Hunting for the right words of wisdom

How many times have you read a gay-themed novel with a buff male on the front cover? How many times have you flicked through the pages only to find yourself submerged in the seedy world of sex, drugs and excessive clubbing?

Life as a gay man can be quite a cliche, but author Kevin Hunter is hoping to break that mould with his novel, Jagger’s Revolution.

The most difficult task for me in tackling subjects that are gay-oriented is to avoid being as cliched as possible while staying true to making the point -¦ to make sure that I focus on the characters and the people they are and not who’s in their bedroom, Hunter told Sydney Star Observer from his US home.

My goal is to steer clear of stereotypes and not place any emphasis on them because I think too many people do that -¦ so in that sense that’s the positive outcome of the difficulty aspect of it.

The book is based around lead character Jagger and his budding romance with Australian lifeguard Garth. Together they share an intimate journey that tugs unashamedly at the softer side of your heart.

Like his characters, Hunter has faced adversity and admirably prevailed.

My past has been brutal and destructive, and yet I’ve done something I never thought possible -” I managed to come out of it, found pieces of light bright enough to distract me from the hostility of the world I was in, he said.

I was rebellious and defiant to the point of behaving that way just to survive. When you’re knocked down enough you eventually gain enough courage to jump up and fight back, and each time you do you get better at it.

Hunter’s hardships have allowed him to better understand human emotions and he has used this to develop characters with depth.

I’ve grown to be attuned to the human condition -” how someone behaves, how they react, why they react, absorbing their moods and energy like a sponge, and this has its problems because it’s not forced, he said.

Tapping into a character’s psyche is probably the easiest part for me to do, and the most fun no matter how much of a monster or unapologetic he or she might be.

Info: Jagger’s Revolution can be ordered from major bookstores or visit www.authorhouse.com/bookstore. For more details on Kevin go to www.myspace.com/kevinsbeach