Being openly gay has never been easy, but some eras were more challenging than others. The AIDs crisis and rampant homophobia of the 80s certainly didn’t help the fight for gay rights. Author Jim Provenzano captures a story of love in this tumultuous time in his 2018 book Now I’m Here.
Prologue Bookshop has scheduled Provenzano to read and sign his book on March 12 at 7 p.m. It will be the first time in 20 years that this OSU alumnus will return to Columbus. Using his experience growing up in Ohio, Provenzano creates incredibly realistic characters in his sixth novel.
“The combination of having worked on a pumpkin farm in Ohio and having performed Queen’s Bohemian Rhapsody at a high school piano recital – those are the two seeds of the novel,” Provenzano says. “I didn’t realize until decades later that I could grow two separate characters out of these personal experiences, but it was a fun challenge.”
Now I’m Here is a love tale between two boys, Joshua and David, in the fictional rural town of Serene, Ohio. Each chapter is named and inspired by a Queen song. Readers will feel pleasantly surprised with how the theme of each chapter relates to a Freddie Mercury ballad.
“When I started the novel, back in the early 1990s, I wanted to record a sense of a gone-by era, arena rock concerts with no cell phones, the 1970s and 80s culture that was my coming-of-age era. As it grew, I started bringing in darker aspects of those times as well.”
Along with dealing with the homophobia of the time, the AIDs crisis only exacerbates the forbidden love of Joshua and David.
“Much popular genre fiction in the LGBTQ categories focuses on happy portrayals that don’t really take place in realistic settings, which is fine,” Provenzano says. “But much of it ignores the devastating years of AIDS losses and homophobia. Blending the hope, love and tragedy of a gay relationship, with a realistic setting; that’s more the kind of book I want to read, so I write them.”
The story takes course over 30 years. Readers will be hooked into the waxing and waning relationship of Joshua and David and their survival in an intolerant world.
“The best responses I’ve received from readers are those who lived through the 80s, but also people living in rural communities or from farm country,” Provenzano says. “But I also hope to reach readers who are curious about an era they didn’t experience. Also, perhaps readers can find a sense of hope, that through some very difficult challenges, they can find somebody to love.”
Brendan Martin is a contributing writer. Feedback welcome in the comments.
