Book Jacket

 

rank 5463
word count 17327
date submitted 15.04.2010
date updated 15.04.2010
genres: Fiction, Romance, Gay
classification: adult
incomplete

Kiss Me, Straight

Michael Thomas

Internalized homophobia, body image issues, exotic locales, sewing machine repair, and a community theater musical salute to Judy Garland: Check out "Kiss Me, Straight!"

 

Beijing, Tokyo, Sydney—these exciting cities are standard fare in Todd’s life, and he chases a romance with sexy-but-straight Josh through them all. Closer to home, a new neighbor in San Francisco has a huge crush on Todd. His friends—Katie, a flight attendant-turned-small appliance repairwoman, and Marzipan Q. Thespian, a man-dangling local philanthropist—think Todd should at least give Chris a shot. Sure, he’s fat, but he’s handsome, hilarious, and a great cook. They quickly become friends, but Todd’s idea of the perfect man is skinny and straight, and Chris is decidedly neither. Josh may have a fiancée and a teenaged son, but Todd just knows he’s “the One.” Todd and Josh crisscross the Pacific, dancing the night away in Sydney and playing it cool at home before finally smooching high atop the Great Wall of China. But when disaster strikes, any fantasies of a future with Josh are laid to rest along with the rest of him. Through Todd’s grief, his friends offer him unconditional support, and when he is able to set aside his prejudices, Todd is surprised to discover that real love was hiding in plain sight all along.

 
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tags

flight attendants, gay, romance, san francisco, unrequited love

on 17 watchlists

26 comments

 

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Giulietta Maria wrote 713 days ago

Wow! Did you witness a plane crash? I really felt like I was there in the plane! You could add a bit more sensory detail. Like, the sound, shaking, maybe smoke? Anyway, I fly a lot ... I hope to never have to actually adopt the brace position. The jump to the conversation with friends is nice a light, "comic relief" to the weighty crash scene. Backed.

jfredlee wrote 749 days ago

Michael -

I have to tell you, I'm not much of a romance reader; it's a genre I just never get around to reading. Even more so for gay romance (I'm more of a chaos, laughter and victims dying laughing kinda guy).

That said, Kiss Me, Straight was a delight to read. The writing was warm, endearing; characters were interesting and witty, and the underlying blend of comedy and pathos was hard to resist. In some ways it reminded me of the script to the remake of The Birdcage.

Your characters are warm, smart and supportive - without falling into cliches.

And your opening just freakin' killed. Loved how you led me down one path, expecting this to be a memoir about surviving an in-flight disaster. only to have it turn out to be a training exercise.

You're a Hell of a writer and I'm delighted to back Kiss Me. I'd also love it if you could share your thoughts on my book.

I wish you the best of luck with the book. Would love to see it on the shelves of my local book monger.

-Jeff Lee
THE LADIES TEMPERANCE CLUB'S FAREWELL TOUR

Noman Akbar wrote 751 days ago

Hi,
Found it to be a lovely, smooth and fluent story. Would certainly enjoy reading till the end. Backed!

Noman

Andrew Burans wrote 754 days ago

A well constructed and well written story sprinkled with touches of humour and insight. Your use of imagery is excellent and your character development is solid. Backed with pleasure.

Andrew Burans
The Reluctant Warrior: The Beginning

klouholmes wrote 757 days ago

Hi Michael, These characters involved me and I relished the detail about their lives. The conversation between Todd and Katie and Marzipan was both humorous and indicative of their environment, giving a sense of S.F. and the individuals. It’s realistic yet has the bounce of fiction. Shelved – Katherine (The Swan Bonnet)

lynn clayton wrote 760 days ago

The pitch is enticing and the book itself a joy. Deceptively easy in its style, it gives us characters it's pleasant to spend time with and a laugh along the way. brilliant. Backed. lynn

RichardBard wrote 761 days ago

You have a very natural story-telling style that I found quite engaging. Your story is original, funny and poignent. Well done. Backed.

Richard Bard
BRAINRUSH (2010 ABNA Quarter-Finalist)

Sheila Belshaw wrote 761 days ago

KISS ME, STRAIGHT:

Michael,

What a wonderful way to see the world, and clearly it is also a wonderful way for you to get inspiration for writing your novels. There's nothing like a change of scenery to get the muse working, and it certainly works for you.

A wonderful opening, and a perfect conversational style of writing that works really well with this novel. Terrific subtle sense of humour, and I really like the refreshingly light approach.

Backed, with pleasure,
Sheila (Pinpoint)

Famlavan wrote 761 days ago

Kiss Me Straight

What a great story!
I think your chatty style is so engaging, it bounces you along the story so well. The opening was great, it was obvious something was not right, and to me that type of observation makes for especially good humour. This is so very well told. – Good luck

Micheal O'Durcain wrote 762 days ago

What a clever start. I was already identifying with the terror of an emergency when you opened the door.
Flight attendants all.!!
Who'd 've thought it or expected it.
this has to be a winner.
Vacuum cleaner/ cafe
Air Mattress! What a name.
I'm backing now.
On my shelf
Micheal O'Durcain
Murder on the Menu.

Tawn Anderson wrote 763 days ago

Totally fun! Have to admit, I have a gay cousin who lives in Sydney... your avatar made me smile. I had to facebook him right away about th book! Your tone is perfect and your writing is solid. I think this will find its place and take hold. Great job! Backed!

Tawn Anderson (Providence)

Barry Wenlock wrote 764 days ago

Hi Michael - I loved this. Amost enjoyable, humourous, romantic and sensitively told story. Backed with real pleasure, Barry
Little Krisna and the Bihar Boys

missyfleming_22 wrote 764 days ago

I enjoyed this so much! You've really got a way of drawing the reader in and dazzling them with your sense of humor. You've got a great writing style and I got caught up in this! It's refreshing! Couldn't find anything wrong with it but I'm awful at proofreading! I wish you luck with this.

Missy
Mark of Eternity

tyleradams wrote 765 days ago

Michael, you have such a talent with words. Usually, if the plot of story doesn't hit me across the forehead in the first chapter, I get bored and move on (yeah, I'm not much for picking up on subtleties). Your writing however has an almost mesmerizing quality that sparks the reader's interest. You are masterful at mixing charm, wit, and humor to make your story not only appealing, but downright enjoyable. Todd made me smile - constantly - that is a very endearing quality to achieve in story telling.

Kudos, and best wishes for getting this published.

tyler (Almost Straight)
PS: I hope you will chose to post the entire manuscript on this website. I hate to be left hanging.)
PPS: Chapter three "brake" should be "break"?

A. Zoomer wrote 765 days ago

What drama! Good writing and dialogue.
Backed.
A zoomer

Wilma1 wrote 767 days ago

Refreshing and amusing. It was nice to read something light for a change and well written as well. Thoughrly readable.
Sue Mackender

Knowing Liam Riley
Hope you enjoy it

A Knight wrote 767 days ago

Fantastic work, satirical and well-written. Wonderful!

Abi xxx

lizjrnm wrote 767 days ago

I LOVE this- this is well written and very tongue in cheek! Susie Q is really missing out on a romp! BACKED with pleasure.

Liz
The Cheech Room

lisawb wrote 768 days ago

A nice easy read with an interesting premise and some really good characters. I only read the first chapter but if the rest is as good it certainly has potential.

Backed,

Lisa

soutexmex wrote 768 days ago

Welcome aboard, Michael. I do like your short pitch but end at Judy Garland. But I think you can edit down your long pitch so it reads faster. Perfecting your pitches is how you climb in ranking to gather more exposure and comments to better your novel. SHELVED!

Though I have been a very active member for over a year, I can still use your comments on my book when you get the chance. Every little bit helps. Cheers!

JC
The Obergemau Key

mirikiri wrote 768 days ago

Sounds very interesting. I'm putting it on my watchlist to read later. Maybe you would like my book? It's called Deconstructing Discrimination

alison woodward wrote 768 days ago

I enjoyed this, only read first chapter for now but i like a story that your into from the start, so this is for me, backed

alison

chvolkoff wrote 768 days ago

This is a fun read, reminds me of a "Tales of the City" for the new millenium, and on various continents as well. The story is told with humor and moxie, and I am happy to back it. Welcome to authonomy, Michael!

Burgio wrote 768 days ago

This is a good story; has unique characters, a lot of good settings and good dialogue. I like books that take me away from my everyday world and whisk me off to new and unknown places - and this story does that well. Following Todd and Josh takes a reader all over the globe. Chris was my favorite character; I really related to him. Bottom line: this is a good read. I’m adding this to my shelf. Burgio (Grain of Salt).

SusieGulick wrote 769 days ago

Dear Michael, I love that you were straight forward about your book content. Since I don't read gay, I won't read it but give you feed. God so loved the world - everyone, that Jesus died for us (John 3:16), so I love you as much as anybody. Your blurb is good because it prepared me to read your book. I scanned your story it is well written/ good read because you create interest by having short paragraphs & lots of dialogue, which makes the reader to want to keep reading to find out what's going to happen next. I'm backing/commenting on your book to help it advance. Could you please return the favor by taking a moment to back/comment on my TWO books, "He Loves Me, He Loves Me Not" & the unedited version? "Tell Me True Love Stories." Thanks, Susie :)

MrStewardess wrote 769 days ago

The 94,000-word manuscript is complete. If you're interested in chapters Six and up, let's talk about it!

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