Today I'm interviewing Deek Rhew, author of
Birth of an American Gigolo
Thanks for hosting me today, Emma! I'm really excited to be here today. :-)
Let the interview begin!
Tell me three interesting facts about yourself!
* My wife,
Erin Rhew, and I met on Twitter! She is a grammar nerd, and my stories are nothing more than long rambling emails in desperate need of her mad ninja abilities. We were part of the same critique group, so I sent her "Birth." She worked it over with her wha-cha-cha comma-placing, passive voice crushing skillz. We started talking in the comments section of that manuscript and have never stopped. Even if my writing career never goes anywhere, I'm a smashing success because it led me to her.
* I'm colorblind. In ordinary day-to-day life, it doesn't make much difference, but it did have a profound effect on my career choice. In high school, I'd begun the process to enroll in ROTC and become a pilot for the Air Force, following in the footsteps of my father, who is a veteran. But, it turns out, the military does not accept the colorblind to fly their $15,000,000 fighter jets, so I changed course and went to school instead.
* I had a rock band in high school and college! After choosing to not join the military, I planned to tour the world sharing music with the masses! But, well, things like that don't usually work out. So, I became a geek to, ya know, eat. #RockNRoll
Summarize your book in one line.
A party girl turned domestic diva drops her wrath upon her prissy, cheating husband and begins a unique business venture that will elevate her to queen of
Alabaster Cove.
Tell me something cool/crazy/quirky about the book – it can be anything!
Angel, a drifting twenty-something with plans to have plans, works at a grocery store after she drops out of college. She's feisty and smart, but completely directionless, and is dating Dios, the gigolo. One morning, after Dios dropped a life-changing bomb on Angel, she gets a call from her friend Monica, who needs help. So Angel beats feet, off to save her friend.
We see the other side of this conversation in my novel,
122 Rules, from Monica's perspective. Angel and Monica are a bit like Thelma and Louise in
122 and truck all over the country being chased by a mad man, the FBI, and other unsavories. I love story-overlap. Angel appears in
122's sequel too, so be on the lookout for more and more Angel!
Why did you decide to write this particular book?
I didn't actually decide to write it per se; I more or less stumbled upon it. This books is actually a section I pulled out of
122 Rules that didn't fit the overall storyline. I remember writing this part thinking
this doesn't help the story, but I understood that Lindsey, Dios, Angel, Cindie, and Stewart had their story that needed to be told. I plowed on and, after I finished it, pulled it out and tucked it away for future release. That was about six years ago, and now they're getting their moment in the spotlight!
Best part of the writing process?
I LOVE being surprised by the story. I don't plan or plot, and usually I feel like I'm just a transcriptionist. Like I'm reporting the story as it unfolds with absolutely no idea what will happen.
Share one thing you learned writing this book.
That I still have a ton of bad writing habits! After going through the editing wringer of
122, I thought I knew my weaknesses and what I needed to work on, so I looked through "Birth" for those things. Yeah, still missed a lot of 'em. Sigh. Maybe the next book?
Tell me about one strange experience you’ve had. Again, it can be anything!
When I was three or four, my family and I lived in a mobile home in Great Falls, Montana. In the winter, the winds can really kick up the dickens. I was pestering my mom to go outside and play. I vaguely recall her telling me that the weather was too bad, but being omnipotent--like most kids--I opened the front door and then the screen and was flung across the yard. To this day, I remember sailing over the lawn thinking,
Well that was stupid.
Name one fictional place you’d love to visit.
Alabaster Cove! This is the SoCal surfing town where I base my books!
Name one real place you’d love to visit.
Italy! I've always dreamed of living there. Erin and I are planning to become professional vagabonds in a few years, and this is one of the places we're going to stay.
Share one sentence/mini-excerpt from the book!
Breaking about every road law created since 1945, Lindsey flew back to town. She didn’t slow as she crossed the bridge and directed the beast to Stewart’s office. Cindie’s little Vespa scooter sat parked on the sidewalk in front of the building. When Lindsey’s large vehicle bumped up onto the curb with
nary a complaint, she floored the accelerator and aimed down the walkway. With a satisfying crunch, the SUV hit the Vespa, smashing it under large, all-terrain tires.
Lindsey slammed on the brakes, dropped the hulking beast into reverse, and drove over the efficient little mode of transportation again. She smiled as one little scooter wheel rolled pathetically out into the street, pirouetted a couple of times, and then came to rest on its side.
She put the SUV into drive and drove the beast home.
Birth of an American Gigolo, the deets from Deek!
Okay, so what the heck is "Birth of an American Gigolo" about?
Here's the blurb from the back of the book:
An old party girl shoehorned into domestic divaship, infuriated by her husband's cheating and his holier-than-thou, tree-hugging, no-tits and no-hips girlfriend, inflicts her wrath by training a local boy in the fine art of seduction. She and her new boy toy turned love god start a gigolo business as a distraction for the neglected and mistreated housewives of Alabaster Cove.
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| Lindsey, the queen of Alabaster Cove |
In a nutshell, it's about screwing up. Lindsey compromised her principles and force herself into being something she's not. In college, she had a scare and crammed herself into a life of domestication. Years later, she's stuck in a smelly armpit of a marriage and a life that's foreign and dismal. But when she finds out her husband is a cheater and liar, she and her inner, long-dormant party animal load the cannons and battens down the hatches. Together, they concoct a plan to revenge themselves out of the cesspool of their existence and create a new throne from which to plant her royal tush and rule the town.
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| George is nowhere in sight! |
What isn't it about? Sex! There is a little of course, because, well, it's about an angry and betrayed party girl and her boy toy. But if you're looking for long descriptions of people's kibbles and bits and how they sizzle and sauté them into a goulash of passion and uninhibited fornication, then you'd better look for a different blend of Chex Mix, cause, brother, this ain't it.
Okay, domestic diva...check. No George Michael in sight...check. Humorous situations where an angry party girls runs over a scooter with a Hummer...check.
Alright, my friends, first, check out the amazeballs cover by Anita from
Race-Point.com:
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Birth of an American Gigolo by Deek Rhew
Bask in the glory that is awesome, spellbinding art. <cue Hallelujah Chorus>
Visit the "Birth of an American Gigolo" home page.
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| Birth of an American Gigolo |
Take a gander at Goodreads!
Cruise on over to Amazon. "Birth" is available January 19, 2016!
About the Author
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| Deek Rhew |
Deek lives in a rainy pocket in the Pacific Northwest with the stunning YA author bride, Erin Rhew, and their writing assistant, a fat tabby named Trinity. They enjoy lingering in the mornings, and often late into the night, caught up Erin’s fantastic fantasy worlds of noble princes and knights and entwined in Deek’s dark underworld of the FBI and drug lords.
He and Erin love to share books by reading aloud to one another. In addition, they enjoy spending time with friends, running, boxing, lifting weights, and exploring the little town--with antique shops and bakeries--they call home.
Connect with Deek!
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