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Ross Patterson: I was on a press tour for a movie called FDR: American Badass— which if you haven't seen, it's a masterpiece. There was a character I did named Saint James Street James from another film, and every single press article I was doing, [every journalist] was asking me to read excerpts of 50 Shades of Grey as Saint James Street James. So I finally was like, "Man, has anyone ever written a romance novel for dudes?" Once [I saw] nobody had, I was like, "I'm going to do that right now."
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I did read 50 Shades of Grey. For women it's about the buildup, it's about the intimacy, it's about the light kissing. The element of excitement and the element of danger. Whereas for men, it's a completely different sensation, where you're just like, "Awesome, that girl or guy—whatever you're into—is hot. Let's just get down to it. "Is there romance in the book?
Is there romance in the book? Yes. Is there sex? You bet. Is there a lot of hardcore fucking? Of course there is. It kind of goes through what a guy thinks about during the different stages of romance and sex itself.Why did you decide to write this book, a romance novel for men, right now?
I just think it's time. The way the culture is going… I don't want to say pussification, but it's complete pussification right now. There's nothing for men, there's nothing for dudes anymore. You're frowned upon for eating a steak. I don't wear glasses with no prescription in them. Why would I fake a disability just to look trendy? I don't get it.Some people may interpret that as you wanting a return to the days when women stayed at home and cooked—for years that's what masculinity was about. How would you define masculinity?
Being in charge with everything in your life and also the way you present yourself and the way you talk to people. I look at my [gay] cousin's husband, and it's like he's… I saw him build half a house. [That's something] that most of my friends couldn't do. You know? You would think of gay men as, oh, they're polite and effeminate, and it's not the case. And look, it's a cool thing to see. Plus, let's be honest, the gays are the best to party with. Of all time. I think the culture has shifted that much that like gay is the new masculinity.Has it gotten too politically correct? Is that what this fantasy world is about?
Yeah, 100 percent. I was a fan of Richard Pryor and George Carlin, and now every single person is so quick to jump on everything and say, "Oh my God, that's not PC, that's not PC, that's not PC!" It's just to make a statement, or just to make noise, or just to get notice for themselves. If we [have to] worry about every single thing that every single person thinks, it's just going to be bullshit at the end of the day—and there's going to be nothing exciting to read anymore or watch anymore. I don't want be part of that society.In your author photo, the book describes you as Saint James Street James. Why did you decide to write the book as Saint James Street James?
I did want it to be a fictional character of somebody that people could root for and go along with—the character is so deplorable that I think if that was me in real life as a person people would just hate me. [It's] like an Eastbound & Down type of vibe, where you absolutely hate [Kenny Powers]. He does the worst things on the planet, but you're like, "He's doing it, not me or not a real person, and I can go along with it." You feel like you're along for the ride, rather than [with] somebody like Tucker Max, where [people] read his book and hate him after that. They're like, "Jesus, that guy was a fucking asshole."At the same time, masculinity has had very bad effects on society in the past— violence against women, homophobia. Can masculinity exist without all the bullshit that comes with it?
My cousin's gay. He's married to the manliest man I've ever met. I think gay men are the ones that are the most masculine right now. If you ask me, I think Andy Cohen himself is arguably one of the most powerful people, and when you see him in interviews, he's more manly than everybody else.Mitchell Sunderland is the managing editor of Broadly. Follow him on Twitter.