You know you've made it when someone decides to write a book based on your life. And though not explicitly a biography, His Own Way Out relies heavily on Blake Mitchell's personal experiences as a young bi teenager becoming a man.

 

The book, written by Taylor Saracen, follows Mitchell who is at a point in his life when he needs to take a hard look at what he's doing and where he's going. "Being outed as bisexual in the bluegrass state is alienating, and the events to follow are worse," the book's website declared. "Still, Blake is driven -- by any means necessary -- to make something more of himself. Identifying an opening, Blake paves a path and finds His Own Way Out."

 

The book is the first in the Rise Up series of novels that explore the pivotal moments in the lives of gay youth. Each novel will follow a new protagonist and his experience navigating the ups and downs of adulthood.

 

The novels will all be connected by similar themes, from the struggle for independence, to identifying one’s passions, to searching for acceptance and for love.

 

“I was trying to think of a series where, as an author, you can combine a bunch of different characters, but each one of them gets their own book,” Saracen explained. “It needed to have some kind of breadth to it. So, I was thinking about a porn company. That’d be super cool since I like to write some spicy stuff.”

 

The books are part of a new venture by Helix Studios. However, the novels are not of the erotic variety.

 

“This book itself is not explicit in nature at all. It’s very much a coming-of-age story," Saracen clarified.

 

As for how much of the book is fact and how much is fiction, she wouldn't say.

 

“The porn is so much a part of who they are, but at the same time they have all these other facets. So I think that the way that I approached it was that it could be either in a way. That’s why we’re not divulging how much is fiction and how much isn’t. It gives us a little bit more room to spread out in that way.”

 

“My hope is that bi youth can see the Mecca I made, and how conventional beginnings can melt and mold into untraditional success," said Mitchell. "And that there is pride to be had in that nontraditional success.”

 

If you want to find out more about the book and where to get it, you can do so here.