Mark Arbour

Thanks for all your feedback. There is a difference between constructive criticism and an insult: the former are useful, the latter piss me off. I generally enjoy people venting their spleens about the characters, even when they are persistently wrong. And this forum usually operates in a relatively pleasant manner. Those are not issues for me, and I have not found comments here to be disturbing in the least. I put 9-11 on hold on Friday because I got feedback suggesting that Wade and Matt (and others) were acting out of character. I tend to discount whining that a story went in a direction a reader didn't like (See Sharon's earlier post), but I thought that those critiques, coming from readers whom I've known and respected for a while, warranted some introspection on my part. These characters, when I'm writing them, seem to live in my mind, but it's possible that with so many actors, my mind confuses them. Even schizophrenic people can confuse the various people living in their heads. So I've been doing that with the remaining chapters of 9-11, and I haven't discerned anything to validate that assertion. The characters seem to be doing just what they probably would do, giving the stresses put upon them. I have the final six chapters in final edit/beta read mode, and I see no reason to delay posting at this point, so I'm changing the status back to "in process." I do not think that Wade, Matt, or Will are acting 'out of character' under the circumstances. I think that it's impossible, as I've said in response to reviews, to adequately predict the impact of a tragedy like 9-11. And that really has been what this story is all about. I also understand that the break-up of a tight relationship like Matt and Wade had is a wrenching event for readers who are attached to them, and would suggest that has more influence on 'out of character' comments than any actual change in how these people would function. I can understand and relate to that. But let us also acknowledge that traumatic events like this can, and often do, tear relationships (and families) apart.

These people lost key loved ones, and didn't deal with this tragedy at nearly the level the rest of us did. It's frustrating, because if I wrote them as just their normal selves, I'd hear a cacophony of feedback that said they were abnormally fine. Sigh. Maybe it's just time for a vacation.

A cheap Spanish novella is a little harsh. I'm sorry that you don't think the characters are acting true to form, but I would ask you to consider that these people are less than two months away from the 9-11 attacks and crisis. Ponder that Matt is trying to distance himself from his family, and from everyone. How are their reactions to that kind of action unjustified? Ponder that Wade, who is normally so stoic and calm, is having a tough time maintaining that same glacial attitude, which is not unusual when he deals with Matt. Matt has consistently been the one person who has the ability to make Wade act emotionally. So that's out of character? And you are perhaps suggesting that this is the first time that a crisis of massive proportions has caused relationships to fray and break apart? That is also unrealistic?

Matt's POV? It's just a story away. ;-) The question is, seeing things from his POV, will you like him any better?

I think you're blind to the passive-aggressive nature that Matt has adopted. He didn't throw Wade out of their room, but he drove him out by his actions. But I'm willing to nod to the "neglecting Matt" bandwagon, even though I think to a degree he is reaping what he's sown. Will is completely justified in being furious with both Matt and Tony. There really is no reason for him to talk to Tony, and by moving in with Tony, Matt is simply prying open the wound with Will further. But I think that, even if you discount that, his outburst at dinner was much more controlled than it could have been a CAP year earlier, and that is despite the trauma that he's dealing with. I think a formal Matt-Brad relationship would be really tough, as you noted.

I think you may be right, and I really like your shoutout to Robbie and his empathy. If you notice, this group does not do well with people who reject them, and that's what Matt is doing. The loyalty to the family (even if you're railing against it) is a paramount factor.

Discussions do not always have to have a purpose.

Well that's just excellent, but now I have a question burning in my brain: Who turned down the marquessate of Preston, and why?

Mark is dealing with the same shitty weather you are. Ugh. I think that Klip's motives are actually much more admirable than that. He and Wade have been good friends, and he's perceptive enough (we assume) to sense Wade's turmoil at what happened. I'm guessing that Klip is with Wade not because he's suddenly discovered that men really do it for him, I suspect he's with Wade because he knows that's what Wade needs.

Here's an interesting piece on how men deal with grief. Matt is clearly alienating everyone close to him, and he's probably doing it subconsciously, but he's clearly motivated to drive away the people who love him. Instead, he's settling in with Tony, a low-intensity guy that he can be around with no deep conversations, and occasionally get off with. In essence, Matt is creating his own "safe" space to grieve.

Ah, that's why this is called fiction.

I could throw out a spoiler here, but I won't. I think, though, that both Brad and Wade would be scared shitless about getting involved with each other, especially after what happened the last time.

I don't know if Matt's hit bottom yet, but his mode seems to be that he'll just wallow in a dissolute undergraduate lifestyle. That has to just bug the shit out of Wade.

Now Kitt, keeping bowel movements regular is a key focus of all the CAP characters. ;-) I really like the points you made in this review: 1. Matt is nosediving. 2. Frank sees that, and is trying to balance his utter frustration with Matt with his worry over Matt's psyche. I think his comments to Wade were really a plea for help from Wade. 3. Will was a lot more balanced than he has been, which is a good sign. I personally laughed at my own writing when I reread Marie's line to him. 4. I'm willing to bet that Klip is realizing that Wade, for all his vaunted strength, is in crisis mode himself, and he's using his dick to help Wade get through this. I think that would have worked for me. ;-)

Good guess. :-)

Actually, this chapter was all about Matt. Will's issues with Matt merely highlight Matt's estrangement from the family in a way that would otherwise be difficult to illustrate.

You raise an interesting issue (well, a couple, but I'll focus on one), and that's the interoffice relationship. They're not unusual, they're not banned, but they can be dangerous. I don't see a problem with Brad, in his position, having a relationship with Chris, as long as they're both upfront about things.Chris has a reputation as a player, and that makes it tougher for him to go after Brad. Plus, I think Brad is smart enough to avoid stupid mistakes with this guy.

You may be right. Matt is clearly bouncing up and down on this ride to grapple with changes in his life. I think that his moving out is a clear signal that he's given up. That should worry all of them, but instead, they're pissed off.

I appreciate your observations, and I think that the teamwork thing really is a big factor in this, but I think Wade summed things up pretty well. Matt's reaction to 9-11 is scorched earth, and while that's devastating, it happens. I really think Matt could have worked the team thing out with Wade with some better communication. Explaining that he'd change his ways, but at the same time telling Wade how he felt about quitting the team, and fulfilling his leadership role, would have resonated. I agree with you on Will as well, but I'm also going to give him the 9-11 crisis bye, and acknowledge that, rational or not, this thing with Matt and Tony is an open wound. For Will, Matt's action is like a big "fuck you" to him, and makes Matt's original apology seem as meaningless as he feared it was.

What happened to the Matt of three years ago? Two things: 9-11, and college graduation. Two hugely traumatic events, with a major impact on Matt's psyche.

Ah, the incredibly incomprehensible family tree. LOL. I don't think this is the easy way out for Matt.

I think George is more likely to have a Bedford crop than a mullet. :-)

I think Matt's mercurial behavior shows how badly he's handling his post-911 life. Wade really did a nice summary of things, and clearly knows how Matt thinks. Matt is subconsciously (or consciously) burning all of his bridges, and thus eliminating people from his life that he loves. If they're gone, he won't have to worry about them, and he won't have pain like he did when Robbie died.

Frank has never been very tuned in to Escorial politics, so it makes sense that he'd flub things up completely. He probably had a nice bonding weekend with Matt, listened to Matt whine about giving up the team (see Jason's review, above), and rethought things with Matt. In this situation, Matt swayed Frank more than the other way around.

Thanks for the review. A couple of points: Matt came from an upper class family, so he doesn't have the rags-to-riches deal hanging there. I honestly don't think Will would have an issue with Wade and Brad, if Wade and Matt are truly over. His issue with Tony and Matt was a situation where he and Tony weren't over. Will had lined Tony up as a key person in his life, and then Tony betrayed him (as Will saw it). But then again, you never know. I think in this situation, Will understood clearly what his relationship was with Matt and with Tony; that's why he's so pissed off.