Anniversary Shenanigans: John Inman Visits and Brings a Giveaway!!!!!

We in the clubhouse are honored to have the ever gracious, ever thoughtful and funny as all hell John Inman here to celebrate our anniversary with us. Plus he brought a prezzy for one lucky unicorn friend! One of my favorite things so far about anniversary shenanigans is reading the answers to our ridiculous questions and reading John's answers was no exception. He had me chuckling and swooning from one answer to the next. I just finished listening to the audiobook of Serenading Stanley, which I'd already read (and loved) and am now reading Work in Progress (which I am in the midst of loving) and believe me y'all are going to love it too!

Grab a beverage of your choice, get comfy and get to know John Inman

What are your favorite M/M themes?

----There are a lot of themes I enjoy. I love humor. I love the westerns. I love the spooky shit with vampires and shifters and werewolves (if they're hot and fuzzy) and I like thrillers and mysteries. Right now I'm reading Creature Feature 2 by Poppy Dennison and Rhys Ford and it's great. I can barely get my nose out of it long enough to get anything else done. But I suppose what I really like best, and it doesn't actually matter which theme I find it in, is a sweet, sexy, romantic love story with all the innocence and shyness at the beginning and the rip-your-clothes-off, sling them over the dining room table sex scenes that follow. I guess I'm an old softy. I really love the romance. The wooing and the winning. It touches me every time. And those are the stories I try to write.

What books do you consider Desert Island keepers?

----The books I truly love are the books I grew up with. The children's classics, like Swiss Family Robinson, Black Beauty, The Yearling, and all those. And also all the fabulous books written by my favorite authors that I discovered as an adult. Tolkien, Mark Twain, Stephen King, Martin Cruz Smith, Ed McBain, oh god, this list could go on and on. It's funny, but I really can't imagine living without ANY of those books or authors.

What's your favorite go-to beverage?

----All the health nuts out there are going to throw their hands in the air and scream in horror, but the drink I can't live without is Diet Rite soda. It has no sodium, no sugar, no calories, no caffeine, no aspartame, in fact apparently it has no ingredients whatsoever. Haha. But I love it. And if I can't get that, I'll have wine. I have simple tastes.

Do you have any secret talents? Inquiring minds want to know.

----I only have one secret talent that has been a lifesaver for me all my life. In a crowded room full of strangers I can actually blend into any nearby object (potted plant, wallpaper, curtain, dog) and make myself totally invisible. It's uncanny.

If you had to choose to be one magical beast, what would it be and why?

----If I could turn myself into any fantastical creature I wanted, I would choose to be an Ent. Just standing on a hillside for months on end, feeling the wind in my leaves, chattering with the squirrels and birds, enjoying the silence and the solitude of the forest. That would be great. Very relaxing. Very peaceful. I could really dig that.

Who's your favorite porn star?

----I don't really watch enough porn to get to know the stars by name. In fact I hardly watch it at all. I'm not young, you know. I'm older than god. I guess my favorite "porn star" would be my partner (and hubby) John. I love the guy to pieces. And sex at any age with the person you love is wonderful. Of course, if John wasn't around I'd seriously like to climb all over Armie Hammer. My god, that man is gorgeous. And when we do, I hope he'll wear his Lone Ranger mask. Wow. My pacemaker just beeped. (Kidding. I don't have a pacemaker.)

Do you have author envy? Whose words do you read and think, "GAH, I wash I'd written that!"?

----Do you know who I think is one of the most sensational writers ever? Martin Cruz Smith. His writing is just -- stunning. Of course at one time or another, I've been made pea green with envy by just about every writer on my favorites list because they are all so damn good. There are a dozen Dreamspinner Press writers I would love to be able to match in talent too. I'm not going to name any names because I would have to list every DSP writer there is just so I wouldn't hurt anyone's feelings. (I worry about stuff like that.) So, yeah, every time I open a book some phrase or other will jump out at me, and I'll say, "Crap! Why didn't I write that?"

Any new projects we're currently working on?

----As a matter of fact, yes. I've been working on a mystery romance off and on for a couple of years now and I finally finished it. My beta reader has it now. It's a little different from what I usually write because the main character is actually a minister in a small Midwestern town living in the closet, because in small Midwestern towns you pretty much have to live in the closet if you want to survive, whether you're a minister or not. There's a serial killer in the book too. So that's always fun. Anyway, I like the story. I'm really proud of it, so I hope it makes it into print. Wish me luck. Other than that, I'm working hard on edits for all the books about to come out through Dreamspinner Press. I think there are four in the queue right now slated to come out between now and next May. I feel so blessed to be a part of such a great company. I really do. Like my partner always tells me, I'm finally living my dream of being a writer. And I have Dreamspinner Press to thank for that. Plus the readers. After all, that's what it's REALLY about. The readers. God bless 'em.

Thank you SO much John, you are a great sport and we appreciate you coming around to join in the fun!

John's Website
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John has also brought a present for one lucky visitor, the ebook of your choice from his backlist. How awesome is that??

To enter to win an ebook copy of your choice, please leave a comment on this blog post and let us know (1) your name and a means of contacting you (e.g., email, Twitter handle, link to Goodreads account, etc.) , (2) which one of John's books you would like and (3) Let us know your secret talent in the comments, inquiring minds want to know!

The giveaway is open until 10:00PM (Pacific time) on 11/17/14. Shortly thereafter, we will contact a winner whom we will select using a highly scientific "names in a hat" method (or, you know, an internet randomizer). Please respond to the winning notification within 48 hours or we will choose another winner.