantic entanglements of gay men in contemporary, realistic settings. While his stories often contain elements of suspense, mystery and the paranormal, his focus ultimately returns to the power of love. He is the author of dozens of published novels, novellas, and short stories. He is a three-time EPIC eBook Award winner (for Caregiver, Orientation and The Blue Moon Cafe). Lambda Literary Review has called him, "a writer that doesn't disappoint." Rick lives in Seattle with his husband and a very spoiled Boston terrier. He is forever "at work on another novel."

Find Rick Online!

Visit Rick's website at http://www.rickrreed.com or follow his blog at http://rickrreedreality.blogspot.com/. You can also like Rick on Facebook at www.facebook.com/rickrreedbooks or on Twitter at www.twitter.com/rickrreed. Rick always enjoys hearing from readers and answers all e-mails personally. Send him a message at jimmyfels@gmail.com

Check out our review one of Rick's books...

Mute Witness