[dkstories] The Bully

[EMoe57]

Go check it out and then post your thoughts here!

[Conner]

It was great to see the update to this story. I am thoroughly enjoying it. The changes Eddie has experienced in the last few chapters are amazing. I'm anxious now to see how Eddie will relate to his father. A very touching story.

 

Conner

[Rabble_Rouser]

Another great chapter Dan! It's interesting to see Eddie go from a angry loner who had his entire life mapped out to a nice guy who's questioning everything he thought was important in his life.

 

I'm still trying to figure out who is trying to run Joe out of town if Eddie's Dad was at home drunk and his mother isn't just covering for him.

[Rad]

I like how this chapter played out. Eddie & Daniel. How intense their feelings are for each other. Daniel lets go of his dreams to be a fighter pilot & Eddie overcomes his fear of leaving the valley...At times I felt their conversation, nay, after a certain time (& chapters) especially since that first kiss in the motel room; I find their conversations soo deep....Life, future, their future...& Eddie saying to Daniel that he loves him too

 

It's so intense...I regret that Eddie's dad became bitter because Joe left (hounded by him) but like Eddie's mom had said, you sleep on the bed you made. I might be wrong but has Eddie & Daniel came out to Joe & Elijah? Overall I find this story so emotionally intense & beautiful

 

cheers & be well,

 

Rad

[C James]

I really loved chpater 9! (That's how EMoe spells it, so it must be the right way...)

 

The Sheriff might not be likable, but he comes across as a real professional here.

 

Eddie's Dad, well, I admit that was a surprise to me. Nothing had ever happened between him and Joe, yet he expected to have a long-term secret affair with Joe after they were married to women?

 

The big question I have is: who started the fire? Is Mom covering for Dad?

 

Glad to see things are working out for Eddie and Danny.

Edited February 4, 2007 by C James

[JulienGregg]

I'm not sure about Eddie's dad's involvement in the fire. I believe he at least knows something about it. Anyway, very good chapter. I only started reading the story yesterday and I'm all caught up. Hats off to Mr. Kirk. A departure from his usaul genre, but a great read!

 

Julien

[ethan thorn]

Great new chapter and worth the wait.

[EMoe57]

I really loved chpater 9! (That's how EMoe spells it, so it must be the right way...)

Me? Not me! I never spell chpater wrong! :ranger:

 

Eddie's Dad, well, I admit that was a surprise to me. Nothing had ever happened between him and Joe, yet he expected to have a long-term secret affair with Joe after they were married to women?

Did you notice that we stated the story with Eddie headed in pretty much the same direction?

[C James]

Me? Not me! I never spell chpater wrong! :ranger:

EMoe, I was was doing a continuity check between the chapter I sent you last week and the one I'm finishing up today, and

I noticed I typoed and misspelled a little something in the chapter I sent you, Right after the "by" in the title block.

 

Did you notice that we stated the story with Eddie headed in pretty much the same direction?

 

Yes indeed, but did Eddie expect to have a long-term sexual affair with a GUY on the side? Hmmm, well, he was talking about getting married to a girl, even after admitting his feelings...

 

Eddie's dad is definitely an enigma, but exceedingly realistic in his homophobia; I've seen some of the worst (real world) homophobes turn out to be closeted gay or bi guys. I think DK got that dead-on, and I'm very glad that he did: This is something so often lacking in gay fiction, where everyone with some homosexual tendencies is usually portrayed as gay-friendly. The real world is decidedly not like that.

Edited February 7, 2007 by C James

[EMoe57]

I really loved chpater 9! (That's how EMoe spells it, so it must be the right way...)

Me? Not me! I never spell chpater wrong! :ranger:

EMoe, I was was doing a continuity check between the chapter I sent you last week and the one I'm finishing up today, and I noticed I typoed and misspelled a little something in the chapter I sent you, Right after the "by" in the title block.

You 'was was'? No, I didn

[Bondwriter]

I read the whole story at once, so I guess I'll have to catch up with work this evening... Nice dialogues and relationships. I like the ellipsis and the moments DK chooses to depict to get the plot moving. The whole small-town atmosphere is well depicted, and brought me back to living in a small town in the Midwest. The characters are a nice blend, though Eddie and Daniel do not meet too many bigots in their immediate surroundings.

 

As for the dad, I can't say I was surprised, for he picks up on Eddie being gay quite quickly, and his excessive reaction betrays his repressed feelings. I guess the genre/ site also induces some easy guessing. I must admit that had I read the story without knowing, the whole Eddie/ Daniel affair would have been a bit of a surprise, lees so the dad once you're told about how much his son is like him.

 

And boy, I had never read so much about religion in contemporary fiction since I came to this site!

[old bob]

....and brought me back to living in a small town in the Midwest. .....And boy, I had never read so much about religion in contemporary fiction since I came to this site!

Hi Fran

[Bondwriter]

Gonna make it quick since this is the Bully's thread: I'm well aware of religion in the US, I lived with Full Gospel believers for a year in 1988, and I visited relatives for the holidays for three weeks (not religious), hence getting back into the mood of American religions through the media, the numerous churches, etc. And this is a very important topic all over the forum. I have nothing against religion in stories, but coming from a lay country where less than 5% of people go to church, it's always some kinf of shock. And raised as a Catholic and going to church, I was in a minority. Seems I love to belong to minorities.

 

This being said, The Bully did bring me back to this small-town atmosphere I knew, with the high school (250 students grades 9-12 where I was), the lack of activities, not knowing if the football team (in our case, the hockey team) would have enough players to start training...

[old bob]

This being said, The Bully did bring me back to this small-town atmosphere I knew, with the high school (250 students grades 9-12 where I was), the lack of activities, not knowing if the football team (in our case, the hockey team) would have enough players to start training...

Sorry for the diversion about religion . But going back to this small-town atmosphere in "the Bully", there are a lot of differences between stories written by younger people and those, like this one, written by more "mature" writers, like DK. When i compare his "life story", as we were fortunate to read in his first blogs, with for instance the story of young Davey in DO and DOR, as of Eddie in this story, I have the impression that DK write "real", nourished by his memories, and as a result, DK needs very few words to bring "alive" the actors and the places. I suppose it has something to do with his "easy writing". Before he put the words on paper (or screen !) , he "sees really" what he wants to write and he has only to "describe" it. Thats the difference between an expert writer and a beginner, and thats why we are so happy to have the chance to read his strories .

[EMoe57]

I think small-town America or maybe micro-town America (population measured in the hundreds) is more like a big family than a town. Everybody knows everyone elses business and like'm or hate'm, they all sorta get along for mutual benefit. A strong preacher in a local church can set the tone for the whole town, leading the towns folk towards good or bad. The movie Footloose comes to mind as an example of this where the grieving preacher persuaded the town to outlaw dancing because his son died after a dance

[C James]

I think small-town America or maybe micro-town America (population measured in the hundreds) is more like a big family than a town. Everybody knows everyone elses business and like'm or hate'm, they all sorta get along for mutual benefit. A strong preacher in a local church can set the tone for the whole town, leading the towns folk towards good or bad. The movie Footloose comes to mind as an example of this where the grieving preacher persuaded the town to outlaw dancing because his son died after a dance

[Bondwriter]

Take it from someone who lives in the sticks: DK definitly has it right. Footloose is a good example, and a local preacher can indeed hold sway.

Seconded, I just couldn't picture Nevada, I had it taking place in Northern Minnesota. But the small town dynamics are about the same (with changes here and there in the details) in most of our western world, from my own little experience.

[Bassanimal]

From what I can tell from the story another good suspect for the fire would be everyones despised principal Mr. Betlock. He seems to have a major stick up his ass ( no pun intended ) , about both the Homosexual aspect and whereever eddie is concerned. His attitude throughout since chapter 4 has been derogatory and bigoted. But hey I could be wrong, i was about the end of dreams.

 

 

BassAnimal

[books4dogs]

I just read the whole nine chapters of "The Bully" and can't wait to see what happens in chapter ten. I was surprised to the drastic change in eddie but none the less happy that he is finally becoming happy again.

[Bondwriter]

What we might have suspected or guessed was right. A happy ending, with a great scene of family drama in the church. Very Capra-like, I loved it! Very good dialogues. I really enjoyed this story a lot.