In celebration of their new release, Refraction, a book in the Collaborations series, the amazing authors, Jodi Payne and BA Tortuga stopped by for a little banter about Tucker and Calvin and the inspiration for their story. So excited to have them! I’m reading this now, and they aren’t kidding…this one starts with the reader needing a serious fan!
Texas artist Tucker Williams arrives in New York City for a gallery showing of his work and finds the city blanketed in snow. He meets free-spirited underwear model Calvin McIntire on the steps of the Midtown library and is captivated by a wild beauty that manages to compete with the demons that occupy his soul and fuel his work with their lust for blood and erotic imagery.
Unable to deny a new inspiration, Tucker sublets a studio and finds the city’s energy almost as addictive as Calvin.
Tucker is obsessive, barely holding on to sanity as his art consumes him, and Calvin is dealing with demons of his own, trying desperately to protect his soul in a business where only his appearance has value. They each prove to be the perfect remedy for the other’s personal brand of crazy until, in the midst of stress and exhaustion, they discover that a promise Calvin needs is the one thing Tucker can’t give him, and their heaven turns to purgatory.
Can both men find a path toward wholeness in Tucker’s beautiful but chaotic Texas home? In order for them—and their passionate relationship—to thrive, they’ll need to adapt, share their psychoses, and find a true balance between New York City and rural Texas.
Title: Refraction
Series: Collaborations
Authors: Jodi Payne and BA Tortuga
Release Date: June 12, 2018
Category: Contemporary
Pages: 250
Amazon
Dreamspinner Press
Jodi: Hey there! I’m Jodi Payne. I’m a proud Jersey Girl, and I’m here with BA Tortuga, the self-proclaimed resident redneck, to talk about our new release, Refraction!
BA: The question is how were Tucker and Calvin born? The answer is, well, we were hard at work trying to come up with a concept and Jodi said, “Let’s just work on something to keep the words going.”
HA!
Ha, I say.
I write a sentence about a Texan sitting on the steps of the NYC main library and BOOM.
Just work on something to keep the words going. No big deal. Nothing serious.
HA.
Jodi: Right. These two were not supposed to be a book, remember? And then Calvin dragged that poor frozen Texan out of the snow and into a coffee shop, and Tucker did that thing with a spoon and turned Calvin on, and BOOM. Again.
BA: Yeah…these boys are very BOOM, with a little ARGH and a touch of UHN.
Jodi: No slow burn here for sure, these guys hit it off fast and work backward to the romance. Because Tucker is only in town for the weekend, and Calvin is busy, and they were not supposed to be a Thing.
BA: Yeah, well… You know, these assholes never do what they’re supposed to, do they? (FYI, the answer is no.)
Jodi: But I think I was seduced by the idea of making everything that’s different about them be an asset, not a liability. That one really could be a light to the other one’s dark. That what seems impossibly complicated to one man can be clear as day to the other.
BA: While I was all caught up by the sparkly. (I know, y’all are not surprised. Rainbow glitter is the easiest way to catch my attention.)
Jodi: (If that doesn’t work, try shouting “squirrel!” *snort*) Okay, so we talked about how we started writing them, so what kept us writing? Tucker is fascinating to me. His creative energy is so raw and the obsessive way he works is almost scary. And so many everyday things, socially and sexually, were foreign to him. All that discovery was fun to write. What was it about Calvin for you?
BA: Calvin? He’s a good man trying to pretend he’s not. I love that. I love his heart. Calvin would argue with me, of course, but he’s allowed to.
Jodi: So that’s where Tucker and Calvin came from. I think they’re some of the best characters I’ve ever not intended to write. *grin*
BA: In other words, I went fishing and caught myself a co-writer. I’m a lucky girl.
Jodi Payne takes herself way too seriously and has been known to randomly break out in song. Her men are imperfect but genuine, stubborn but likable, often kinky, and frequently their own worst enemies. They are characters you can’t help but fall in love with while they stumble along the path to their happily ever after. For those looking to get on her good side, Jodi’s addictions include nonfat lattes, Malbec and tequila any way you pour it.
Twitter https://twitter.com/JodiPayne
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FB Author Group https://www.facebook.com/groups/jodisgents/
Goodreads https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/267617.Jodi_Payne
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BA Tortuga: Texan to the bone and an unrepentant Daddy’s Girl, BA Tortuga spends her days with her basset hounds and her beloved wife, texting her sisters, and eating Mexican food. When she’s not doing that, she’s writing. She spends her days off watching rodeo, knitting and surfing Pinterest in the name of research. BA’s personal saviors include her wife, Julia Talbot, her best friend, Sean Michael, and coffee. Lots of coffee. Really good coffee.
Having written everything from fist-fighting rednecks to hard-core cowboys to werewolves, BA does her damnedest to tell the stories of her heart, which was raised in Northeast Texas, but has heard the call of the high desert and lives in the Sandias. With books ranging from hard-hitting GLBT romance, to fiery menages, to the most traditional of love stories, BA refuses to be pigeon-holed by anyone but the voices in her head.
Twitter https://twitter.com/batortuga
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/batortuga
Pinterest https://www.pinterest.com/batortuga/
Goodreads https://www.goodreads.com/batortuga
Instagram https://instagram.com/batortuga/
