One thing that I get asked a lot, vis-à-vis my writing, is "how do you come up with everything?" So, I thought I'd write a blog post about what goes into my stories.
The short answer is: everything.
I like to write things I know, so I tend to borrow heavily from reality—whether they're my experiences or ones coming from a trusted source, something I've written research papers on, things I've seen or things I have, or my own personal beliefs, biases, or desires—they all find their way onto the page.
I think this is true of all writers.
I like to describe food in my books because I love to cook. Frangipani is set in Barbados, where I go every year. Baltsaros has colourful rugs because I have Turkish, Persian, and Moroccan rugs all over my house. Max dresses like I do. Tim lives in my dream apartment. Kes's PTSD is a friend's. Rudie talks like one of my favourite old coworkers. Zia's injury is an ex's injuries (wait... you haven't met Zia yet, have you? *wink*). I'm not into cuddling, but in Grimma I created someone I could cuddle with. Tom drinks like I do. Murphy has an exaggerated version of how Jon and I see emotions/intentions in others. Many of my characters have tattoos because I do. I have an art history degree so I like to mix and match real history in my fantasy books. My cologne is Fahrenheit by Dior so protagonists like or wear scents like sandalwood, cedar, and smoke because that's what I like. I fill my stories with characters who are gay, bi, trans, queer, ace, pan—aaaalll over the gender and sexuality spectrum because that's what my friends are like in real life.
I like to use things I've learned in school. I wrote papers in university with titles like Pain as an Art Medium, Representations of Medieval Torture Techniques in Art, Pederasty & Patronage, Expressions of Gender & Technology, The Pain of Submission: Masculinity in Ancient Rome, Code-Switching: Military Slang and Kinship in War, Caging the Monster: Serial Killers in the American Penal System, Social Deviance and the Influence of Culture, and Fuck Me, Daddy: The Titillation of Taboo in North America.
I use my stories to denounce things I hate, like slavery, the idea of "the noble savage", prejudice and discrimination, and corruption in politics. My preference for poly relationships is blatant... my discomfort with monogamy, hopefully not as obvious (heh). I have to force myself not to keep repeating themes... not everyone needs a dog like I do. Not all beds are four poster beds like mine. Not everyone loves big guys like I do... And I'm pretty sure this is true of most authors, this trying not to replicate yourself on page over and over again.
I've travelled a lot, spoken to a lot of people, seen a lot of things—I've got a lot of stories left to tell.
The newest book I'm working on is set in Montréal (where I've spent the last ohhh... 21 years? 22? ) and it is chock-full of Montréalness. Royal and I don't have that much in common—but his apartment, the club, his friends... all based on real things. It's my little ode to the goth culture I became part of in the summer of '95.... and one I'm still part of, to a degree. ;)
Anyway, so that's what goes into my books. Stuff I know. Stuff I want to show you. Stuff I've got to get out of my head. Stuff that makes me smile. Stuff that hopefully makes you smile (or cringe... in a good way).
