Cia

We featured this in the weekend blog, too, but I wanted to start a topic this morning. Our venerable leader has spent 12 long years on GA--not just keeping the site open, but ensuring GA keeps up with the technology of the times--and we appreciate that so much. That dedication has been a driving force in making the site the awesome community it is. Some of you already commented, but please feel free to share your thoughts here, as well.

That depends on what you're suppressing and why. Humans desire sex as a natural connection to others--but if it harms someone else, or yourself, then it's not a good connection and can hurt you more than its worth. We have the ability to use reason, though that can be hard to do when feelings are involved. All in all, your question is quite vague so it's hard to know what exactly is going on and how to reply.

So many new members. Thanks, Ricky, Suvitar, and Ghostboy for welcoming them. I hope everyone who finds GA--whether that be by recommendation, following their fav authors, or a google search! I'm one of the site staff on GA, and my PM box is always open if you have site questions. I primarily work with the authors, as well, so if you have posting questions let me know. Our Help tab also has a ton of great information.

Happy Birthday, hun! I hope you have a great birthday!

Now that we re-whet everyone's appetites for flash fiction, let's get back into our weekly fun of Comicfan's great prompts! Thank you to everyone who participated in Wednesday's feature about why we like flash and how we do it, especially to everyone who tried it out! This week we have a very diverse word list prompt as well as a creative theme featuring... well, read on to find out, and then see what you can come up with! Prompt 354 – Creative Tag – List of words Use the following in a story – bottle of pills, birth announcement, a balloon, a scuffed sneaker, and a new car. Prompt 355 – Creative Tag – The book You found this really incredible book in the little used book store on your last shopping trip. Its cover sort of reminded you of a trip you had taken as a child with your family. As you begin to read the book you find it nearly word for word describes everything that happened in your life. It begins to worry you as you read on and see what happened to other members of your immediate family. What blows you mind is you find yourself reading about your own life experiences. What do you do with the book? Do you read to the end? I'd like to feature a few different prompt responses since it's been a bit since the last feature. Rook Lee did a great job on their first prompt response, ever, and I couldn't help but snicker at Greg_A's creative quip! And from Prompt response by Sasha Distan for Prompt 352... which Sasha teasingly said is a hint of things come! Want to read more of Sasha's work? Read here!

Keep them coming everyone! These are wonderful.

Those are great! I like the way you incorporated the dialogue! That really set the scene without showing us anything with narration. Great first time, Rook Lee!

Yes, thank you, avidreadr! That's exactly how I want him to seem to readers. I'm glad you're enjoying the story; thanks so much for the review.

I had another reader note they just realized that Yuri was acting more like my 'normal' characters than before, too. You've noticed that I'm trying to show his emotional progression and control, coming back with his recovery, yet he's not unchanged--including his dislike of fibbing, lol. Glad you enjoyed the chapter, and thanks for the review!

Thanks Gary! Sorry for the late reply, and the way too short chapters, lol.

Great guys! Keep them coming!

Yuri couldn’t breathe. His stomach hurt, and his head throbbed. He dropped to his knees, blindly reaching for the floor. He gagged, stomach heaving. He didn’t… He couldn’t… Images flickered. Peten ducking under his bed when his door slammed open. His mother bowing to his father. Hiding those magazines in the back of his closet—snorting at the irony, even at fifteen. Seeing his mate for the first time in the midst of a boring merging meeting with the new Clan. Joy. Pleasure. Pain. Yuri’s st

I thought, this week, that we’d discuss something we host here on GA, and promote weekly on the blog. Flash fiction, namely in the guise of our prompts. Our anthologies are an extension of that as well. But we’ve never really talked about the art of creating these types of short stories—so today we will! I think there are two main questions most people have: What is flash fiction and why do people write it? FLASH FICTION Flash fiction can also run the gamut of ‘regular fiction’. It can be found lurking in all genres and styles. It is often themed or prompted by specific words, phrases, or images. And any one prompt can become any number of story angles, based on how the author sees the image. But what do all flash pieces have in common? They’re short. We’re talking 100 to 1,500 words, usually. That doesn’t mean they’re incomplete or lesser in any way from longer novellas or novels. It just means the author must, with an economy of words, unfold their tale from start to finish. Does that mean flash pieces should still have an arc? Well, maybe the longer pieces can, but instead of thinking flash must employ a beginning/middle/end the way most arcs do, think about what makes a reader drawn to a story. What do they enjoy and take away from it? Satisfaction. Whether a flash piece is about an orphan finding a home or a cat, desperate for a taste, knocking the cream off the counter and down the sink or a man getting the nerve up to ask someone on a date but finds his cell is dead… there’s an expectation of something happening and that moment being fulfilled in some way. Thus, satisfaction is achieved. Readers can see this writing element in many of the popular pieces from GA’s prompts, if they look for it. That doesn’t mean authors have to employ a positive outcome, of course. Sadness, disappointment, even loss, can be powerful emotions to leave with a reader. How is that done? In many ways! That’s the beauty of flash fiction, and why many authors do write it. Authors are free to explore different styles and genres when they’re not looking to fill a notebook or type 100 pages locked into one storyline. A single image or phrase can become a comedy, a tragedy, or a science fiction parody… all depending on skill and desire. It gives authors a chance to stretch their mental muscles, to explore and expand their style and repertoire. But isn’t it lazy to not attempt to make every story idea into the next great novel? Flash is so… simple, right? After all, it’s just a few words. Not many. Isn’t it easy? Anyone can do it! Well yes, anyone can write a few hundred words. But can they do it well? Do they understand why flash fiction really is its own niche of the writing world? Well, some do. But that doesn’t mean it’s easy. Explaining a static visual or scene prompt in as few words as possible can be much harder than people think. Authors must avoid bloat words and phrases and often editing is more cut, cut, cut, than removing typos. Ensuring the reader can relate with a scene or character, without having chapters to share all their information, is incredibly difficult. Authors have to find that connection because, without it, their flash just won’t resonate. Okay, so I like to make these blog posts interactive so you can tell me what you think I have right or wrong, lol. I have a few questions for everyone. Have you thought about writing flash but haven’t for some reason? Spill it! If you do write flash, what aspect of the craft do you most enjoy? What do you find the most challenging? For those who are interested, how about trying a bit of flash now? It’ll be a micro challenge; that will make it easy… right? Describe, in 10 words—exactly 10, no more and no less—what is happening in this picture. Who are they? 3 friends? A ménage? Who is taking the picture? Why? What has their day been like? Are they having fun in the sun or much need relief after a hot summer day slaving away at work? Is the beach winter cold and bad for surfing, so they play Frisbee? Well?

Do you write? Are you willing to consider writing a story for Premium? We're always on the lookout for great authors with a dedication to quality fiction who'd like to work with the site to provide content for our Premium subscribers, and make a little money, to boot! Feel free to PM me, if you're interested in starting a discussion. If you're interested in reading some of these great stories, then you need to become a Premium subscriber. Memberships can be purchased in the site store! Ice Fairy II by Stephanie L Danielson It's been five weeks since the disappointment in London. Brett and Sam have grown closer and want to seal the deal; but there are nerves and hesitations holding them back; plus forces at work they don't even know about yet. Series: Ice Fairy Words: 47,164 Chapters: 21 Category Fiction Genres Romance, Drama Tags School, North America, Gay, Parents, Young Adult, Mature Adult Rating Mature Want to read "Ice Fairy II"? Or maybe you want to check out more of what's in the Premium Section? It's easy, just purchase a Premium Subscription! Premium Content $8.10 $8.10 Monthly Premium Content - 3 Months $24.00 $24.00 Every 3 months Premium Content - 6 Months $47.00 $47.00 Every 6 months Premium Content - 1 Year $93.00 $93.00 Annually

Actually, some authors fly right out of the queue stage. Part of it depends on quality and type of content, but a large part of it is related to how active an author is on the site. The more you comment on the forums, post consistently, review for others, etc... the more your own work garners attention. And unfortunately, I typically like to see more than just 2 submissions before we let authors out of the submission queue. We've been burned before by plagiarists posting original content until they get out of the queue, then passing off others' work as their own. While I am not saying you are in any way that type of person, it is a very real concern for us on the site, and one of the reasons we have the queue in place, beyond the need to ensure authors know how to post correctly.

Shh! I'm masquerading as Renee this week. I'm just her puppet, bringing you the site news for this week. I'm sure she's up in the woods thinking, "Dance, puppet, dance!" LOL Okay, to kick off a week of Cia the sub, we have an exciting short by Andrew Todd. If you like sci-fi this might be right up your alley! Empath’s Kiss By Andrew Todd Author Reviewer: Renee Stevens Status: Complete Word Count: 13,996 This was the first story I’d ever read by this author and I have to say that after reading Empath’s Kiss I am sure that I will be looking at reading more by Andrew Todd. To say that I was intrigued from the start doesn’t quite give justice to how much this story captured me and kept me reading, despite the fact that I should have been in bed asleep. I just had to keep reading to the end. Empath’s Kiss follows two teenagers, Damon and Kai. Damon just happens to be an empath, though it is stated from the start of the story that he wasn’t supposed to be. His generation wasn’t supposed to have any ability, so of course, I wondered, what made him different. Now, I could tell you, but the twist that gives him his ability is one that I think the reader should find out for themselves. I actually was quite impressed at the spin that Andrew Todd gave to explain the how and why behind Damon’s abilities. It was certainly not something that I was expecting. Damon is not alone however, he has a very loving boyfriend who is there from the start of the story. Kai knows all about Damon’s abilities and is there to lend his support whenever Damon does more than he should. He, for lack of a better term, is Damon’s rock. It is quite obvious throughout the story that the two boys love each other deeply, and while young, the two boys share secrets that bind them together more closely than most couples could ever hope to be. I normally am not one for teenage stories, but this was one of those that I am certainly glad I read. Not only did the story flow smoothly, but the characters were well thought out and portrayed. One of my favorite things about this story was that both boys' families played major roles throughout the story. Yes, at times they were background characters, but at others, they were right up there in the thick of things, lending their support. Definitely a must read in my opinion and an author to keep an eye on. Category: Fiction Genres: Fantasy, Sci-Fi, Romance Tags: Psionics, Teen, Under 18, Gay Rating: Teen

Like the weekly prompts, the fun with the quarterly anthologies is seeing where everyone goes with a similar idea. There is always a wide range of directions stories go, yet they all have this one link.

LOL! I dunno, the finale needs to be kinda epic, I think! Especially with a theme like Chain Reaction. I'll need time for that. Thanks for reading, impunity!

Yes! I wanted to show they all have their own personalities, preferences, and ways to relate to each other--not only in their roles as they work together, but in their romantic relationship, too. More will be coming to fill my plan to write a new short each anthology for this year, and who knows what will come after that? I do like this world, though, and I can't see myself running out of material soon. Thanks again for reading and reviewing!

More great insight! That's exactly right. Some people are just so inured to the way their life is, and what they expect for themselves, they can't make that leap--especially when it comes at a bit of a cost to their pride. Thank you so much for reviewing all my stories!

LOL! I'm glad the weird works for you! I like playing with new concepts, they make writing fun.

What a great review, thank you! You got exactly the vibe I wanted for readers. I didn't want him to feel like a weak character--and he had every right to be pissed--but you're right, Moshe and Lisco were good guys, too. Thanks so much for reading!

Awww, thank you Jo Ann, I try! I admit to liking the typical alpha male shifter story a bit too much, but I don't always like writing it. I want to go beyond that, beyond the changing into animals, into something new and different. I'm so glad you enjoy it, especially because it's not a genre you typically read.

I'm glad you think so! I appreciated your input, and I think the building of the ranch into a working place, to some extent, was just as necessary to create that feeling of completeness--you were spot on the story needed more. I have a Moshe-type man, maybe not quite as sweet as often though, but it's a funny stereotype. Big and good with his hands doesn't have to be rough and stupid. Moshe's one of my fav characters, too.

I'm so glad the guys have grown on you! I know you're not into MMM, but as this isn't contemporary, I've really tried to keep the usual jealousy and love triangle BS out of the story--and I've plenty of other plot elements that it works. I think just about everything I create can be expanded into a new world and series, lol. If only I had more time (and the ability to focus on writing all the time like the really dedicated authors). And yes, you'll learn more about the aliens, I promise! Thanks for the review, hun!