Renee Stevens

Thank you, Gary. It's one of those I didn't even think about, the words just came.

I never met you But I knew you I never saw you But you were beautiful I never met you But you were part of me I never heard your voice But I spoke to you I never met you But I loved you

Thank you, everyone! I hope I didn't miss anyone. A huge to everyone!

Thank you, tim! The poem is beautiful and the sentiment even more so. Thank you, BlindAmbition! It's been pretty nice so far. Thank you, Cia!!! Thank you, Reader! Thank you, Cole! Thank you, DDK! Thank you, Myr! Thank you, Sly! Thank you, Palantir, I'm definitely trying! Thank you, Drew!!! Thank you, Krista!

Thank you, RJ! Thank you, Lyssa! Thank you, JayT! No plans to go anywhere Thank you, TalonRider! Thank you, SolarMaxx! Thank you, Aditus! Thank you, Def! The hubby has been spoiling me Thank you, Puppi! Thank you, Val! And I absolutely love that cake!!! Wonder if anyone here could make it Thank you, AC!!!

Hope everyone has had a great week so far and is looking forward to the weekend. What better way to start it off than with brand new prompts! If you've been feeling stuck, or maybe just want to do something a little different, maybe one of these prompts will jump start a new idea. Just remember, prompt responses under 1,000 words must be posted as part of a collection. Also, to make it so that nobody feels like their prompt response is getting overlooked, we've changed the format. Rather than us picking the prompt responses to share, authors can share their response in the comments. Provide a small excerpt and a link and help people find your prompts! Prompt 592 - Challenge Tag – Details Describe your favorite object. Try to use as many senses as you can in your description, making the details come alive for your reader. Prompt 593 – Creative Tag – First Line What did you promise this time? So, did you write a prompt response last week? Share it with us!

It's time for another author promo! I'm completely out of these promos, so if you'd like to promo your own work, take a look at the thread for guidelines and then PM me. For this month, our featured promo spot is for Mikiesboy. There were three questions that Mikiesboy had to answer for each story. The questions were What gave you the idea for this story? What was your favorite thing about writing this story? & Please tell us something about this story that is not already in the description. Mikiesboy Promising Author 22 stories · 4,280 comments · 193,265 total words After the Past Description: Life after the past isn't what most of us dream of, or hope for. What gave you the idea for this story? The first chapter was written years ago but there was a push for dystopian stories at the time, so I’m sure I was influenced by those. Most of those stories had very evil overlords who had taken over and controlled others. I just wondered if that was how it would be. I wondered what would likely end most of the human race - war or disease. I chose disease, a virus. What was your favorite thing about writing this story? Creating the characters I think and then building their relationships, but most important making sure it felt real. Please tell us something about this story that is not already in the description. It’s a love story really. There tough times, sad ones, and ones filled with joy. It’s Dave’s story, his life, and what happens as a result of his humanity, and his choices. Levko Description: Levko is a rent boy who supports his roommate and pimp, but his life changes one dark night. What gave you the idea for this story? My life did. My experience was very much like Lev’s, but how we each ended up are much different. What was your favorite thing about writing this story? At the time I wrote this I’d read a few BDSM stories which seemed over-the-top and a little unreal. So I decided to draw from my experience and bring my voice, and take on the subject. Please tell us something about this story that is not already in the description. This is really two stories, Lev finds a second life and he also finds the strength to leave one and accept the other. Delicious Description: Faris and James meet life head-on, together. What gave you the idea for this story? It was a prompt. I hadn’t been a member here long when I saw a Prompt #447 – The Gift: You haven’t been feeling well lately, but you still try to keep up with your normal routine. You’ve been asked to a party, and although you don’t feel well, you decide to go. The only request is that as a gift you give something homemade. What do you give as your gift? What was your favorite thing about writing this story? Oh, that has to be the two main characters, Faris and James and their dog, Larry. I laughed until I cried writing Delicious. Faris is Scottish, big and sexy and James is slim and slight, and both madly in love with each other. They get up to all sorts of adventures. I wanted to write something funny and I kind of surprised myself in that I managed it. I hope. Please tell us something about this story that is not already in the description. There are (so far) 9 separate short stories in this collection featuring these two and their dogs. Stories range from how they met and married, to dealing with rats, birthdays, and illness.

I hope everyone had a great weekend, but now it's time to start off a new week. A great way to start the week is to take a look at a story that can be found on Gay Authors. Today's feature is Rule #3 by CassieQ. William King was nice enough to provide us with this great review. If you haven't already done so, maybe it will inspire you to take a look. If you do, don't forget to leave Cassie some reviews. Enjoy! Rule #3 CassieQ Reviewer: William King Status: Complete Word Count: 16,582 I will often start a review of a story by saying something about whether it was well written, and easy and enjoyable to read. This story was all those things, but more than the fluidity of the writing and the well-balanced pace, there was the intriguing concept of the plot. As I got deeper into the story, I could not help thinking it was all too Nice! I repeatedly thought to myself—no way—things have to start getting nasty here, or it’s not real. But at the same time, I couldn’t help the warm feeling that leapt off the pages; I was drawn to these three nice characters. It was Marc who was at the center of things; the story revolved around this central character, but it was Ryland who came most alive. Don’t read that statement to mean Marc and Gabriel were not well-drawn personages, they were. Even Gabriel’s character was full enough, although of the three, he was the least written. But Ryland's feelings and emotions were so real, it felt like he was there with me when I was reading the story. The premise of the story is they all 'do the right thing' in extraordinary circumstances, but I doubt such relationships occur very often. And if they do, I can’t imagine that they work out like in Rule #3. But therein lies the skill of the author—a twofold talent—on the one hand, Cassie can tell a story that can’t fail to make you feel good inside, but on the other hand, she can do so in such a way it becomes completely believable. I found this story a joy to read and a treat for the heart, ending with what I have to suppose is a happily ever after—with a twist. Read Rule #3 to find out what that is! Category: Anthology Genres: Romance Tags: young adult, gay, urban, light-hearted Rating: Mature

It's that time of the week again! In case you missed any of what's been going on this week, never fear, because we'll take a quick peek at everything that we looked at from Monday on. Are you worried you might have missed a story update from one of your favorite authors? We'll help you out there too with the story updates from all of GA's promoted authors. Contests Halloween Short Story Contest - Due September 15th, 2017 Anthology Announcements: ***NOTE: All Deadlines are for submission to the Anthology Proof Team 2017 Fall Anthology: The Fall Out / Secret Spaces - Due November 15th, 2017 Premium Updates: Negative Splits by Cia *Premium* Signature Updates: Caesura by aditus; Book 2 of The King's Mate Mine! by Cia Negative Splits by Cia The Castaway Hotel: Next Generation Book 2 by Bill W; Book 11 of The Castaway Hotel The Hollow Hills by Valkyrie Promising Updates: Buy One, Get Two and Three... by Caz Pedroso Choices by LitLover Cozy Contemplations by Headstall Ripped by craftingmom timmy's poetry by Mikiesboy

Hope everyone has had a great week so far. It's time for this weeks writing prompts. If you're stuck, or you're considering writing for the first time, these might be perfect for you. Don't forget that stories under 1,000 words must be posted as part of a collection. For the featured prompt responses, we're going to start doing things a little different. Rather than me pick a prompt from the previous week, the authors themselves can share their prompts in the comments. This way, no one gets left out! Prompt 590 – Creative Tag – Heart Failure You weren’t feeling good, so on your lunch break you figured you would go to the local walk-in clinic. As you enter you collapse. The only thing you remember upon waking is these two dark brown eyes. You are told by a co-worker who stops by that you were saved by a cute doctor who was on his way out of the clinic as you collapsed. What happened next? Prompt 591 – Creative Tag – List of Words Use the following words in a story – a blanket, a broken cell phone, a park, a squirrel, and a pear. Now, share your prompt responses from Prompt #588 and Prompt #589!

Thank you, Northern Dutch Guy! Hope to see you on discussion day!

You once again show your beautiful heart.

I hope everyone is having a wonderful day today. For your enjoyment today, we have an interview with Valkyrie where she talks about her writing process, her book Hollow Hills, and a few questions just for fun. If you haven't read Valkyrie's stories, you can do so here! Hope you enjoy! Valkyrie General Author Questions What does your writing process look like? I don’t really follow the same process with every story. Sometimes I’ll jot ideas down or make an outline, but most of the time the story is in my head and I just write until it’s done. If I get stuck or the story has too many directions it can go in, I’ll discuss it with my beta readers to help me narrow it down. Do you have any strange writing habits (like standing on your head or writing in the shower)? I do a lot of ‘writing’ in the car. I get a lot of ideas when I’m commuting to and from work or travelling. Sometimes I really wish I could actually write while driving, but I don’t think that’s such a good idea… lol Sometimes I need to write using pen and paper vs. the computer. I find when I write poetry especially that I prefer starting with pen and paper before entering it on the computer. When I write stories, sometimes it helps me get past a block. I have notebooks full of story scraps, ideas/notes, and poems. Just as your books inspire authors, what authors have inspired you to write? I would be beyond flattered if any of my writing inspired others. As far as my own influences, I would have to say Tolkien, Anne Rice, Marguerite Henry, Sam Savitt, and Piers Anthony. Anne Rice’s Vampire Chronicles led me to look for more m/m type stories, which eventually led me here. How important are names to you in your books? Do you choose the names based on liking the way it sounds or the meaning? Do you have any name choosing resources you recommend? Names are extremely important in my stories. I try to tailor the name of the characters to the theme of the story, if possible. For example, in Faeries Anonymous the majority of characters have names associated with what they are. So Jonquil is a flower faery, Alvin means ‘elf friend’, and Garin is an elf with a dwarf name. My favorite in that story has to be Dr. Schmetterling, though. For those unfamiliar with German, it means ‘butterfly’. Sometimes I pick names because I like them. Joshua is my favorite male name, which is how Josh from The Hollow Hills got his name. Galen in the same story was created almost instantly when I first heard the name. I was working in retail at the time and had a customer named Galen come in and my immediate thought was “OMG I just found a man for Josh!” lol What do you consider to be your best accomplishment? That’s hard to say. While it hasn’t always been an easy road, I’m pretty proud to be a self-sufficient single woman. I have a good career, own my own house, and am able to enjoy little extras like hobbies and vacations. It took a long time to get to this point, and I’m enjoying it. Are you a plotter or a pantster? A little bit of both. What is your least favorite part of the writing process? Getting started and then writing the endings. I don’t usually have a problem with the middle. Sometimes I struggle with narrowing down a story to one starting point, then once I get past the middle, I want to rush and just get it finished and to my team. I need to tell myself to slow down and make sure I’m not missing any important pieces to tie the whole thing together. Is there one subject you would never write about as an author? What is it? Incest What are you working on now? What is your next project? I have a ton of ideas, and I hope to get them all written at some point. I’d like to expand both The Legend of Treehaven Woods and Faeries Anonymous. I also plan on writing a sequel to Vodka at Moonlight. I have a story idea centered around my Day 28 poem for National Poetry Month (which can be found in April Musings chapter 14). Good news for Galen and Josh fans… my immediate plan is to concentrate on finishing The Hollow Hills. Rapid Fire Questions If you had a superpower, what would it be? Teleportation. I’d love to be able to just pop in and visit my friends who live far away. If you were a super hero, what would your name be? What costume would you wear? Super Penguin! LOL I wouldn’t need much of a costume, since penguins have natural tuxedos, so maybe a bowtie with a ‘P’ in the center and a black cape. Capes are always cool. What secret talents do you have? I can draw pretty well. Animals, anyway. I’m horrible at drawing people. I can also stand with my feet facing inward, toes touching, feet perpendicular to my body. I’ve never met anyone else who can do that. I must have weird feet because I can also stick my toes straight up in the air with my feet on the ground, creating a 90 degree angle. It used to gross my brother out when we were kids. Where is one place you want to visit that you haven't been before? I have lots of places I want to visit! Top of the list would be the UK and Europe, specifically Germany and Poland. I’d also like to see the Spanish Riding School in Vienna. If you were an animal in a zoo, what would you be? Since my member title is ‘Pesky Penguin’, I suppose I’d have to go with that… lol If you could have any accents from anywhere in the world, what would you choose? Irish or Scottish *swoon* Do you dream? Do you have any recurring dreams/nightmares? I dream all the time. Most of the time they’re quite epic, with intricate plots mingled with lots of bizarreness. My absurdist prose poem about the three-headed duck with one leg is based on an actual dream I had. I don’t have any recurring dreams, but I do have recurring themes. I dream a lot about GA, which tells me I probably spend way too much time on here! Lol They’re mainly dreams about meeting site friends. Water is another recurring theme in my dreams. Sometimes it’s as small as a puddle and other times I’ve had to wake myself up from a literal wall of water about to crash into me. I could go on and on about my dreams, but I’ll stop now since there’s still more questions to go. Book Specific Quickly, give us the title and genre of your book and a 30-word or less tagline: The Hollow Hills After leaving his boyfriend of twenty years, Galen decides to return to his roots and move across the country to leave near his cousin. He meets Josh, and his life takes an unexpected turn. Then tragedy strikes, and everyone has to learn how to live with their new reality. How did you come up with the title of your book or series? It’s the name of the farm where a lot of the story takes place. Who is your favorite character from your book and why? It’s a toss-up between Josh and Galen. Josh has been around in some form since I was a freshman in high school, so he’s pretty dear to me. Galen’s capacity for love and forgiveness is something I’m pretty impressed by. How about your least favorite character? What makes them less appealing to you? Roger. Because he’s a dick. If you could change ONE thing about your story, what would it be? Why? I would have waited to post it until it’s complete. I had about seven chapters written when I first started posting it, and thought I would easily be able to keep pace, but then I got sick and stopped writing for a few months, which put me majorly behind. I’ve put it on the back burner several times in order to participate in anthologies and contests, so I’m glad to have a few months now with no other writing commitments. One thing I would change about the story itself is that I should have introduced Adam earlier. Adam is Alannah’s adopted son, but doesn’t feature much in this story. Give us an interesting fun fact or a few about your book or series: There’s a tie-in with Alex’s Legacy and a few of my early prompt responses feature characters from The Hollow Hills. Josh and Alannah didn’t get along when they first met. It’s not mentioned in the book so far, but Josh drives a black ‘50s era Ford pickup.

Thanks, tim!!!

Thanks, Mann!

Look forward to discussing it with you, LitLover!

Thanks, Gary! I feel bad that I kind of fell down on responding to reviews on this one. Hopefully I'll have everything replied to by the end of the month!

Glad you enjoyed it, Val!!!

Sneaky sneaky! Thanks, Cia, for the feature!!!

I hope everyone has had a great week. There were no prompts this week, but they'll be back next week. So let's take a look at what blogs were posted. Contests Halloween Short Story Contest - Due September 15th, 2017 Anthology Announcements: ***NOTE: All Deadlines are for submission to the Anthology Proof Team 2017 Fall Anthology: The Fall Out / Secret Spaces - Due November 15th, 2017 Premium Updates: A Closed Door by Andrew_Q_Gordon *Premium* Negative Splits by Cia *Premium* Classic Updates: Reggie's Journal by Ronyx Signature Updates: A prompt a week by comicfan April Musings by Valkyrie Mine! by Cia One Hundred and Fifty-Five Sonnets by AC Benus; Book 5 of Verse The Castaway Hotel: Next Generation Book 2 by Bill W; Book 11 of The Castaway Hotel The Secret Life Of Billy Chase 9 by Comicality; Book 9 of The Secret Life Of Billy Chase Promising Updates: Choices by LitLover Cozy Contemplations by Headstall Headstall's Reflections by Headstall Lyrical Laments by Headstall Prompts 2017 by Caz Pedroso; Book 4 of Prompt's timmy's poetry by Mikiesboy

Sorry to say that mine is still kicking me off constantly. Up-to-date firefox on Windows 10, and Chrome on Galaxy S7

3 or 4, I'd have to look

Don't worry Dodger, if interest wanes and we don't have anyone else sign up, then I get to do your critique

These go in whatever order I get them in. So yes, it doesn't matter what order you signed up in, just when I get the critique.

Have any of you somehow set your browser to clear the cache/cookies when you close the browser?