Called by some the master of the romantic thriller and the author of over a dozen books Romeo Preminger stopped by to share his thoughts and news about upcoming projects.
Q What made you decide to take a chance at publishing your writing? What is the most important thing you have learned in the years since?
I was a late bloomer in terms of starting a career as a published author. Creative writing was one of my passions for almost as far back as I can remember, but I had other passions as well. I guess you might call them safer passions in terms of making it as a self-sustaining adult. So I followed those after college and worked at a nonprofit that advocates for and supports LGBTQ+ youth, forgetting about my writing for a while. I was in my thirties when I returned to it and just a few years short of forty when I got my first short story published at a queer e-zine. That built my confidence, I got a few more short stories published on bigger platforms, and I started landing contracts for young adult fantasy novels at LGBTQ+ small presses. I should say, that was all under a different author name. I started self-publishing gay romantic novels under the pen name Romeo Preminger a few years later.
I’ve learned so many things about writing and publishing over the years! First and foremost, I’m continuously learning how to hone my writing craft. I read a ton, take feedback from my editor and writer friends, and jump on opportunities to participate in conferences and webinars. The next big thing I learned is you don’t have to go the traditional route of finding an agent, hoping they’ll land your book with a publisher, and worrying about how well they’ll sell your book. Not to say that self-publishing is easy, or that it comes with all the same opportunities as traditional publishing. It’s different. But I learned that it’s a better fit for me in terms of the rewards that I get out of it.
Q What about combining thrills with romance appeals to you as a writer?
I’ll confess, when I first decided to try out self-publishing gay romance novels, I thought it would be a nice break from the research-heavy fantasy stories I had been writing for about a decade. I was thinking beach-reads, which I’ve always enjoyed, and I started working on a story that I thought would be sexy escapist fun, pretty light and straight-forward. But the story veered into more serious themes, and I got to a point where I realized I just couldn’t do the HEA formula. My writerly soul wanted drama. It wanted bad behavior and higher stakes and all the craziness that happens when two people fall in love but isn’t often represented in mainstream romance. Most of my writing is an exaggerated form of those themes, but I like to think that at the center, the emotions are honest and real. It turned into a different kind of escapism, I’d say, and whether I’m writing romance, fantasy, or historical fiction, I’m always drawn to imagining worlds that are different from the everyday experience, yet grounded in human psychology, however extreme.
Q What is your typical writing routine?
I still have a pretty busy day job, so most of my writing gets done at night. I don’t know if I’d recommend my process, but it’s usually two steps back, three steps forward. I reread the last scene or two I wrote, get grumpy about them, try to make it better, and an hour or so later, I’ll write the next few scenes or chapters. It’s a long process, but I’m pretty disciplined. I usually write six or even seven nights a week. When I have a staycation, I’ll write during the day, and that’s allowed me to complete one or two manuscripts a year.
Q What authors shaped your development as a writer?
V.C. Andrews and Anne Rice definitely influenced the twisty-turniness of my writing, as well as my curiosity about exploring taboo or forbidden relationships. I also love the work of Peter Cameron and Patrick Ness who write about contemporary gay life, and Michael Nava and R.D. Zimmerman who write great mystery/thrillers.
Q What is your next project going to be?
Gah. I’m spinning several plates now, but in the near future, I have another Guilty Pleasures title drafted that’s focused on a relationship between a college professor and one of his students. That will be coming out in 2025. I also have a follow-up to the Arizona series in the works. I promised readers that I’d pick up the story from Arizona’s son Chase’s point-of-view, but that’s a longer term project.
Q if people want more information about you or your projects where should they go?
My website is the best place: romeopreminger.com. I also love interacting with people on X: https://x.com/PremingerRomeo.
Final four questions –we ask everybody.
Q) When the zombies take over the world where will you be?
Probably inside a zombie’s stomach. I’m not much of a survivalist.
Q ) What is your favorite Fandom
This will probably come as a surprise based on all of the above, but my husband and I became fascinated by Love Island during the pandemic and we still binge watch every new season.
Q) What piece of art, be it in the form of music, a book, a film or picture, do you think people must experience before they die?
Wow. Well if I have to pick just one, I’ll go with something political that greatly influenced my worldview, and that’s James Baldwin’s The Fire Next Time.
Q) Give one fact that most people would not believe about you?
Despite my pen name, in real life, I’m pretty much an open book, so it’s hard to say what would be shocking about me beneath the surface! In high school and college, I was a big Grateful Dead fan–long hair, tye-dyes, love beads, the whole nine yards. Not sure if that would come as a big surprise, but my personal style has certainly changed since then. 🙂
Paper Phoenix ink 