Dreamspinner Press discussion

Meet Rob Colton, author of the latest book "An American Lamb in Europe" this Saturday, February 22nd from 2-5pm EST/11am-2pm PST right here!

Just wondering about the book, will there be a second book to this series.?

I was going to ask the same thing :)

Hello everyone!

I am currently planning out a sequel, though I haven't started it yet. There are a couple of plot points in the first book that are left open, and I think they would be a good starting point. How and why did Rudy get to where he was... And what about Horst...

What other stories do you have in the works? I know TPC 2 was mentioned some time ago. Any idea when you'll be releasing it?

I'm currently working on finishing up "Enforcer" (Timber Pack Chronicles 2). My plan is to starting posting chapters every week, starting in March.

I also have an ebook version of the first Timber Pack Chronicles coming out around the same time.

Glad there's a 2nd in the pipeline! Rudy and Horst! Loved the book btw :)

Thanks! I'm glad to hear it.

Can't wait. I really enjoy everything you write. The well thought out plots are a rare find. Do you plan your stories all the way through before you begin writing them?

I don't always, but I usually do plan them out. I usually write an outline that I try to follow. For example, something like: "Chapter 1 - Jed goes to see Doc" etc.

For a series you have just started - say the American lamb story - do you have an idea as to how it will all end. Most series have a theme or a major storyline running them, yours being the vampire gang wars, but even though you might not know the detail of each book do you know how the series will end? I have always wondered about big series books - were there 20 plus and still going strong...hope I'm making sense lol.

So, a lot of your characters will move into to my head and live there for a few days after I have read one of your stories. I was watching classic Christmas specials with my nieces last December after rereading Big Ben and thought "I wonder if 8 year old Ben had a little boy crush on a Hermie the elf?"

Do your other fans ever ask you these things?

I understand what you mean. I don't think I could ever write a series that spanned 20 books. I think after a few, you'd run out of steam.

For "An American Lamb" I do know the specifics of how and why Rudy got to where he was, and how that ties in with the Vampire gangs.

For the 3rd Galactic Conspiracies book, I know the specifics of how and why the frozen embryo came to be, and how all of that fits in with the first and second books. The title of the third book is "The Degan Paradox" and I hope to have that done by the end of the year.

Yeah I can imagine 20 is hard going but new characters and themes can be added. Thanks for answering :)

LOL @ Hermie. Hm... I wonder if maybe Benji would have a crush on Yukon Cornelius.

In "Enforcer", I introduce a new pack led by an Alpha that's been assigned to mentor Colton. I am actually going to spin them off into a new series that I hope to have published.

Did you have writing classes before you started writing for Lit. or did you just read some of the stories that were there and thought you could do better (or at least as good)?

Out of all my stories, the character that fans have definitely gravitated to is without a doubt Colton Butler, from "Timber Pack Chronicles."

Consider yourself a new fan. American Lamb was my first story by your good self (found it by way of a blog site). I'm now checking out your book history :)

I would love to read Peri's story! I've been a fan since I discovered you on Lit. I know that you have your Wednesday briefs story going, and you mentioned TPC book 2. Do you prefer to work on several different stories at the same time, or complete one before starting another? :)

Rob wrote: "Out of all my stories, the character that fans have definitely gravitated to is without a doubt Colton Butler, from "Timber Pack Chronicles.""

Brandon Davis is still my favorite but I think it's because I can relate to the confusion and indecision that he deals with.

I had writing classes a long time ago in high school and college, but that's it. I'd been reading stories on Nifty and Literotica for a while, but I always had a hard time finding the kind of stories that I liked, with the kind of guys and pairings that I liked.

So I tried to write my own. I had a couple of starts and stops, but I finally posted a story to Literotica to see what kind of reaction I got. I think that was "Mac the Mechanic" or maybe "A Clean Start". I forget which came first.

Charlene wrote: "I would love to read Peri's story! I've been a fan since I discovered you on Lit. I know that you have your Wednesday briefs story going, and you mentioned TPC book 2. Do you prefer to work on seve..."

I usually end up writing a couple of stories at the same time. I think I have too much in my head to concentrate on one thing at I time. LOL

When one gets close, I usually try to focus on that. That's been "Enforcer" lately.

I love the character of Brandon Davis. He seems so real to me, even though he's in my head.

Sam wrote: "Consider yourself a new fan. American Lamb was my first story by your good self (found it by way of a blog site). I'm now checking out your book history :)"

Thanks! I'm glad you were able to find me.

"The Degan Paradox" centers around Peri. I know a lot of people want to know what's going on with him -- especially after his cameo appearance of sorts at the end of "The Cassini Mission".

A lot of your characters are younger. I know from your Lit. profile that you and I are near the same age. Do you have difficulties developing the younger characters as opposed to Noah in Wed. Briefs?

Sometimes I forget how old I really am. LOL

It seems like most stories in the M/M genre center around characters who are younger.

For younger characters, such as Parker from Timber Pack Chronicles, a lot of what he feels in based on my experiences when I was younger. For the most part, he seems like a "real" character.

With Noah, I specifically wanted to write a character who was closer to my age.

Rob wrote: "Sometimes I forget how old I really am. LOL

It seems like most stories in the M/M genre center around characters who are younger.

For younger characters, such as Parker from Timber Pack Chronicle..."
I think it's like looking at an unattractive guy in porn. None of us want to admit that we actually have that extra bit and the middle or (ahem) thinning hair.

One last question from me. Does that fact that so many of your readers are women affect your writing. Do you write with a specific audience in mind?

I don't write with a specific audience in mind. Honestly, I try to write the stories that I myself would want to read. That's the audience I have in mind.

I know a lot of my fans are women, but I do hear from a lot of male fans too. And I hope my books can resonate with everybody, male or female.

Thanks for the chat. Your stories always brighten my day. I look forward to new things in the future.

Jace wrote: "Thanks for the chat. Your stories always brighten my day. I look forward to new things in the future."

Thanks for stopping by!

Okay, I totally spaced the time difference! So... me being me, I have some questions prepared.

1. How long were you writing before you posted a story? Did you finish one, or more, first and then work up the nerve to share them publicly? Or did you start with your first chapter and just shove it out there?

2. What finally prompted you to approach ePublishing?

3. How has it been working with a publisher versus your self-published eBooks?

4. I saw a recent comment that your stories are 'mellowing' regarding the plots, especially for sex scenes, when it comes to your published work. Do you feel this is a 'watering down' effect for eBook audiences or that you've evolved and plot your sex more fitting to scenes within the more complex plots you've been crafting?

Hi Alicia! :-)

I'd been writing for a year or so before I posted. I had several stories completely written before I worked up the nerve to post them. I put the first one out there to see what kind of response I'd get. After that, it was like a snowball rolling down hill...

A couple of my bigger fans had been pushing for me to publish. But M. A. Church was the one who really got me to do it. She successfully transitioned from online fiction to publishing, and gave me A TON of great advice. She was the one who suggested I submit to Dreamspinner.

I like working with a publisher. They take care of all the details for you. It's nice having people to edit your work, to make sure your story is the best it can be. I also enjoy the cover art process.

The only downside I can think of is the waiting. Once you submit a story, it takes weeks before the publisher gets back to you on whether or not it's accepted. That wait kills me.

It's hard to balance sex vs plot. You can never make everyone happy, but I do try to find a good balance. Not too long ago, someone wrote to tell me that I should tone down all the sex in Timber Pack Chronicles.

While I try to be cognizant of the amount of sex, I don't feel that I've mellowed or watered anything down, though.

Case in point: "The Ranch Foreman" had an understall sex scene. I'm sure some people found it arousing, while others were grossed out by it. For a guy like Baxter, who's from a small town and deep in the closet, I think it was realistic.

A reviewer questioned whether or not that sex scene was even possible. It is.

I read that, but I'm not understanding what 'understall' means.

Rob wrote: "A reviewer questioned whether or not that sex scene was even possible. It is."

Is that personal experience talking?

Baxter knelt down on the floor between their bathroom stalls and Matty took care of him.

Ashley♥Alexis wrote: "Rob wrote: "A reviewer questioned whether or not that sex scene was even possible. It is."

Is that personal experience talking?"

Let's say we did a search on XTube for "understall".

Yeah. That's me doing the small search.

Hey Rob, congrats on the newest book. Bet it never gets old seeing a new book out. :) Wish I could stay longer, but I promised 'lil q we'd go to the playground since it's so nice and she's just about ready. Congrats again.

-AQG

Ahhh! Hmm... I guess it would depend on the bathroom, height, flexibility... but yeah, no. I'm such a germaphobe I don't even like touching the walls of a stall, much less the floor! LOL I would definitely say it's physically possible, if not necessarily sanitary or personally palatable.

Andrew wrote: "Hey Rob, congrats on the newest book. Bet it never gets old seeing a new book out. :) Wish I could stay longer, but I promised 'lil q we'd go to the playground since it's so nice and she's just ab..."

Thanks for popping in Andy!

So the GRL 2014 retreat registration opened today.... I'm still trying to decide if I want to go or not. I'd want to go as a supporting author this year if I went.