Eli James Summers

I first got hooked on Eli James Summers when I discovered he once wanted to be a police CAR … that’s right, a CAR! Not a police officer.

Though his hopes of becoming a police car were quickly squashed, his imagination still runs wild.

He became a prolific writer at a very young age, but it only recently occurred to him that he might become an author. LOL … be sure to read his endearing story about this discovery.

Melanie Rockett: On your website you indicate that your current status is “gay indie author.” Tell us a bit about your background and how you came to focus on gay literature.

Eli Summers: I started writing gay literature since the day I started writing. As I am part of the GLBT community, it just made sense I would write about gay characters. What really made me focus and stick to it was the fact I loved it so much. Any movie I watch, any story I read I always think, “I wonder what this would be like with gay characters” and so I write it out. I think gay literature is just like any other literature, it just happens to centre around a certain group of people. In this case, gay men.

Melanie Rockett: You are currently working on the “Seasons Experience Collection,” Can you tell us the background behind this collection of stories and how they all fit together?

Eli Summers: The Seasons Experience Collection actually started off as just one single book. “The Winter Experience” was meant to be a stand alone book but by the fifth chapter, I realized something was going to happen and the main character needed more story. That’s how it was born. The first and second books centre around Mattie Hawkins (The Winter/Summer Experience) and the third and fourth centre around his nephew, Mathew Coufe (The Fall/Spring Experience). In the end, all four books are about love, loss, finding love and becoming someone.

Melanie Rockett: I’ve been browsing through your website and see that you have a huge collection of projects some of them with planned publication dates in 2016. Do you work on one project at a time, or do you move back and forth between several “front-burner” projects?

Eli Summers: Right now, my main focus is the collection but I do find myself doing chapters here and there for others. I have so many ideas floating around in my head, the ones you see on the website aren’t nearly what I have planned. I have a folder on my computer titled “First Chapters” and there is a total of 300+ files of first chapters to books. I need to write it all down or else they’ll never be told.

Melanie Rockett: Can you tell us a bit about your writing process. You work on books, poems short stories and your website. Do you have a schedule you adhere to? A daily or weekly word count you aim for? What is your writing process?

Eli Summers: I’m spontaneous. I have tried a schedule, but sometimes life just gets in the way. Right now, I work so much I usually write in between jobs or when I have a spare hour. Nothing is set in stone and sometimes, I’m just so tired after work I just want to sleep. The great thing about smartphones is my social media websites and my website itself can be updated on the go. I also have a small laptop I take everywhere and when I have a spare minute, I find myself writing or working on something.

Melanie Rockett: What will we see from you next?

Eli Summers: At this point, I am working on the third book of my Collection. I hope to have it done and self-published by July 2015 when I will start working on the fourth and final book.