GA - Readers' expectations

[kitten]

I realise that stories here on GA do not have to have gay characters or even have anything in them that might be considered of specifically gay interest. However, despite any notices on the site that might explicitly state that, because of the site name many readers are here because they want to read gay fiction and they expect to find it here. Also, it seems that the vast majority actually prefers romantic gay fiction.

 

This is, of course, quite natural, and certainly there are no objections to it. However, what if an author on here writes a story with no major gay characters, no romance and no sex? On a non-gay story site the readers won't expect those things and so won't be disappointed not to find them. On GA I suspect that although readers might tolerate a short story without those gay-romantic ingredients, they will not be interested in reading a multi-chapter story without any romantic gay plot elements.

 

Also, if most GA readers get as far as chapter 6 (or even the end) of a novel-length story before realising that there will be no possibility of romance between the two main male characters (or any other characters) will they not be disappointed or even feel cheated that they spent so much time reading a story that wasn't what they expected or wanted?

 

So, if you wrote a novel about the development of a healing friendship between two young men who are not both either gay or bi, and if that novel contains no romance and no main gay characters, would you: 1) publish the story elsewhere? 2) post it here but with a warning that there is no gay romance? or 3) just post it here anyway without the warning and be prepared for howls of disappointment from readers?

 

Kit

[thatboyChase]

Post it here, everywhere. Doesn't matter. You'll still get eyes to look at it. Take Elijah (plug =( ) for instance. Minor, even brief romance between two male characters sparks possibility and a brief confusing orgy scene. Yet orgy's include everybody. But there is an example. When I was writing it I wasn't sure if it would be received well cause another guy wasn't railing another guy. Obviously proved wrong.

 

I would write what you want, not what the readers of GA want. GA is pretty nice, they wouldn't howl at you. If you want interesting feedback, post it on a regular reading site - the true readers will stick to the end.

[Nephylim]

That is a very interesting question. I have written novels that have very little, or no gay content. They are at least as good as the things I have posted so far, if not a whole lot better in some cases. Because they have heterosexual love romance and sex I have not even considered posting them here. What's the point if no one reads them?

 

If I thought they would be read and appreciated I would certainly post them and, perhaps it is my own failings that have made me assume that the readers here would only want to read stories containing gay characters. If I am wrong I apologise.

[David McLeod]

Hmmm. I got the impression the first time I found this site that it was not designed exclusively for either gay (LGBT is presumed, here) authors or for stories with gay (ditto) themes. Having pulled myself through puberty with "bulletin boards" and sites like Nifty, I was looking for a site that offered a wider range of writing, as well as a series of forums (such as this one) that addressed serious questions from serious writers. And, I found it, at GA. Okay, enough of the encomium, on to your question.

 

I hope you and others continue to offer a wide range of stories, both with and without gay characters and gay themes. I don't think that a "warning" is appropriate, but feel that the tenor of a story can be captured in a blurb that is clear, but subtle enough to let the reader know what to expect. I remember a successful mystery writer, who appeared at a book fair, telling an audience of would-be mystery writers, "In your first book, be sure that there's a body in the first chapter, preferrably on the first page, so people will know they're reading a mystery." I took this to heart, and in the first story I posted, made it clear in the first few paragraphs that the two characters were gay. Their physical relation was consumated (tastefully, if I do say so myself) in the second chapter. I guess my answer is "a modified choice, 2."

[kitten]

I think I saw somewhere on GA is a specific statement that the name Gay Authors doesn't imply anything about the sexuality of the authors and (I presume) the stories. I'm sure that non-gay stories are welcomed by those in charge and a would be accepted (though not read) by most site members and visitors. Despite that, I bet that most readers will assume and expect some gay content and be disappointed to discover there isn't.

 

I took this to heart, and in the first story I posted, made it clear in the first few paragraphs that the two characters were gay. Their physical relation was consumated (tastefully, if I do say so myself) in the second chapter. I guess my answer is "a modified choice, 2."

 

It's pretty easy to establish if a character is gay in the first couple of chapters, just by them saying so, or kissing a guy, or going to a gay bar etc. However, it's not so easy to establish that they are not gay, e.g. just because they kiss a girl or don't go to a gay bar. Also, if you start the story with characters specifically saying they are straight or denying that they are gay then readers, especially on GA, are likely to assume that such protestations are just signs of denial of their true gayness.

 

If a reader just picks a book at random from the local library fiction section and read a story about two guys who start off being antagonistic and then become friends, would the reader assume they are gay when no mention is made of sexuality? If another reader comes to GA and starts reading a story about two guys who start of being antagonistic and then become friends, would that reader be more likely to assume they are gay?

 

Their interpretations and expectations will be influenced not only by the context of where they find the story (local library or GA) but also what sort of story they WANT to find.

 

The idea of having a clue in the blurb description instead of a specific warning is good but maybe not too easy to do elegantly, especially as I'm not good at writing blurbs!

e.g.

"Two young men meet at a party and on the surface they seem to have very little in common. However both have secrets that they are desperate to keep hidden"

 

could be rewritten as:

 

"Two young men, one totally straight and the other straight but with possibly bisexual leanings, meet at a party and on the surface they seem to have very little in common. However both have secrets that they are desperate to keep hidden."

 

But as rewritten it seems a little inelegant and may give away too much of the plot.

 

Kit

[Nephylim]

I don't think that anyone has any illusions about stories with non gay or gay free content being accepted or even welcomed by the administration. The key is in whether anyone would read them and, if so whether they would be disappointed if they do. As a writer I think the worst thing of all would be for someone to read and be dissapointed and the second worse for no one to read at all. What's the point of posting something that no one reads or enjoys. I have to admit that since joining the site, and more importantly reading the stories, I have changed my writing focus and i am now writing to suit the site... ie writing gay characters. It is no harship for me bacause I openly admit to finding two men being intimate very hot and just as challenging and satisfying to write as two women or one of each so to speak. The fact remains though that I would be very reluctant to post any of my 'non gay' stories simply because I don't think that anyone would read and enjoy them which for me as a writer would be wholly pointless.

[kitten]

The key is in whether anyone would read them and, if so whether they would be disappointed if they do. As a writer I think the worst thing of all would be for someone to read and be dissapointed and the second worse for no one to read at all. What's the point of posting something that no one reads or enjoys.

 

The fact remains though that I would be very reluctant to post any of my 'non gay' stories simply because I don't think that anyone would read and enjoy them which for me as a writer would be wholly pointless.

 

That reflects how I feel, which is why I posted the question.

On the other hand, if I don't post them then they certainly won't be read at all.

 

Basically, I do as Chase says above and write what I want, and as I'm gay it's so far just happened to be that most of what I've written has some gay-related aspect. As I'm extremely lazy, and as my writing time is limited, I have to be really inspired to actually put in the effort to write a novel-length story. (which is why the sequel to Tapping keeps getting put onto the back burner!).

 

At the moment I feel really inspired by the idea this non-gay-related story and have written 1.5 chapters in less than a week (a VERY fast rate for me!). But I'm not sure what to do with it when I've finished writing.

 

Do you post your non-gay stories somewhere else? If so, where?

 

Kit

[Hoskins]

Nephylim, I disagree. I think your "non-gay" stories would fit here as well as anywhere. You're a good writer with something of a following here, I think your stories would be welcomed no matter what the orientation of the story or the characters. I bet there will be grimness, which is part of sex anyway (wait, what?)

 

There is a writer out there, he who shall not be named, who has a long history of writing really good gay fiction. He is currently writing a story with non-gay, non-romantic themes - its all about family and friendships. The two main characters (boys) are not gay, in fact the narrator has a girlfriend. At points, the story goes into his relationship with his girlfriend, but the character is so well developed you just expect it, it's not jarring or distasteful to me. That story would fit here just as well as anywhere. It's high quality and definitely fits the "type" of stories found here. So yeah, I think you should tell your stories regardless of your characters sexual proclivities.

 

And, if you look at the general "themes" present at gay authors, there are a lot of young people here. I think the labels aren't so important to them. The fact is that a lot of the plots and situations that play out in the stories found here can and do play out in non-gay situations too. It's all of one piece.

[Nephylim]

That reflects how I feel, which is why I posted the question.

On the other hand, if I don't post them then they certainly won't be read at all.

 

Basically, I do as Chase says above and write what I want, and as I'm gay it's so far just happened to be that most of what I've written has some gay-related aspect. As I'm extremely lazy, and as my writing time is limited, I have to be really inspired to actually put in the effort to write a novel-length story. (which is why the sequel to Tapping keeps getting put onto the back burner!).

 

At the moment I feel really inspired by the idea this non-gay-related story and have written 1.5 chapters in less than a week (a VERY fast rate for me!). But I'm not sure what to do with it when I've finished writing.

 

Do you post your non-gay stories somewhere else? If so, where?

 

Kit

 

 

Post it here... if you will I will

[Nephylim]

Nephylim, I disagree. I think your "non-gay" stories would fit here as well as anywhere. You're a good writer with something of a following here, I think your stories would be welcomed no matter what the orientation of the story or the characters. I bet there will be grimness, which is part of sex anyway (wait, what?)

 

 

 

Are you suggesting my stories are grim?

[kitten]

Post it here... if you will I will

 

Okay!

I will...

 

Thanks to everyone for their input!

 

Kit

[Mark Arbour]

While I don't disagree with you in principle, and I personally would be willing to read a story with no gay-related themes, it is unlikely I would post one here.

 

I think it is worth bearing in mind that the name of the site is GayAuthors. That's a pretty targeted name, and that's why readers come here. What would be the significance of this site if it morphed into a bunch of stories with varied themes? It may be a great source for amateur literary effort, but there are surely other sites for that?

 

So wouldn't such stories in essence constitute a case of "bait and switch"? "Here, read my gay stuff, and oh by the way, here's my other work," could easily lead to "you should read these non-gay themed stories because they show my true literary genius," to "stories that include references to men having sex are crude and boorish."

 

Regardless, the concept and power of target marketing is picking a specific demographic and catering to it. That's what makes this site successful. If you dilute that too much, you dilute the success.

[paya]

Okay!

I will...

 

Thanks to everyone for their input!

 

Kit

 

Well, maybe it's late for an answer... and I'm not a writer, just a reader (a "voracious" reader as kjames has on his profile :-D) but what I want to say - for me, as a reader, it's usually first two chapters. I read the first one and if the story isn't REALLY bad, I go on. I read the second chapter and if I don't feel drawn in the story I usually give up. Sometimes it's three chapters. So the point is, you have around two-three chapters to develop the notion, what's the story about (at least at the beginning, you can develop it further). And that's I think quite a lot of space to subtly indicate that there is no gay, gay sex nor gay romance... And to sort of answer your question, it really doesn't matter that much if the there are men having sex or not, it's just if the story is good or not.

 

Last but not least - my offer - send me the two chapters you have written (PM for an e-mail address), I'll read them and I'll say you if I'd read such a story... ;-)

[Trebs]

I can see the dilution aspect, but as long as it is a minor part of an author's work, I don't see any issue with it. Whether there are no LGBT characters or if there is a gay or bi character in the story who never sees any romance, I think such a story as part of a current author's body of work is acceptable. Now - possibly a simple disclaimer of "Unlike my other works, this one doesn't have any blatent gay romance but I hope you like it" or some such may help take the edge off. And - well, on a TOTALLY PERSONAL level, I'd rather not read about explicit straight sex in a story that has absolutely no gay romance (heh - I can barely tolerate it in a story where a character sleeps with both genders).

 

On the other hand, there are a few authors here who I LOVE what they write and how they write it - and if they posted their shopping list, I'd probably read it (ok, exaggerating, but ya know...)

[Ashi]

Kit, why don't you put a plug line somewhere to let people know you've written a non-gay story. If they wanted to read it, they'll follow the link?

 

I've written a story which is a gay story told from a straight person's point of view (it's really badly written, so I won't post it here until I revise it). And then there is the story I've told Davd I've abandoned. In that story, the main character started out gay, and that's the most important attribute he labeled himself with. As the story progresses, it's no longer a "gay story." The story will shift focus to exemplified it's an ugly world, no matter you're gay or not, people will face hardship and being wronged for stuff they don't deserve. The gay label will slowly lose meaning. After all, we identify ourselves with the most discriminated attribute we possess.

 

Perhaps at your current stage of life, you no longer find being gay is such a big deal. If that's so, I'm very happy for you. I'm still dealing with my problem (some problems are gayer than others). I think everyone should explore different aspects of themselves to become a whole person. If you want to write a straight story that's really meaningful to you, who's going to stop you?

 

However, for practical and marketing purpose, I agree with the opinion already posted; people might get disappointed. That doesn't mean you wrote a bad story. If you want to post it, do get a bottle is half-full attitude (i.e., wow, three people read it, not only three people read it).

 

BTW, in Nifty there is a section called "no sex." Yes, it still gay story there, just no sexual element, but that's the most frequent section I read, you know.... Sometimes I am just not in the mood for sex-ridden story. I hope I make sense. Maybe you can do a poll here?

 

Now I should get worried about my own story. It doesn't have sex in every chapter. But I shouldn't really care....

[Marco Polo]

I have a similar problem. My current story Otherworld has two male leads but no mention of their sexuality and allusions towards that. I feel a slight pressure to have some sort of relationship between them. But while I enjoy reading gay fiction purely for some kind of instant connection, I enjoy writing in general as should most of this sites population.

 

I feel GA is a community for authors who identify with the gay sexuality (LGBT) but who not necessarily write gay fiction. I personally would give anything a go that's posted in eFiction etc. Regardless of whether it was gay-themed or not.

 

Maybe there should be a 'not necessarily gay' option in the genre selection when posting new stories ?

[Graeme]

I think there are a lot of different factors at play here.

 

1. The majority of readers who come here are looking for stories that have gay content. It doesn't have to be romance, though that is probably the largest set. There are also SF, Fantasy and Horror readers who come here for stories, too.

 

2. Once an author has established themselves, however, you get the people who, as Trebs suggested, would read a shopping list by their favourite authors.

 

3. There are readers who come for a style (eg. romance) and while they have a preference for gay romance, they'll happily read a straight romance, too, though maybe with not as much anticipation. At lot depends on the writing, and the relationship developed between author and reader (see point 2).

 

4. There are also readers who like variety. To be honest, I'm having trouble writing at the moment because too much seems like 'more of the same'. I'm having trouble motivating myself to read for a simliar reason. This is, I'll admit, a personal perception and not reality -- there are a lot of very varied stories here -- but if the stories of an author seem more and more as 'variations on a theme' then I start to lose interest. eg. Piers Anthony's Xanth series in print. I stop collecting them eventually because it become too much 'more of the same' and too formulaic.

 

Kit, you are a good author. Having hosted status here is recognition of that fact. You'll have readers who read your stories no matter the degree of gay content in them.

 

Hey, if I can get away with my very first novel being narrated by someone who was anti-gay, and have a lot of people tell me it's one of their favourite stories, then I think that disproves the concept of a stereotypical gay reader wanting gay romances. I've written gay romances, but two of my four novels are NOT gay romances, and I've had a lot of positive feedback about them, and almost no negative feedback. Even there, the negative feedback was to tell me that they disliked the characters, not the stories....

 

Just my opinions

[C James]

I realise that stories here on GA do not have to have gay characters or even have anything in them that might be considered of specifically gay interest. However, despite any notices on the site that might explicitly state that, because of the site name many readers are here because they want to read gay fiction and they expect to find it here. Also, it seems that the vast majority actually prefers romantic gay fiction.

 

This is, of course, quite natural, and certainly there are no objections to it. However, what if an author on here writes a story with no major gay characters, no romance and no sex? On a non-gay story site the readers won't expect those things and so won't be disappointed not to find them. On GA I suspect that although readers might tolerate a short story without those gay-romantic ingredients, they will not be interested in reading a multi-chapter story without any romantic gay plot elements.

 

Also, if most GA readers get as far as chapter 6 (or even the end) of a novel-length story before realising that there will be no possibility of romance between the two main male characters (or any other characters) will they not be disappointed or even feel cheated that they spent so much time reading a story that wasn't what they expected or wanted?

 

So, if you wrote a novel about the development of a healing friendship between two young men who are not both either gay or bi, and if that novel contains no romance and no main gay characters, would you: 1) publish the story elsewhere? 2) post it here but with a warning that there is no gay romance? or 3) just post it here anyway without the warning and be prepared for howls of disappointment from readers?

 

Kit

 

Hrmmm. For a novel-length work, I prefer to use a few categorization terms, so if it were me, I'd prefer to use them, both as a reader and as a writer. For example, there are certain genres that I avoid, so I like to know what the genre is before reading.

 

Also, bear in mind that the reader has the ability to stop reading.

 

I have two short stories on my hosted site that have no gay content at all, and I don't have a warning of that fact on them. (One is horror and the other is historical non-fiction.)

 

Would I post everything I've written to my site? Heck no, because amongst the things I've written are technical manuals and travel guides, and I'd be deterred by both copyright issues (those were paid/published works) and that my readers would probably kill me if I posted a technical manual.

 

However, if I wrote a novel with no gay content, I'd have no qualms about posting it to my site, though I'd probably list that in the genre description, just like I have done with other aspects.

[Mark Arbour]

Two thoughts/questions:

 

1. The banner at the top of this page says "GA - Gay Authors - The Place for Quality Gay Fiction." How does that jive with posting non-gay related stories?

 

2. There was a bit of hubbub a while ago about posting stories on e-fiction, and complaining about authors who post too often. You think that if the number of non-gay oriented stories increases, that will be an issue?

[Nephylim]

Two thoughts/questions:

 

1. The banner at the top of this page says "GA - Gay Authors - The Place for Quality Gay Fiction." How does that jive with posting non-gay related stories?

 

2. There was a bit of hubbub a while ago about posting stories on e-fiction, and complaining about authors who post too often. You think that if the number of non-gay oriented stories increases, that will be an issue?

 

 

Well, I had no idea about point 2... and it brings me up short a little about my own posting habits which I may have to revise.... but I have to say that point 1 was what has stopped my posting any of my non gay charactered stories. In fact there are some which start off with straight couples and have gay couples in the second half (two actually) which I have also held back for the same reason.

 

I am more confused than ever now... should I post them or not. I will wait until I have finished posting the ones I am putting up already before I start anyway because I don't want to fall foul of point 2. Hmmm something to think about.

[MikeL]

Actually, the banner reads "GA Gay Authors - Quality Gay Fiction". The implication is that this is a site where readers will find both gay fiction and works by gay authors. Lest we quibble over semantics, I should add that there is a need for both to be published and neither need preclude the other. If an established gay author wants to write a story about personal relationships that he feels would entertain and enlighten his audience and not include any gay sex scenes in the story or even identify any of the characters as being gay, he should not be required to seek another outlet for his work. If the work is well done and appeals to the readers, it will stand on its own merits even in the absence of any bedroom romps.

 

If someone desires detailed descriptions of sexual acts, there are other sites which cater to those needs.

 

I would expect that, if an author began posting lengthy, straight sex pulp fiction, or anything of no interest to GA's audience, the administration would counsel the author about his offerings.

[kitten]

Two thoughts/questions:

 

1. The banner at the top of this page says "GA - Gay Authors - The Place for Quality Gay Fiction." How does that jive with posting non-gay related stories?

 

 

It's the name of the site and as with any marketing-type name I presume it should be interpreted as descriptive rather than definitive.

 

However, if you want to take things literally...

 

A. Gay Authors - Does that mean that non-gay authors are not welcome to post stories whether or not the stories are gay?

 

B. The Place for Quality Gay Fiction - it doesn't say 'The Place for Quality Gay Fiction only' Otherwise not only would there be no place for quality non-gay fiction but there would also be no place for non-quality gay fiction. In which case maybe someone should go through and weed out whatever they consider is non-quality.

 

C. The Place for Quality Gay Fiction (as opposed to 'A Place for Quality Gay Fiction') would mean there are no other places for quality gay fiction - which is rather insulting for awesomedude, crvboy, etc.

 

D. What particular definition of 'Gay Story' would you like to impose?

Does there have to be gay sex? gay romance? a gay main character? A teenager just wondering if he's gay but then deciding he's not? Is 'Brideshead Revisited' a gay novel because one major character and a couple of minor characters are gay? How about a story where a character never appears but is mentioned as having committed suicide because he's gay?

 

2. There was a bit of hubbub a while ago about posting stories on e-fiction, and complaining about authors who post too often. You think that if the number of non-gay oriented stories increases, that will be an issue?

 

A. I don't really see the relevance of this to authors posting too often.

B. Do you really think that there are people queuing up to flood GA with non-gay stories (see D. above)?

 

Well, I had no idea about point 2... and it brings me up short a little about my own posting habits

 

IIRC that was already dealt with satisfactorily - I think in the Admin Communication forum? My personal view (as stated at the time) was that it should be up to the author to decide how he/she wants to 'market' their work. My own feeling is that posting chapters too often, especially with multiple stories being posted at the same time, is not a good way to maximise readership.

 

Kit

[Mark Arbour]

It's the name of the site and as with any marketing-type name I presume it should be interpreted as descriptive rather than definitive.

 

However, if you want to take things literally...

 

A. Gay Authors - Does that mean that non-gay authors are not welcome to post stories whether or not the stories are gay?

 

B. The Place for Quality Gay Fiction - it doesn't say 'The Place for Quality Gay Fiction only' Otherwise not only would there be no place for quality non-gay fiction but there would also be no place for non-quality gay fiction. In which case maybe someone should go through and weed out whatever they consider is non-quality.

 

C. The Place for Quality Gay Fiction (as opposed to 'A Place for Quality Gay Fiction') would mean there are no other places for quality gay fiction - which is rather insulting for awesomedude, crvboy, etc.

 

D. What particular definition of 'Gay Story' would you like to impose?

Does there have to be gay sex? gay romance? a gay main character? A teenager just wondering if he's gay but then deciding he's not? Is 'Brideshead Revisited' a gay novel because one major character and a couple of minor characters are gay? How about a story where a character never appears but is mentioned as having committed suicide because he's gay?

 

 

 

A. I don't really see the relevance of this to authors posting too often.

B. Do you really think that there are people queuing up to flood GA with non-gay stories (see D. above)?

 

 

 

IIRC that was already dealt with satisfactorily - I think in the Admin Communication forum? My personal view (as stated at the time) was that it should be up to the author to decide how he/she wants to 'market' their work. My own feeling is that posting chapters too often, especially with multiple stories being posted at the same time, is not a good way to maximise readership.

 

Kit

 

You make it seem as if I was taking a position, and that wasn't the case. I'm merely trying to think this through. This is a writer's forum, for the most part, and I wanted to make sure that the discussion wasn't too egocentric. It's easy to decide that people will like whatever we write. It's easy to decide that we should publish whatever we want here and that our loyal fans will snap it up like drowning people drink water. It's not so easy to check our egos at the door and wonder if that is actually the case, or if that is actually what is best for this site.

 

BUT, if you want my opinion, I really don't think it matters one way or the other. And if, for some weird reason, the work becomes so slanted towards non-gay-oriented stories, we can change the name of the site to "Authors".

[Linxe Termoil]

Here's another thing to think about. I personally might be willing to read something that has no gay characters, hell, i do it all the time when i'm readying sci fi and fantasy. It's something i enjoy. As for a fictional element, i don't always read those but sometimes I do. The question you have to ask yourself is, is there a message in the story that you want people to see? You said yourself that your story is about two boys and a healing friendship. Perhaps there is a message in there. I also, personally, would have no qualms with a hosted author writing a non gay themed story, because they have plenty of other quality material that readers may indeed enjoy. Now if I were to go through e-fiction, i'm not so sure i'd be willing to read it, but i can't remember the last time I had time to read anything. I still don't have time to continue with stories that i started three months or more ago and never got to finish.

 

On another point, I myself would never post a story like that because it's the gay characters that interest me, especially if I have a message or something else I want to do. I simply feel that we as a society of individuals with different tastes, likes and dislikes, don't have enough of our own artworks/artforms, meaning that we need our gay heroes and villains, and our own works. You have no idea (or maybe you do) how frustrating it was for me growing up as a teenager and loving sci fi and fantasy so much, but there was never anything with gay characters/heroes/villains. That is, until I discovered Mercede's Lackey and her Voldemort series with Vanyel Ashke'vron. I believe the title of that series is Magic's Price, Magic's Promise and Magic's Pawn, or something to that effect. As a matter of fact, I recommend any of her books set in that world. That is, though, just a matter of taste and my own wants and needs. Another intriguing would be the bisexual/gay vampire, Lestat

 

Gimme the gay characters, both good and bad. It's a reason why I decided to start writing.

 

Just my own thoughts on the subject.

 

Linxe

[kitten]

Thus discussion seems to have drifted a little from the intent I had when I posted the original question and I apologise if it stirred up emotions. By 'non-gay' I did not mean 'straight' - I meant no romance or sex of any sort. Even if I wanted to do so, I wouldn't have any idea how to write a straight sex scene, and to be honest, romance, even gay romance, isn't something that interests me a great deal as a reader or as a writer.

 

how frustrating it was for me growing up as a teenager and loving sci fi and fantasy so much, but there was never anything with gay characters/heroes/villains.

Linxe

 

There seem to be a few such stories now:

http://www.rainbowsauce.com/gayfic/gayscifi.html

But I guess it depends when you were growing up how many of those were available.

When I was a teen I read an average of about 6 books per week, some of it sci-fi. (Now I'm lucky to find time to read six books a year!) Anyway, I think that I remember some sci-fi that was at least gay-friendly (Ursula K LeGuin?).

 

I understand what you are saying about identifying with gay characters, and I agree that it's great to have place like this for stories we can relate to our own experiences. It's even better for gay youngsters who are currently living with family, maybe in isolated places, to see that they are not alone in their experiences. However, even for us gay guys, sex and even sexuality are not the only things in life. As I gay person I can still appreciate the value of friendships between males that have no sexual or romantic involvement, and occasionally I might like to read or write a story dealing with such a friendship. I don't think such a story would be totally irrelevant to my life.

 

Kit