LittleBuddhaTW

According to Dom's latest blog entry, there are only 18 chapters planned for With Trust ... I'm crying on the inside, but trying to maintain a stoic exterior and not complain ... **sigh**

Definitely drink lots of O.J. ... the best way to nip a cold in the bud when it's just getting started is to overflow your system with Vitamin C (my mom's a pharmacist, so trust me! hehe) As for the "only 18 chapters" of WT, I have to admit that I'm a wee bit disappointed ... I could definitely see it ending up as long as DD ... but I'm sure no matter how long it is, it will still be excellent, as usual. As for the "sex" in Ch. 7 (which wasn't really sex, IMO), I thought it was one of your best sex scenes yet ... extremely erotic ... actually, Chs. 6 & 7 seemed like one long kiss scene, and it was definitely the hottest description of kissing I've ever read. I've certainly never experienced a kiss like that! So I think I'm gonna call up this cute 18 y/o Taiwanese boy I know (who I haven't seen in months), and get him to come over and practice some Nels/Milo-style kissing with me ... *blush* Take care of yourself, stud ... you're the greatest!

Maybe Assface (Jame) will end up with the goat ... If he does, will WT have to be listed in the "Bestiality" section on Nifty? lol As for "Milo" (the chocolate drink), they have that here in Taiwan, too. Very yummy stuff. That was also the first thing I thought about when I saw his name. Anyway, I can't say enough how absolutely awesome this chapter was ... brilliant, just brilliant!!!

Sea Change (Re-serialization) Author: Josh Link: http://www.awesomedude.com/stories/sea_cha...hange_title.htm Story Code: tt, tb, mast, oral, anal Eroticism: 10 Character Development: 10 Strength of Story: 10 Overall Quality: 10 This has to be one of the best (and longest) stories that I've ever read, and is truly an epic in the gay fiction genre. It is a complete revision and re-serialization of the original "Sea Change" story, and there have been numerous changes to the characters and plot (as well as a very different ending), so even if you've read the original, the new and improved version is well worth the read. The story is told in the first-person narrative by Sean, and follows his life and relationship with with beautiful, blond-haired Daniel from the time they are 16 years old until the second half of their freshman year in college in Texas during the early 1980s. This is one of the most highly erotic and sexual stories I have ever read, and while such explicit content usually turns me off, Josh weaves it into the story in such a way so that it not only doesn't detract from the story, but actually enhances it. This is very difficult for any author to pull off. "Sea Change" mixes coming of age, coming out, relationships, friendships, and issues of trust all together into one epic novel. It will make you laugh and cry, make your heart melt, turn you on, and at some points even make you angry. The rollercoaster of emotions that you will feel as you read through this mammoth work is indescribable. The character development is also superb. There are so many different characters in this story, introduced at different times, but all are portrayed masterfully, and the reader will learn to particularly empathize with Sean, feeling and experiencing everything through his eyes. If you haven't read this yet, it is a MUST read, along with Josh's other excellent novel, "The Least Of These." Review by LittleBuddhaTW

WOO-HOO! I finally finished the rough draft of my Ph.D. research proposal, and have sent it on to my thesis editor. Now everything (including the last few chapters of my thesis) are in her hands, so now I just have to sit back and wait for her to send me the corrections. I still have to start doing some reading to prepare for the written exam, but that only counts for about 30% of the score for the entrance exam. The other 70% or so is based on your oral exam (discussing your M.A. thesis, research plan, etc. -- all in Chinese, of course). At least I don't have to do any more damn writing! **breathes deep sigh of relief** I still have a lot of other crap to get together, though, like applications, letters of recommendations, transcripts, four passport-sized photographs, etc. The whole registration and application process is extremely complicated. They should just let you into the program based on being able to jump through all of those hoops. Even if I do get accepted, though (which I'm not too sure about, since I don't really have the same "drive" I had before), I will still consider moving back to the States and going into some other kind of work where I can still make use of my Chinese skills (and NO, I don't plan on working in a Chinese restaurant! ). I've been isolating myself too much here over the past few months, mostly because of trying to get my thesis done, and am really worn out. I'm thinking I need a change ... or at least a long vacation. Any suggestions about how to make my life a little more meaningful? *sigh* Hopefully now I can spend some more time doing what I really like -- namely, writing. I'm currently working on Ch. 12 of "Someday Out Of the Blue," and I just finished making the corrections on the first edit of Ch. 7 from Kitty, so everything's on schedule for the next update. Ch. 7 is the longest chapter so far, so I think that should please everyone. I just hope any future stories will get as good of a response as my first one. Also, I'm now officially hosted at GayAuthors in the "Shared Member Hosting" section, so if you get the chance, go check out my page: http://members.gayauthors.org/littlebuddhatw/index.html

This is just a random, off-the-cuff prediction ... but I could potentially see Mr. Trust disowning Milo and throwing him out of the house (at least temporarily), but Milo being too proud to go to Nelson, who obviously cares for him, and whose family would care for him. Maybe he would go to Jame, and when Nels finds out, he'd resent that ... or something along those lines. As for Nelson's motives in wanting to be with Milo, I don't think it's purely sexual at all, or just because Milo's the only other gay guy around. Nelson was drawn to Milo the first time he saw him getting in that car a year before. He certainly doesn't like some things about Milo's personality, like his stubbornness, mood swings, etc., but I think some of those things are what endear Nels to Milo. Also, when Milo flat out asked Nels what he wanted, Nels said just spending time with him outside of class would be enough for him. Nels likes Milo, wants to get to know him better ... he'd have to have problems to not have sexual urges towards Milo (hell, they're both 17 years old!), but I don't think that's the basis of his attraction. Being the romantic sap that I am, I *really* hope they eventually break down and say "I love you!" to each other ... BTW, Kitty rulz!!!

Chapter Six was so well-crafted, that I was certain that Chapter Seven would somehow be slightly disappointing, at least in comparison with the previous chapter ... but it was even better!!! I think Nelson is a very intelligent guy ... he seems to know how to push the right buttons with Milo, and I don't necessarily mean sexually. He's learned his lesson in not pushing Milo too hard, and instead making Milo move further towards him ... and it's working. Milo is ever so gradually letting his defenses down. I'm seeing now a definite potential conflict coming between Milo and his dad. The little fight they had about the toast at the party was just a hint of that. It was also sweet that Nelson is the one he went to, and was even willing to open up to him (and not just his mouth ... hehe). This is definitely my favorite of the four stories so far, and I can't wait for the next chapter. Dom is really outdoing himself on this one. Like a fine wine, Dom just gets better with age! hehe

Having now read Vampire Jarred and its sequel, as well as DO and DOR, I would definitely consider myself a "fan" of dkstories, which I never thought was possible, since I've never really been interested in the sci-fi genre. My prediction is that Davey will accomplish setting things right before he finally loses his memory of previous timelines, and will get to live out a "normal" childhood/adolescence for the last time, without all of the other pressures or burdens. That would certainly be the best scenario for him. He may then have the chance to "naturally" begin a real relationship with Brian all over again. Maybe that's just wishful thinking, though. Since I live in Taiwan myself, and the threat of conflict with China is very present and very real, I found the mention of the "Battle of Taiwan" very interesting, though I must disagree with its outcome. Current predictions and scenarios by both the Taiwanese military (who I have worked for) and the U.S. Pacific Command show that Communist Chinese forces would most likely overrun Taiwan before US forces had a chance to react, with Taipei (the capital) falling within six days. Could the US defeat China in a conflict over Taiwan? Yes. Would they? Probably not, since they wouldn't have enough time to get here, unless they resorted to using tactical nuclear weapons against targets in China.

I've been very pleased so far with the response to Chapter 6. In the first twenty-four hours since posting the announcement for Ch. 6 in the "Story Announcements" forum, there have already been 114 hits, plus lots of discussion in the Yahoo group (much more than any other chapter), and I've received quite a few e-mails as well. I think an important thing to remember is that there is no such thing as the perfect love or perfect lover. Each of the characters has their "faults," and makes mistakes when it comes to their relationships and how they interact with each other. Not to mention, they're just teenagers, very unsure of their feelings, what they mean, and how to deal with them, how to react to the stresses of their relationships, environments, etc. The question is, can they accept these "faults" and "mistakes" for what they are and move past them, while still able to maintain their relationships (whether platonic friendship, romantic interest, etc.) I think everyone will enjoy Chapter 7. It is by far the longest chapter so far in the story. Also, the story is now hosted in the "Shared Members Hosting" section on GayAuthors, so check it out if you have a chance: http://members.gayauthors.org/littlebuddhatw/index.html

I think perhaps a better way to distinguish Nelson from the other protagonists in Dom's previous stories would be to say that Owen, Quinn, and Rory were all "passive," whereas Aiden, Jude, and Seth were "active" (I'm speaking in terms of personality, not sexual role ... as we all know, since Seth was the one who ended up riding the proverbial "bologna pony") ... so Nelson is the first protagonist/narrator that is more "active" than his romantic interest. I certainly like the change of pace, and it's interesting to see things from that perspective. As for predictions, I think it's way too early in the story to make any predictions. The only thing that seems highly plausible at this point (to me, at least) is a "conflict" between the friends. Also, Dom keeps mentioning the goat, keeping it in everyone's mind, so I can't help but thinking that goat is going to play a crucial role in the plot's development. On an interesting aside, in 1976 when Rolling Stone magazine asked the famous question that many people had been speculating about for several years regarding Elton John's sexuality, his famous response was "I draw the line at goats."

Unfortunately, I don't have a boyfriend to nag me ... and my graduate advisor doesn't even nag me either. In fact, when I need her help on something, she's next to impossible to find ... *sigh*

I loved how Milo slipped that there was just more than one "pornographic" painting of Nels. That was just too precious. Bless his heart! hehe I also liked how Milo just walked into Nelson's room and started picking things up and looking around ... very out of character for him. And this story is so much more descriptive and detailed than DD, which makes it that much stronger and easier to visualize, IMO, although some of the descriptions (like how Nels described every little detail of the school in an earlier chapter) were a bit much. This particular chapter was just right, though.

Today was probably the most eventful day I've had in a while ... I went to see my doctor this morning to get a refill on my sleeping pills (I have really bad insomnia sometimes). It's 2:23 AM now and I'm still not ready to sleep, but I have to wake up at 6:30 to get ready for work ... so apparently the medication isn't helping very much. I also managed to trek over to the supermarket, Carrefour (a French supermarket chain, although it's unfortunately been "Taiwan-ified"). I had to go because my cats needed food, but I also got some of my favorite ice cream, Haagen-Daaz (Strawberry Shortcake ... YUMMY!) Chapter 6 of "Someday Out Of the Blue" should be posted sometime this week, hopefully by Thursday or Friday (on my web page and Yahoo! Group first, and on Nifty a day or two later). I've also added a poll to the Yahoo! Group where you can vote on your favorite character from the story so far, so go add your vote, and if you're not already a member, go ahead and join! I've made a little more progress on my research proposal. I need to try to get that, and the translation project that I'm supposed to be working on finished by this weekend. I've been so lazy that I've been putting it off in favor of long naps (several a day) ... I need someone to kick me in the butt and get me into gear!

That had to be the hottest, most erotic kiss scene I have ever read ... WOW!!! EXCELLENT chapter, Dom ... probably the best chapter of the whole story so far. I feel ... I feel ... sated ... *sigh*

I'll post Chapter 6 as soon as I get Chapter 7 back from Kitty. I like to keep at least one finished chapter in the queue in case something comes up, so I can at least post one chapter per week.

As I mentioned in a previous post, I've never been interested in this particular genre of gay fiction, but since I've run out of other stories to read (yes, I'm fanatica about reading everything ), and needing a break from working on my own story, I broke down and started reading "Vampire Jarred 1" ... and I have to say I'm quite hooked ... never thought I would be. The only thing about it that has scared me though is not the vampires or grisly scenes, but the fact that I actually find the whole thing quite ... ummm ... exciting ... I don't know if I should be embarrassed by that or not .... *yikes* Anyway, I'm up to Ch. 12 of the first series right now. Good work, Dan ... and I'm sure I'll enjoy Dom's chapters, too, once I get to the second part!

Nicky? Am I missing something here??? :wacko:

Chapter 5 is now up ... Thanks again to Kitty for doing such a great job editing! Chapter 6 is already completed and edited, so if I get lots of feedback (hint, hint) on Chapter 5, I may be tempted to post the next chapter faster than usual ... hehe

I tried the whole "English teaching" thing the first two years I was here ... and it's not about teaching at all, but making money for the owner of the school, so it ended up being more stressful than anything else I've ever done. I've had too much time to decompress, probably, since the past year all I've done is stay at home and work on my thesis. Since I have a scholarship, I don't really have to work, and I finished my thesis (at least the writing part of it) pretty fast. So, I feel like I need to get started on my future career, whatever that may be ... *sigh* But thanks for the suggestion!

My stomach bug has cleared up for the most part, thankfully. On the down side, the few extra kilograms that I was hoping I would lose from it didn't go away, so I might have to actually start exercising or something ... *GASP* Ch. 5 of SOOTB is already posted on my website for those who can't wait for Nifty. It will be up on Nifty late Friday night or early Saturday morning, probably. I'm still fretting about my future. I know I'm not "old" at age 28 (although I certainly have been feeling it lately), but I need to make some decisions. The stress of the Ph.D. exam is driving me crazy, but I'm just so burned out from studying so much over the past three years, that I still can't seem to get myself together to get ready for this one big test. If I don't get into the Ph.D. program, I'll most likely be moving back to the States and get a job as a translator/interpreter or teaching Mandarin ... there's not much else you can do with a M.A. degree in Chinese. After living here for five years, building a life, accumulating tons of stuff (mostly books), and, of course, my three cats, it would be a pain in the ass to move all the way back to the States. Ugh ... BTW, the last chapter of "Desert Dropping" was great. I can't wait to read the next chapter of "With Trust" ... the more I read, the more I'm falling in love with Nelson ... although if made to choose, I'd still rather share my bed (among other things) with Rory ... hehe

I'm thinking of researching the construction of masculinity in Chinese cultural history, as well as using Eve Sedgwick's theory of "homosocial desire" to interpret/analyze male-bonds/friendship in Chinese culture and, more specifically, literature. Whether or not I get into the Ph.D. program is another matter, though ... hehe If not, I'll probably end up going back to the States and get a job working for the government.

Dom + shirtless = me drooling Please don't mention yourself being shirtless in another blog entry, Dom, or I might have to faint ... hehe

I second that motion. Dom's stories are far better than most of the "published" gay fiction that I have read ... much, much better. Nevertheless, the way the gay fiction genre has be going, Dom can reach a much larger audience with his stories than they would in book form. And with the current state of the publishing world, only very small publishers would go for that type of material, which would mean that although Dom would get paid, it probably wouldn't be enough to make a living ... at least not right now. With that said, the prestige of being a "pubished author" is still nice, and Dom's writing skills are certainly good enough. The only problem is with the publishing industry itself, which definitely sucks. If that charlatan author of A Million Little Pieces could make millions of dollars, it's certainly not fair that Dom couldn't do the same. His stories are much more meaningful, IMO. On the up side, there are probably a lot of confused and scared gay teens out there who Dom has touched with his stories ... perhaps given them confidence and hope. Scared, closeted gay teens are not very likely to go to the "gay" book section of a book store and buy a book, and don't have credit cards to buy books online ... the only way Dom can reach people like that ... perhaps the people who *need* his stories the most, is the way he's doing it now. I can only speak for myself on that one, but I think that makes it all worth it in the end. I have a feeling Dom would probably feel the same way.

WOW ... that was a long (and emotional) chapter. It seemed that there were a lot of loose ends being tied up, with the intention of tying up all of the loose ends, making it feel a little contrived (as Shadows mentioned), but it was still a good ending to a very good and unique story. Part of me is, of course, a little sad that it's over, as we've all been following these characters for so long now, and in a way, it seems like we know them. And now, they'll be off living their own lives in fantasyland, and we aren't privy to the every day goings on of their lives ... but at the same time, that's ok, too. I'm really looking forward to reading more of WT, and I'm enjoying it a lot. It seems to me that WT is a very special one for Dom, and his affection for the story is clear from his writing ... so I think it will be hard not to like it. Thank you, Dom, for sharing DD with us. It was a fantastic journey, and well worth the wait between chapters. David

While I don't think that Nels and Milo (who I'm becoming almost as attracted to as Rory and Dom ... hehe) will end up running into each other's arms and admitting their undying love for each other in Ch.6, WT is not DD, and it may not take them until after chapter 20 to come together. The story may be more about them dealing with their relationship in regards to how it affects their very two different sets of friends, as well as dealing with Milo's family and whatever other strange things he has (or has had) going on in his life. I think the "West Side Story" analogy is a good one. I think Nels is too stubborn and too sure of what he wants to let things drag on for so long (unlike Rory), and already it's clear that Milo's defenses are starting to break down. Hopefully, Milo will realize that Nelson is not a threat sooner rather than later. And as for the goat ... no one predicted what Dom would do at the end of DD 35, so don't sell that damn goat short ... I'm tellin' y'all, that goat is gonna cause trouble. Goats have a tendency to do that ... you think they're being cute and all until WHOOMPF! they back kick you in the nuts ... or Milo and Nels could be making out in the backyard, and the goat comes over and tries to eat Milo's hair or something while they're rolling around on the ground ... goats are trouble!!!