Jason June is a gay, genderqueer, list-making, Virgo Sun, Taurus Moon, Pokémon-playing writer living in Austin, TX. If he had a Gay Agenda, “marry the love of your life”, “be mom to two extremely pampered Pomeranians”, and “get accidentally kicked in the face by Kylie Minogue as an extra in her music video” would all be crossed off. Visit Jason June on social media @heyjasonjune, and on his website at heyjasonjune.com.
What’s the strangest thing you searched for on the internet for your novel?
I love this question! Jay is a huge stats nerd, so I had to search a lot of random stats: like how many people get struck by lightning, or how many people have halitosis. But my absolute favorite search taught me that you’re four to six times more likely to be killed by a vending machine than you are a shark! I can’t stop hearing the Jaws music whenever I’m near a vending machine now!
What book (or author) made you fall in love with the romance genre?
Oh wow. I remember so vividly reading Mary H. K. Choi’s EMERGENCY CONTACT for the first time and it lit up my heart and soul so perfectly that I was like, “THIS! I NEED MORE OF THIS!”
What is your favourite trope? Why?
I love love love fake dating! We all know it’s not going to be fake for long, and I just love the obliviousness of the people involved who are like, “It’s totally fake. It’ll always be totally fake”. And then that turning point when they’re all, “IT’S NOT FAKE!” It makes me squeal with delight every time. The whole idea that we can force ourselves not to fall in love when we’re putting our heart and soul into making the world believe we are in love is just magical. And it’s included in my next novel, coming out Summer 2022, called OUT OF THE BLUE.
It’s the morning after, and a lover is making your main character the perfect breakfast in bed. What is it?
It’s a toasted everything bagel with strawberry cream cheese. The perfect combo of savory and sweet!
What book are you reading currently?
I’m currently reading Kalynn Bayron’s THIS POISON HEART and I’m only 60 pages in but I’m already completely obsessed. It follows Briseis, who has the ability to make plants bloom—even dead ones—with just a touch. There’s already this fabulous air of mystery that I can’t get enough of!
The rapid-fire question: Kissing in the rain or kissing under the stars?
Under the stars, which as I’m typing this came as a complete surprise to me! I thought I would have said rain, and I even have kissing in the rain in JAY’S GAY AGENDA seeing as it’s set in Seattle. But then I got to thinking about how wet I’d get, and my makeup would probably be pouring down my face and onto my husband, so there’d just be so much less pulling my attention away from the kiss if it was under the stars.
