An interview with Richard Sgaglio

Join as for a chat with one of our most recently signed authors, Richard Sgaglio, author of When The Road Narrows, coming in August 2025. We discuss how it feels to get published, growing up gay in the 1980s and dinner with E.M. Forster.

Richard Sgaglio, author of When The Road Narrows

Spectrum Books:

Can you tell us a little about yourself and your journey to becoming a writer?

Richard Sgaglio:

I’ve spent most of my career in marketing and communications, but writing has always been my anchor—my way of making sense of the world. My professional life taught me to write with clarity and purpose, but storytelling gave me the opportunity to dig deeper and tell the truth behind the facts. When The Road Narrows is my first novel, but the seeds of it have been with me for a long time. It’s the book I needed to read when I was younger.

Spectrum Books:

What inspired you to write your latest book, and what do you hope readers take

away from it?

Richard Sgaglio:

The book takes place in the 1980s—an era defined by conservatism and the emerging AIDS crisis. As a gay man raised in a traditional Catholic household, I wanted to explore the tension between personal truth and societal and religious expectations. I hope readers—especially those who’ve ever felt unseen or unheard—find a piece of themselves in Nick’s story. Ultimately, it’s about love, loss and redemption. Nick, the main character, finds his own voice even when the road gets narrow.

Spectrum Books:

What genres do you enjoy writing the most, and why?

Richard Sgaglio:

I’m drawn to coming-of-age stories, especially those with LGBTQ+ protagonists. There’s something powerful about tracing the moments and experiences that shape a person. I also love blending emotional realism with a strong sense of time and place. Stories grounded in the past but still relevant today.

Spectrum Books:

What does your writing routine look like? Do you have any rituals or habits that help

you stay focused?

Richard Sgaglio:

I like to write early in the morning, when the world is still quiet and my mind hasn’t yet been pulled in a dozen directions. A cup of coffee helps, and I always reread the last page or two before writing forward—it helps me reconnect emotionally. I’m not one of those write-every-day people, but I do try to stay in the world of the story. When I’m really deep into a chapter, I find it hard to sleep as scenes and dialogue rattle around my head. Sometimes it’s hard to turn it all off.

Spectrum Books:

Where do you find inspiration for your stories and characters?

Richard Sgaglio:

I often think about pivotal moments in my life and how they unfolded. Some good, some bad, they all are intertwined in my writing, Inspiration often comes from memories that have left an indelible mark on me. Characters usually come to me as fragments through a line of dialogue. From there, I start asking, Why does this person feel this way? What are their motivations? What do they long for? That’s when they start to come into focus.

Spectrum Books:

What was the most challenging part of writing this book, and how did you overcome

it?

Richard Sgaglio:

Writing about the AIDS crisis and internalized shame was emotionally difficult. Growing up gay in the 1980s was not easy and reliving some of the negative experiences was upsetting. There were moments I had to take a deep breath and remind myself why I was writing this. I overcame it by staying grounded in truth—my own, and those of people whose stories have gone untold. This book is fiction, but it’s also based on experiences I’ve had in my life and in the lives of others I’ve known.

Spectrum Books:

How did it feel to get your book published, and what has been the most exciting part

of the process so far?

Richard Sgaglio:

It feels absolutely amazing and very surreal. For years, this story has lived in my head—and now it will live in the minds of readers. The most exciting part has been hearing from people who I’ve shared excerpts of the book with. They have been incredibly supportive. Knowing that something I have written may help someone who feels alone, misunderstood or broken is the most rewarding feeling. I’m honored that Spectrum has given me a platform to tell Nick’s story and I’m truly grateful for this opportunity.

Spectrum Books:

What advice would you give to aspiring authors who are looking to get published?

Richard Sgaglio:

Tell the story that only you can tell. Write what you know, what you feel. Don’t chase trends—follow your truth. Don’t wait for permission to call yourself a writer. We are all storytellers in one way or another. My advice is to start writing and see what flows, is it a page, a chapter or an entire manuscript? Publishing today is tough, but persistence and authenticity go a long way. If you’ve got a story to tell and share, do it. You’ll find a way to get it out to the universe.

Spectrum Books:

If you could have dinner with any three authors, living or dead, who would they be

and why?

Richard Sgaglio:

That's a tough one but I would say Mary Renault, Oscar Wilde, and E.M. Forster. Each of them wrote with extraordinary courage and grace in times when writing openly about queerness—or even hinting at it—was an act of defiance.

Mary Renault because she is one of my all time favorite authors. She transported readers to ancient Greece, but her work was never just historical. Her portrayals of same-sex love were nuanced, tender, and unapologetically human. She gave dignity and voice to characters often erased from history, and her novels were lifelines for many, including me, who were looking for reflections of themselves in literature.

Oscar Wilde because he was brilliant, biting, and impossibly charming. But behind the wit was a profound sense of sorrow and longing. His life, and especially his imprisonment, reminds us of the cost of living authentically in a world that often punishes difference. His work has endured not only because of its cleverness but because of its emotional depth.

And finally, E.M. Forster would round out the dinner table. Maurice—written in 1914 but not published until after his death—was a quiet revolution. It was one of the first novels to portray a same-sex relationship with hope, not tragedy. Forster’s ability to examine the clash between societal pressure and personal desire is something I deeply relate to. His characters wrestle with the same internal conflicts I explore in my own writing.

Spectrum Books:

What’s next for you? Are you working on any new projects that readers should look

forward to?

Richard Sgaglio:

Yes—I’m in the very early stages of my second book in The Road Series, called Remnants in the Road. It explores similar themes of identity, loss, and redemption but through a new lens. It features new characters, different time period but the same emotional core. I’m excited to keep sharing stories and introducing characters that have something meaningful to say and that readers can relate to.

Thank you, Richard, for sharing with us!

Find out how to follow Richard on his author page here, and join our mailing list to stay up-to-date with news about When The Road Narrows.