T.A. Riddle's Blog
June 22, 2026
Why I Wrote Dancing Like Nobody’s Watching - Contra Dance
First, let me say, this has been decades in the making... but...
I never set out to write a love story. At least, not one like this.
What began as a collection of journal entries and late-night thoughts slowly unraveled into something more honest, more urgent, and far more intimate than I ever anticipated. Dancing Like Nobody’s Watching: Contra Dance is a novel born out of questions I kept asking myself — about love, belonging, identity, and what it means to truly be seen.
At its heart, this book is about Jayson Easley — a young, Black gay man navigating life, love, and self-worth in Chicago. He’s complex, tender, ambitious, guarded, and vulnerable in all the ways that make a person real. I wanted to write someone like Jayson because I hadn’t seen enough characters like him at the center of their own narratives — not as sidekicks, not as cautionary tales, but as fully human protagonists with dreams, flaws, and the right to messy, beautiful love.
Why this story, now?
Because I believe that queer Black men deserve stories that reflect the joy and heartbreak of being alive — not just the trauma. Because intimacy between men deserves more than subtext. And because sometimes the greatest act of rebellion is choosing to love anyway.
Set against the backdrop of dance floors, apartment corners, and the quiet spaces where conversations change everything, Contra Dance explores how we heal from the ones who left, and what happens when the past and present collide.
If you’ve ever:
Held onto someone longer than you should’ve,
Been afraid to let someone fully in,
Or learned to love yourself in pieces first,
This book is for you.
As I prepare to self-publish this story, I’m reminded that this journey isn’t just about getting a book into the world. It’s about connection. It’s about making space — for characters like Jayson, for stories like mine, and for readers like you.
Thank you for being here. I hope you’ll stick around — and maybe even dance a little with me along the way.
With gratitude,
T.A. Riddle
I never set out to write a love story. At least, not one like this.
What began as a collection of journal entries and late-night thoughts slowly unraveled into something more honest, more urgent, and far more intimate than I ever anticipated. Dancing Like Nobody’s Watching: Contra Dance is a novel born out of questions I kept asking myself — about love, belonging, identity, and what it means to truly be seen.
At its heart, this book is about Jayson Easley — a young, Black gay man navigating life, love, and self-worth in Chicago. He’s complex, tender, ambitious, guarded, and vulnerable in all the ways that make a person real. I wanted to write someone like Jayson because I hadn’t seen enough characters like him at the center of their own narratives — not as sidekicks, not as cautionary tales, but as fully human protagonists with dreams, flaws, and the right to messy, beautiful love.
Why this story, now?
Because I believe that queer Black men deserve stories that reflect the joy and heartbreak of being alive — not just the trauma. Because intimacy between men deserves more than subtext. And because sometimes the greatest act of rebellion is choosing to love anyway.
Set against the backdrop of dance floors, apartment corners, and the quiet spaces where conversations change everything, Contra Dance explores how we heal from the ones who left, and what happens when the past and present collide.
If you’ve ever:
Held onto someone longer than you should’ve,
Been afraid to let someone fully in,
Or learned to love yourself in pieces first,
This book is for you.
As I prepare to self-publish this story, I’m reminded that this journey isn’t just about getting a book into the world. It’s about connection. It’s about making space — for characters like Jayson, for stories like mine, and for readers like you.
Thank you for being here. I hope you’ll stick around — and maybe even dance a little with me along the way.
With gratitude,
T.A. Riddle
