Trebs

It worked!!! Thank you Myr. For everyone else, my old blog entries kinda disappeared. I could still see them one by one, but they wouldn't show as a list. In other words, no index. Myr fixed it 'cause he ROCKS!!!

While it is great to read what some established writers do with these writing prompts, it is just so wonderful to see new authors, who haven't published any stories on GA.Stories yet, answer these writing prompts. These writing prompts are a great way to try your hand, see how you can do and get some great feedback. We're thankful to Comicfan for these prompts, and we hope you take a try and share what you write with the community in the Writing Prompt forum. Prompt 178 – Creative Tag – List of Words Use the following words in a story – blanket, red thong, snow, necklace, and salad. Prompt 179 – Creative Tag – First Line “Well that sure didn’t go as I had hoped.” A couple of weeks ago, Prompt 171 was "Tired of seeing the community in trouble you begin a program called Helping Hand. What is this program does?" As I said in the intro, it is always wonderful to see newer authors trying their hand at the prompts, and this week's feature is a perfect illustration of that. Here is joann414's prompt response: Thank you for writing this joann414 and more importantly, sharing it with all of us - I loved it!

We love getting News blog articles and tips from members - and CassieQ has been a wonderful contributor. Here she writes her thoughts on Constructive Criticism - a very detailed article that shows a lot of thought. I hope you enjoy and let us know your thoughts as well! Also, if YOU have an article you think would be great for this blog, let Renee Stevens, Andy021278 or myself know. Thanks! Constructive Criticism by CassieQ I'll try to make this as painless as possible. It's a tough thing for many writers to have someone criticize their work. But any writer that is going to be worth reading is going to encounter criticism eventually and how they take it can make the difference between improving your craft or giving up. In my mind, there are four types of feedback. Here are some examples of each type. Non-Constructive praise: This is so awesome! I just love it! It's such a great story! It's nice and not many writers mind seeing it, but it's not really helpful. Non-Constructive criticism: This is awful and I hate it! You should never write another word you talentless hack! This will do you no good at all. Throw it away. Both of these give you feedback, but it is not specific enough to apply to your writing. Constructive praise: I like this story. I like Caleb and I told you that Noah is a bit boring to me as a character (as a bf I would take him and lock him in and never let him go ) but he fits the story very well. I like the ending though it is dark and even with the intention you had, it makes the story very round and interesting with a BANG of a final! Great! This is good, because it points out the things that the reader likes about the story. In this review (a real one, given to me by my beta), I learned that he likes my characters, even though one is boring and that the ending was well done, which is something he knows I struggle with sometimes. Constructive criticism: Also from a real review from a rough draft for the legends anthology: Legends, myth and fairy tales rarely portray complex characters, backgrounds and sometimes even treat logic like it is something that happens to other. But they all contain a motivation for the doings of the protagonists and some kind of purpose or moral to the story. You, aside from a wonderful setting and beautiful language, have no complex characters (which is totally fine), no background, a medium lack in logic and no real motivation and purpose. What I think weighs heavier is the overall lack of motivation. It all seems so… random. After I finished the last chapter, it left me like “Um… That’s it? *figuratively turns the sheet to look for a lost chapter* Really? Wow. Okay.” It misses the wow-effect. If I had read that as the first story from you, I would think “Good style, nice language, lacks a certain feeling and profoundness.” I don’t intend to sound harsh, but I don’t know if ItD would make me look for more of you. And I know you have very good, very deep stories, wonderful characters, well-thought plots, self-made worlds and realities that are profound and fantastic. That is only a small snippet. My beta actually wrote a full page of comments, ripping on everything from my characters, to my plot and everything in between. This is the most valuable type of criticism that a writer can get. It is one thing to show what your strong points are, in constructive praise, so you can identify your strengths and develop them to make them even stronger. But the weak points of your writing are the ones that you need to develop. Readers will notice these, even if they don't comment on them. And you will never develop yourself as a writer if you don't take these weak points into consideration and work on developing them. Constructive criticism can be hard to take, especially from a friend or someone you are close to, so finding someone that is not familiar to you to look over your work is best. Of course, that has its own set of issues, because you need someone you can work well with. That is why having a good beta reader or editor is important. GA is great with the Writing Support in the Editor's corner. Make sure if you utilize this resource to mention what kind of feedback you want, and if you don't think you can take up front, blunt criticism, ask for someone who is gentle and tactful (but still honest) with their feedback. Don't get discouraged by negative feedback either. No one is perfect and especially in the beginning, mistakes run rampant. A good beta/editor will guide you through these early hurdles and the more mistakes they help you see and recognize, the easier it will be to avoid them in the future. And don't ever think that constructive criticism is a bad thing. It isn't. It doesn't mean you have a bad story, on the contrary, it actually means the opposite. It means that there is something awesome about it and that the person leaving the criticism wants to see more of that awesome. When I read a story and think it is no good, then I won't say a word. I won't review; I just leave it and go read something else. If it has potential, if it has something that is awesome about it, then I would want to point out what is good about it and what needs improvement. But only if the writer is ready to hear it. So you've got your constructive criticism. Now what? Well, when I would get rough criticism, I would need some space. I wouldn't talk to my beta until I had some time to think about it and contemplate it. A person's first reaction is to defend their work, or justify why they did such and such. That is not going to help you. Take some time, walk the dog, go for a swim, meditate, whatever. Do something to clear your mind and then come back. Try to be objective and listen to what the person is telling you. If necessary, try to contact the person and ask for examples or specifics if you still don't see the problem. If your feelings get hurt, cry or punch a pillow or do what you need to do let them out, but don't let them get in the way. If you really do still have doubts, run it through a second person. Again, find someone who can be objective. If they point out the same issues, then you need to address them. But do remember, you are the writer and it is your call. But if you receive constructive criticism and learn to use it to your advantage, you will be doing yourself, your writing and your readers a great service and eventually, you might even learn to like criticism!

KingdombytheSea knows how to write in the long form, as evidenced by his fantastic Social Skills, one of the top reviewed stories on GayAuthors.org. But in reading Dare, it is obvious that he is equally skilled at the art of a short story. At just over 5000 words, Dare is the story of Mark, who takes any dare given to him - as the very first line of the story sets the tone "C’mon, Mark. I dare ya. I triple dog dare ya." Mark has a great constant group of friends: Derrick, Sean, and Phil. Throughout their childhood, they watch (and prod) Mark's various stunts, always daring him to take one more step. Of course, dynamics change as they grow up and new people interact with these friends. KingdombytheSea weaves a enchanting story of these friends as they grow up and the bonds of their friendship is tested. I totally loved this story, told with a modicum of words but so rich at the same time. I highly recommend Dare as KingdombytheSea has definitely mastered the art of the short story.

Sorry, today's author showcase is a bit late this morning - was having crashes with my computer last night. First we look at Promising Author KingdombytheSea's Dare and then LouisHarris gives us a great review of The Life of Him, by Author SidLove. Enjoy! Dare by KingdombytheSea Reviewer: Trebs Status: Complete Word Count: 5315 If you couldn't tell from my reviews, I love a great short story. While novels are interesting and give us such rich texture, it is difficult to write a short story, to strike that balance between adequate description and overlong detail. Some of the classic tales that I remember reading are shorts - such as Arthur C Clarke's The Sentinel and The Star or Isaac Asimov's many Black Widower tales. KingdombytheSea knows how to write in the long form, as evidenced by his fantastic Social Skills, one of the top reviewed stories on GayAuthors.org. But in reading Dare, it is obvious that he is equally skilled at the art of a short story. At just over 5000 words, Dare is the story of Mark, who takes any dare given to him - as the very first line of the story sets the tone "C’mon, Mark. I dare ya. I triple dog dare ya." Mark has a great constant group of friends: Derrick, Sean, and Phil. Throughout their childhood, they watch (and prod) Mark's various stunts, always daring him to take one more step. Of course, dynamics change as they grow up and new people interact with these friends. KingdombytheSea weaves a enchanting story of these friends as they grow up and the bonds of their friendship is tested. I totally loved this story, told with a modicum of words but so rich at the same time. I highly recommend Dare as KingdombytheSea has definitely mastered the art of the short story. The Life of Him by SidLove Reviewer LouisHarris Status: In Progress Word Count: 100,509 Brilliantly plotted, rich in characterization, abundant in pace and passion, The Life of Him is the unforgettable story of a multifaceted love story that will hold you riveted until the final, devastating denouement. It is an adventure, a love story, a story of grief and loss, of betrayal and persecution, but, above all, this novel is about survival, deliverance and discovery. Austin Reyes is a man with a past darker than a dungeon. Turn of events happen when a handsome man unexpectedly walks into his life. A porn model, who strives to give Austin a new life, tries his level best to break through his shell and in the process, falls in love with him. With Dylan, a beautiful future comes into view for Austin. But what price would he have to pay to get that happy ending? Austin works as a barman and, through no fault of his own, is raped, then fired. He discovers that his mother has committed suicide and leaves town. Without a job and a home, his purpose in life is threatened. He is insecure, and the hopelessness continues until he meets Dylan, a porn star. Their relationship is stormy, and it becomes more so when someone tries to kill Austin. Everyone is suspect, and it will take a miracle to bring the perpetrator to justice. A miracle that only Dylan can perform in his own, inimitable way. Sid adds mood and layers to this story. In bucket loads. He weaves the details in and doesn’t add them in long blocks. He creates exciting sentences. Sentences that move the reader the way he wants them to be moved. Like an artist, he has taken his palette of words and his PC and painted everything down to the smallest detail. This story took me on a journey. I encountered people and settings that I would never meet. He made this journey memorable for me. He created an image in my mind through simple, easy writing that flowed well and never let up. His characters, Austin and Dylan, as well as the minor characters are true to the homo fictus definition: Readers demand that homo fictus be more handsome or ugly, ruthless or noble, vengeful or forgiving, brave or cowardly and so on, than real people are. Homo fictus has hotter passions and colder anger, travels more, fights more, loves more, changes more and has more sex. Although I must admit here and now that the sex scenes are appropriate to context, they are not placed willy nilly wherever and forever. Above all, his characters have status and stature, presence and flair. They are memorable. This story makes use of the action/sequel chapter technique of writing. Each sequel moves the main character to create new short and long term goals, and this drives the story to it’s brilliant conclusion. Recommend this story? Of-course. It is one of the best stories I have had the pleasure of reading, and I know that every reader who picks it up, will feel the same way.

I feel a bit odd, writing an intro to my own review soooooo... Here is a review of Double Trouble by our Hosted Author Altimexis. Enjoy! Double Trouble by Altimexis Reviewed by: Trebs Status: Complete Word Count: 14,081 I fondly remember waiting for each new chapter of Love in a Chair when Altimexis wrote this beautiful story six years ago. So when I was looking around for something new to read, I saw Double Trouble and decided to check it out. I am glad I did - it is a fun short story. Jason and Rory are two fifteen year-olds, best friends who have been in love with each other for years who finally admit to each other they are gay and love the other. The story starts with them making up for lost time at Jason's house in Detroit, where his mom works late hours and his dad is absent, living in working in New York, where he spends about half the year. Problem is - Jason's dad is about to come home from New York for Thanksgiving and Christmas, so Jason and Rory are worried about a chaste month to come. One plot detail after another turn Jason and Rory's life from tranquil to surprised to challenging to ... well, you can see for yourself. The one detail I will give is I love how Altimexis puts into perspective the difficulty of two fifteen year-olds to pull off a scheme. Overall Double Trouble is an engaging story that I enjoyed. It is definitely a story to read twice - and once you finish it, I think you'll agree. The characters are interesting and well crafted. My only disappointment is that it seems that the ending wasn't as full as it could have been, compared to some of the detail in the rest of the story. It achieves its purpose - but after some wonderful detail, I guess I just expected a bit more. Overall, I give the story four of five stars and recommend it (as well as Love in a Chair). Altimexis knows how to write and weaves great tales.

Loved this story, especially the "best laid plans". Was a VERY fun read - thanks Altimexis!

ROFL... And I loved the story so of course I choose it as the feature :-)

Ack - spent the weekend helping the kids get ready for Halloween. Can't believe it is just around the corner (sort of like I couldn't believe the prices on the stuff they "needed" for their costumes). Oh well, just means we are getting colder nights finally - and can do big pots of soup and stew, with baked bread :-) So here at the the News Blog, we started the week looking at a beautiful story by Hosted Author Libby Drew. Radiant Renee Steven's reviewed Libby's The Art of Walking in Snow. I loved the review of this short Christmas story, and after reading the story itself, loved the story as well. Our Toss-up Tuesday gave us a great Interview with Cia - if you ever wanted to know more about this talented woman who does so many different things to help us here at GayAuthors.org, this is your opportunity. For our Author Showcase, guest reviewer Fozzie Bear came back and gave us a review of Three Hundred Years by Promising Author Wrathofmagneto while Zombie gave us a wonderful review of Author Podga's All That Matters. With many authors considering publishing their works, copyright violations are a very serious concern. For our Tip Thursday, KingdombytheSea shared his experiences in publishing Social Skills, and getting the legal permission to include various song lyrics in his published work. A fantastic read and we're grateful to KingdombytheSea for sharing his experiences. Prompt Me - our regular friday feature once again did not disappoint with two new creative prompt, The Mythical and Thief. Check them out - maybe try your hand at one (ot both) and share them with the communtiy. It is fun to read the prompt responses, whether they are just a few paragraphs or become a short story, like the one we featured, Time Out for a Life, a response by Promising Author Comicfan. And then yesterday, we ended the week looking back at our Blast from the Past, an article from our October 2006 newsletter, focusing on Poetry and featuring a poem by Luc and review of two of Luc's poems. So - how was your week? Anthology Announcements: Winter Anthology "Desperate Ends"- Due Dec 8th Special Mayan Tribute Anthology "End of the World"- Due Dec 14th NEW READING In Premium this week: Chosen of Honorus by Quonus10, Book 1 of Champions of The Gods By our Hosted Authors this week: Legacy by Altimexis, Book 29 of Naptown Tales GFD 12: Blood Ties by Comicality, Book 12 of Gone From Daylight Adverse Effects by Cia, Book 2 of Saving Caeorleia The Secret Life of Billy Chase 7 by Comicality, Book 7 of The Secret Life of Billy Chase Never More Lonely by Cia In the Arms of an Angel by Nephylim, Book 1 of Wednesday Briefs Lugh's Anthology Stories by Lugh, Book 1 of Lugh's Anthology of Anthology Stories Circumnavigation by C James Odyssey by Mark Arbour, Book 6 of Bridgemont City Under the Waves by Nephylim By our Promising Authors this week: Time Out for a Life by comicfan The English Year by Jwolf Protector of Children by David McLeod Have a great week everyone! Read, Write, REVIEW!!!

It's always fun looking back in time - this time, to our October 2006 issue of "The GAzette", GayAuthors.org's previous newsletter. In this second issue, was a Poet's Corner, that I'd like to share with everyone today. Disclaimer - normally I post these past newsletter items as they originally appeared, but for this one, I did edit it to update the links to Luc's forum and to the Poetry Discussion forum. Enjoy! Poets' Corner Poetry is a growing area at Gay Authors. In recent months we have seen an influx of highly talented poets, so it's only fair that they get the recognition they deserve, both on the site and in the newsletter. For that reason we have decided to include a "Poets' Corner" in the newsletter to discuss some of the poetry you can find on the site. For the first edition we decided to look at the works of a gifted poet and GA Hosted Author, Luc. Since joining the site in March of this year, Luc has shared more than a dozen of his own original compositions in addition to his stories. Below are reviews of two of his poems, "I Don't Know Who I Am" and "Unconditional". If you want to discuss his poems or these reviews then please visit his forum. To discuss the works of other poets at GA you can also visit our new Poetry Discussion Forum. Poetry Review In Luc's poem Unconditional (right), he explains how the narrator rejects attention and love from another person. In each of the first four of the five stanzas, the narrator talks about a different way someone cared for him but how he retaliated and only ended up hurting the person. What I like best about each of the first four stanzas is the smooth, flowing rhythm of the first two lines and the disjointed, emphasizing rhythm of the last two lines. The smooth rhythm of the first two lines of each stanza makes me think that maybe the narrator quickly, as if it were an automatic reaction, blocked the love he was receiving from the other person. Since the last two lines of each of the stanzas are more disjointed, it makes me think that the narrator may have had some qualms about what he just did, and maybe is realizing what he is doing. The last stanza shows how the character still loves the narrator unconditionally, even though he may have hurt him in the past. My favorite image from Luc's poem is the line “he offered me his heart; and I ripped it from his chest; throwing it to the floor; to lie among the toys.” I love the image of an injured heart laying on a floor cluttered with toys. It makes me see the heart as something that would get tripped on, or something that just clutters things. It also may show the childishness of his heart and maybe the worthlessness of it depending on your interpretation of why the narrator sees the other person as he does. “Unconditional” shows the actions and feelings that go along with being hurt emotionally and it shows the wall that is put up to avoid being hurt again. In another of Luc's poems, I Don't Know Who I Am , he masterfully provides a glimpse into the mind of someone who has lost all sense of who they are, someone who feels disconnected from the world, from reality, from everything that makes us what we are. The poem really describes how everybody feels at times - disjointed, uncertain, afraid and confused. The poem begins by talking about friendship and love, but how even with the love and tenderness of friends it's still possible to feel alone. When he says "I look in the mirror and don't see anyone there" you get a real sense of the emptiness the narrator is feeling. By the end of the poem, you're almost left with a sense of hopelessness, as though nothing and no one can fill that hole inside. Regarding his work, Luc said, “ Poetry is a picture of the inside of my soul, painted with words, which sounds so stupid, but that is what MY poetry is to me. I don't follow any specific style. I pretty much go with what fits the words and the feeling behind them. ” Silven & Redlightfeeling Unconditional by Luc he offered me his smile and I wiped it from his face my words so sharp they cut deep into his skin he offered me his hand and I pushed it away refusing even to touch that small thing that holds my heart he offered me his words and I turned a deafened ear not wanting to listen to that voice that sings my soul he offered me his heart and I ripped it from his chest throwing it to the floor to lie among the toys and still he offered me his love with arms so tight around my neck and tears that shed forgiveness reminding me it was unconditional © 2006 Luc

I recently read a great short story that originally started as a Prompt response. These prompts have helped generate some fantastic reads - and with this week's prompts, I'm looking forward to some more great responses. Try one (or both) of these prompts and please share them with the community in the Writing Prompts forum. Prompt 176 – Creative Tag – The Mythical Your child has just told you they found something and want to keep it as a pet, but as they describe it to you, you smile thinking of all the stories you read as a child. Positive they are just imagining things you follow them out into the yard where you see it. What is it your child has found? Prompt 177 – Creative Tag – Thief You went to the grocery store to pick up the essentials. You walked into the middle of robbery. What happens now? As I mentioned up top, I read a great prompt response recently. The Prompt was one of our Special Anniversary prompts: "You knew you had been asked to save that date for a special occasion, but so many things have come that you forgot why. What was the reason you were to save that date?" So, one fantastic writer took this and came up with a great short story called Time Out For a Life - here's the beginning of it... So - what do you think Raymond will do? Check out the whole story here!

No - this has nothing to do with pharmaceuticals or jailbait - it is a much more serious tip on how to avoid legal issues when publishing your writings. We thank KingdombytheSea for this great and very timely tip, as more and more authors are looking to take the plunge into being published. Enjoy! Keeping it Legal by KingdombytheSea The Copyright Police do exist, and if you’re an author planning on publishing, it’s a good idea to keep that in mind. When I wrote Social Skills and posted it on GA, I was blissfully unaware of having infringed on anyone’s copyrights. Because Connor is a violinist, music factors heavily into the story. In the second half of the book he joins a pit orchestra, and within those scenes I quoted a few lines of lyrics from a Kiss Me Kate song. As I prepared Social Skills for publication this summer, I handed it off to a beta/author friend, who immediately questioned my use of the lyrics. A little Googling revealed that all lyrics from any Cole Porter musical are copyrighted, despite the fact that they can be found scattered across the internet (Here’s a page with copyright terms in the United States as of January 1, 2012). But could quoting just a few lines really get me in trouble? Yes, it could. Even those lyrics sites can get in trouble, and though they may be too numerous to completely eradicate, some have already been sued. One just got hit with a $6.6 million default judgement a few days ago. Bottom line: When you publish/post something that contains copyrighted material, there’s a chance that someone might see, object, and sue. I didn’t want to risk it, so I took a second look at my work and decided to edit out the lyrics. Unfortunately, I’d really entangled them with the emotions of the scene, and cutting them out proved difficult. Meanwhile, my friend found a link to a site with information on Cole Porter’s Trust and encouraged me to poke around a bit and see what the legal process for obtaining permission entailed. The Trust put me in contact with the publishing company that now owns the rights to the lyrics, and that led me to their Permissions department. I had to email a copy of the book as well as separate PDFs of the pages containing the quoted lyrics. The initial price I was given was $255, which was too steep for me. I did some more digging (or pestering of the Permissions department) and eventually found out the price was calculated based on an estimated 10,000 print run. Many businesses have not caught up with the ebook trend—I won’t have a ‘print run’, and while I’d love to sell 10,000 copies, I wouldn’t mind starting off with a more obtainable goal. I emailed back and requested a 2,000 copy print run, and voila! the price dropped to an affordable $55. I mailed my check and received a ‘lyrics used by permission’ copyright blurb to stick in the front of my novel. Different publishers/companies will obviously have their own pricing structure in place—my friend recommended this article about author Blake Morrison, who wound up paying around $7,000 for his song lyrics usage. And I’ve already been warned off quoting Dr. Seuss, whose estate evidently does go after people for copyright infringement. From my experience, I’d give the following advice to authors: * Think carefully about any lyrics/books/short stories/plays/movies you quote from in your story. You never know when you might get the urge to publish or even make an ebook to release for free on Smashwords. Better to be safe than sorry, and it’s usually easier to reimagine a scene before writing than it is to change one that’s already comfortably sitting in your story. * If you are planning on self-publishing, you should be extra vigilant about copyrighted material, as you won’t have a publishing company to take any of the blame should you be sued. Also, some newer epublishing companies might not do thorough checks for copyrighted material, so as an author, it’s always best to be aware. * If you decide to quote copyrighted material or already have it in your story, do your research. It doesn’t hurt to question the companies that hold the rights or to try to negotiate with them. Perhaps they will one day catch up with the times and start taking a percentage of ebook sales instead of asking for a lump fee up front, but for now you can always ask for their pricing structure and do what you can to get to a mutually agreeable fee. This might involve lowering your estimated print run and then reapplying for permission should you exceed that number of sales, or quoting fewer lines. Though it may not make a whole lot of sense—especially in the case of song lyrics, where quoting almost seems like free advertising—this is the way the world currently works. Even when you attribute quotes to their rightful owners, you might have to pay for the right to use them in your story. So don’t forget to keep it legal, and happy writing everyone!

Beautiful story - I loved the characters, the pacing, everything. The description of the driven account executive was spot on - I've met too many of those people. While I agree that it would be fun to see more of Ray and Josh, it also gives me just a warm sense of a wonderful beginning and create your own vision of where/how they proceed. Thanks Wayne for a sweet story!

Forsaken One - while I can understand your frustration, unlike some other sites, we try to make sure someone knows going into a story what the status is. And with our over 10 years of history and (currently) 2641 stories - I would hope that even with the slow to update "In Progress" stories, there is still so much other reading material available. One additional hint - when I do the weekly update each Sunday, I list the stories that our Hosted and Promising Authors have posted that week. By just glancing at 2 or 3 of these, you can easily see the authors that regularly post and update their in progress stories.

She can turn the world on with a smile... She can take a nothing day - well, you get the picture. Who am I talking about? Well Cia of course (though Radiant Renee Stevens gives her a close run for the money). So what better way to enjoy a Tuesday than with an interview WITH Cia, GIVEN by Renee? Double the trouble and double the fun! Enjoy! Interview with Cia Interviewer: Renee Stevens First off, Congrats on getting Pricolici published, that must be exciting! Now, onto the questions How does it feel to know that people are paying to read what you write? Awesome. I was leery of submitting to a publisher, so I picked a new e-publisher. RFP gave me a chance and I rolled with it. It's been an incredible amount of work getting my ebook out in the public eye though, way more than I ever thought as a reader. I am amazed at anyone who can do this for a living! It must have been exciting when you first heard that the publisher had accepted Pricolici. What was your first thought/reaction on getting that acceptance letter? Holy freaking shit. LOL! Then ... this is going to be a LOT of work. I had to completely re-write the story and add over twice the content I started with yet keep the integrity of the story intact. What did your husband think when you told him you were being published? He told me congrats but he was pretty laid back about the whole thing. Now that it has proven successful he's a lot more enthusiastic and keeps asking me why the sequel isn't done yet. So, there’s going to be a sequel? Oh yes. I've been outlining the sequel and doing an absolute ton of research for it. Pricolici has many elements of actual Dacian mythology, with a few special Cia twists, of course. I am a stickler for having any 'real' details be as accurate as I can possibly make them, so I don't just depend on the internet; I go to my local library for other resource sources too. Stelian lived through ancient times and I plan to take the sequel to parts unknown, so I am trying to be extremely thorough. Elements of his past are once again going to be influencing Tucker's future, so it's not enough to know about current Romania, I have to research historical locations and events too. I anticipate the actual writing taking less time than the research! You do a lot on GA as well as have a fairly busy life, how do you find time to write? I don't write nearly as much as I should, actually. If I buckled down and did an hour a day, like I want to, I could get probably twice as much done. Usually I do a writing burst once or twice a week for several hours in the afternoon or evening. I put my earplugs in if the kids are home and then zone out. If I can get in the groove, it's easy. If not ... well, I'm stubborn enough to push through. Out of all of your characters, who would you say that you relate to the most and why? Oh that's hard. I've put bits and pieces of me into a lot of my characters. The one I identify the most with emotionally is probably Wes from 'With Open Arms'. I was in a car accident and it took over a year to be able to walk again. I wasn't hurt as badly as Wes but I put a lot of my fear, pain, and anger into him, as well as the love and gratitude I felt when my 'partner' stood by me through it all. My photography is something I began to focus on again as an alternative to several of my hobbies I had a hard time doing for a few years. His love of photography, his artistic outlet as well as liveliehood, is a direct relation to that love I rediscovered. His story is a work of fiction; it's not exactly my experience, but it was definitely hard to write. It also reminded me a lot of how grateful I am to be whole again though. What would you say to newer authors who are trying to get noticed? Writing is an evolutionary process. I'm always checking out articles, writing books, editing tutorials, etc ... to improve my writing. A story can only be as great as you can write it. A creative and enthralling plot won't draw in readers if your dialogue is stilted or you have no idea how to work a story arc. Then you have to put yourself out there. There are untold amounts of stories available for readers. No matter what avenue you use, you need to promote yourself. On GA I interact with readers through reviews, forum comments, the Writer/Editor community forums, even chat! For my ebook I've found several websites and yahoo groups that allow me to promote my story with excerpts, plus I blog. My blog has been an invaluable resource to gain readers for my free and e-published stories as well. I've created a network with a lot of fellow blogging authors that write material similar to mine and we help each other out. You just have to be willing to put in the time and effort. Writing is hard, promoting yourself can be even harder! How do you feel your writing has improved since first posting on GA? By leaps and bounds! Seriously, my first story was BAD. Not the story concept itself, which I am still quite proud of thinking up and writing from start to finish, but my technical knowledge was seriously lacking. I didn't have any clue how to punctuate dialogue, avoid head hopping, or how best to show and not tell... etc. Whenever I offer new authors advice and tips, I do it with that early writer I was in mind. I try to think of all the things I didn't know and then offer the tips I wish I'd had offered to me back then. It took a ton of research and a lot of trial and error to get to the point where I was even remotely ready to submit any of my writing for publishing. Then I had Pricolici worked over by actual publishers. Boy was that an eye opener. There is always, always, something new to learn each day. Authors should strive for at least 30 minutes every month just looking up information on how to write, imo. What is something that most people probably don’t know about you that you’d like to share? LOL. Does anyone think I hold anything back? Seriously, I hear way more often that I overshare and need to stop telling everyone every little thing that comes to my mind. I'm pretty much an open book. You are very Pro-Beta reader, can you tell us why? Personally? I looooove getting sneak peeks at my favorite stories. I try to help new authors as much as I can, but I will admit to getting in with a lot of my favorite authors just so I didn't have to wait to read their updates, lol. That self-serving aspect aside, there is nothing like a second, or third, or even fourth pair of eyes on your story. When you write, you see your story the way it is to you, but that doesn't mean readers will see it the same way. It's great to get that outside viewpoint before the story/chapter is released to the public. Beyond catching mistakes, betas are great to discuss a story. If you get stuck, or are at a crossroads, or just need someone to bounce ideas off or to motivate you, a beta can be there. I love talking over my stories to get ideas. Being able to give authors my opinion on where their stories could go satisfies the pushy reader in me. Betas are a creative and technical godsend, imo. Is there anything you’d like to say that wasn’t covered in the previous questions? My email/pm box is always open. I love to hear from readers and/or fellow authors. I can never have too many online friends, and I love talking about reading and writing. I probably read several hundred thousand words each week too, so I'm always looking for good recommendations for stories to read too!

Now we just need the next chapter to get over that cliffie...

What better way to start off a week, than with a review by Radiant Renee Stevens - and especially when the review is of Hosted Author Libby Drew's The Art of Walking in Snow. Enjoy! The Art of Walking in Snow By Libby Drew Reviewer: Renee Stevens Status: Complete Word Count: 10,666 Scanning through Libby’s story, the title of this little piece caught my eye. I’ve read a few stories by her, but I had not yet had the pleasure of reading this one. I’m so glad that I found it as it is a sweet little story that grabbed me and kept me entranced as I read. This story is about a young man who has seen much in his twenty years of life. Jamie has been on his own, homeless, from the age of fifteen and is no stranger to hard work. As Christmas nears he is looking for a place to lay his head for a little while when he comes across a sign that is advertising for help on a Christmas tree farm. He almost turns away, but finds himself drawn to the place and asking for the job. There’s a definite spark between Jamie and John, but Jamie is determined that he will not act on it. He makes it clear that nothing can happen between them and is determined to stick to his guns. He’ll help John out in exchange for a roof over his head, but that’s it. There is so much emotion in this relatively short story. At just over 10K, it grabbed me and refused to let me go until I’d read the last work. I found myself really feeling for both of the characters and really, I didn’t want this story to end. It has it’s light hearted moments, and those definitely brought a smile to my face. I would strongly suggest this story to anyone as it’s such a sweet story and it’s written in a way that really made me care about what happened to the main characters. Libby definitely showed her skill in weaving a tale that can pull at the heartstrings.

Announcement: As we've recently noted, we're working with our Hosted Author's to promote their eBooks. A few weeks ago we were proud to announce Cia's eBook Pricolici, and in today's "New Reading", we have Lugh's eBook Catara - which has a surprising ending. This is just the start and we look forward to working with more of our author's in the future and, as always, are exploring other ways of supporting the authors of this site. October is almost half over - this year has been passing so fast. Though for those in the US, I'm guessing you'd wish it'd go faster so the constant barrage of election ads would be over. Oh well, this too shall pass. As for out GayAuthors.org News Blog, we started the week with a great review of Hosted Author Nephylim's Memories of Forgotten Love. I loved reading this story when it was an entry in our first Novella Contest. For out Tuesday Toss-Up, we had an Interactive Day - where we mainly looked for feedback from the community. Letting us know what you think ALWAYS helps us - so leave us comments or send us a PM anytime you have something you want us to know. Our Author Showcase at midweek looked at a review of Promising Author Dezlboi's Facing the Demons, as well as a great review by CassieQ of Author Stellar's Hidden Sunlight. I love seeing comments like the one Joann414 left "Cassie, I am not much into sci-fi either, but you make me want to read this by your review." Thanks for the comment Joann414, but even more - thanks for the review CassieQ! Oh - did you know YOU can write reviews too? If you're interested, just contact Andy021278, Renee Stevens or myself! CassieQ also helped us out on Thursday with a writing tip on Using Description. Again - shameless plug - we love articles like this. For our weekly Writing Prompts, we thank our Prompt-Guru Comicfan for two really interesting creative prompts. We also featured a past prompt response by a relatively new member who had a great beginning for a story come out of Prompt 156 from this past summer. I really hope he continues his story! The week closed with our Blast to the Past, looking at an article from our October 2006 newsletter - a transcript of an "Author Chat" that we had with Hosted Author Viv. So - how was your week? Anthology Announcements: Winter Anthology "Desperate Ends"- Due Dec 8th Special Mayan Tribute Anthology "End of the World"- Due Dec 14th NEW READING In Premium this week: Chosen of Honorus by Quonus10, Book 1 of Champions of The Gods By our Hosted Authors this week: The Secret Life of Billy Chase 7 by Comicality, Book 7 of The Secret Life of Billy Chase Standing in Shadows by Krista Legacy by Altimexis, Book 29 of Naptown Tales Catara - the ebook by Lugh - available for purchase at Smashwords Forging Trust by Renee Stevens In the Arms of an Angel by Nephylim, Book 1 of Wednesday Briefs Never More Lonely by Cia Adverse Effects by Cia, Book 2 of Saving Caeorleia Circumnavigation by C James By our Promising Authors this week: The Nano Wars: Rebirth by JMH, Book 1 of The Nano Wars The Mark by JMH Have a great week everyone! Read, Write, REVIEW!!!

Looking back on old newsletters, I'm reminded of a program that we had of Author Chats. This was before we had a regular chatroom, and so it was a special occasion to schedule a time that an author would go into chat and talk to the community. I very clearly when DKStories had such a chat time, and I got to ask him some questions, that led to PM's and eventually meeting him for a movie. Unfortunately, now I'm stuck with him ;-) So with these fond memories, here is an article from our October 2006 GAzette (the GayAuthors.org newsletter name at the time), which is a transcript of such a chatroom chat with Hosted Author Viv! Author Chats... Your Chance to Talk to Your Favourite Author Have you ever wondered which one of their characters an author would have over for dinner? Perhaps you've sat and pondered how they thought of a story title? Maybe you've even wondered with which of their characters they most identify? Well wonder no more, dear reader. GA is pleased to offer a series of activities designed specifically to answer the questions you have about your favourite authors and stories. These "Author Chats" will occur twice monthly and will be held in the GA Live Chatroom in a subroom named after the author whom the chat is featuring. The first author chat was held Saturday, September 23rd at 7pm Pacific Time and featured hosted author Viv. Here are a few paraphrased highlights of the event: Chatter: Where do you get your story ideas? Viv: Mostly I just imagine situations that I think are intriguing, hot, or emotional. Sometimes though I just start with a character, like Lucas in "Days of Silence", and just go from there. Chatter: How do you come up with titles? Viv: With "From Behind Those Eyes" it's a play on words. With "Days of Silence" it was about a 'day of silence' (an annual event in the gay community designed to increase awareness and support), but I also wanted to emphasize the fact that they had gone so many days in silence because of fear, denial and stubbornness. Viv: When I write the sequel to "Days of Silence" I'm going to retell it from Lucas' point of view; how do you guys feel about telling the same story from a different point of view? Chatter 1: I think I'd like that! Chatter 2: You’re not really "retelling" the story. Each individual sees the same thing in a different way. I love seeing multiple points of view. Chatter: If you could have any character over for dinner who would it be and why? Viv: Probably Lucas from "Days of Silence" because he's so mysterious or maybe Jesse from "From Behind Those Eyes". Chatter: Where do you see yourself in five years? Viv: Ideally I'd like to be selling books as well as helping people with their problems (by giving them someone to talk to). Chatter: How has GA changed you? Viv: I think GA has not so much changed me, but instead has given me a place to do what makes me happy. Chatter: How do you feel you have changed GA and those on it? Viv: Why don't you guys tell me? Chatter 1: You were the first woman to be hosted here. Chatter 2: Well if I hadn't met you not only would I have missed out on the very important friendship I share with you, but I also probably wouldn't have gotten to know several of my other close friends here. Viv on being nervous about posting at GA for the first time: I was worried about how people would respond to me because I’m a straight woman married with kids, but I’ve gotten nothing but compliments and acceptance from everyone here. I've also made some strong friendships, so for that I say thank you. Viv on one such friendship: Dave is the one person who I can’t hide from, even if I tried he’d know. So I like that he forces me, provokes me to be real…we’re like family…it’s not even an option to not be in each other’s lives. Viv on another author who has helped her: Comicality has had a big impact on me. When I first started "From Behind Those Eyes" he spent a lot of time reviewing it with me, and it really touched me that despite being such a busy guy he was willing to take some time out of his life to do that. Sometimes it takes giving someone a piece of themselves to make you believe in yourself. Viv on providing support to another author: Recently I had to talk a new writer out of quitting because he'd received a bad review. I reminded him that he writes for himself, not anyone else, and that not everyone has to like his stuff. The important thing is to stay true to yourself. *These selections have been reformatted from their original versions. Every effort was made to retain the original content.* So for more insight and all around fun interaction with your favourite authors please check out subsequent Author Chat events! The next on will be held Sunday, October 8th at 9pm Eastern Time and it will feature hosted author LittleBuddhaTW. It's sure to be a blast!

Thank G*d It's Friday! A chance to relax for most, a time to look forward to partying or time with family. For us, it is also a time to take a chance, for one last dance for romance... errr - I mean for writing. Thanks to our Prompt-Guru Comicfan, we have two great new prompts this week, The Storm and The Job. I'd love to see how YOU might respond to either (or both) of these prompts. And then, please, share what you have with the Writing Prompt Community! Prompt 174 – Creative Tag – The Storm The news has been talking about a rare cosmic storm heading for earth. They are unsure what it will do. The night it arrives people all over the world watch the freak storm create an unusual light show in the sky. A week later doctor’s begin to notice changes in the plants, animals, and people of earth. What happened? Prompt 175 – Creative Tag – The Job Since you were laid off things have been bad. Bills are piling up and you are unsure what to do. Then you find an unusual advertisement for a job. It states you must apply in person and be ready to start immediately. It also states your pay for the year. What is startling is the fact it says you will be unable to communicate with anyone you know for a year. What is the job and do you take it? Now - prompt responses don't have to be long, it's an exercise, trying your creative fingers to see where you can take the prompt. Prompt 156 from this past summer was Tony803 took up the challenge with Well, what do YOU think of that for a start. Let Tony803 know - he's relatively new and immediately jumped into a writing prompt. I think that's fantastic! I think he has an interesting start and may just need a little push to continue, and maybe someone willing to step forward and see if Tony803 might be willing to work with an editor/beta to really flesh out this out idea. Our community has fantastic resources and I look forward to seeing new writers like Tony803 and others flourish and grow.

First, Happy National Coming Out Day (NCOD)! First started in 1988, with the date picked as the anniversary of the 1987 March on Washington, the simple theme is to come out - to those you love, those you know, as people's opinions of LGBT persons and rights is better if they know someone who is LGBT. Now on to our tip, generously contributed by CassieQ, on Using Descriptions in writings. Enjoy! Using Description by CassieQ I like to use description to help set a mood in the story. I try to visualize the scene and what is going on in it and then match the description to the feel of the scene. Is it a happy scene, with light, airy description? Is it a scary scene, with ominous, dark description? Is it a sexy scene with hot steamy description? For example, here is a scene I wrote for one of the anthology stories. The sky above Toumas was a dull slate gray, with occasional swathes of clouds snatched away for early morning sunlight to bleed through. and later in the same scene… Satisfied that they would not break when he started to struggle, Toumas relaxed back, staring up at the diseased sky. The feel I wanted for the scene was tension and dread. My character was making a decision to end his life in a very horrible way and I really wanted to create a mood that would match that. I was thinking of the sky and I wanted to describe it in a way that would provide good imagery without going over the top. So I simply described a very odd sky I had seen one morning while driving to work and used specific word choices, like bleed and diseased in the description to kind of help set that mood. The only precaution is to be careful with how much description is used. The story that I used as an example was criticized for "overwriting" which I think was a result of too much over the top description I would say use it in moderation, mainly when a description of a person/place/object is important to a story or when you are trying to set a certain mood for a scene. All that is my opinion of course. Anyone want to add something or weigh in, feel free!

Just an FYI - your story is one of the two featured in today's GA News Blog

First, thanks to everyone for their feedback yesterday - and if you haven't chimed in with your thoughts, you can still go back and comment on yesterday's blog. For today's Author's Showcase, we have two great stories - first is my review of Facing the Demons, by Promising Author Dezlboi. Then CassieQ gives us a great review of Author Stellar's Hidden Sunlight. Enjoy! Facing the Demons by Dezlboi Reviewer: Trebs Status: Complete Word Count: 8024 October is the perfect time for a Halloween story, so I took a read of Facing the Demons, a story that Dezlboi wrote for our 2006 Fall Halloween Anthology. The story is of Tyler, a freshman at college who comes home for the weekend, starting with meeting up with friends at his high school's football game on Friday, October 30th. A carefree night of watching the game with his friends, including a new guy Nick that he tries to get to know. At an after-party, he unexpectedly gets to see a bit more of Nick, and even gets his phone number. Dezlboi has a nice gift for description - you really see the town as Tyler initially drives in from college, the gathering at the football game and the scene at the party. Afterwards, Tyler has a nightmare that chills you as you see the Demons from the title. This also sets up the remainder of the story. Short stories are a very hard format to pull off - and while the story left me with some unanswered questions, I think Dezlboi did a great job with this one. I enjoyed it and am planning on checking out a few of his other stories and gave this four out of five stars. Hidden Sunlight by Stellar Reviewer CassieQ Status: In Progress Word Count: 85,230 I'm more of a fantasy than a sci-fi reader, but I checked out Stellar's Hidden Sunlight after a recommendation by Myr and it soon became my favorite story on this site. Hidden Sunlight starts with the journey of Shay Anderson, a teenage boy in the year 2104, to the planet Lucere for an experimental treatment for the degenerative disease that is slowly destroying his body. This treatment involves Shay undergoing medical stasis in a Hoffstadt chamber for a weeks time. When he emerges, Shay finds himself alone, in a deserted, demolished hospital in a post apocalyptic landscape. Completely unaware of what has happened to his family, or the world around him, Shay sets out in search of answers. During his journey he encounters dangerous enemies, unexpected allies, and the mysterious predators that roam the planet. Then there is Mira. And he is perhaps the most mysterious enigma of all. Hidden Sunlight has such a rich, fascinating plot that giving a short synopsis without revealing all of the surprises in store is damn near impossible. Stellar takes you through the story flawlessly, with never a dull moment and plenty of surprises and suspense that keeps you going for the next chapter. His characters are fantastic. I dare you not to like Konstantin. All the characters, even the despicable ones, are well developed and genuine. It is quite a feat to intertwine characters and plot the way that Stellar does, and he makes it seem effortless. The only downside is that the story is incomplete, but Stellar posts with a frequency that only makes the wait for the next chapter only slightly maddening instead of excruciating. It also helps that the chapters are plenty long, usually around 7-8,000 words each. Definitely worth reading, even if Sci-fi isn't your genre. Give it a chance. You won't be sorry.

In many fantasy and sci-fi venues, the world is created is the expectation is the "reality" needs to conform to this world view. Sometimes this breaks - for instance, ***SPOILER*** but in the third Matrix Movie, Neo performed tasks that should not be possible in the "outside world". So looking at just the Avengers - we have a multiverse with many alien races, and as well as many races of gods spawned by the life essences of mortals who believed in them. So Thor and Loki are powerful but constrained by their heritage and powers. But you also have Hawkeye, Black Widow and Iron Man, who are a bit more in the Batman mode of incredible trainng plus some fancy (expensive) toys. The Hult and Captain America are more of a mix - chemically created though Cap has the added advantage of an almost mystical shield. People live, interact, die - because of the contraints that have been established. Once in a while, a "cheat" happens, like bringing back a dead character or doing a massive multiverse-merge. But good stories and interesting characters can still be crafted in this, or other worlds, such as Harry Potter's universe. Good world-crafting is the key - and then making sure to not violate your own creation.

Start of another week and here at the GayAuthors.org News Blog, we want to help you start on a great footing with a review by Radiant Renee Stevens of our Hosted Author Nephylim's Memories of Forgotten Love. This fantastic story was Nephy's entry in our first Novella contest in 2009, and I remember reading it - riveted to each passing event. I hope you enjoy Renee's review and check out Nephy's story for yourself. Enjoy! Memories of Forgotten Love By Nephylim Reviewer: Renee Stevens Status: Complete Word Count: 48,733 Nephylim is an amazing storyteller, which is why I always enjoy reading her work. I couldn’t remember if I had read “Memories of Forgotten Love” before but once I started reading I realized I had. It was certainly no hardship to read it again, and to be honest; it was almost as if I was reading it for the first time. The story follows Noah, a young man recounting his experience of waking up in the hospital with no idea how he got there. He has a brain injury and has no recollection of his past. He even has to relearn things such as talking, walking, etc. He has visitors that he doesn’t remember, not the least of which is his family, friends, and Luke. All he knows is that him and Luke used to be friends. Enough people tell him that, but he knows that there is still something that they are keeping from him, he just wished he knew what it was. There is a lot of angst while Noah tries to cope with all the things he doesn’t know, especially those he feels he should know. This story is full of emotion with an underlying mystery that continues to unravel the further you read. There are twists that as a reader I wasn’t expecting and a few that I kind of guessed about. Even those that I guessed about were brought about in a way that surprised me. If you’ve never read anything by Nephy before, then this story would be a great first story of hers to read. It’s one of her shorter chapter stories, but it is no less enjoyable than those stories of hers that are over 100K. I highly recommend this story to anyone who wishes for a story that will pull you in and not let you go.