Tom Collins | Douglas Vigliotti
episode SUMMARY:
In this episode of the Books for Men podcast, Douglas Vigliotti discusses his novel, Tom Collins, which was released (almost exactly) two years ago. The book follows the story of a 30-year-old salesperson named Christian Ballantine who sleeps with an older woman, only to later discover that she is his new boss's wife. The book explores the theme of consumption versus creation and raises questions about what truly matters in life. Vigliotti reflects on his writing process and the challenges of releasing his work. He also mentions that the book is available as a free audiobook on the podcast, Slightly Crooked: Good Stories, Told Well. He emphasizes the importance of focusing on the craft of storytelling rather than external metrics and encourages listeners to share the podcast episode, visit the website for episode transcripts, and sign up for the monthly newsletter, as well as, connect with him on Instagram @douglasvigliotti.
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READ THE TRANSCRIPT:
Welcome back to Books for Men, a podcast to inspire more men to read and bring together men who do. So this week is a pretty interesting week, I would say, because I am sharing my own book, of course, Tom Collins, and that's mostly because just a couple of days ago, it was the two-year anniversary, so the book came out on November 2nd, 2021. So I said, why not honor it and put it on the podcast? And so that's what I'm here to do. Honestly, it's kind of weird talking about your own book, at least in a monologue setting like this one where no one is actually asking you questions about it. But I guess it would probably just be easiest if I told you what it's about, the plot, and then go from there, I guess. So the story is about a 30-year-old guy, or 29 or right in that range, and he is a salesperson.
(01:01)
His name is Christian Ballantine, and he wants nothing more than to be recognized at work. And so he's out with his buddy one night and he meets this older woman and he sleeps with her. Then five days later, he has this big award show coming up at his company at the award ceremony. He wins an award, but at the same time, he wins the award. He realizes that the woman that he slept with five days earlier is his new boss's wife. And so then the book sets out on this story of what matters most to Christian, and they all have to be together for a weekend in Sunny Golden Beach, which is right outside of Miami. It's real, does exist. Yeah, so that's how the book sets out, and that is the basis of it. I don't want to ruin the entire plot for you obviously on what happens.
(01:54)
I think that I pretty much gave you what the first act would be and how it sets up. You can go read the second and third acts of the actual book. But all novels, are about one thing, the plot, and then what is the book really about? And I think that for me, if you read this book and you don't ask yourself the question, what does Tom Collins mean, like the actual title of the novel, then you might miss the core thematical element of what I was trying to do with the book. So in a nutshell, it's about consumption versus creation and what does that mean to consume things in your life at the expense of the things that you create, whether it be families, art, or businesses? Those are all things that can't exist without you. This story really hinges on Tom Collins being a motif for all the things that are consumable in our lives and worse for many people at the expense of the things that matter.
(03:07)
So it does raise some interesting questions. Obviously, it's something that I've thought a lot about. I've written a little bit about it in a nonfiction setting, and I hope that anybody who reads it understands or looks at the deeper meaning of the actual novel because it's easy to read something on a surface level. And I think because of the way that I wrote this particular novel, it was the first novel that I ever wrote, and it is something that I'm very proud of because it was the bridge to everything that I've created now in the present day. And I've been pretty busy, really busy in that. I have two other novels that are completely finished. You haven't read them yet. I would say that they're largely very different in style, in technique, whereas this novel was first person present tense. You're in the protagonist's head every step of the way as a writer from a craft element that creates a lot of forward momentum and a lot of tension in itself because you can't go outside the bounds of present, first-person tense perspective.
(04:23):
And that is limiting in a way, right? You're very rattled in by what you can do. And I think that I sort of liberated myself a little bit in some of the work that I have done after the fact by utilizing some different craft techniques, third person, multiple perspectives, just much more expansive novels. But to me, that's not a knock on this book. It's just to say that it was almost an essential element for me to get this story out in this way, to be able to get to the other things that I am creating now. And if I'm being totally honest, it's hard to read old work. I think it's just easy to look at it and say, man, I probably would do that a little bit differently now. But that's normal. For me, my creative process really hinges on craft, which is the designing of the story, the development of the story, and the writing of the story obviously, and then shipping the work.
(05:23)
And I think that shipping is an essential element to me. I can't hold onto things for too long, otherwise, I start getting very neurotic about them and second-guessing them. And that's not to say I don't spend a lot of time with the stories I do, it's just that I don't know. I don't like to leave them hanging around. I think that's probably one of the toughest things that I've been dealing with recently right now if you can believe it, I have three complete books, two fiction, and one nonfiction, and them not being out yet, and not knowing the actual path for them just yet.
(05:56)
And for someone like me who tends to write at a pretty high volume and with part of their process being, showing their work, like putting it out in the world, that is a challenge, right? But it's a necessary evil for me at this point as I figure out the best paths forward for these projects. And I don't want to get too much into the industry element of things, traditional versus indie publishing. Of course, this project was done specifically in conjunction with a podcast that I created called Slightly Crooked: Good Stories, Told Well, and the audiobook is actually free on that podcast. It's available on any platform that you can think of pretty much. And there's a professional voice actor doing the Voice of Christian Ballantine, and I broke up the book for that podcast and for episodes, so think of it like a miniseries, and it's the four ingredients of a Tom Collins.
(06:57)
So gin club soda, lemon juice, and sugar cubes, not simple syrup, because sugar cubes, you'll find out if you read the actual novel. So that was a really fun thing that I did for this particular story in this particular book. I guess the question is, would I have done it any differently? And I don't think I had the right expectations going into the project. I would say to any writer out there that managing expectations is really important, especially as you try to figure out what the best path forward is for your work. And it's something that I'm even doing now. What is the actual cap on the thing that you're doing based on the audience that you can expect to read the type of story that it might be. And I do think there are some limiting factors. You have to decide what matters to you.
(07:49)
And I personally, and I know that this is going to sound sort of romantic in a way. I don't really pay attention too much to external metrics. They just don't matter to me. Even with this podcast, let's say I do it because I want to do it, and the process of doing it is what matters to me. And it's the same way that I approach writing novels. It's about the craft of doing it and getting better at writing the story that I want to tell. And for me, as long as I feel like I'm getting better to the tastes that I have, and to the capabilities that I have, that's the only thing that really matters to me. I can't worry about the external side of things. So when people ask me, how many books did it sell? I have no idea. Go do a book scan, and figure it out.
(08:36)
I don't pay attention to it. I see some checks come into my bank account, but I don't know what that equates to. I really don't look at it. I really, really don't. Because to me, it's just not important. As I said, it's all about the craft of telling the story. As you might imagine, just by the nature of my doing a podcast like this, I'm really into the nuanced elements of stories in how they're told and how they're put together. And so to me, that's where I spend my time. And I let the other things kind of fall as they may. And of course, I may eat my words one day, but again, that's not the point of doing anything creative in the public eye. The point is to create it, because if you create it, it wasn't there, and then it's there. And once it exists, it has a life of its own and it affects other people who are living and breathing.
(09:30)
And that's important to me. And hopefully, that's what you can gather by reading Tom Collins because ultimately that's what the book is about. Even if it gets voice-y and edgy in all the things that people have told me, it is after they read it, the core of it is exactly what I just explained to you. It's about a guy who wants nothing more than to get external recognition, and by the end of the novel, instead, he recognizes something inside of himself. Which I think we all can relate to. Before I wrap this up, I will share one quote with you. And it's, “Sometimes people flash into your life like a shooting star and remind you of all the possibilities that exist.” And for me, that's just one of the most true sentences in the entire novel. It's something that I'm reminded of all the time as I meet people on a daily basis, weekly basis, or when I travel, you meet these individuals that remind you of all the possibilities that exist because there are an infinite amount of possibilities.
(10:42)
It reminds you to be empathetic, it reminds you to be ambitious. It reminds you of so many different things, or at least it does for me. And so I wanted to pass that along and share it with you. And mostly as Ty Wilhelm, a character that you'll meet in the novel would say, “Don't kill yourself with consumption, kid.” Alright, so that's all I've got. This episode is a wrap. I feel like this was one of the hardest episodes for me to do, only because talking about your own work as I led off with, is very challenging. But I think I did a decent job. I might not regret it. We'll find out when I listen to the episode. I do listen to all of them one time when they do come out. If you enjoyed today's episode, then I would highly encourage you to share it with a friend, a family member, or someone else that you think would enjoy it, because word of mouth is everything in order to spread awareness. And that's what we are trying to do with this podcast specifically for one reason to inspire more men to read. And if you want to double down on that support, please consider liking, rating, subscribing, following all of that, or any of that good stuff on whatever podcast platform you're listening to this on. And of course, you can always connect with me on Instagram @douglasvigliotti, the only social media I have.
(11:53)
Lastly, for more information, you could visit BooksforMen.org. We can get full transcripts for these episodes, as well as sign up for the monthly newsletter, which is a roundup of every episode complete with full book and author information, and all the best quotes. And yes, there will be plenty from Tom Collins in the newsletter this month, as well as newsletter-only book recommendations. So if you're interested in that, again, all you have to do is head over to BooksforMen.org.
