The story behind the story!

When I started doing book signings at local area stores, the first thing that I thought of was "This is a lot of fun!"  The novelty wore off rather quickly...not because I don't like meeting people.  I love talking to folks.  The challenge was trying to sell yourself in a world where people are more apt to tune you out rather than pay you any kind of mind.  Don't believe me?  Try getting someone's attention while standing beside an elaborate table lined with your own books while you are still yet an unknown.  If they are interested in buying a book, most times it won't be yours unless you're willing to sell yourself...and sell yourself hard. 

Still, I've managed to sell a few books once I was able to get someone's attention and tell them about the story and why I wrote it.

I wrote "Bruthas" because I wanted to tell a story that had good characters and a strong message of family.  The brothers are as different as night and day; each one being a possible genre until themselves.  You have Jai who is the oldest.  He's successful and all about his fiancee, child and family.  He has it together and for most women, he would be the man that they would like to marry.

Ryan is the middle brother who has struggled with his gay identity for most of his adult life.  I didn't want to create another DL character since I don't like the idea of deception.  For me, deception is deception no matter what the sexual orientation of the person involved.  Instead, I tell Ryan's story by creating him as a man who is looking for the great love of his life.  I decided that his character would be reflective of many gay men.  And what I believe is that at the end of the day, gay or straight, most men just want to be loved.

Nate is the bad boy.  He has risen to one of the highest ranking positions within the notorious drug lord Marco Carrera's empire and he seems to have everything that he ever wanted...at least from a materialistic perspective.

This story is about family...with all of it's triumphs and setbacks.  Brothers don't always get along.  There are conflicts that arise.  Issues of acceptance, forgiveness and family loyalty run rampant through the pages...but most people don't buy a book to receive a message; unless of course it's the Bible.  It is for this very reason that I had to write a murder mystery around these men.

Will this work?  The reviews that are coming in suggests that the people that read it got the concept and liked the fact that this is not the typical crime novel.

Hopefully it's not.  I can only hope that I can convey a positive message while creating realistic characters.  That means that everything will not always end on a happy note.  This isn't "Happy Days" or "Leave it to Beaver".  This is Bruthas.  Like it or leave it...the novel is still my baby and I stand behind it.

So, does the story sound like anything that you would like to read?