AltBrothers

ARTS: A chat with author Caesar Brunswick

Recently AltBrothers learned of Caesar Brunswick, musician and author of several new books. We were excited to learn a little more about Mr. Brunswick and share him with the AltBrother community.

AB: Caesar, your story is intriguing. What led you into writing?

CB: You know, I never really had any interest in writing. In fact, I wasn’t one to read leisurely either. I’ve always had positions with such huge amounts of reading, it was the last thing I ever wanted to do for pleasure. That all changed when I read E. Lynn Harris’ Invisible Life… a story about Bruthas like myself. It was the first one I’d ever read which contained African-American gay males who were comfortable in their own skin. A plot that didn’t exploit our condition or resort to empty depictions of sex. When I was recuperating from an orthopedic surgery and had lots of free time, I decided to try my own hand at expression. Initially a tool to offset boredom, it felt so right… the art of storytelling, I knew it was my calling.

AB: Do you need a certain mood or environment in order to write, you know, to get your mind focused?

CB: To write, I only need solitude and quiet. The subject matter dictates the required mood and I often have to resort to external stimuli for that. When I need a warm and fuzzy mood, I often phone long-distance relatives and reminisce over childhood moments. When I need a somber mood, the right song does the trick. When I need to be upbeat, the sugar rush of overly sweetened Kool-aide does it every time.

AB: How long do you work on your books before publishing?

CB: It varies. It took only three months to complete “Journeys…”, where it took over a year to complete “…Father’s Closet” and “…Amen!” took only weeks.

AB: Some people say that “free-flow” writing (unfiltered writing) is the best first step in putting written pieces together. What are your feelings about this?

CB: I’ve done both and have found each to be effective. My first piece was “free-flow” and it took relatively little time to complete. The sequel, “Things Found in my Father’s Closet”, was very meticulously outlined and contrived. The task proved very time-consuming but the finished product is rather masterfully tight, if I do say so myself.

AB: Do you have personal friends and family who you use for story material or who help in editing drafts for your writings?

CB: I make use of my background in Music and Education in all of my material. My cousin Michael, who is a classically trained vocalist and is also fluent in French, assisted me with my use of the language in ‘Father’s Closet’ and served as consultant for the references to operatic pieces as well. Of course, there’s my dear friend Nicole NiBlack who’s talent is responsible for the poetry in the first two pieces. Friend Michelle DeLeon [author of new release "Missed Connections"], edited both “…Father’s Closet” and “…Amen!” As far as story material, it’s all snatched from the hazy zone in the far side of my head. The speech pattern of villainess Monique in “…Father’s Closet”, was patterned after a diction coach from undergraduate school who always spoke in third person and referred to herself with use of the royal “we”.

AB: Caesar, thank you so much for sharing some behind-the-scenes details of your life and work. I know that success is under you, over you, around you, behind you and before you.

CB: The pleasure was all mine!

Visit Caesar Brunswick’s web site at: www.caesarbrunswick.com