Franklyn C. Thomas has woven a masterful plot into his boxing-themed novel, The favorite. If you like sports, you will love this book, which is infused with pain, humor, and love. The talented author has wanted to be a writer since he was 10 or 11, but didn’t realize he could thrive until he was 17. At that age, he was in college and in love with a girl who had taken an interest in his writing. Although the relationship never worked out, writing became a powerful part of her life.
Franklyn has published two sports novels. Growing up in New York City was tough no be a sports fan because there are many teams throughout the year. Franklyn also dabbles in sci-fi and action writing, which he owes to a childhood watching Twilight zone reruns and cheesy ’80s action and police shows like MacGyver and Tj whore.
As a result, Franklyn reads everything that interests him. He does not have a favorite genre. You will read science fiction, literary fiction, urban fiction, and crime fiction. The only exception is romance, and you don’t necessarily think they were written with it in mind.
His first novel, The favorite, was posted via iUniverse earlier this year. It’s about veteran boxer Michael Dane, who believes he is on top of the world. He has had a star-studded career and a life of many victories in the ring, as well as an eighteen-month stint in prison. As the number one contender for the IBF Light Heavyweight Championship, he is training to face Quin Cortez, the undefeated champion, in a title fight in Las Vegas. Michael’s drug trafficking manager, Dante Alexander, has boosted his career, without making any friends along the way. Now, after a tense meeting with Dante, Michael is reconsidering his choices as a man and as a professional wrestler. Worse still, he is doing his best to stay one step ahead of traitors who would exploit him for their own gain. With nowhere else to turn and few people he can truly trust, Michael turns to his former coach for advice. Terence “Dutch” Masters raised him as a son and influenced him to reconcile himself with the love of his life. His ex-girlfriend, Selena, now several months pregnant with their son, represents a life he’s never known. Now Michael must do whatever it takes to keep everyone in his life safe from Dante. With his old coach in his corner for one more fight, with his old love in his life, and with rival gangsters flanking him, Michael can come out with the title. . . and his life?
After writing and promoting The favoriteFranklyn is working on some projects, including some short stories and some novel ideas. You are in the middle of the first draft of a novel called Opened, which follows the decision of a bored married couple to loosen the rules of their relationship. He is plotting a novel titled Urban legend, which is a revenge story disguised as a superhero adventure. Finally, he is hatching the “episodic” novel. The game, the first draft of which he will periodically publish on his blog and in Wattpad.
When he’s not writing or plotting novels, Franklyn works full-time at a Sleep Disorders Center as a technician. He also watches and plays sports (baseball and basketball), reads and watches movies, fueling his active imagination. He says, “Writing, telling a story, allows my imagination to reign freely within the limitations of vocabulary. It is liberating and peaceful.”
If Franklyn could be a fictional character, he would imagine himself as bat Man. His favorite author is Christopher Moore. Moore’s stories are accessible. His characters, even the bad ones, are very nice. Franklyn is a blatant admirer of his work.
Finally, I asked Franklyn what he would like his readers to know about him and / or his writing. He replied, “My writing is more influenced by comics. When I first learned to read, my brother’s comics were always in my house and I devoured them. I learned lessons about rhythm, vocabulary, and long-term character development through from the pages of X Men, Spiderman and bat Man. My book can be found at http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00HQKZ7E6/.
