Taleteller of two cities

"I never liked the inverted pyramid style of news writing," says local author Johnny Diaz. "I'm more of a rhombus."

It seems strange to meet Diaz at a coffee shop in the South End. Shouldn't we be getting drinks at Club Caf?? That was the setting for Diaz's debut novel, Boston Boys Club, a fastpaced and lighthearted look at Boston's gay scene. The Boston Globe reporter heeded the maxim "write what you know" in his breezy tale of three friends looking for love, drawing on his knowledge of his adopted city, the news world, and the Cuban-American experience.

Dubbed "a charming cocktail" and a "frothy beach read" by Out Magazine, Boston Boys Club was successful enough to spawn a second book deal. In the just published Miami Manhunt, Diaz takes the structure of his first novel back to his hometown of Miami, spinning a more sophisticated story of three gay friends and their relationship woes in "Cuba North."

"In my first book," Diaz explains, "the guys are really looking for themselves. In this book they're looking for someone else. So they're a little more mature."

But fear not, Manhunt has the easy tone and gentle humor of its predecessor, plus a boost of sex appeal. "It's Miami," the writer deadpans. "The heat makes you want to have more sex. Seriously, there's something in the air there."

Maybe that's why one of Diaz's first significant pieces of writing was an article on condom use for his high school newspaper, an essay that landed him an internship at The Miami Herald. At the ripe age of sixteen, Dias had a weekly gig writing neighborhood profiles. "I love writing about people and making people see their neighbors differently," he says explaining what remains his favorite part of being a reporter.

Ironically, Diaz found less freedom when he returned to the Miami Herald for a staff position after journalism school. Getting the who-what-where-why-how for the news desk didn't excite him as much as the human interest stories he used to write. It was with an eye to moving into the Arts and Living section that Diaz took a job at The Boston Globe six years ago, writing neighborhood stories for the city weekly section.

That position did lead to a lateral move after a few years, but it also led, eventually, to Boston Boys Club. "I was always passing through Back Bay," he recalls, "and hanging out at Club Caf?. I started noticing these guys who were always there."

Speculating about the Club fixtures, Diaz decided to stretch his writing skills by attempting a short story about the bar. "I just saw it as a creative exercise," he admits. "A chance to write something different from the way I write for the paper." The short story led to a second short story, then a third, and before he knew it Diaz had a book.

"It was my first book so I wrote it intuitively," he sums up the process. "It was also a little therapeutic, because I had just broken up with my boyfriend. I went into this new one more confident. I knew exactly where it was going to go."

Although in person Diaz comes off modest to the point of shyness - "I'm not used to being the one being interviewed," he says early in our talk; later he reveals that he has a folder with printouts of all the positive emails he's received from readers of Boston Boys Club - his confidence comes across on the page. He even pokes fun at himself by sending his Manhunt characters to a book club where they discuss Boston Boys Club.

"It's not a bad book but it's not great literature" is one of the men's verdict. Diaz laughs, "I had a lot of fun with that."

"I like to write fun books," he admits, but adds that his next novel - a return to the characters of Boston Boys Club tentatively titled Beantown Cubano - is a little more serious. He's adding a new, Cuban born character to the mix to explore the differences between Cuban-American and Cuban identities. Issues of sobriety and mourning will also figure in the tale. "That's a little deeper, and a little more challenging for me," he smiles.

Diaz fans will no doubt be delighted to hear they've got a beach book in the bank for next summer. But beyond that, Diaz isn't sure what the future holds.

"After I finish this, I don't know what I'll do next. The ideas come to me on their own."

Johnny Diaz reads from Miami Manhunt Friday at 7 p.m. at Calamus Books, 92 B South St., Boston. For more information visit www.calamusbooks.com or www.beantowncuban.com.