Comicality

Shrugs...hehehe, I don't even remember half the time. I'll be online and trip over a pic and be like, "CUTE!!! I might be able to use this for a story later!" And...that's it. Cute boys are everywhere.

...So real life was getting in the way for a while there, hehehe! But NOT in a bad way! I just haven't had much time to sit down and concentrate lately. I'm answering emails tonight, and getting back to editing stories for next week! Just needed a brief breather! In the meanwhile, the completed short story I wrote for the DK Daniels' ebook is now available on the Shack! So if you haven't read it yet, check it out, and let me know what you think! Also, if they decide to do a second compilation...let me know! I'll be there! Enjoy! https://gayauthors.org/story/comicality/rear-view/

"Rear-View" I try not to think about it too much...but it's impossible for me to block it out sometimes. Especially, when he's sitting right behind me in the family mini-van. See...here's the thing...my family doesn't know that I like boys yet. Not that I've really wrestled with my attractions in any significant way, nor have I suffered through any long bouts of shame or depression...I just never got around to telling them. I'm only seventeen years old, and it's not like I have

During a family road trip at the end of Spring Break, an older brother begins to notice a change in his brother Alex. Bringing his new 'best friend', Sascha, along with them on their annual gathering with the rest of their family, suspicions arise as to just how close they really are. A short and sweet story that I wrote for a free ebook compilation, put together by DK Daniels here on GayAuthors. Check it out, and give the other author submissions some love when you get a chance!

ANOTHER video??? In just a couple of days? SWEET! ::Dances:: I'm in!

Thanks, RJ! You're my new best friend! Here, have some cake. ((Squeezes)) I appreciate it. Love you soooo much for that! I hope you're right...

It can be a scary thing sometimes...trying to share one of the most private parts of yourself with the people closest to you. Especially when you're not exactly sure how they're going to react to the news. While sex is a perfectly normal and natural part of life, it can be difficult to speak openly about it without blushes, giggles, and a touch of discomfort. And for some...even 'shame'. Which is a shame in itself. But when it comes to being LGBTQ+...sex is directly linked to anything that you can possibly say about it. And when you're young, that takes time, courage, and patience. However...there are many cases when you're not given the chance to come out on your own. Sad, but true. Whispers, rumors, gossip...it happens. And for this discussion I'd like to talk about experiences with gay youth who might have been 'outed' before their time. Have you ever had someone tell your secret without your consent? Or maybe you did it to someone else? Was it a mistake? Was it on purpose? Maybe you approached the wrong person in a romantic way and they ran around telling everybody what happened? Or maybe a parent, friend, or sibling, happened to 'catch you in the act', and hiding it was no longer an option? Did someone find your search history on your computer? Whatever your story is, or maybe the story of someone you know...feel free to share it with us. And, is it EVER right to 'out' somebody to someone else? I know that sounds like an easy question to answer...but what if they're depressed (maybe even suicidal) and need help dealing with it? Maybe then? Who knows? Anyway, give us your thoughts on this when you get a chance. I would love to hear from you! And, as always, anonymous replies are welcome here, or you can send them to me at Comicality@shackoutback.net if you like! Cool? Let's get those brain boxes working!

I once wrote in the story, 'Jesse-101'... "I guess....I just like the idea that I can take something that's swimming around in my head, and actually put it 'out there' somewhere for people to see. That I can somehow connect with people that I've never met before, and they can find me. It's like this magical little imprint that will be here long after I'm dead and buried, you know?...The internet...it's like the new 'cave painting'" And I truly believe in that idea. I men, I'm well aware of the fact that I'm not going to live forever. And every piece of me, everything that I didn't share and spread to other people...will be gone for good. It's like a waste to NOT share it. Why let my life and those moments and emotions be buried with me when I could leave them behind to connect and possibly inspire those who come after me? That's a big part of what inspires me. The idea that I can leave a positive footprint behind. That people who were still in middle school when they first found my stories are now fully grown adults with husbands and houses and full time jobs...but they can still look back and think, "Oh wow, I remember that story from way back when I was still trying to figure things out." It's like a singer who's songs still inspire a smile decades after being recorded, or Disney cartoons that still have that warm place in your heart. For Star Wars fans and X-Files fans and anybody who watched "Stranger Things" and though, 'Oh WOW! I remember that!' That's what inspires me more than anything. Just knowing that something that I created out of thin air, my feelings and my experiences and my fantasies...are now a permanent part of someone else. It might be someone that I've never met or have even spoken to online...but a seed was planted. And when I'm dead and gone, some piece of me will live on through what I tried to give to other people. So I always want to keep going. I want to tell it all. I want to exhaust myself draining my every emotion dry so that people can see me for who I am. And remember, someday...that I was here. And that I tried to make a difference. Even if only for entertainment's sake. As for the macro/micro idea of the universe over self, I think I'm of the opposite mindset. I tend to always look inward and self reflect. I think an awareness of both sides are important, but I believe it's the sharing of our unique interpretations of the world that allows us to understand one another. I mean, a super wealthy teenager who never worked a day in his life, a single mother working 9 to 5 as a waitress, a struggling drug dealer, a rural area preacher, a transgender college student, and a 75 year old war veteran, simply can't see the world in the same way. But that doesn't mean that we can't absorb and understand their perspective once it's been explained to us. And that's inspiring to me. Putting my thoughts out there to find like minded individuals. Some understanding of who I am. Some acceptance. It allows me to realize that I'm not totally crazy. And more importantly, that I'm not alone. I think that there are basic parts of our humanity that we all share. Parts of ourselves that we can't escape, even if we wanted to. All the lies and distraction and denial in the world can't erase the bond we share at our very core. We've all been tired. We all get scared sometimes. We get angry, we fall in love, we laugh, we cry...we've all been hurt before. The deeper I dig into my own feelings, the better I understand them. The better I understand them, the more effective I can be at translating those feelings into words and sharing them with other people. And THAT...leaves the 'footprint' that I was talking about. To be able to reach out and touch something so intimate, and so deeply embedded in all of us? That's where my inspiration comes from. And I only hope to get better at it in the years to come.

Where Does Inspiration Come From? People often ask me, "Where do you draw inspiration from?" And I've been thinking a lot about that question. I am always tempted to answer "life", and while that's certainly true to some degree, a more apt response would be, "human nature". Since middle school, I found solace, happiness, and comfort in music, visual art-work, poetry, novels, short stories, documentaries, ancient history: the entire tapestry of humanity, from our triumphs and from our suffering. These outlets allowed me to tap into other people's minds...their very souls if we have such things. Think about it like this; how amazing are we as a species that we could get inside the mind of not only some unknown Sumerian man but an ENTIRE CULTURE'S mindset by reading The Epic of Gilgamesh that was told 4,000 years ago!!? How spellbinding is it that we can suffer along with Van Gogh when looking out the sanitarium's window along with him when viewing Starry Night? How beautiful is it that we can not only hear but also feel the brooding, haunting passion of Chopin when listening to his Nocturnes? Is that not only a form of time travel, but also a kind of telepathy as well? Shakespeare certainly understood this. Hamlet was derived from the 13th-century legend of Amleth. Macbeth was based off an account that was chronicled in Holinshed's Chronicles (1587). To say nothing of his directly historical dramas. In fact, some say that Shakespeare understood the human heart in all it's incredible facets more than anyone! From these things and countless others, I know that's where I get my inspiration from. I'm not bragging here, but being an intellectual is almost like being an on-the-sight reporter for all of human history. I tap into the world around me, and what I see, hear, and feel moves me and gives me inspiration, motivation, and even confidence. (To say nothing of the knowledge I gain, and the emotions that springs to the surface). I suppose I have always tapped more into the macrocosm of the universe as opposed to the microcosm of the self. That of course does not mean I don't draw inspiration from my life, I do! I tend to look at my life, however, through the lens of humanity at large. When I write characters, I not only put myself into who they are, but I also allow them to speak to ME. This is where meditation before writing has helped me on more than one occasion. Two points of conclusion: 1. To all new artists (whatever your medium is): PICK UP A BOOK! GO TO GOOGLE PLAY MUSIC AND JUST EXPLORE! TAKE A TRIP TO YOUR LOCAL MUSEUM! TAKE CLASSES THAT PIQUE YOUR INTEREST! GO TO A SYMPHONY! TRAVEL! Get yourself cultured, become worldly, and don't pigeon-hole yourself to one genre lest you wish to view the world through blinders. Hell, spend a night watching movies from the 1920's and 1930's, or listen to Tuvan throat singing from Mongolia. Go beyond your comfort zone and expand your mind. In time, you'll see that you'll create whatever artistic desire you have with ease and self-assurance, because you will have so much inspiration to tap into. And, you also may discover that you love things you never even heard of before as an added bonus 2. This is a big thank you to all of those who have created works of visual art, music, poetry, stories, etc. I literally mean that I am thanking EVERYONE from that unknown author who wrote The Epic of Gilgamesh to Stephen King!! From Beethoven to Metallica!! From Van Eyck to Jackson Pollack!! From Fritz Lang to Michael Bay!! From Comicality to that aspiring seventeen year old lurker who is unsure of himself yet desperately wants to try writing a story. (Do it!) And EVERYONE before and after. If it were humanly possible, I would write each of you individually a big thank you note. Remember this: the student film you are currently making in college, the words you are now typing out on your keyboard, whatever the medium...what you create NOW can and will have an emotional resonance with someone who will not be born for another thousand years. The moment you create anything...you are a time traveler. You shall all go down in the annals of history and you are appreciated! May your flames burn forevermore

He's a teenager? Jesus! I remember when he was still just a 'baby bump'! Hehehe!

I was sort of waiting for the ebook to be ready before posting this, but I guess it's taking a bit longer than I thought to publish. No worries though! The story is finished now! Eight chapters long, and lots of fun! So here is Chapter 6, and if you want to jump ahead and read to the end of the completed story, it'll be up on Amazon tonight or early tomorrow morning! Cool? And of course, you can always read chapters 7 and 8 for free in the July and August issues of Imagine Magazine, as well as here on the site or on Nifty! So enjoy! And let me know! I'll send a notice when the ebook is available online! https://gayauthors.org/story/comicality/give-it-to-me-straight/

"Give It To Me Straight 6" I hurried into the bathroom and closed the door behind me. What do I do? What do I DO??? Is this happening right now? Oh God! Seriously...oh my fucking GOD! I can't breathe! I think...I think I'm hyperventilating! I've never hyperventilated before! Is this, like...a deadly thing? Am I going to pass out and hit my head on something? I need to...I've got to...I'm going to splash some water on my face. Yeah, that's what people do in the movies, right? Splash

I'm releasing all of the completed versions of the "Shelter" prequels as ebooks now, one every month! And that is starting today! So if you're a fan of "Shelter" (The zombie apocalypse love story between two boys, hehehe!), then pick up your cop today! And look for "Rotting Apples" to be released on July 19th! Cool? Enjoy! You can grab the ebook at the link below, and some time later in the Comicality Ebook Section on Imagine Magazine! https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08BFRBKHV

Slightly older, taller, Stefan Benz is back once again! I have to hand it to him, he said he was going to make a new song and video every single month this year, and he's been keeping up with it. Pandemic and all! That's a real warrior's heart right there! But...seriously? NOW you're gonna wear a tight white T-shirt, and tight white pants...and then you're gonna get soaking, sopping, WET so they're all super clingy and see-through??? Jesus! What are you DOING to me, dude? LOL! Sighhhh...my heart...

The newest issue of Imagine is now up and running, and it's one of the BIGGEST issues that we've ever had! So big thanks to everybody who contributed something to make this a massive success! Love you lots! New chapters from your favorite authors are all present! MrM, Sean E, Julian Taylor, Lindon Weztser, The Story Lover, JeffsFort, Juju, Talo Segura, AC Fan, and Myke D! Tycho Cleuch is our featured author this month, bringing our very first 'Star Wars' themed story to the magazine! So check that out, as well as our one on one interview to follow it. Also, the final chapter of MrM's "Souvenir" story! And a few additions from me, including a sincere thank you to all of you guys for giving me sooooo much ove and support over the years, and a sneak peak of the ebooks that I've been diligently working on over the past few months! There are big surprises coming your way! So stick around! And expect more goodies to come your way soon! This Friday, June 19th, is the 22nd anniversary of the Shack! I plan to make it a fun time for you guys, just as it's gonna be a fun time for me. Take care! Enjoy the new issue! And I'll seezya soon!

It has been a long LONG journey, you guys! For all of us! Good times, bad times, in between times...but I don't regret a single moment of it. I put in the hard work and the long hours because you reward me with your friendship and your love. Many of you have literally 'grown up' being a part of this site since you were kids! Hehehe, and congrats! You turned out to be great human beings! Mwah! Thank you sooooo much for sticking with me and for giving me the strength and support that it took to get this far. I know that I get busy, and sometimes I just get lazy, hehehe! But please don't ever mistake that for me getting complacent, or not appreciating everything that you guys have done for me over the years. I don't ever want to take you for granted. So, this is me, speaking up and telling you right here and now that I love you, and I'm grateful, and you will always be my family! Always! Thank you for 22 YEARS of us accomplishing the impossible! And just wait until you see what comes next! (New Chapters Coming, Starting June 19th! Stay Tuned!)

I know that I usually hate sleep...but DAMN, little kids get up early as hell in the morning! How do you wake up and just decide you want to start 'playing'? It takes me a good 45 minutes before I can even focus properly! Hehehe! Anyway, me and the family had a BLAST last night! Music and food and laughing and just...love. You know? There's nothing greater than unconditional love. There really isn't. Almost everybody slept over, so there are pillows and blankets all over the place, but my mom is making a shit load of pancakes and hashbrowns right now for everybody, and two of my cousins are playing Fruit Ninja and trying not to punch each other in the face! LOL! They CANNOT stand still! Jesus! I'll leave the room to avoid injury. Just...don't punch my TV screen! Please? Ugh! Anyway, I needed the break from my usual Comsie work yesterday. It felt good! Imagine Magazine is launching on Monday! And then I've got a string of goodies coming for the Shack's 22nd birthday on June 19th! That's this coming Friday, and I'm preparing for it to be something special! So be sure to drop by, as I've got a surprising rollout waiting for you all! Love you lots! Thanks for being so supportive! And I'll seezya soon! Mwah!

This is actually a reverse POV story from "New Kid In School". So, if you want to read more, check that story out for 60+ chapters of goodies. And "Kiss Of An Angel" as well, which is a spinoff. Cool? Thanks for the feedback! ((Hugz))

So...apparently, some of my younger cousins are having some 'restless' issues with staying at home these days. And, I get it. Kids aren't really built to understand a global pandemic. But my aunt, like...broke my heart today! LOL! She said that they were almost crying because they wanted to come visit! (A 10 year old boy and a 6 year old girl) And I'm like, "PLEASE! Bring them by! I'd love to see them!" Because I'm a big ol' manchild who craves having other kids to play with! LOL! But my aunt is telling me that they want to stay, and play, and maybe spend the night or the whole weekend over here. But that's AWESOME for me! We've got an extra room for them to sleep in, and it'll be a blast! My cousins are all 15 and younger, and most of them had never played VR games before coming over here. So my house is like a crazy theme park to them. So, I'm like, "Bring me my cousins, dammit!!!" Don't make them cry! And the word quickly got out that they were coming over this weekend...and ummm...the rest of my family decided they wanted to come over too. And more teen and tween cousins got all excited. And talk of a family function got tossed around... Long story short...I now have SEVENTEEN kids coming over on Saturday, with their parents and some of their friends, and NOW we need extra food and snacks and stuff for the barbecue grill, and soda, and...WTF??? Some of them are driving two and a half hours to come by this weekend. Like...I didn't mean for this to be a giant PARTY! I was just trying to help two of my little cousins beat the boredom for a while. Now I've gotta clean up the whole house and get the place ready for a party. Dammit! LMAO!!! Ah well...I might be a bit absent this weekend, but I'll be having fun. Believe me! I think the family was just itching for a reason to get together, that's all. My mom's baking a cake! LOL! Anyway, I'll be sure to drop you guys a line or two to say hello when I can! Promise!

I don't want to sleep at all tonight if I can help it! Hehehe! Been making some 'adjustments' here and there on the new stories, and getting everything ready for next week's anniversary celebration, and it's just put me in a good mood tonight! Thought I'd share some sparkles with you all! Maybe it'll make you feel good too. ((Hugz All Around))

Oh yeah...I know! Hehehe! But here's a bit of Comsie Trivia.... Miles Heizer? He's the actor that I used for "Billy Chase" in my video trailer! Giggles!

SO cute and romantic! That's exactly why I went back to posting the 'Sealed With A Kiss' posts on the Shack forums every Monday! (http:www.voy.com/15900/) It means a lot to just see some love and affection every now and then. Just something to feel good and normal and loved, you know? Thanks! That reminds me, I've gotta make my posts for today! Yikes, it's almost noon! Hehehe!

(This is a bit of a science/science fiction type of question from River Archeron in the 'Comicality Library'! Anybody here want to give your thoughts? I'd love to add it to this month's issue of Imagine Magazine! It makes for a thoughtful discussion! Let us know what you think down in the replies below! And you can find my answers in this Library link, https://www.voy.com/17262/26637.html , if you want to see my two cents! It's fun to give the old brain a work out from time to time! Jump right in! And THANKS, River! I like this!) Okay, on the surface, this seems like a ridiculous question, and any self-respecting materialist would scoff at the very notion! However....the answer really is not so clear cut as it may seem, from a psychological point of view, a philosophical point of view, and even a quantum physical point of view. First of all...lets talk about a relatively new psychological idea known as the psychosphere. Apart from being a badass name for a Black Metal band, the psychosphere is the essence of all sentience, of mental intelligence. Basically a "world" of thought outside our physical universe. Okay, fine so far...but is it REAL? I would answer, "What does "real" even mean?" To quote The Matrix, "how do you define "real?"" It's an interesting notion. Our thoughts, our ideas, our stories are created by us, right? So in this sense, they exist. Sure, there is no physicality, not REALLY, but then again OUR reality is not physical either at the fundamental level. Physicality is an illusion. What we perceive as solid - as matter - is really just energy at it's core. Everything is. You don't slam into a brick wall because it's "solid", you do so because of the repulsiveness of the electromagnetic force. Then....are we SO different from our thoughts? Do our thoughts and stories exist "somewhere"? Are these fictional characters and the stories we create for them acted out "somewhere?" (It also makes one ponder if WE are a "fiction" to someone or something else.) Some believe it takes a form known to New Agers an the Astral Plane, but the more skeptical think the psychosphere is a bit more ephemeral than that. Too abstract to even ponder, yet must be given credence. But.....could fictional characters ACTUALLY exist in our physical reality? Ah, that's where the notion of the Multiverse comes into play. There are many different kinds of parallel universes theorized by modern theoretical physics, but I will focus on two. (The other two popular ones, a String Theory Multiverse, and the bubble universes of Inflation Theory are so fucking interesting, but I can't begin to describe them here without insane math.) lol. But the other two I can sum up. The first comes if you accept that space is infinite. (Which is still debated). If the universe IS infinite, (INFINITY is the key here and I cannot stress that enough!!), and since particles can only be configured in a LIMITED number of ways, then *every...single....possible* configuration must be repeated an infinite number of times. (Travel far enough and you'll find a planet that is also called Earth and it's identical to ours. And another one where the South won the civil war. Another where the characters and episodes of 'Friends' and 'Cheers' ACTUALLY happened.) Get it? With infinity, not only is every conceivable possibility likely, it's a must! Basically, if the multiverse is real (and many many physicists believe it is...some even say it must be), then the multiverse contains infinite realities. As a consequence of that, there must be infinite realities where characters who exist as fiction, exist as actual entities in others. The same is true of the opposite. There must be alternate realities in which WE are the fictional characters. There would also exist realities EXACTLY like ours, there's another "you", except that cup of soda you put down is just a millimeter to the left. Another form of the multiverse is the Many Worlds Interpretation. AKA the Quantum Multiverse Theory. The consequences would be the same as above, but they arise different. It's a BIT complicated and has to do with something called the wavefunction, which is just a mathematical description of the quantum state of an isolated quantum system. Basically for every choice that's made, the universe literally branches and splits. Flip a coin....the universe splits. Heads in one, tails in the other. Pretty much same as the other multiverse theory, but instead of distances in space, this has to do with a universe constantly splitting due to quantum decoherence. And the evidence is piling up with this theory. Quantum decoherence we KNOW happens. It's a issue with quantum computers actually. And in fact some say that since quantum computers ACTUALLY work, the Many Worlds Interpretation must be true. So...are fictional characters real? Have your favorite books, online stories, movies, tv, and even fanfiction have played out somewhere, sometime, in some reality? It's POSSIBLE.

The newest chapter was just put up! So check it out, and let me know what you think when you can! K? And, if you missed it, this series is a companion piece for the spinoff series, "Kiss Of An Angel" (Featuring Ariel and Tyler), which also just got a new chapter 48 hours ago! So enjoy that one too! Gotta fly! Seezya soon! https://gayauthors.org/story/comicality/newkidinschool/

"New Kid In School 64" It was pretty damn adorable, seeing Ariel so nervous about coming into my room with me. You would have thought that I had hidden cameras set up all over the place or something, the way he kept looking around. But, despite him dragging his feet a little bit, he did come in and find a place to sit on the side of my bed. He leaned back on his hands for a moment, and I sort of noticed him gripping my sheets out of the corner of my eye. Lord knows why. Ariel could be