We’re so pleased to have authors K.M. Neuhold and Nora Phoenix joining us today to celebrate the release of their new collaboration, Rebel, Book one of the Ballsy Boys series. They’ve each answered a few questions for their tour stop here at TNA, so read on and enjoy!
K.M.’s Q&A
Lisa: If you could spend some real-life time with one of the characters in the book, who would you choose and why?
KM: Just one? Are you kidding? They’re gay pornstars, I want to become BFFs with every single one of them and never let them out of my sight lol. Honestly, if I had to pick JUST ONE, I think it would have to be Rebel, he’s such a sweet, awesome guy I really fell in love with him.
Lisa: Let’s take off your author cap and put on your reader cap for a moment: what do you look for in a book, what sort of protagonists do you love, and do you have a favorite genre/sub-genre?
KM: I really love when books surprise me. I love uniquely flawed characters, like characters with anxiety, depression, OCD, etc. and I love rooting for them to find someone who will love and accept them. My favorite genre is M/M hands down, as far as sub-genre, I mainly read contemporary, but I will read MPreg from time to time. And my favorite tropes are Friends to lovers, and any type of first time gay.
Lisa: Have you ever written a line, paragraph, or passage, and thought, “Darn, that’s pretty amazing, even if I do say so myself”? What was it?
KM: Hell yeah. I always hope to have at least one every book. For Rebel it was this line (Warning it’s NSFW!):
“Everything about sucking Rebel’s cock is better than I ever imagined. I want to spend the rest of my life with it rammed down my throat. I don’t need to eat or drink or fucking breathe—I just need to choke on Rebel’s cock.”
Lisa: Let’s talk tropes: do you have a few favorites that you enjoy both writing and reading? If so, what are they and what makes them your faves?
KM: My absolute favorite trope is friends to lovers, and if it’s someone’s first time with another man than all the better. That goes for both reading and writing. I think what I love so much about friends to lovers is you get such a deep affection and backstory to the relationship long before the first kiss. It makes for such amazing love stories. And I love when it’s a character’s first time with another man because I love the sweet moments of discovery and the hot moments they lead to.
Lisa: If you could choose one of your books to be adapted for the silver screen, which would you choose? Why do you think it would translate well to film?
KM: Rescue Me (Heathens Ink, 1). I think the story line for the main character struggling with PTSD after living through a hate crime is something that would be so powerful on the big screen.
Lisa: If you were stranded on a desert island, what are three things you’d absolutely have to have?
KM: Books, a pillow, and a well-stocked refrigerator
Lisa: If you had to choose between becoming a superhero or supervillain, which would you choose and why?
KM: Villain for sure. I always feel like the villians are way more interesting.
Lisa: If you could be any animal in the world, what would you choose? Why?
KM: A dog, dogs are the best. Specifically I’d want to be my own dog because she’s spoiled as hell.
Lisa: If you could travel back in time, with all your years of experience and wisdom intact, what advice would you give to your teenage self?
KM: Don’t waste money on college and keep writing
Lisa: If you were to sit down and write your autobiography today, what would the title be?
KM: I Shouldn’t Have Eaten That, and the sequel would be My Stomach Hurts
Lisa: Star Trek, Star Wars, both or neither? Explain.
KM: Star Wars. It’s what I grew up with, so I’m biased lol.
Nora’s Q&A
Lisa: What’s your favorite scene in Rebel, and what makes it a fave?
Nora: This is a tough question, because it’s really hard to choose, but I’m kinda partial to a scene where Rebel and Troy have some pretty epic wall-sex. I think it’s because these are two guys who are super open about sex and enjoy it both, and this scene is both super hot and fun at the same time. They want it, they go for it, and they love the hell out of it. At the same time, you already see the first slivers of more than mere physical attraction.
Lisa: If you could spend some real-life time with one of the characters in the book, who would you choose and why?
Nora: What I love about our Ballsy Boys is that the story is about more than just Rebel and Troy. Rebel is part of this group of amazing men whom we all meet in this book, and it’s beautiful to see the friendships between them. One of the new stars Rebel is working with, is a cute little twink called Pixie. He’s already the favorite of our ARC readers, and K.M. and I are both really excited to write his story—though his book won’t be the next one. He’s so sweet and adorable that I would love to spend some time with him and get to know him better!
Lisa: Let’s take off your author cap and put on your reader cap for a moment: what do you look for in a book, what sort of protagonists do you love, and do you have a favorite genre/sub-genre?
Nora: To me, the most important aspect is that a storyline is believable within the world the author has created. Whatever characters do has to fit the world they live in, but more importantly, their personality as the authors showed it to us. And authors need to get facts right. It’s not always fun to do research on details you include in a story, but it’s important to get details right.
Another aspect is that I really prefer active main characters, men who actively take control of their life, rather than more passive let’s-wait-and-see types. And I like my men a tad broken, strange as that may sound. I don’t need a lot of angst, but I love reading about the issues characters are dealing with or struggling with. It makes it real, you know, because everyone has their baggage and issues from the past—or even the present.
That being said, I read pretty much everything within the MM genre, as long as it has a happy end. I usually stay away from books that are too angsty, because I don’t like to be emotionally wrung out after finishing a book, but other than that, I love exploring every subgenre there is. But the happy end is a hard requirement!
Lisa: Have you ever written a line, paragraph, or passage, and thought, “Darn, that’s pretty amazing, even if I do say so myself”? What was it?
Nora: One of the challenges in writing a book is to get completely inside the head of your character. It took K.M. and me some time to understand what made Rebel and Troy tick, what their pain was, their desires, and dreams. Once we did, I wrote this about Rebel and it captured him perfectly:
“I’m the middle guy, the compromise. Everyone’s friend, but no one’s everything. Good enough to fuck, but not enough to love.”
Once I wrote that, we understood who Rebel was. That made me proud.
Lisa: Let’s talk tropes: do you have a few favorites that you enjoy both writing and reading? If so, what are they and what makes them your faves?
Nora: I’m a sucker for hurt/comfort stories. I love them! I think it’s because when someone is hurt, the other person is put to the test. When you can take care of someone who is hurt and do so at the cost of your own comfort, or time, or energy, you show your true colors. I love showing readers that someone who clearly has faults and weaknesses also has tenderness and patience. It makes my insides go all weak…
Lisa: What’s the best piece of writing/author advice you’ve received that you’d pass on to someone else just getting started in the business?
Nora: Work on improving your craft first. When I started writing fiction for real (I’ve been writing since I was a teen, but a few years back I got serious about it), an author who critiqued a short I wrote told me that. She urged me to focus on becoming a better writer first, then worry about the rest. It’s tempting when self-publishing is so easy to focus on that, and on marketing. But a good book has to come first. So I spent a lot of time working on writing techniques before I considered publishing.
Lisa: If you were stranded on a desert island, what are three things you’d absolutely have to have?
Nora: Book, books, and more books. Seriously, I could not survive without books. Sure, something to eat and drink would be nice, as well as a safe shelter, but other than that? I don’t need a whole lot other than something good to read. If I had enough books, I’d be perfectly happy for a looooong time!
About the Book
“I don’t do relationships, I break them.” ~ Troy
If there’s one thing life has taught me it’s that everyone eventually leaves. But that’s okay because I have a strategy: no friends, no boyfriends, limit repeat hook-ups, no sleep overs, and above all leave them before they leave me. I’ve put my break-up skills to work doing others’ dirty work for them.
The last thing I expected when I agreed to do an embarrassing breakup song and dance was to end up on the doorstep of the very recognizable—and stupidly sexy—Rebel. When you meet a man like Rebel you’d be insane not to make a move. And just because he has me tossing out every single one of my rules doesn’t mean I’m in trouble, right?
“I’m everyone’s friend, but no one’s everything.” ~ Rebel
I love working for Ballsy Boys, but when you make the kind of videos I do relationships are pretty damn impossible. Besides, guys find me sexy and want to either be with me or be me, but no one has ever cared enough to see the real me.
Until I meet Troy. He has no problem whatsoever with my job, but he’s determined to keep me at a distance. For the first time, a hook-up alone is not enough. I want more with him. Hell, I want everything. But he resists at every step until I’m about ready to give up. What do I need to do to show him that this is real and worth fighting for?
***Rebel is the first book in the Ballsy Boys Series and is a super sexy MM romance with plenty of good times. While this book and this series do contain some instances of sex outside of the main relationships, they DO NOT contain cheating.
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Tour Excerpt
“You really don’t have to come up. I have a shitty little apartment. It’s nothing like your place,” I tell Rebel. “Plus, I’m obviously not up for fooling around.”
“I don’t give a shit.”
I scoff and shake my head but don’t argue further. If we keep hanging out without fucking around, what does that make us? Friends? Something else?
In my apartment, I cringe inwardly, imagining what Rebel must be thinking as he steps into the one room that holds my whole life. Usually when I have a guy in here, we’re too busy getting naked for me to worry what they think of my living space. And, beyond that, I can’t imagine I’d care what any of those randoms think anyway.
“If you don’t have tea, how about I make you some soup or something?”
“Why are you doing this?” I eye him skeptically.
“What? Do you want something more substantial? I can make a sandwich.”
“No, I mean why are you being so nice?”
Rebel’s eyebrows furrow, and the corners of his lips tug down in a frown. There’s a sharp sadness in his striking blue eyes that makes me want to shove him away or crawl into bed and hide for a week, anything to get away from the pity.
“We’re friends, right?” Rebel asks.
“You’ve had your dick in both my mouth and my ass.”
“So…best friends?”
I want to laugh, but the pain meds are starting to wear off, and my nose is starting to throb. “I’m not usually friends with guys I fuck around with,” I explain for what I feel like is the hundredth time since meeting Rebel.
“Then who are you usually friends with?”
My mouth opens and closes like a dumbass fish. I’m not sure if he was trying to throw shade, but damn if he didn’t get me. “I don’t have friends,” I finally admit with a little bite in my tone. I don’t want friends, and I don’t need friends.
“We’re friends; deal with it. Now, soup?” He skirts around me into my kitchen, leaving me at a loss for words. “Why don’t you lay down on the couch and find something for us to watch? I’ll bring you some food, and we’ll get a dose of the painkillers the ER prescribed into you, and you can sleep through the worst of the pain.”
I almost ask again why he’s doing this, but decide that whatever his motivation, it feels nice to be taken care of for a change. I settle onto the couch and put on the second season of Stranger Things.
It’s not long before Rebel brings me a bowl of soup, a second dose of the painkillers, and a glass of water.
“Thank you.”
About the Authors
When she was a little tot, Nora’s mom got a library subscription for her. That, as they say, was that, and a lifelong love for books was born. Nora never stopped reading and doesn’t exaggerate when she says she devours books, rather than plain reads them. She started writing stories as soon as she could hold a pen, and wrote her first full book as a teen (on a typewriter!). It took her waaaay too long to follow her dream to become a romance author.
Nora writes M/M romance, because hello, sexy boys, and likes her men flawed, strong, and a tad broken. She appreciates a little kink, but insists on a happy ever after.
Social Media: Facebook Author Page || Facebook Group Nora’s Nook || Newsletter || Twitter || Website
K.M. Neuhold is an author of m/m and new adult romance. I have a strong passion for writing characters with a lot of heart and soul, and a bit of humor as well.
Social Media: Facebook || Neuhold’s Nerds (fan group) || Twitter || Website || Newsletter