Wayne Gray

Exactly! Yes ... it's soapy all around. Thanks for commenting and reading, Mike. I hope you enjoy the rest of it!

Yes. And that's the idea. We both wanted to do something new, something that challenged us. This really did in a number of ways. I can't speak for tim, but for me the transitions back and forth between the soap and the "real world" scenes were hard. We had to do it in a way where the reader knew they were now immersed in the soap. I'm happy with how things turned out, but it was difficult to stitch it together in a way that was coherent. We'd get ideas for scenes, write it, then it'd sort of float in the body of the chapter until we could figure out a way to make it work. We had note after note at the end of chapters to remind us to do things, and to expand sections, etc. It really was a challenge, but I loved it. It was a wonderful process that really made me stretch.

I'm glad you enjoyed it, chris! Cozy is one way to describe how Ike and Devin were interacting. 😄 Just wait. Every chapter is a tiny twist on the Drama-meter, so there's more coming!

Get used to those. I mean ... we're writing a story about a soap. So ... 😉

"A fireman? Wow." Devin sat on the large sofa next to Ike. He sipped from his glass of red wine. "That’s kind of dangerous, isn’t it?" Ike stared at the waifish, handsome newcomer. "It can be, but we’re careful." Ben watched the pair and how Devin kept touching the big man. It was supposed to be innocent, but Ben knew better. His husband loved big, capable men and he never hid the fact. Every time we go somewhere! I need to start asking first. Oh, by the way, is your partner over six

Thank you, tim. That's the crux of it, really. You distilled the entire message down into half a sentence. "... each of us, is human and deserving of a decent life and love." There it is. The entire moral of the story. Thank you for reading, my friend.

Thank you, Tony. There's more for our guys down the line. 🙂

Thanks, Chris. I am happy to share this story here, and in a better state too. You know the next part, and we'll get to that soon. I want to get the first few chapters ready to go before I start posting it.

Thank you for the great comment, Philippe. Maybe you're right. Maybe it takes a broken piece to tell the story of the other broken pieces out there. The community has a long way to go toward acceptance of those not like itself. Perhaps it's the nature of the beast ... exclusion from mainstream builds a desire to fit in somewhere. And when that is found, people want to protect it ... even if that means becoming a microcosm of exclusion: becoming the thing they despised in the first place. I watched this happen to a really good friend when he seroconverted HIV+. Yes ... we have a long way to go. Thanks again for reading. I appreciate that.

Thanks, Larry. There are details that I needed to expand and add, and that happened for this version of the story. I had the chance to make it better than it was before, and I took it. Thorn helped immensely as well by sharpening the mechanical aspects to a fine point. I've learned my lesson about serial postings. I'll never begin another story without having finished it again. I've never failed to complete something I started to post, and I don't want to start.

Thanks, Jeffrey! There's more to come for our friends at the campground. It will be a bit of time, but it's coming.

Thanks for the nice comment, Drew. And ... it's funny that you mention Harlan. He shows up quite a bit in the continuation of this tale. I'll see what I can do about getting that one ready to go a bit sooner rather than later.

Thanks for reading and commenting, Parker. I'm so happy that the story-lines resonated with readers. It's not the tightest story I've written in terms of plot ... but I want people to take something hopeful away with them.

Thanks, Dave. I feel as you do concerning the jump in quality thanks to the great editing work by Thorn. It really did help a lot. I'm glad you enjoyed the revision!

Thank you, molly. I'm happy that you've enjoyed them and their journeys. It was a wonderful thing to write, but more so to chat with people who read the work. A Silent Song will come later, but probably not for a few weeks. In the meantime, there's a Trainwreck to post.

Thanks for all the work editing, Thorn. You helped a lot - the folks who have read both versions and I know.

July 25 (Wednesday, 2:17 p.m.) Harlan pulled up in front of Gary's little house in Crescent City. Looking over, he met the eyes of his father. "Well, we're back." Gary smiled and nodded. He looked so odd to Harlan. His hair was just beginning to return - at least in the spots it still grew on his balding head. So his head was a bit like a patchy peach - fuzzy, but only in spots. But he was alive. His dad was alive, and he would keep getting better. And it was finally sinking in that

your day sounds lovely, molly. Actually, yes. Sam is coming to visit today through noon tomorrow. He'll be here in a few hours. We plan to cook, be lazy, and enjoy each other's company. Speaking of which, I gotta go pick up more wine!

Ah, I'm glad you're enjoying this one. All good theories you've got there. Hang on to them and keep reading. All is answered in time. 🙂 Thanks for reading!

Happy Saturday, folks.

Carrie really wants to do the best thing she can. She didn't know how much she was hurting Patrick, and she needed to be shown. Maybe she would have figured it out on her own, but the cost of that may have been very high without Jeremy's help. Jeremy isn't perfect, at all. But, he cares. And he knew that Carrie did too ... but that she was simply misguided. Though yes ... it'd be nice to have a friend like him in our lives. 🙂 Thanks for reading and for the comments!

Thanks, Chris. The shaky ground Patrick was on at home is a lot steadier now, the Raven Project is funded for years to come, and we've got three couples in love and two about to make commitments to each other. The last chapter is coming.

You're right. He knew that he'd have to show her. "This, this right here is who he really is. Look at it, and tell me how this could be anything other than who he is meant to be." That's really what he did for Carrie. He gave her the tools she needed to see. Thanks, Dave.

Thanks, Parker. Jeremy's job is to protect those kids, even if that means he's protecting them from their family. Assume positive intent. He tries hard to do that, and in so doing Carrie didn't feel that she was being attacked by him. He just wanted her to see though different eyes. Last chapter is coming on Sunday, for this book.

I can't speak to this person's situation at all. Some men dress in women's clothes and don't consider themselves women at all. While others dress in women's clothing because they feel that they are women themselves. Regardless of her situation (she sounds more like a her from your description above) I hope she managed to squeeze some happiness out of her life. It's a hard road for many trans folks, particularly in certain areas of the US and the world. I'm glad you liked the chapter. Thanks for writing.