Graeme

I'm sorry, but I don't consider myself to be a hockey fan. My only knowledge of Ice Hockey (as distinct to Field Hockey, which is played Internationally by Australia) comes from an article that was an introduction to the Winter Olympic sports. The following quote is for Ice Hockey, though you really need to read the whole article to understand it properly:

My wife said that's what her mum did, too It seems the 'easy' way out.... You're right that kids are more exposed -- my eldest boy fast-forward through all the 'mushy' scenes in the DVDs he likes. But sex itself was barely mentioned in our talk. I raised the point, and he told me he wasn't ready for it or to talk about it (he thought he was too young), but he thought he should wait until he was married. He thought it was important that he do it with someone he's been dating for a while, which lead into a discussion on dating and when to start dating (his mother told him later in the day that she wanted him to wait until he was 16 or 17 before he started dating. I don't think she wants him to grow up ). We talked about it enough that I know he knows about it, but a discussion on things like condoms, masturbation, etc., can wait. One thing I've heard is that kids know a lot about sex (including a lot of misinformation), but they don't learn a lot about relationships. That's why a lot of our conversation was on relationships, rather than sex.

Yesterday I had THE talk with my eldest boy and I was wondering how it went for other people. That could be on the giving or receiving half I'm interested in what was talked about, as well as how it felt. In my case, I told him about the changes that puberty is going to start to make to his body (mainly talking about body hair, muscle growth, etc), emotions (how it can make guys more aggressive, and how it makes them start to become attracted to other people), and that lead into a discussion on relationships. The sex part was very, very short. I asked him what he knew, and he he answered he knew everything (he's ten, after all). I then asked if he knew that's how babies started, and he seemed shocked.... The schoolyard education system hasn't changed in the thirty years since I went through it. However, he told me he wasn't ready to learn that sort of stuff, so I suspect I'll have another chat with him when he's thirteen or so. While I was nervous when I started the chat, I wasn't embarrassed. Given how open my son was, I don't think he was that embarrassed, either, though he was cute in the way that most of the time he spelt out 'S-E-X' rather than say the word He seemed honestly shocked that some of the other boys in his class try to kiss the girls. He says they are way too young for that. As for being on the receiving end, I never had a chat with my dad. I learn most of it from the schoolyard gossip and reading. One of the reasons I had this chat now is because sometime in the next 18 months, my wife and I intend to sit down with both of our boys and explain that their dad is gay. We want to do this before the older boy hits puberty, but I think certain other things have to be in place first.

G'day, James Freestone! I was away yesterday, but it looks like you're already settling in. Feel free to ask if you've got any questions. You may also want to check out the anthologies. These are themed short stories, poems, plays, submitted on a quarterly basis. We've just recently released the Spring 2009 anthology, but you might want to see if you want to write something for the Summer anthology, or maybe one of the ones later in the year.

Welcome back, Jeebus!

It's definitely possible to over edit a story. Some people edit more than others, and for a handful, they keep editing and never publish because there's always another tweak they can do. I've got no suggestions on how to avoid this, though, because it's not something I do. I write, maybe review a handful of times, and then hand it to my editor. I won't make tweaks after that point unless my editor indicates there's a problem with the story that needs addressing.

My understanding is that they needed the explosion as cover to get to the civilian aeroplane. Without it, they were likely to be spotted.

I know how much I'm dependent on my own team. CJ recently started beta-reading for me, and one of the things he commented on (after some prompting from myself) was how much less polished was the writing I was sending to him, compared to what's published. I know exactly how much my editors (Rain and Aaron from the Mail Crew) make a difference to my stories, but very few other people do. Similarly, I rely on my beta-readers to catch not only the things that I, as an Australian, take for granted, but are not clear to my American readers (all my beta readers and editors are American), but also to watch out for when I'm concentrating so much on one point that I neglect others. Getting back to the point of this thread, though -- I really don't know how to increase the recognition that the team deserves Any suggestions?

Just as an aside, the title for chapter 31 is

Be especially glad you didn't sell it to this Aussie, either, because not only would you have all the angst from the above, but also cringe at having it converted to right-hand-drive..... Seriously, though, I understand how much that car meant to you, so...

Don't worry.

Someone has to, otherwise the forum wouldn't be the same....

If it's an important part of the story, then the author needs to overcome the challenges that are preventing the item from appearing. That can sometimes require a lot of thinking and stretching probability at times, but it can usually be done without blatant forcing. Once it's completed, the reader shouldn't realise it wasn't planned that way in the first place. In my first novel, for a particular scene I desperately wanted in the story, I had to have two main characters angry with each other. Unfortunately, before I got to that scene, the initial reason for the anger was going quickly and I knew I couldn't sustain it. What I did was to find another reason for the anger, slowly morphed the point of contention between the two characters to the new reason, and then used that to keep the two characters at loggerheads until I could drop in the scene I wanted. Other times, though, the author should just accept that the story has changed and drop the scene. The idea can be kept for another story, but if it doesn't fit, it doesn't fit. I've done this enough times, too....

I answered "No, not at all" for question one because I'm still in the closet. I answered "Not applicable" for questions two and three because I'm working. I answered "No, not at all" for question four. That's partially because I'm still in the closet, but also partially because it's never been relevant. It's never really cropped up at work. My second job, where I worked for 11 years, had one gay guy for a period of time (it was never explicitly stated he was gay, it was just assumed), and two of the managers there turned out to be lesbians. Again, it was just something I learnt after a while, because it was never something that was relevant at work. My current employer has documented diversity and equality rules of conduct, and it's a sackable offense to discriminate on sexual orientation grounds, so again, I have no need to stand up for equality. I've never seen any signs of discrimination, so I don't see the need to stand up about something that isn't relevant to my workplace. Gay right issues are not something I've heard discussed at work, either, so there's been no need to say anything. And my last answer was Yes, because I have worked with some in the past and I'm sure I'm working with some now, even if I don't know who they are

Sorry, I've been busy Besides work, the anthology has just been released which keeps me occupied However, I'm sure things will pick up again next week when the next chapter of Changing Lanes is posted. I won't say too much about it but

What I really loved was the stream of consciousness from Mike as Andy and Devon... er... occupied themselves It was just so realistic and felt so natural, I could just feel him cringing, trying to ignore what was going on and extremely fearful of the (further) embarrassment that would occur if he was caught. And then Mike pulled himself together and was there for his brother when his brother needed him. I can't say that all big brothers would do that, but I was very proud of Mike for what he did during the incident at the mall. Two quote from the end of the story sum up Mike for me: Nothing else to say

An interesting story, and one that I felt contained a number of points that made it deeper than it first appeared (at least to me). One was the comment about changing from Super Dork to Super Twink. Being Super Twink was clearly a big buzz for the narrator, giving him some self-esteem that was clearly missing in the rest of his life. Some of that self-esteem may have carried over into his 'other' life, but would it be enough to outweigh the downside of Super Twink, where he is, in effect, a lump of meat that other want? Highly desirable meat, maybe, and very popular, but is the boost it gives the narrator more illusion than reality? Then there are his parents. At first glance, it seems like a career driven father and a despondent mother, contributing to the narrators self-esteem problems, but once we get to the end of the story, I had to wonder if the father's behaviour was known to the mother and contributing to her numbness. As someone who knows of others in that situation, I'm aware that sometimes the mother does suffer in the attempt to keep a marriage together, if she's aware of her husband's double-life. Finally, I noticed that while he considered himself to be Super Twink, the others he encountered 'ordered' him to do things and he obeyed, even if he really didn't want to. Was it the fact that people paid attention to him and that was enough for him to feel good and didn't really notice how they were treating him? As for the ending... I don't want to even speculate on what happened next Well done, Mark!

The Spring Anthology is now online! I would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who has been involved. Firstly, the authors and editors, without which there wouldn't be an anthology. As a past contributer myself, I know how much effort they can put in and I want to give a big Thank You for what they've done. On the technical side, I'd like to thank Steph for her assistance in getting the anthology ready and online. Lastly, I would like to thank Myr, C James and everyone else who has been involved previously in organising these anthologies, making them a quartely feature that I, for one, have always looked forward to seeing. Thanks, everyone! Graeme GA Anthology Coordinator

Sometimes people need time to process what they've been told. Hopefully it all works out in the end, and it's great that the other four people were very supportive.

A Father's Son by Mark Arbour Anonymous sex is dangerous, sometimes in ways you can't even imagine. :nuke: :nuke: Spoilers Below!!! :nuke: :nuke:

A Whole Other You by Comicality Little brothers growing up can be tough on big brothers. :nuke: :nuke: Spoilers Below!!! :nuke: :nuke:

Good luck! I hope it all goes very smoothly

G'day, Jerry! If you've got any questions, please don't hesitate to ask Cheers! Graeme

Age 40, shortly before my 41st birthday. I had been visiting gay story sites and they had given me a degree of self-confidence I didn't have before. When I started writing, I came out to my wife because I didn't want her to learn by finding something on the computer.

While I think your 99% figure is too high, I don't think it's far off the mark. I believe such relationships can work and can be very fulfilling for the people involved, but the reasons it is so difficult have already been mentioned. You would need three people who: 1. Generally don't get jealous 2. Care more for the others than themselves 3. Have enough in common that they can do things as a threesome (and I'm not talking about sex). I've seen couples drift apart because they didn't spend enough time together (and couples that have broken up because they spent too much time together). With three people you have to balance the time spent as a threesome, time spent as three couple (AB, BC and AC) and time spent as three individuals 4. Communicate well enough that problems don't fester, either in an individual, or as a couple against the third, or by one against the other two. All possible, but to get the right three people together is tough. Getting the right two people together is tough enough.... Personally, if I was single I would be open to the idea. My main criteria in a partner is that they love me. If I found two people who loved me and loved each other, then I think I would consider it.