Please introduce yourself a little to our audience, tell us about yourself.
My name is Ash Knight and I write MM Romance. My first book, Stay, was released on 2/4/20. It was my debut novel.
Tell me about your book Stay – what inspired you to write this romance?
My son is on the autism spectrum and I get asked quite frequently if I think he’ll live at home forever, or if he will be able to support himself. It’s been running through my head for a long time and I finally got to where I just needed to share some aspects of ASD with the public.
Who was your favorite character throughout the story?
Joe. Joe is my character on the spectrum and he’s lived a very rough life, but he’s able to find someone who understands him and sees him.
What was the hardest part about writing characters of the opposite sex?
One of my beta readers is a gay man and he told me if Madden’s not trying to check Joe out the first time he sees him, they will always be like brothers. That part of the attraction was a bit difficult for me!
What came first, the plot or the characters?
The characters. I can’t write anything without them.
Does writing energize of exhaust you?
Depends on what I’m writing. If it’s a tough scene, it can be exhausting, but sometimes I get into the rhythm and stay up too late because I’m in the zone.
What is the most difficult part about writing for you?
I think the conflict. I’m very much an avoider of conflict and so I hate creating that in my characters.
If you could tell your younger writing self anything, what would it be?
Just keep going. Everything can be edited later.
What would you say is your interesting writing quirk?
I feel like I get very into my characters and really know them as real people.
What was one of the most surprising things you learned in creating your book?
How much time and effort the editing process takes.
You are a member of Queer Indie, tell me about this coalition and how it’s helped you as an author.
I first met Halo Scot about a month before my book came out and she supported me in so many ways, and we discussed getting a group together to go to BookCon in NYC in May. Obviously with the state of the world, that didn’t end up happening, but our group got in touch and we decided we could help each other with promo and it just took off from there. I honestly feel like I’d be nowhere without Qi and they’ve become my family. We have a group chat set up where we motivate each other and discuss sales, interviews, shows, etc. It’s been a life saver.
What other authors have influenced you the most?
Honestly, I think Garrett Leigh has because Slide was the first MM romance I’d ever read and it changed me.
Is there anything that you are working on now that you’d like to share with us?
Right now I’m working on a short story about the moon for a compilation book with about 40 other Twitter Indie writers.
How can your fans learn more about what you are up to, about you and your work?
I can mostly be found on Twitter @forgottenastro2 and Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/ash.
Thank you so much!!
