Graeme

Thank you! I had a lot of fun writing Ty's speech. In my discussions with Jason Ball, we used the term 'casual homophobia', though I think 'unthinking homophobia' is more accurate. Jason found a number of people who would make homophobic comments without really thinking about what they were saying -- it was just something that was said, a phrase to be used, without them really understanding what they were actually saying and what it meant. That's the easiest form of homophobia to be addressed because it's not really intended. There are other forms, however, that will take longer to address. Using an analogy, the AFL had been working hard for years to stamp out racism in the sport, but there are still people (including some AFL players and administrators) that make the occasional inappropriate comment towards the aboriginal players in the AFL.

Thank you! A beta-reader comment earlier in the series by C James is what prompted the pastafarian reference. You can thank him for the inclusion

Thank you! Paddy never feared the brat -- it was Shane who was worried he'd made the wrong choice. The real challenge will come in a years time when Alastair started the negotiations for the brat's next contract (the initial contract was only for two years -- that's standard). The Blues will either need to sign him to a new contract before the end of the year or risk him moving to another club. If they're smart, they'll elevate Jim to their senior list at the year, giving him a standard two year contract. The brat is unlikely to leave the Blues while Jim is still there A fourth book directly on the Leopards is likely to be just 'more of the same' and I don't really want to do that. If there's a fourth book, it'll involve the Leopards but won't necessarily follow their football season closely. That's why I indicated it's more likely to be spin-off's (I already have the series title: Leopard Tails, of which To Catch A Leopard would be part of that series).

Thank you, Tim! That's a great summary of how the story ended. I would have liked Charlie to be drafted, but it didn't work out that way. But, yes, by not only winning the VFL premiership but then having five players drafted into the AFL, the Leopards have shown that they are a viable path for players to make it into the AFL if they fail to be drafted directly. There was a conversation between Karen, Stacey, Ty, and Charlie on exactly that subject back in Leopard Spots.

No, thank you.

:music: Happy Birthday, Cynus! :music: :2thumbs: :2thumbs:

Thank you! As a Geelong supporter, I was disappointed a week before the AFL grand final, but I was happy that the Bulldogs won. I didn't think they would, but I was happy that they did so. It's been a long time for them, which I appreciate. The year I was born, Geelong won the grand final. I was in my forties before they won again, so I can appreciate the euphoria after a long premiership drought is over.

Thanks, Steve! I definitely couldn't do this without my team, plus the kick-start from Jason Ball back at the start of the series. He put me in touch with Brock McLean which was a big buzz for me, especially when Brock agreed to making a cameo appearance in the story. That was one of the highlights for me in writing this story.

Thank you! I have ideas for a book 4 and a couple of short stories, but I need to find the time and energy to write them. I'm not promising anything, but I am working on it.

Deon glanced in amazement around the Etihad Stadium meeting area—there were over one-hundred, first-year players about to start a two-day induction camp run by the AFL Players’ Association—when he was attacked. “Deon!” Ty grinned as he grabbed his old teammate in a bear hug. “It’s great to see you again!” “You, too.” Deon chuckled as he returned the embrace. “I can see life at Carlton hasn’t changed you much.” Ty shrugged. “A little older, maybe a little wiser.” He winked. “But I usually leav

Deon and three of his new friends left the room at the Greater Western Sydney Giants training facility and started meandering through the building towards the front entrance. It had been a morning and half the afternoon of meetings and familiarisation for the new AFL players. “It sounds like we’re going to be in for it tomorrow.” Jeremy shrugged. “It’s shouldn’t be too bad. I don’t really like getting up at that time of the morning, but it won’t be the first time.” Deon shook his head. “I thin

Seven-year-old boy buys a pony using lemonade stand money That's hard work and dedication for you!

What I've done in the past is to use the GA Stories Advanced Search function. I would pick a genre (typically Romance or Drama -- I'm a big softy at heart), then pick one or more tags that I like (eg. "college", "coming out", "coming of age", etc). I usually pick a status of "Complete" because I prefer to read stories once they've finished, but there are a lot of great stories that are still in the "In Process" status. After that, I browse the list of stories presented to see if the story description and other tags appeals. For example, I usually don't read a story with an "abuse" tag, though there have been exceptions when I know the author

There are plenty of previous threads on story recommendations. Here are links to some of them. I haven't tried to give pretty links because a lot of them are simply called "Story Recommendations?" or similar... https://www.gayauthors.org/forums/topic/40679-more-story-recommendations https://www.gayauthors.org/forums/topic/39970-sci-fi-recommendations https://www.gayauthors.org/forums/topic/39922-looking-for-a-specific-type-of-story-suggestions-welcomed-details-inside-thx https://www.gayauthors.org/forums/topic/38154-story-recommendations https://www.gayauthors.org/forums/topic/36650-story-recommendations https://www.gayauthors.org/forums/topic/35356-looking-for-recommendations https://www.gayauthors.org/forums/topic/35244-story-recommendations https://www.gayauthors.org/forums/topic/34986-story-recommendations https://www.gayauthors.org/forums/topic/31450-looking-for-story-recommendations

Thank you!

To me, the question has always been "why put sex into the story?" Some stories almost require you to include some sex. For other stories, a sex scene feels intrusive and disruptive. In that thread Drew linked to, I stated that I don't write sex scenes, and that still remains true. However, I recently had a chapter that almost called out for the sex to be explicitly described. That's the first time I've been strongly tempted to include sex in one of my stories...because the story demanded it. I managed to write it so there was nothing explicit (I had the lead up and the aftermath, without the act itself), but it's the only time I would've felt comfortable including sex. In all other cases, I have scenes end with the sex about to start, or a scene start after the sex has ended...because the sex wasn't the point of the scenes. The scenes had other purposes, such as showing the love of the two characters involved. Yes, sex can be used to show love, but it can also be a distraction when it comes to the reader seeing the love and not the act. I don't write for publication, so I'm not bound by what the publishers want to see. Indeed, most publishers of gay novels won't be interested in what I write, because they largely require the use of American English, and my novels are all in Australian English Leaving that aside, though, the reasons I write don't require me to include sex. I don't write to sell. I don't write to titillate. I write because I enjoy it. I write because I have a story to tell. I write because I like to create. None of those reasons require me to include sex.

Personality conflicts and personal history can impact anywhere...even in a swimming team Thanks, Krista! It was nice to see Jackson's life starting to come back together again. He and Luke still need to get themselves sorted out, but otherwise things seem to be settling down. (Which I know is the signal that everything is about to explode, but I'll keep hold my delusions for just a little longer, thank you...)

I was surprised and proud when Zac effectively admitted to Rachel that he's gay. However, I also thought he was being overly optimistic when he hoped that she, Alise, and Kenny liked him enough to not out him. Rachel by herself was angry enough to start spreading the news immediately, and now we know what Kenny thinks (though we had some strong hints from the previous chapter). Marty's comment about how he stopped running is very appropriate here. I think Zac is already ready to stop running, though whether he's prepared to step forward is another question. He appears ready to turn around and face the truth...

Thank you! Yes, the characters will definitely still have their futures ahead of them, even after the story ends. As has been said before, one story ends and another begins. No promises on whether I'll write that next story, but I'm giving it serious consideration

Thanks, Tim! Yes, your hacking into my computer and reading my story notes was successful Seriously, though, I'm going to have to do something because I'm obviously becoming too predictable But I'm a romantic, so I like happy endings (most of the time). Technically, Ross doesn't have a signed contract yet, but they're in contract negotiations. That shouldn't take too long since the only stumbling block is Alastair's request that Ross be eligible to play in TAC Cup matches if he makes the team. However, there is, as you've pointed out, the rookie draft still to come, so all their plans may get tossed out...

Thank you! Maybe it was too subtle, but Shane indicated that he wants Carlton to do something official for Melbourne's Midsumma gay-and-lesbian festival. Brock McLean (who made a cameo appearance in chapter 40 of Leopard Spots) had been participating the previous two years (he and Dan Jackson from Richmond were the first two AFL footballers to march in the annual Pride march, and the following year, Brock helped run some football clinics for gay youngsters). Shane's indicating that Carlton wants to do something official, and wants to run ideas past Jim. We haven't seen the ideas yet, but it's clear they'll be to do with that festival.

Thanks, Sammy! A nice wrapping up without being too sappy. A return to the beginning, even if it's not as complete a return as Josh and Jacob wanted.

The TAC Cup is the top Victorian junior (usually eighteen and under, though each team is allowed to field a handful of nineteen-year-olds) football competition. It's the competition which most of the AFL teams watch to see who has the potential to become an AFL player. There are also equivalent competitions in other states, but as Australian Rules Football originated in Victoria, and 10 of the 18 AFL clubs are based in Victoria, it's the competition with the highest profile. That's why Alastair wants Ross to continue to play in the TAC Cup. It will allow him to show what he's capable of against others of a similar age, and hence give the recruiters a better idea of how good he is in comparison to other potential draft prospects. The best of the players from the TAC Cup (excluding the nineteen-year-olds) will then be invited to go into the national carnival, where they play against similar teams from the other states. That gives the recruiters a chance to see all the best eighteen-year-olds across the country competing against each other. Each state has one team in that competition except Victoria which has two: Vic Metro (essentially the players based in and around Melbourne) and Vic Country (the players from the rest of the state). Ty and Kevin were both in the Vic Metro team the year before -- that's where they met and how they knew each other. So, to answer your question, the TAC Cup gives Ross the best chance to impress the recruiters, but the VFL, where he's playing against older and more experienced players, include some AFL-level players who didn't make the senior team, will give him the best challenge.

Sorry, Carlos, but the next chapter is already written and posted with next weekend as the publish date. I won't be changing it

Thank you! My next novel will start posting the week after this one ends, so you won't have long to wait