Interview with Scott Pomfret and Scott Whittier:
Hello Scott P, and Scott W! Welcome to the grill known as the ”The Interview” at Romance at Heart Magazine. We are glad that you could join our little group here, and hope to learn a lot more about you and your books. If you are ready, let’s get started with the grilling…
- Please tell us about your latest book.
“Hot Sauce” is the first in the Romentics line of gay romance novels to be published by a mainstream publisher. (The other three novels—“Razor Burn,” “Spare Parts and “Nick of Time”—are available at www.Romentics.com, www.Amazon.com and gay and independent bookstores).
In “Hot Sauce,” Brad Drake has come a long way from tiny Durgin City, Iowa. In his late 20s, he’s a respected celebrity chef with a great apartment, a bustling social life, and a wonderful relationship with Troy Boston, a hip fashion designer and boutique owner. But Brad’s world is suddenly shattered when a figure from Troy’s past, the flamboyant Aria Shakespeare, shows up with damning evidence of Troy’s infidelities. When things heat up, they discover that without a healthy dash of trust, the recipe for romance can be a recipe for disaster.
- What can we expect from you in the future?
We hope to extend the Romentics line of gay romance novels even further. Certainly, we intend to write more books and bring an even wider variety of heroes and stories to our readers. We also hope to expand our Romentics brand to other romantic pursuits like TV, film, columns and nonfiction books.
- How do we find out about you and your books?
Check out our website at www.Romentics.com.
- How may readers contact you?
We love to hear from readers. We invite them to contact us at Scotts@romentics.com. They can also post to our blog and read others’ comments at Romentics Blog.
- Do you have a favorite comment or question from a reader?
We had a young reader write us from a rural southern state and tell us that we were the perfect couple and an inspiration to gay men everywhere. We were like: who? Us? Perfect couple? Hardly. But we were happy that we could provide a model for happiness to someone who may not always get positive messages about what he can attain in the world of real-life romance.
- Why did you decide to write romance novels?
We wanted to offer a fun, exciting and entertaining line of books for gay men and their friends that didn’t exist before Romentics. But more importantly, we are portraying the reality of “happily ever after” for gay men. We are writing about committed gay couples in a society that may not believe we exist. We are putting down, in black and white, that it is possible for two men to fall in love and create a life together. Creating a romantic model for gay men everywhere is what Romentics is all about. And we’re glad we can have all have fun doing it and reading about it along the way.
- How much of your personality and life experiences are in your writing??
Even though we are writing romance, which is inherently idealized and dramatized, we have noticed some definite parallels between our characters and our real lives. Even Alex Witchell of The New York Times Magazine noted some similarities:
Whittier threw up his hands. ''[Your parents are] doctors from Wellesley; I'm a boy from Maine,'' he said, injured. Of course, in ''Hot Sauce,'' Brad is a boy from Iowa, and Troy comes from an old Boston family. Also like Brad, Whittier is an outstanding cook.
Well, maybe. But if you come to our house for dinner, don’t expect a James Beard Award winner. And Scott P’s parents are much more likely to be playing with the grandkids than hosting cocktail parties at the Harvard Club. It’s hilarious how even those things you steal from reality become fiction all by themselves. As Scott W told Alex Witchel, “It's 'write what you know,' but make it more fabulous.”
But the most remarkable influence from our lives has been the legalization of same-sex marriage in our home state of Massachusetts. Not only have these historic events moved and inspired us, they have changed our writing. “Hot Sauce” is set in Boston, and originally the ultimate happy ending the characters aspired to was a civil union in Vermont. Without giving away the ending, let’s just say that during the editing process history required that our book end even more happily ever after.
- When did you first think about writing and what prompted you to submit your first ms?
The idea for Romentics gay romance novels was inspired by Scott W’s mother and grandmother who used to receive boxes of Harlequin Romances monthly by mail order. They would write their initials and comments—“good story,” “romantic”—on the inside covers to pass amongst themselves and keep from rereading the same book. And Scott W thought, Why don’t gay men have this reliable promise of happily ever after? Together, both Scotts decided to pursue this idea, and we launched Romentics in November of 2003—right before the Supreme Judicial Court’s decision in favor of gay marriage here in Massachusetts.
- What is your writing routine?
We wake to write early in the morning. And we talk about ideas late into the night. When we hit writer’s block or a stopping point, one Scott hands off the manuscript to the other Scott and we start the process of editing and rewriting until we’re ready to swap novels again.
- What are your thoughts on love scenes in romance novels, do you find them difficult to write?
We have both written erotica in the past; so we don’t find it difficult. And Romentics novels are certainly hot. We call it romance with testosterone—more fights, more drama and more sex. However, in a romance novel, the love scenes are more than sex; there is a deep tenderness and intimacy in our love scenes that goes well beyond the surface acts -- whether sex or just cooking! Sex is just another element of the relationship and plot. Therefore, it must further the story and deepen the romance beyond simply being hot and steamy. This is both an opportunity and a challenge, to demonstrate how sex is important to romantic relationships and how it can advance a couple’s story.
- What kind of research do you do?
Writing romance novels as a couple means the research is the best part! We are inspired by our romantic vacations, the people we meet and our own relationship. And writing these novels challenges us to make our own life together more romantic every day.
- How many books have you written, how many have been published?
There are four Romentics novels so far. Warner Books just published “Hot Sauce” in June. The three other Romentics novels—“Razor Burn,” “Spare Parts and “Nick of Time”—are available at www.Romentics.com, www.Amazon.com and gay and independent bookstores).
Thank you very much Scot P and Scott W, for taking the time with us and answering our questions. I really appreciate this interruption to both your busy schedules. Good Luck, and we will be looking forward to the next delightful creation from your talented imaginations! Keep the love coming.
Yours in good reading,
Rose!
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