Renee Stevens

“Gary told me what you’re planning to do for us and Trey.” Mark had been so busy watching Trey and his dad prep the fire pit he hadn’t even heard Diane come up next to him and nearly dropped the beer he was holding. He turned and smiled at her. “Hi Diane.” “Sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you.” Diane sat next to him on the porch swing. “Just the fact that Trey brought you up here to meet us told me that he loved you. Gary kept saying that you two hadn’t known each other long enough, but

I hope everyone is having a fantastic week. It's time for our weekly look back at what happened in the GA News Blog, which is a great way to see what you might have missed! On Monday Louis (LJH) provided us with a review of "Roommates" by Signature Author: Krista. He thoroughly enjoyed the story and if the other comments are anything to go by, so did some of the other readers. Also, it looks to me like his review even drew a new reader to the story, that's always a great thing and one of our purposes of the Feature Monday's! Last month we featured the Promising Authors in the first part of a two part series. On Wednesday we featured the Signature Authors in Best/Worst Part II. I asked Signature Authors to share with us one of their harshest reviews and one of their best and to also share how they were affected. Check it out if you haven't already done so and don't forget to share your thoughts! Cia took over the blog on Thursday to announce GA's Newest Promising Author: CarringtonRJ. If you haven't already, stop by and offer your own congrats to those already there! The prompts returned on Friday after a week long hiatus due to the release of the 2014 Spring Anthology: Nature's Wrath. The prompts this week offered a list of words and a creative prompt with the tag of "parade". I can't wait to see what all of our prompters due with them! This week we featured a response from JMH to Prompt #308. Anthology Announcements: 2014 Poetry Anthology: A Storm is Coming - Due April 15th 2014 Summer Anthology: The Backup Plan - Due June 8th *Note: Deadline is for submission into GA Stories. Deadline for Submission to the Anthology Editing Team is June 5th* NEW READING In Premium this week: Boy Called Slave by Nephylim By our Signature Authors this week: Leopard Skin Cover by Graeme Standing In Shadows by Krista GA Writing Prompts by Dolores Esteban Adverse Effects by Cia; Book 2 of Saving Caeorleia HMS Valiant by Mark Arbour; Book 7 of Bridgemont Lost Inside by Cia; Book 2 of Carthera Tales 0300 Book 3 by David McLeod Changing Lanes by C James The Strange Life of Jonas Marks by comicfan Prometheus Wakens by David McLeod Flux by Mark Arbour; Book 14 of Chronicles Of An Academic Predator (CAP) Thwarted by Renee Stevens Veil of Shadow by Stellar; Book 2 of unnamed Noah's New Plan by Rob Colton Purpose - A New Beginning by Andrew_Q_Gordon So Little Magic Left by Mann Ramblings Mrs. Benson by comicfan By our Promising Authors this week: Guitars 2 by layla The Shunning by JMH Runner-Up by FrenchCanadian Knights With Girl Faces by carringtonrj Wicked Boy by Sasha Distan; Book 6 of The Best Circle of Hell Stories Broken Prince and Mismatched Eyes by layla Born Wolf by Sasha Distan Curse of the Fallen by JMH; Book 2 of Fallen Drawing a New Life by layla Remember.... Read, Write... and REVIEW!!!!!

The prompts are back! We didn't have any prompts last week because I hijacked Friday to announce the release of the 2014 Spring Anthology: Nature's Wrath. I hope everyone enjoyed the stories and if you haven't already read them, I encourage everyone to go take a look. Lots of good stories to choose from. Guess it's time to see what the prompt guru, Comicfan, has in store for us this week! Prompt 310 – Creative Tag – List of Words Use the following words in a story – tent, a running river, a wolf, a lighter, and a bowl of cereal. Prompt 311 – Creative Tag – Parade You woke up this morning only to hear someone pounding on your front door a moment later. Throwing on a robe you open the door to find your best friend standing there looking at you. “I thought you would be dressed by now. We are going to be late to the parade!” What parade are you supposed to be going to and what happens? Two weeks ago we had someone share their first-ever prompt response with us, so I decided to use it for the featured prompt. Hope you enjoy JMH's response to prompt #308: Want to read more? Read it here. Don't forget.... Read, Write, and Review!!!!

I agree knotme. You're never too old to learn. Notice that I didn't do the line as "He was damn well too old to be taught how to catch a fish." I think the line, with the way it is written, more shows what he feels as his own inadequacies, but he did follow Gary's coaching, so he was obviously willing to learn. I also think it shows a little bitterness towards his own dad for not having taken the time to teach him rather than berate him when he was younger. At least, that's my thoughts. Thanks for reviewing and I'm glad you are enjoying the story!!!

Glad you enjoyed the bit longer chapter Lisa! I always try to keep within the limits, but I just didn't feel I could cut anything from it, so I didn't. Bad me! Oh well, lol. I kind of wanted to show that it was instinct to kind of shy away when he'd done something that wouldn't be seen as "perfect" as that was what Mark's dad had expected of him growing up. We'll definitely learn more about Mark's dad, but I already don't like what I know about him, and I know more than you guys do!!! However, I do really like Gary . Personally, I think my favorite part of this chapter was the ending. Thanks for reviewing!!!

So does my dad. In fact, we have a fishing derby coming up and for the last four or five years, we've always fished it together. It's kind of become a daddy/daughter fishing derby, though this year we're adding my hubby into the mix since he's going to be off work for it. Thanks for reading and reviewing DDK!

Thanks for the review Suvitar! You're not alone in your feelings about Mark's dad. I really really don't like him, if you can't tell. I've gone fishing with my dad since I was little and he's always been patient. Things happen. My biggest reason for showing that in this chapter was to show the differences between Gary and Mark's dad. Also, I really wanted to show how Mark's dad has little to no tolerance for what he sees as even a minor infraction or a mistake(such as dropping the tip and letting the line go slack), and how he is very much expecting perfection. This is actually the first time I've gone over the allotted word limit, but I wasn't about to cut any of the scenes because they all felt important to me. I do try to update every week, though occasionally something happens and I can't. Don't worry, I don't plan to miss next week Thanks for reviewing!

You could be right, though this is Jackie we are talking about, lol. She tends to be a bit motherhenish when it comes to Mark. Only time is going to tell how exactly she reacts, but she's going to have him around during Trey's deployment, so knowing she has that time at least might help somewhat. And yes, I agree, separations are never easy, even for those who have been together for years. Considering the amount of time that Mark and Trey have been together, it's going to be difficult, but we'll see what happens

She will be upset, that's for sure. As Mark said though, it's not like they'll be way far away, and he'll still be able to visit. I don't doubt that when it's time to live closer she'll be back to butting in on a regular basis, because she is nothing if not persistent! Trey's mom's reaction, yeah, I still need to do that, don't I?

Yeah, she will. I'm not sure if I'm looking forward to that explosion or not. It could be interesting, that's for sure. Like you said, first we have to get Trey's deployment done and him back home with Mark. Then they can really start their planning Thank you for the review!

Thank you Henry! I try not to have too many delay's with this story, so you'll definitely have them coming regularly!

Glad you enjoyed the chapter Suvitar! I thought it was pretty obvious myself, but the words have to come out sometimes and I'd actually written Trey's part before I realized what I wrote. Think maybe he was trying to tell me "Alright, enough is enough." Mark really has multiple reasons for suggesting the school thing. He knows partly what Trey will need when he comes back, but even more than that, he's kind of suggested the best for both of them. The first two years close to Trey's family, the last two years close to his family. It gives them both a chance and really doesn't make it so that either one has to move away from their family for a long time. Thanks for the review!!!

Thank you Lisa! It seemed very fitting to end the chapter in that way. And yeah, it seemed pretty obvious to me as well. In fact, I had to go and skim all the chapters just to make sure I hadn't already done the "I love you's". Once I'd done that, the chapter went really fast! I think with Mark is, he's trying to figure out what's going to be best for all of them. He knows what it's like to have just gotten back from a warzone and he, better than many, knows that Trey is probably going to want his family around, just like he did (even if he does sometimes regret that decision, lol). Thanks again for the review!

Thanks DDK! They do have quite the road ahead of them still, but at least they have each other. It will be hard with the distance, but it can work. Glad you are still enjoying the story and look forward to hearing your thoughts on the later chapters!

Thanks for the review m.p.. I actually really enjoyed writing this chapter, and that ending just seemed very fitting. Glad you are enjoying the story!

I'm working on it! Glad you are enjoying it and thank you for the review!

Why yes, yes it is. Thanks for reviewing!!!

Oh, trust me, I share your sentiments. I have many friends who are military, one of which I've asked a few questions with this story in mind. Some of the things I've seen regarding members of her family and their behavior regarding her and her brother's military service make me grit my teeth. Their circumstances are a bit different in that some of them like it TOO much. I won't go too much into that, except to say that sometimes I just really don't understand people. I really wanted to do something different than the "my parents won't have anything to do with me because I'm gay". I've seen some instances such as Marks, though maybe not to quite the extent that I have it in this story, and so I decided to go that route instead, put a little twist to the story that way. And yes, I love Trey's folks as well. We'll definitely be seeing more of them. I wonder what would happen if Gary ever came face to face with Mark's dad? Not that it would since Mark's dad don't have anything to do with him, but I'd love to see Gary give him a piece of his mind (and maybe his fist)... and yes, it is "piece". Thanks for the review!!!!

You could very well be right DDK. I hadn't really thought of it that way *starts making notes*. I only knew that Mark wasn't sure what he wanted to DO, but he's been kinda quiet on the WHY of it. (YES, I do "talk" to my characters). Maybe Trey can give me some help on that front, if I can't get Mark to talk to me . Thanks for the review!!!

I absolutely love Gary and Diane, and I know even more about them than the readers at this point, lol. (Though it's all in my head). I wanted to do something a little different with Mark's parents. It's still up in the air how all of that will turn out, but only time is going to tell. Thanks for reviewing!!!

Even though I'm not a parent, it's understandable. I know my parents weren't too happy when I married a military man and moved away. They supported me in my choice, but that didn't mean they had to like it. Regarding Mark's parents, well... there's still plenty of story left. (Though since I'm a bit behind on answering reviews, you already know some of that)

It definitely sucks when you think you have something all figured out and someone goes and suddenly changes it on you. I agree that Gary's response is understandable and completely expected. Now we've just go to see how he handles it from here on out. Thanks for the review!!!

Agree completely DDK! I knew it would be hard for Trey's parents, but at least he still wouldn't be that far away. Thanks for reviewing!!

“Fish on!” Gary whooped and grabbed up the net as he rushed over to where Trey worked the fish. “Don’t let him get away.” “I’m trying.” Trey stepped back and Gary moved into the back corner of the boat while Mark slipped up to the front by Diane. “This is my favorite part.” Diane smiled from her spot driving the boat. Mark raised an eyebrow. What was she talking about? The back and forth between Trey and his dad? “The memories.” Diane handed him a camera. “Do you mind?” “Not at all.” M

Exactly a month ago, we gave you Best/Worst Part I, which consisted of Promising Authors, though one of the authors has since been promoted to Signature. There were lots of response as everyone seemed to enjoy the post. As promised, here's Part II: Signature Authors! I asked each author what they felt was both one of their best compliments and their worst/harshest criticism. I hope you enjoy this look into how other authors handle some of their harsher criticisms. Signature Author: CassieQ and author of Geeks Worst criticism: This is a tough one to pick from, because I believe all criticism is useful unless it is non constructive. In my mind, the worst criticism is no feedback at all! In all the time I've been writing and posting online, I've never had a criticism that has torn me apart, and although I get harsh comments from my beta sometimes they are invaluable, because they show me how to make my work better. The closest I ever came to non-constructive criticism was a review that I got on this site for NTS, in which a reviewer stated that they didn't like this kind of story and didn't like cliffhanger endings. And while I definitely appreciated the feedback, it wasn't the type of criticism that I felt that I could really do much with. I can't change the story to make it fit into a genre that the reviewer liked better and while readers often claim that cliffhangers drive them crazy, this site seems to value them. (Reader's Choice awards, anyone)? If choosing a worst criticism was hard, then choosing the best compliment is even tougher. All constructive feedback is valuable to be, so I can't really say that one is better, or best, in my mind. However, I think my favorite feedback probably comes from my beta, just because of his honesty and his willingness to tell me things that I don't like to hear sometimes. Because his criticism is so honest despite hurting my feelings sometimes (okay, most of the time) when he comes across something he likes, I know he is honest about that as well. So I never have to worry about him "just being nice" or "not hurting my feelings" because he doesn't do things that way, and I know that whatever he tells me will help further my writing and you can't get much better than that. (Although someone telling me that the opening chapter of Reach was "one of the most erotic story chapters" they had ever read was pretty sweet. Especially considering it was the first erotic scene between two males that I had ever written before. That comes in a very close second!) Signature Author: Cia and author of Needing You Hmm… feedback is one of those things that is so subjective. What is negative to me might not be to the person commenting, so I try to keep an open mind about what the other person says. This is especially apt with published work, which should be held to a higher standard. When I published Pricolici a reader discovered they could comment on Goodreads as they read… and boy was I treated to a LOT of commentary, way too much to share here. And a graphic too. A highlight of the reviewer’s feelings at 39% in: "At this point, I cheerfully dislike both MCs. Woot. Prospects are great, guys!" Of course my ending reply on the review sums up my basic regard toward feedback on any of my work but especially for anything published. The most important part of my reply: “Ah well, if I couldn't hack it, I wouldn't have published it. You'd make a great beta, the sarcasm is entertaining, and I certainly can't mistake how you feel.” You can see the entire exchange here. Knowing what I now editing-wise, I can see a lot of validity in the commentary. The lessons an author can and should learn as they mature in our craft makes all the difference when we look back. In January I had two eBooks come out with two publishing houses. The both began as free serial stories, and both were polished and improved. Since they came out I’ve received some stellar reviews. The best of which came from someone I’m not even sure I know personally, but who is definitely an amazing fan. This effusive review is from Todd Ticen on Amazon about my writing in general and Protecting Bear in particular. When this comes from friends it's nice, but when it comes out of the blue, I really treasure knowing I've touched a reader so much. “If you have not had the privilege of reading one of Alicia Nordwell's stories then I strongly encourage you to delve into her world and experience stories that will both excite your senses and ensnare your soul. A truly remarkable writer that has a special and very talented way of pulling a reader into her stories with lifelike characters, enthralling plots and always the thrill of escaping into the world she vividly paints with her imagination. A truly gifted writer and a MUST read. I can promise you that you will not be disappointed with any of her stories." Obviously I was floored by Todd’s lovely review and ecstatic to receive such praise. You can read all of it here. I only hope I can continue to live up to it! Signature Author: Comicfan and author of Last Christmas I’ve written a number of stories on GA. Some have been reviewed favorably but there are reviews you get that are emailed to you. Among those you get people who are incredibly kind and those who are deeply vicious. The good ones I keep these, no matter how long ago they came in and read them when I need a pick me up. I have had two of the best and perhaps sweetest reviews come in on a tale I wrote called “A Cat’s Life.” Here are the reviews as they were emailed to me. Hi :I was reading some stories on the Gay Authors site and without going into a long explanation, I came across your stories. I have read several and enjoyed them, but " A Cat's Life " just touched something in me. It is so heartwarming and kind, I had to write to you and say thank you. Best wishes, Joel Then there was this one as well. Hope this is okay for contacting you as I am not a member of the website. I just wanted to say that I really enjoy your stories a lot. Especially "The Strange Life of Jonas Marks" (which I am trying to wait patiently for the next installment), "Accidents Happen" and "A cat's life". I also read Broken and found it very upsetting. It was good, don't get me wrong, but I hated that this was probably true somewhere. I have no doubt that people do that to other people. I think if I ever found a letter like that, I would do anything I could to try to find this person. It was very thought provoking, and made me cry. I wish things like that wouldn't happen, but I know they do. Anyway, just wanted to say that I think you need to be more well known for your stories. I will definitely be handing them along to friends. Please keep writing, and I can't wait for the next part of Jonas' story. Jenna Reviews like this encourage me. They remind me that the stories I write have a life beyond me. They can affect people and that is something special that can only come between a reader and a story. Knowing I have had a hand in that just shows me that the things I enjoy are also enjoyed by others. Of course I have also had those that felt it was completely alright to rip me apart because they wrote to me privately. One such piece came about my work in an Anthology for the “The End of the World.” The reviewer of my story very “politely” told me that my writing sucked, the dialogue was stilted, and the story didn’t work. I was told I should stay to the little tales of happily ever after and leave the real writing to others. The author tore the work to shreds without giving me any encouragement of what I did well or that anything was worth going on with. Instead of quitting as my reviewer suggested, it pissed me the hell off. The end result of it was I took a huge departure from my usual style of writing and delivered the story, “The Escape of John Doe.” I don’t think I have had so many surprised comments on a piece of work I have done in a long time. Signature Author: Renee Stevens and author of Thwarted Honestly, choosing my harshest criticism wasn't that hard to do. I've received a few over the years that I've been writing, but one really sticks out in my mind. It was a review to my story Leather Bar. As far as the author was concerned, there was nothing redeeming about the story. Sorry to spoil the party, but this was boring beyond belief. Nothing happened. A non night out which had been predicted. A guy who isn't actually safe to be out on his own. There was no tension. No dramatic pre-emption. No twist. No significant plot. No point. Two guys debate going out, go out, have experience predicted, came home. God only knows what sex would have been like if we had actually got there and klutz had not broken his neck tripping over an ant. Probably would have snapped the condom and pinged himself in the eye ... and no, not THAT eye either. That would have been funny. I had to walk away before I could respond. As I responded to the reviewer, I understand that not everyone is going to like what I write, but I didn't feel that was a constructive criticism. I finally had to sit back and look at my other readers' thoughts and remind myself that it was one reviewers thoughts. The other readers saw the story for what it was, a short look into the lives of my two characters. Choosing my best compliment, that was much harder. I've received some absolutely wonderful reviews, both on and off site. I think the one that really stands out in my mind, is one that was left on one of my prompt responses, The Only One. The reviewer really put a lot of thought into the review and took the story down to its basic elements, elements that I didn't even really think about while I was writing it. As I read the review, I realized that the reviewer was right. I'm only going to share the first part of the review, cause the rest of the review would contain spoilers. I enjoyed this story immensely based solely on the technical challenge this kind of story presents to the writer. In a sense, this is a "confession story", similar to "True Confessions", a magazine sold in the UK and mostly written by women for the confession market, except, of-course, this is a gay confession. Technically, it has all the attributes of a confession story. Let's look at them for a moment. If you want to read the rest of the review, I'd strongly suggest you read the story first! I don't usually think of formulas when I write, but the fact that the reviewer was able to point out the formula to me, was great. I enjoy getting reviews and all of them make me think and look for ways to improve. Some point out things they don't like, not always nicely. Others, like the one on The Only One, show me what I'm doing right, whether or not I realized it when I was writing it.