I try to reply to every comment!
The comments section's also where I expand on details at times, so readers could miss out on those. But for some the story's enough and I'm good with that too.
Politicians everywhere are willing to risk lives in war but quickly forget those they put in danger once the fighting's over. For too many, the battles never end.
Thanks.
Aside from a Christmas short story, I took a break from the sprawling saga after this book. There are a few spinoffs and spinins between this and the next full-fledged CJ and Owen story. I hope you enjoy those.
You flew right through this story, didn't you? All competitive shows are complicated; I barely scraped the surface. But I just wanted to show enough for readers to realize there's more to winning those things than being talented. Luck and internal dynamics often affect the outcome.
We find out who won in a future story. As you can tell from the comments, the ending was not universally loved. But I did get readers' attention. LOL
I ended two chapters in sadness: an election lost and a death. My goal's to have happy endings for all future installments.
Happy tears are acceptable.
LOL
Yeah, even though I posted twice a week with this story, I got grief for chapter length.
Glad you liked the intro. One thing I've learned about writing is an opening line and an opening chapter should grab readers' attention quickly. The world tends to distract us so a weak opening could mean someone abandoning the story.
A positive mental attitude is essential if one's to overcome difficult times. I've tried to show CJ fighting back whenever someone tries to knock him down
Parents abandoning children because of their sexual orientation is horrific and unfortunately still happening. Hell, you can talk to authors on this site who've experienced it. I hope one day we see less of it.
Dughlas became attached to Brad for a variety of reasons, so I know this chapter affected him big time. On a positive note, he got his wish; I wrote a Brad stand-alone story.
You have to wonder if Owen ever suspected he was in danger of losing his nuts to an over protective marine. Owen's the perfect example of a man CJ can bring home to Dad.
Take it easy on me. Mann just praised my improvement as an author then proceeded to rip into me on a story. I'm taking it out on the author I'm editing for now. LOL
Obviously I was familiar with Ellen, but did not watch her show. I binged a bunch of them preparing for her interviewing CJ, and I'm glad readers felt I captured her personality/speech well
But cliffhangers are so much fun to write! LOL
I'm really glad you're enjoying the series. Honestly, some of the earlier stuff makes me cringe, but if readers persevere, they'll notice my writing has improved. Far from perfect, but better.
Thanks, Lance. Maybe it's not obvious yet, but most of what I include has meaning. Aside from the odds and ends. The events in Australia will influence future developments.
I'll leave further details about the sexual encounter to readers' imagination.
Honestly, the longer I wrote about CJ, the less I wanted to detail his sexual encounters. It felt like prying! LOL
Amazing what a few mushy lines will do for a chapter's popularity.
After fending off readers demanding a boyfriend first and a husband after, I wanted the entire wedding thingy to show how well those two fit together. Next we get to see how they navigate married life.
CJ's a little weirdo if you ask me. Okay, a big weirdo. But he does have some great lines. Funny you mention the cushion. I was thinking of using it again. been looking for it, and can't seem to find it. Oh well, I'm sure it'll show up in time for its next appearance.
Just amongst those readers who are members, there's probably a few. CDMX chapters consistently get over 75 reactions but only about a third of that number comment. The comment count's higher because some people engage in conversation and post more than one comment, and I respond to all of them.
Then we have to account for the extra 25 since the story has 100 followers. I won't even try to estimate the number of non-members reading!
It was bound to happen. CJ's not the type to do anything quietly and the fathers had to be tired at this point. They won't remove the leash entirely, but they'll give him more rope to run around.