Interview with Jeff Adams

Today, I'm honored to post my recent interview with Jeff Adams. If you don't know Jeff, he's an awesome guy who wears many hats: he and his husband are the geniuses behind the Big Gay Fiction Podcast , he writes killer books (I'm a little in love with Theo, the protagonist of his YA thriller series, but see below for some of his other work), and he does all this while working a full-time job! One note: Jeff is graciously giving away three books. See the end of the interview, and leave a comment here to enter!

1. Thanks so much for agreeing to be interviewed. Could you tell us a little bit about yourself and your books?

Thanks for having me. It’s fun turnabout since I interviewed you for the Big Gay Fiction Podcast earlier this year ( see episode 172 ).

As an author, I alternate between gay romance and LGBTQ+ young adult novels. I love telling both stories. Telling a story of two men finding their happily ever after is crazy satisfying. On the young adult side, I want to tell stories that allow young people to see themselves on the page and that life gets better even if they’re going through a rough patch.

I’m also the co-host of the Big Gay Fiction podcast along with my husband Will. We started that show to highlight the books and authors that we love, along with showcasing other creators of LGBTQ+ fiction.

I love hockey (which we’ll talk more about), musicals, Hallmark Christmas movies, and I’m excited it’s time for American Ninja Warrior and Pose to be back on TV!

2. Where did you get the idea for Theo Reese and the Codename: Winger books?

The Winger books were born at the GayRomLit conference in Chicago back in 2015. Two things happened there. First, someone had a ring tone that was the same as Kim Possible’s communicator. I loved that Disney series and that ring tone put Kim into my brain. Later in the weekend, I sat around a fire pit with fellow authors and friends Z.A. Maxfield and Clare London along with Will. I’d recently released the final book in a YA trilogy, a coming out/first love story, and was looking for some career advice on what I should consider next.

By the time we were done, the basics of a YA cyber thriller series had formed. On the flight home, I figured Theo out and wrote the prologue to Tracker Hacker . The version of the prologue that’s in the book is very, very close to what I wrote on the plane.

3. Many of your books involve a love of hockey. Could you tell us a little bit about this?
I grew up in Michigan and my love of hockey started early. We’d make the trip from Flint to Detroit once a year to see the Red Wings play at the old Joe Lewis Arena. The speed of the game had me hooked and I’ve never appreciated any other sport like I do hockey.

Jump forward about thirty years and I took hockey lessons and then joined a team with the New York City Gay Hockey Association. While I never played well, I had a blast and made some great friends. My first novel, Hat Trick (which I’m currently working to re-release at the end of this year), focused on two boys on a high school hockey team who fall in love. That book was inspired by a trio of teens I met at an early morning practice I’d go to on Saturdays. No one in that group was gay—but their tight friendship made me wonder what would happen if two of them became a couple.

Since Hat Trick , most of my books have hockey players as a central character. And the ones that don’t usually have some hockey element. I use hockey so often because team sports still have such a stigma on openly gay players. While Michael Sam (football) and Jason Collins (basketball) made some strides there’s still a long way to go. Sometimes I write that struggle and sometimes I write the world as I want it to be.

4. For Theo, being gay actually isn't the cause of much conflict--he has a nice boyfriend, good friends, etc. It's not even really the main focus of the books. Why did you choose to write your books this way?

Sexuality is just one component that makes up each of us. I wanted to show a teen who not only had navigated coming out with no issues but for him it’s also one of the least interesting things about him. Which isn’t to say that Theo’s boyfriend isn’t important to him—but that he’s dating a guy is of not more importance than his friends who go out with girls.

Since I’d already done a coming out story with the Hat Trick trilogy, I wanted to take Codename: Winger in a different direction. It’s not even a romance—Theo and Eddie approach their one year anniversary when Tracker Hacker opens so what young readers see is an established gay relationship between two high schoolers.

5. The Codename: Winger books involve a lot of advanced technology, computer programming, and cool spy stuff. How much research goes into your writing? How do you go about conducting this kind of research?

While the books are set in the present day, some tech aspects lean a little futuristic. Certainly the threats around cybersecurity are very real. While things like tracker chips, high tech contact lenses and other things aren’t quite the norm. I research to make sure the tech I’m writing is either currently possible or seems right on the edge. I admit that I don’t overly immerse myself because I’m also not writing a textbook. Plus, the tech has to stay accessible to readers so I keep that in mind as I decide what gets into the story.

6. Netminder , book 4 in the Winger series, launches on May 28. From the description, it sounds like this book escalates the challenges Theo faces to a new level. What is one of your favorite things about this book that you're excited for readers to discover?

Netminder brings threads of the past three books together and to a conclusion. The time span of the four books is roughly thirteen months—book one happens in the fall of Theo’s junior year, two is the second half of junior year, three is summer and four opens as he’s starts his senior year.

Theo was pummeled on many levels in book three so in book four readers get a quick look at how he’s rebounded before all hell breaks loose. The book’s blurb is up front that Theo ends up on the run and cutoff. I hope readers have a blast watching Theo navigate it all.

7. As a corollary, what was difficult about writing Netminder ? Was it difficult to write the end to this popular series?

Putting Theo through everything he deals with in Netminder wasn’t easy. I’m not an author who enjoys putting my characters through terrible things. There were a few times in writing and editing that I’d get emotional about what I’d done to him.

Apparently I went too far sometimes as some beta readers and my editor suggested I dial back some of the relentless action and let Theo and the reader have a break. The first third of the book underwent some significant changes to help the overall pacing—and I’m very happy with the final result. If anyone would like to read a deleted scene from Netminder , I’ve got one on my website that offers no spoilers but shows Theo under pressure.

8. You and your husband Will host and produce the Big Gay Fiction Podcast . Has this influenced your fiction writing? Do you and your husband collaborate on other projects?

The podcast allows us to interview so many amazing authors. Hearing from them offers insight into their process, where they draw inspiration and what they’re reading and that certainly influences my writing. I’ve discovered some incredible reads because of the show. Between reading your books and those of Layla Reyne, Max Walker, Alice Winters and others I’ve become obsessed with romantic suspense. I plan to see why I can come up with in that genre since I’ve gotten so into it.

Will and I have also collaborated on a novel, The Hockey Player’s Heart . It’s a second chance romance between a pro-hockey player who returns to his home town to recover from an injury. While there he reconnects with the guy he had a crush on in high school…who it turns out had one on him too. Hopefully we’ll write again at some point, although we’ve got nothing on our calendar currently.

9. Can you share anything about your WIP or other upcoming projects?

I’m currently working on revising the Hat Trick series. I initially published these books between 2013 and 2015. There were three novels and three shorts and it followed the love story between high school hockey players Simon Roberts and Alex Miller. I pulled them from sale at the end of 2018 and am doing some major revisions. While the overall stories stay the same, I’m introducing dual points of view (Simon was the sole narrator originally) and some other changes I hope readers enjoy. The books will serve as the foundation of a YA universe so I can tell more interlocked stories of young hockey players finding love. If all goes well Hat Trick should be back on sale late this year with the rest of the series rolling out through 2020.

The next big things I’ll be working on are a super-secret project that will be another romance featuring a pro hockey player. That’ll come out early in 2020 and I’ll be able to talk more openly on it later this year. In addition, while Netminder is the end of the Codename: Winger series, the organization that Theo works for, Tactical Operational Support, will become the agency that I’ll use for the romantic suspense novels I want to write. While the characters from Winger wouldn’t have a central role in those books, it’s a good bet they’ll show up from time to time for mission support.

10. Do you have any recommendations, from any genre, for readers?

Let’s talk five all-time favorites, in no particular order.

Red, White & Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston . This is a new addition on the list as the book just came out but I adore this romance between a prince from England and the son of the U.S. president. The royal trope is a favorite and Casey uses it so well. This book made me ridiculously happy and I imagine it’ll be one I pick up again from time to time.

Simon vs. The Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli . I’ve got many YA novels on my all time favorite list, but this one’s got a special place in my heart. Simon’s coming out journey is so poignant and I love how Becky told the story. I’ve revisited this book a couple of times since it came out.

The Understatement of the Year by Sarina Bowen . Possibly the most perfect hockey romance I’ve ever read. The passion between Graham and Rikker sizzles and the obstacles they overcome to find their happy is an emotional powerhouse. I get goosebumps just thinking about some of the passages in this book.

The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay by Michael Chabon : Truly an epic tale. Joe and Sammy are far from just comic book artists. From childhood in Brooklyn to starting a comic book empire and even having a role in WWII there so much in this book I re-read from time to time to admire the story and the storytelling.

Wolfsong by TJ Klune . From the moment, pretty early in the book, that Joe declares that Ox smells like “candy canes and pinecones and epic and awesome” I was hooked. This tale of werewolves and witches is about far more than that—it’s about family and the lengths you’ll go to protect them. It’s got an amazing love story too. If your into audiobooks, this is a great one because Kirt Graves does an incredible job bringing the large cast to life.

(Greg's note: Kavalier & Clay is one of my favorite books of all time, and I love Simon!)

Giveaway:

Let’s give a way some Codename: Winger ebooks. Tell me about one of your all-time favorite books. Three commenters will be chosen at random and they can have their pick of any book in the Codename: Winger series. Drop your comment by the end of the day on Sunday, June 2.

UPDATE: Due to some technical difficulties, we'll be running the giveaway through Rafflecopter. It's embedded below at the end of the post, or enter at: http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/9f0052b03/ ?

Also to note, during June, to celebrate Pride Month, Tracker Hacker will be 99cents from all ebook retailers. It’s a great time to pick up a copy and start the series if you haven’t.

Here's a picture of Jeff!