Today I am really excited to welcome author Josephine Myles to Joyfully Jay to talk with us about her new release, Tailor Made.  Jo has also brought a copy of her book to give away to one lucky commenter!  

Jo, welcome, and thanks for joining us! 
Thanks Jay! It’s great to be here. I’m a fan of your blog and I’m enjoying watching it grow 🙂

I reviewed the book on the blog yesterday, but can you give everyone a quick recap of the story from your perspective?
Tailor Made is about two young men coming to terms with the idea that their fantasies might not be all they’re cracked up to be, and that real love can ambush you when you least expect it. I had a huge amount of fun writing it as it’s low on the angst, high on the comedy, and features two lovable—if confused—heroes.

OK, so my regular readers know I am crazy for a virgin hero (and even better when he is paired with a good party boy slut). What is your take on the virgin hero in romance novels?
I think they’re a fabulous way to subvert romance clichés, where traditionally it was the female character who was always the virgin. In our culture virginity is seen as undesirable in a man—it’s treated with suspicion and derision, so you can expect the character to feel defensive about their choice.

From a writer’s point of view, there are so many opportunities to show sexual “firsts” with a virgin character, which gives you a huge amount of scope in erotic scenes. I loved that heady mixture of fear, fascination and horniness that Andrew grapples with during his encounters with Felix.

I really thought it was interesting how Andrew initially sees his relationship with Felix as sort of a dry run for the real thing for a future Mr. Right. Especially how it parallels the suit he is making for Felix as a dry run of his final project. Can you talk a little more about this? 

I think this is one of those occasions when my subconscious was ahead of me, as I hadn’t explicitly made that connection in my brain until I’d finished writing. Certainly, seeing things with Felix as a trial run is the way Andrew justifies breaking his self-imposed rules. He can’t accept that doing something because it feels good is enough of a reason, but if he hooks it in with his fantasy it works—in his head at least.

Similarly, using the dry run suit he’d have made anyway as the canvas suit Felix requests allows Andrew to go along with Felix’s prank, even though his better judgement is against it. After all, what does it matter if the suit gets ruined when it’s only a practice garment? However, just like the dry run suit turns out to be rather finer than he’d originally planned, so too does the situation with Felix.

This book is set in Bath, a part of England that has been the setting for several of your stories. What draws you to this area for your books?
Laziness! I lived in Bath for a decade, so I know the city well enough already, and if I do need to do extra location research it’s only a half hour’s drive away.

More than that, though, it’s a city I love for all its contrasts. There are the beautiful old buildings that tourists come to see, and a thriving retail and entertainment sector to help part them with their money. However, when you’ve lived in the city for a while you see some very different aspects to it. There are still areas of poverty and social deprivation, but there’s also a strong bohemian element. This is particularly obvious in areas like Walcot, where Felix lives, or along the canal where I set Barging In. It’s one of those places that’s big enough to have plenty going on, but small enough to feel like a village when you’re a local.

Finally, Bath is somewhere that readers around the globe should recognize. I like being able to tap into that, but hopefully show them a side of the city they won’t have encountered before.

Do you have any books that you are working on now that you would like to tell us about? 
I’m currently writing a bawdy m/m/m romance set in Bath (again!), in a crumbling old building subdivided into flats. It’s at that very exciting early stage when anything is possible…

I’m also writing a serial novella on my blog again. This time it’s an m/m space opera set on a distant mining planet. It’s called Storm and Lightning and features a dashing space bandit, a snarky rentboy, and a whole lot of crazy adventures.

If readers want to learn more about you or your books, where can they find you?
My blog and website can be found at josephinemyles.com. I have a fair few free reads there, and I blog regularly. Stop by on Wednesdays for a regular blog post, Fridays for Storm and Lightning, and Sundays for vintage gay porn!

I love to hear from readers, so please do leave a comment or email me at josephine_myles@yahoo.co.uk.

Thank you again so much for joining us today and sharing the book with my readers!

And now we are very lucky because Jo has brought a copy of Tailor Made with her as a giveaway for one lucky commenter!  The contest will stay open until Friday, January 27th at 11:59 pm EST.  

  • By entering the contest, you’re confirming that you are at least 18 years old.
  • Winners will be selected by random number.
  • If you win, you must respond to my email within 48 hours or another winner will be chosen. Please make sure that your spam filter allows email from Joyfully Jay and leave your email address if it is not in your profile.

 

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