For longer than I care to admit, I haven’t had a new project. Producing unique and interesting posts for blog tours for three releases this year kept me busy. As I was writing posts for the Whippersnapper blog tour, I realized how hard my first three novels had been to write.

Setting all three in a real place in a different time required lots of research. Whippersnapper takes place in a fictional Kentucky town. I still had to do a little research (about programmable sewing machines, for example), but getting the details right was a hell of a lot easier with made up places.

Writing a sequel to Whippersnapper would be fun. I love little Fallisville and the people who live there. In fact, I love them so much, I could write several more stories about the people in my fictional town. And eventually, perhaps I will — but not now.

Whippersnapper was published by Dreamspinner Press (DsP) as a romance. I tried my best to write the kind of story m-m romance readers wan to read. DsP even gave me a special editor and extra time to beef up the romantic elements of the story. Whether reviewers loved or hated Whippersnapper, all agreed: this is not a romance.

My special editor is not to blame. She was fantastic. Responding to her thoughtful questions and suggestions made for a much better story. Romance was never the center of the story, so anyone expecting that was disappointed.

In April, DSP Publications released No Good Deed. The second edition (originally After Christmas Eve) sports a new blurb and cover targeted to mystery readers. None of the reviews, good or bad, say “this is not a romance.”

I don’t write romance — even when I try. Consequently DSP Publications is a much better fit for me than its parent, Dreamspinner Press. DSP Publications publishes genre fiction, other than romance, featuring gay main characters, and that’s what I write.

Next time, what all this means for my next project.