Cardeno C.'s Blog, page 138
August 9, 2012
Randomly Random, from the mind of T.C. Blue
Okay, so for a change I'm posting something about writing. Not MY writing, specifically, though I'm sure I've typed passages just as amusing as some of those you'll find after clicking on the link I'm including below.
I know we've all had those moments while reading -- whether we're reading gay romance, het romance, historical fiction, self-help books, or whatever -- when we've had to blink, stop, re-read, blink again and then ask ourselves (usually out loud, in my case) "That can't be right. Did that REALLY get published?" (As we've just read it, we're sure it did, but still, sometimes something just boggles the mind.)
This is apparently just as true in crime fiction, as this highly entertaining blog post by Bill Pronzini proves. WARNING: Only click this link if you're ready and willing to giggle madly!
Did They Really Write That?
Thanks, and I'm hoping to have the frequently mentioned post about Cameron Wolf and SWING ready for next week! :)
~Tis
I know we've all had those moments while reading -- whether we're reading gay romance, het romance, historical fiction, self-help books, or whatever -- when we've had to blink, stop, re-read, blink again and then ask ourselves (usually out loud, in my case) "That can't be right. Did that REALLY get published?" (As we've just read it, we're sure it did, but still, sometimes something just boggles the mind.)
This is apparently just as true in crime fiction, as this highly entertaining blog post by Bill Pronzini proves. WARNING: Only click this link if you're ready and willing to giggle madly!
Did They Really Write That?
Thanks, and I'm hoping to have the frequently mentioned post about Cameron Wolf and SWING ready for next week! :)
~Tis
August 8, 2012
Welcome to Spicy Wednesday withScotty Cade at Café Risque...
Welcome to Spicy Wednesday withScotty Cade at Café Risque!
Happy Wednesday everyone. Order a latte, pull up a chair and spend a little time with me and a couple of my favorite reviewers from MM Good Book Reviews, the infamous Pixie and the Lady Portia De Moncur. This interview started out with just Portia, but Miss Pixie invited herself, stupid me for not inviting her to begin with, and I’m sooo glad she did, not just one perspective, but two. YAY!
But before we get started with the interview, I wanted to touch on a sore spot of mine. I as well as many of my fellow authors, for the sheer fact that we put our work out there, leave ourselves open to some of the nicest and cruelest readers in our genre. I’ve only been writing romance novels for two years, but boy I was not prepared for how cruel some people can be when they don’t like your work. For the most part readers are very considerate, but there are those who have no problem ripping you to shreds and doing it with a smile on their face.
Let me explain; I religiously follow my rankings on sites like Goodreads and Amazon and it continues to blow me away that some people write mean and horribly cruel reviews about my books as well as many of my fellow authors. Here’s an example of a reviewers comment about my second novel, “Wings of Love.” “I thought at first it was because i was drunk when i read it, it seemed that bad. So in my not drunk state i read it all AGAIN this morning..and yeah it was still THAT BAD!”
Really???? This reviewer can’t even put her pinky finger on the caps key for “I”, but she has no problem hitting it when she typed “AGAIN.” Listen, I know everyone has their opinions and I welcome all points of view, but to be blatantly cruel about something someone has sacrificed months of their time to write is beyond me.
I’ve never been naive enough to think that everyone will love or even like my work, but I wasn’t prepared for some of the horrible things people have said about me and my stories. Finally I started to ask myself, “What have they written?” And although I will probably never know the answer, I would bet my life that it is probably “nothing.” I know no one who would devote the time required to write a story and then tear someone else’s work apart. But for those who are not writers, I guess it’s easier to rip someone and their work apart than to attempt to write something themselves or do a constructive review that might actually help us along in our writing and make us better authors.
Okay, enough ranting from me. The reason I mention this is because my guests today are exactly the opposite of everyone I mentioned above. In my opinion, they’re incredible and always do very fair and well thought out reviews and never have I seen either of them be rude or condescending and they always try to find some good in every book they review. Now look it, they are professionals and I guess that’s makes all the difference in the world, but I beg you, if you’re one of those people who rips us apart when you don’t like our books, please check out MM Good Book reviews at http://mmgoodbookreviews.wordpress.com/ and see how a professional does it.
So without further adieu, please help me welcome to the Café Risque boards my to favorite P’s, Pixie and Portia.
Scotty: Good Morning you hot toddies! Thank you so much for taking the time out of your busy schedules to chat with me this morning. How’s Orlando and jolly ole England, steamy and foggy I’ll bet?
Portia: Actually, it’s been raining cats and dogs for two days…love it.
Pixie: Sorry to gate crash Scotty, but when Portia said you were interviewing her, I couldn’t let the little Diva have all the lime light. And I don’t know how it is for Da Boss but here in Cheshire, England we had a touch of a thunder storm, and now it’s just gray *rolls eyes* (like that’s a surprise).
Scotty: Gray England, Imagine that! J And for the record, no gate crashing here, you are always welcome and I’m thrilled to get your point of view as well.
Portia: Hope this is okay Scotty. But, Lil Bit seems to think that I can’t form sentences without her assistance.
Scotty: LOL, that’s none of my business Miss “P”, she sounds like a bossy bottom to me. But we’ll talk more about that in the interview. I’m simply peeing down both legs to have you both join me for a chat at the Café. J
Which brings us to the reason I asked you to join me. Besides the fact that I’m the P’s biggest fan, I want our readers and other authors to know what you sensible gals look for when you’re reviewing a book. If you will, please give us a high level view of what catches your eye? And do keep it clean in the beginning. We have to work up to the hot stuff.
Portia: Damn, there went my first answer. I guess I’ll move on to my runner up, a well told story, I guess. Just teasing, a well told story is always my first answer. I’m not fussy about genre, but I am really big on plausibility and dialogue. If characters acts or speak in a manner that I don’t believe, it’s really distracting to me. Between Pixie and I, I tend to read like a writer. So I notice dialogue/exposition ratios and stuff like that, that Pixie could care less about.
Pixie: Wow, erm, okay, damn how to explain… Right, so, I don’t so much as review a book as I read it, I read a book then review it. I don’t read a book and think I am reviewing this book, I read it because I want to read it and then I just happen to review it afterwards. Does that make sense? I am not an author; I have no intention of ever writing a book, I only just have the patience to write a review, so my reviews are completely based on the fact that I am a reader and only a reader. When I write a review, I write it with the points that I would like to read in a review, I want the good bits and the bad bits pointed out but I don’t want the snide comments or condescension. I want to know a bit about the characters and the storyline but I don’t want anything really given away, and I want to know what has excited you about a book and most importantly I want to know how you feel about a book, so that’s how I do a review, I write a review that I would like to read.
Scotty: Good answer ladies. Now how do you choose what books you’re going to review? Do you pick from a list or do you follow an author, or do you follow a publisher, or is it all random?
Portia: We used to review everything. But, that left a lot of books in queue forever. Now I pick the books that I know my reviewers will read. Thommie is all about mystery/suspense, John does the Young Adult submissions, and Cat reads everything. Whit and Artemis review what they can, when they can, so I send them titles that have been in queue for longer than I would have liked.
We give the highest priority to debut titles and titles from small presses that might not get as much exposure.
Pixie: Ha ha ha ha ha ha, God Portia, Scotty’s funny. Let me explain the process from my point of view: Portia gets the books from publishers or authors, sometimes she throws them out to the group (MM Good Book Reviewers Group on Facebook), and a lot of the time she will send a bundle of books that she has got in to me, (especially fantasy, high fantasy, science fiction, paranormal… okay well a large percent of them ;-)) but there are times when I have read a book from my private library and I will send a review in for it, (Portia’s discovered a couple of the smaller publishers that way). So honestly there is no real rhyme or reason to what we are going to review, if it’s M/M there’s a good chance that it could be reviewed, because there’s a very good chance that I will read it.
Scotty: Okay girls, claws in. I see we have a difference of opinion here and I love it. Someone get the Jello pit and bikinis and I’ll get the binoculars. But…I digress, so back to the interview. Are there specific elements that catch your eye when you say “Hell yeah, I want to read this one?”
Portia: I’m not going to lie…I am a cover whore. A good cover will make me pick up a less than stellar blurb. If I had to pick my favorite “types” of MM books, I’d have to say enemies-to-lovers, friends-to-lovers, and anything with kids. Oh, and misunderstood rent boys.
Pixie: I will be honest and say that I rarely read blurbs anymore; I have been disappointed by more than one blurb, but I must admit that some book covers do catch my eye and get my pulse racing in excitement, a lot of Anne Cain’s & Mara McKennen’s work and Nathie (creationwarrior.net). And also if it is high fantasy, fantasy or science fiction then I will usually give it a shot.
Scotty: OMG, I’m a cover whore too. I’ve always been so picky, to the dismay of my cover artist, but I believe that the cover will sell the book more times that not. Next question. How do you do such constructive reviews and keep it positive when you absolutely hate a book?
Portia: For me, I just try and remember that writing is hard work. Just the fact that the writer put themselves out there and published a book is way cool. I also keep in mind, that this review is just my opinion. That being said, most of the “writing“ errors I see from debut writers, I overlook. Large blocks of exposition curl my teeth, but I feel like that should have been edited out and is more on the editor, than the writer. So after I’ve skipped the first, usually unnecessary chapter, I’m looking for readability. Does the work hold my interest? Are the characters fully developed? Does the plotting make sense? Is the dialogue realistic?
When I’ve finished a book and am smiling…all other errors can be forgiven.
And if I really hate a book…I just won’t review it. The only time I reviewed a book I really hated, was when I was absolutely disgusted with the reviews on Goodreads. The reviews were far nastier than the book deserved. So I wrote a review that pointed out that while the storyline was not appealing TO ME, the writing was good.
Pixie: Portia, tell him off he’s making me think… *sigh* Okay, there aren’t that many books that I have come across that I absolutely hate, there are some that the storyline has been weak, or you can’t connect with the characters or you need more details, but usually the book balances itself out, and sometimes a book just isn’t for me because it didn’t hit any spots for me and I will tell the readers that. It isn’t that hard to do a constructive review that’s positive, because even if I hate a book someone out there will love it, so I put my feelings aside and look at it without an emotion filled gaze and I ask myself “if you take what you personally don’t like away, what do you really think of what’s left?” and from there it’s easy, the writing is good or this character was brilliant or the plot was great. There is always something in any book that can be complimented.
Scotty: BTW, you can tell me off yourself Missy! Don’t get the Lady Portia to do your dirty work. J But really, kudos to both of you for being able to take yourself out of the equation and do a constructive unbiased review.
So moving on, I know for me personally, I love series because you can grow with a character and really get to know them in a multiple book series, if they’re done right. Do you like or dislike series? And for what reason?
Portia: I love series. Once I fall in love with a fictional character or community, I love going back to visit. I love seeing how the author is going to expand on a story. Series like RJ Scott’s Sanctuary series are great because they kept getting us closer to the bad guys. And in the case of Stephani Hecht’s EMS series, I read to see if she will finally mess up and make a medical error that I can spot.
Pixie: Well now, that’s a loaded question, because there are different sorts of series. You have the series that follows two main characters as they progress through their relationship and hardships, you have the series where it’s focused on the storyline and the MCs are integral to it, and you have the series where it’s a group of guys and they all have their own book about their relationship, and then, you have a series where the only thing any of the characters have in common is they live in the same area or vaguely know someone from an earlier book. (Ha ha you hate me now don’t you Scotty lol) Personally I love series, I love getting to know main characters better, I love meeting new characters and getting to know secondary characters better. And I absolutely adore complex storylines that demand their own series.
Portia: I am always amazed at how Pixie keeps all those characters straight in her head. She remembers who did who, and who said what…and god forbid the author slips up and attributes actions to the wrong character…Pixie will find it. It’s actually kinda spooky.
And I wanted to add, that sometimes I’ll drop into a series in the middle, like when I read Foundations of Love, I fell in love with Brad and Mac and HAD to go back and read their story. But, I’ve also seen series that have gone on tooooo long and I avoid them, because the same story keeps getting retold…boring.
Scotty: God, I don’t know where to start. Okay I’ll start with Pixie. No I don’t hate you, but I have a series that fits all those categories and I just don’t know what to think about that. And according to Portia, it appears that lots of characters live in your head and I’m not sure what to think of that either. LOL! And Lady P, thanks for mentioning one of my books. And since you mentioned one of mine, I’ll tell you that when I find time to read, MM Book Good Reviews is the first place I go first to check out what you have to say about the latest releases. Now I’m not trying to blow smoke up your butts, unless you enjoy that of course, but it really is the truth. Where do you guys go to see what’s hot?
Pixie: Publishers coming soon page and author pages lol. I will tell you a secret I am a book whore, Portia says I will do anything for a book and it’s true (well nearly, I won’t sell my kids for one). I also breeze fanfiction pages and book forums, I want to know what readers are talking about and I want the truth about it! It is amazing the little gems that are out there, especially in the self-publishing world, that you hear about on forums that you might not have otherwise ever heard of.
Portia: I usually troll the coming soon pages on Sunday evening and place my request Monday morning. I also follow many of my favorite authors online, so release information just pops onto my FB.
Scotty: Now that I know, you’ll be bombarded with my new release information. Sorry, but that’s why I asked that question. Poor lil ole self-serving me. Bad Scotty!
Okay, I’ve been good so far, but can we finally talk sex here for a minute. Tell me what turns you on when you’re reading a hot sex scene between two men?
Portia: For me, it depends on the story being told. The sex has to fall seamlessly into the story. I hate feeling like the sex was stuffed in to up the word count. I also hate sex that is inconsistent with the out of bedroom behavior, unless the writer works that into the story.
Pixie: There has to be some tangible emotional connection between them, at the end of the day some authors can flower it up as much as they want and it would still be porn on paper, yeah it’s hot but it doesn’t get me hot. What I want is that something extra that shows that there are feelings involved, that the characters are making love, not hot sex. Nothing gets me hotter than two men in love showing with their bodies, how much they love each other.
Portia: I, on the other hand, have absolutely nothing against porn on paper and wished that more well written smut was available. J
Scotty: Why Lady P, I blush. You’re nothing but a big ole porn whore. I do think I just wet my pants a little. Let me ask you this, do you prefer bossy bottoms, or masculine tops, or do you prefer that both men are versatile?
Portia: I like my gay men the same way I like my straight men…masculine. I don’t care how effeminate a man is, he is still a man and I’m expecting a certain maleness from him. I don’t see tops as more manly then bottoms and I actually like it better when they are both switches. Chatty men and weepy men turn me off.
Pixie: Honestly, I prefer a mix of all of them; I like the diversity in M/M which means that I never have to choose ;-) I am a greedy Pixie; I like to have a bite of all the men.
Scotty: Amen sisters! I really agree, if I want to sleep with someone feminine, I would have stayed married. But again I digress. Okay so where was I? Oh yeah, I know when I really enjoy a book, I find myself thinking about the characters well after I finished the book. Do you do the same? And at what level?
Portia: I don’t know if I think about the characters so much as the feeling that I had when I was in their world. When I’m writing, I try and remember the elements of a book that drew me in and try to recreate that feeling.
Pixie: Yes, I admit it, I have thought about characters from a book after I have finished it. And I have actually wrote complete new books in my head for them as well *holds hands up* sometimes the characters are that good that you just can’t help but imagine some more books for them, and sometimes if I am in the middle of a book I will dream about them ~checks Portia and Scotty~ *nervous laugh* I shouldn’t have admitted that should I?
Scotty: Sure you should have Pix. This is an honest interview and there’s nothing wrong with getting lost in a story and carrying it around with your for a few days. I did that with the Cut & Run series, by Abi Roux. I loved that series, but I hated how one of the books ended and it stayed with me for at least a week. Now it’s my turn to *facepalm*.
Okay, so once I asked Elizabeth North, Executive Director of Dreamspinner Press how she determines what books to publish and which ones to pass on and she said that if she reads the first chapter and she cares what happens to the characters, then she feels like others will follow suit. If you were a publisher, can you tell how you would choose what books to publish?
Portia: I think Elizabeth got it just right. There are books that I’ve finished only because I’d committed to review them, which I knew I wasn’t going to like from two paragraphs in.
Pixie: Only if I read them all the way through. I mean yeah, you have to care for the characters but you also have to care for the storyline and plot, there’s no point having wonderful loveable characters if the storyline and plot is crap and nine times out of ten you can’t tell that in the first chapter. *Shrugs shoulders* that’s my opinion anyway.
Scotty: And a point well taken. Also, can you give us some of the elements that constitute a good story versus a great story for you?
Portia: Readability and plausibility. Readability is basic storytelling. Is this story progressing in logical way? Is the plotting complex enough to hold my attention, yet simple enough that I don’t need a didactic memory to keep the elements straight? Do people really talk like that? Is the pacing for the romance/suspense thread unfolding nicely? Could this shit happen? Of course, the rules of plausibility are different for fantasy/paranormal/sci-fi, but even then, has the writer created a world where I can believe.
And do I connect with the characters? Did my heart race as the characters ran from the bad guys? Did my belly clench the first time they touch? Do I cry when the hardass finally says “I need you”? A book that makes me feel what the characters feel…is a great read.
Pixie: I can’t really say what elements for me constitute a good story or a great story, because it could change from book to book. All I can really say is to me a good story is a book that gives you a nice gentle ride and leaves you satisfied, a great story is a book that gets your emotions racing and leaves you wanting more, a fantastic story is a book that makes you want to hunt down the author and force them to write more for your own personal reading pleasure ;-)
Pix, I’m going to stay on your good side, cause I don’t want you crossing the pond to hunt me down. J
Thank you guys so much for taking the time to chat with me today. I really enjoyed getting to know both of you better and seeing what makes you tick. Will we be seeing either of you in New Mexico at GayRomLit? And lastly, do you have any other news you want to share with our readers?
Portia: Not sure if GayRomLIt is in going to happen for me this year. But, I’m still working on it. I’m trying to get over to England. Pixie has promised she’ll play tourist with me.
Scotty: Oh Good Lord Portia, I can’t see the two of you running around England with cameras and bottled water wearing sensible shoes and big floppy hats. Well maybe I can see the hats but that’s all. DON’T DO IT!
Pixie: It was a pleasure gatecrashing Scotty *g*, unfortunately I won’t be at GayRomLit as it is way too far for me to travel and mean leaving my comfortable little Island, but someone does something similar over here in Brighton so I might get to that next time it is on. And as for other news, well… hmmm… obviously you all know that I am the greatest reviewer of all time *innocent smile* and that Portia is a great boss, but the most important thing of all is that myself and Portia are NOT the same person despite rumors that seem to have sprouted up. I will leave Portia to point out all our differences (which are really all my faults lol).
Portia: Scotty don’t listen to Pixie. We are the same person. But, for convenience we live in two separate counties. When we are Pixie, we live in England, are married to a cop and have four children. When we are Portia, we live in Florida, are married to a nurse and have six children. Oh, and Pixie reads all the fantasy, sci-fi and horror. Portia doesn’t even allow that stuff on her hard drive. Portia does the contemporary, suspense and erotica, because Pixie always guesses who done it and thinks that love and sex are the same thing. *rolling eyes* We’re still working on how to overcome the black and white thing, but don’t like to bring it up, as Pixie is still suffering from imperialist guilt. ;-)
But, seriously. Pixie and Portia are two separate people. MM Good Book Reviews is my brainchild, but I could not have realized it without Pixie. The rumor that we were the same person was actually kinda funny, as you can see; we are different as night and day. But, we work. I couldn’t ask for a more wonderful business partner. She makes me better.
And thank you for letting us stop by. This was fun.
Scotty: You gals are hilarious, and a cop and a nurse, I see my next book right in front of my eyes. Do send me pictures of this cop and this nurse, you know, just for eye candy and inspiration. JNo really, it’s been a blasts and look forward to meeting you both in person at some point in our lives. My humble thanks!
Well gang, this brings to a close another Spicy Wednesday. I can’t tell you who I’m interviewing next Wednesday because I received confirmation, so you’ll just have to trust me on this one. So for now, Scotty Cade out! Oh and soooo proud! JSee you next week.
You can follow Portia and Pixie here.
Follow us on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/MM-Good-Book-Reviews/190113417719007
Web Site: http://www.mmgoodbookreviews.wordpress.com
Happy Wednesday everyone. Order a latte, pull up a chair and spend a little time with me and a couple of my favorite reviewers from MM Good Book Reviews, the infamous Pixie and the Lady Portia De Moncur. This interview started out with just Portia, but Miss Pixie invited herself, stupid me for not inviting her to begin with, and I’m sooo glad she did, not just one perspective, but two. YAY! But before we get started with the interview, I wanted to touch on a sore spot of mine. I as well as many of my fellow authors, for the sheer fact that we put our work out there, leave ourselves open to some of the nicest and cruelest readers in our genre. I’ve only been writing romance novels for two years, but boy I was not prepared for how cruel some people can be when they don’t like your work. For the most part readers are very considerate, but there are those who have no problem ripping you to shreds and doing it with a smile on their face.
Let me explain; I religiously follow my rankings on sites like Goodreads and Amazon and it continues to blow me away that some people write mean and horribly cruel reviews about my books as well as many of my fellow authors. Here’s an example of a reviewers comment about my second novel, “Wings of Love.” “I thought at first it was because i was drunk when i read it, it seemed that bad. So in my not drunk state i read it all AGAIN this morning..and yeah it was still THAT BAD!”
Really???? This reviewer can’t even put her pinky finger on the caps key for “I”, but she has no problem hitting it when she typed “AGAIN.” Listen, I know everyone has their opinions and I welcome all points of view, but to be blatantly cruel about something someone has sacrificed months of their time to write is beyond me.
I’ve never been naive enough to think that everyone will love or even like my work, but I wasn’t prepared for some of the horrible things people have said about me and my stories. Finally I started to ask myself, “What have they written?” And although I will probably never know the answer, I would bet my life that it is probably “nothing.” I know no one who would devote the time required to write a story and then tear someone else’s work apart. But for those who are not writers, I guess it’s easier to rip someone and their work apart than to attempt to write something themselves or do a constructive review that might actually help us along in our writing and make us better authors.
Okay, enough ranting from me. The reason I mention this is because my guests today are exactly the opposite of everyone I mentioned above. In my opinion, they’re incredible and always do very fair and well thought out reviews and never have I seen either of them be rude or condescending and they always try to find some good in every book they review. Now look it, they are professionals and I guess that’s makes all the difference in the world, but I beg you, if you’re one of those people who rips us apart when you don’t like our books, please check out MM Good Book reviews at http://mmgoodbookreviews.wordpress.com/ and see how a professional does it.
So without further adieu, please help me welcome to the Café Risque boards my to favorite P’s, Pixie and Portia.
Scotty: Good Morning you hot toddies! Thank you so much for taking the time out of your busy schedules to chat with me this morning. How’s Orlando and jolly ole England, steamy and foggy I’ll bet?
Portia: Actually, it’s been raining cats and dogs for two days…love it.
Pixie: Sorry to gate crash Scotty, but when Portia said you were interviewing her, I couldn’t let the little Diva have all the lime light. And I don’t know how it is for Da Boss but here in Cheshire, England we had a touch of a thunder storm, and now it’s just gray *rolls eyes* (like that’s a surprise).
Scotty: Gray England, Imagine that! J And for the record, no gate crashing here, you are always welcome and I’m thrilled to get your point of view as well.
Portia: Hope this is okay Scotty. But, Lil Bit seems to think that I can’t form sentences without her assistance.
Scotty: LOL, that’s none of my business Miss “P”, she sounds like a bossy bottom to me. But we’ll talk more about that in the interview. I’m simply peeing down both legs to have you both join me for a chat at the Café. J
Which brings us to the reason I asked you to join me. Besides the fact that I’m the P’s biggest fan, I want our readers and other authors to know what you sensible gals look for when you’re reviewing a book. If you will, please give us a high level view of what catches your eye? And do keep it clean in the beginning. We have to work up to the hot stuff.
Portia: Damn, there went my first answer. I guess I’ll move on to my runner up, a well told story, I guess. Just teasing, a well told story is always my first answer. I’m not fussy about genre, but I am really big on plausibility and dialogue. If characters acts or speak in a manner that I don’t believe, it’s really distracting to me. Between Pixie and I, I tend to read like a writer. So I notice dialogue/exposition ratios and stuff like that, that Pixie could care less about.
Pixie: Wow, erm, okay, damn how to explain… Right, so, I don’t so much as review a book as I read it, I read a book then review it. I don’t read a book and think I am reviewing this book, I read it because I want to read it and then I just happen to review it afterwards. Does that make sense? I am not an author; I have no intention of ever writing a book, I only just have the patience to write a review, so my reviews are completely based on the fact that I am a reader and only a reader. When I write a review, I write it with the points that I would like to read in a review, I want the good bits and the bad bits pointed out but I don’t want the snide comments or condescension. I want to know a bit about the characters and the storyline but I don’t want anything really given away, and I want to know what has excited you about a book and most importantly I want to know how you feel about a book, so that’s how I do a review, I write a review that I would like to read.
Scotty: Good answer ladies. Now how do you choose what books you’re going to review? Do you pick from a list or do you follow an author, or do you follow a publisher, or is it all random?
Portia: We used to review everything. But, that left a lot of books in queue forever. Now I pick the books that I know my reviewers will read. Thommie is all about mystery/suspense, John does the Young Adult submissions, and Cat reads everything. Whit and Artemis review what they can, when they can, so I send them titles that have been in queue for longer than I would have liked.
We give the highest priority to debut titles and titles from small presses that might not get as much exposure.
Pixie: Ha ha ha ha ha ha, God Portia, Scotty’s funny. Let me explain the process from my point of view: Portia gets the books from publishers or authors, sometimes she throws them out to the group (MM Good Book Reviewers Group on Facebook), and a lot of the time she will send a bundle of books that she has got in to me, (especially fantasy, high fantasy, science fiction, paranormal… okay well a large percent of them ;-)) but there are times when I have read a book from my private library and I will send a review in for it, (Portia’s discovered a couple of the smaller publishers that way). So honestly there is no real rhyme or reason to what we are going to review, if it’s M/M there’s a good chance that it could be reviewed, because there’s a very good chance that I will read it.
Scotty: Okay girls, claws in. I see we have a difference of opinion here and I love it. Someone get the Jello pit and bikinis and I’ll get the binoculars. But…I digress, so back to the interview. Are there specific elements that catch your eye when you say “Hell yeah, I want to read this one?”
Portia: I’m not going to lie…I am a cover whore. A good cover will make me pick up a less than stellar blurb. If I had to pick my favorite “types” of MM books, I’d have to say enemies-to-lovers, friends-to-lovers, and anything with kids. Oh, and misunderstood rent boys.
Pixie: I will be honest and say that I rarely read blurbs anymore; I have been disappointed by more than one blurb, but I must admit that some book covers do catch my eye and get my pulse racing in excitement, a lot of Anne Cain’s & Mara McKennen’s work and Nathie (creationwarrior.net). And also if it is high fantasy, fantasy or science fiction then I will usually give it a shot.
Scotty: OMG, I’m a cover whore too. I’ve always been so picky, to the dismay of my cover artist, but I believe that the cover will sell the book more times that not. Next question. How do you do such constructive reviews and keep it positive when you absolutely hate a book?
Portia: For me, I just try and remember that writing is hard work. Just the fact that the writer put themselves out there and published a book is way cool. I also keep in mind, that this review is just my opinion. That being said, most of the “writing“ errors I see from debut writers, I overlook. Large blocks of exposition curl my teeth, but I feel like that should have been edited out and is more on the editor, than the writer. So after I’ve skipped the first, usually unnecessary chapter, I’m looking for readability. Does the work hold my interest? Are the characters fully developed? Does the plotting make sense? Is the dialogue realistic?
When I’ve finished a book and am smiling…all other errors can be forgiven.
And if I really hate a book…I just won’t review it. The only time I reviewed a book I really hated, was when I was absolutely disgusted with the reviews on Goodreads. The reviews were far nastier than the book deserved. So I wrote a review that pointed out that while the storyline was not appealing TO ME, the writing was good.
Pixie: Portia, tell him off he’s making me think… *sigh* Okay, there aren’t that many books that I have come across that I absolutely hate, there are some that the storyline has been weak, or you can’t connect with the characters or you need more details, but usually the book balances itself out, and sometimes a book just isn’t for me because it didn’t hit any spots for me and I will tell the readers that. It isn’t that hard to do a constructive review that’s positive, because even if I hate a book someone out there will love it, so I put my feelings aside and look at it without an emotion filled gaze and I ask myself “if you take what you personally don’t like away, what do you really think of what’s left?” and from there it’s easy, the writing is good or this character was brilliant or the plot was great. There is always something in any book that can be complimented.
Scotty: BTW, you can tell me off yourself Missy! Don’t get the Lady Portia to do your dirty work. J But really, kudos to both of you for being able to take yourself out of the equation and do a constructive unbiased review.
So moving on, I know for me personally, I love series because you can grow with a character and really get to know them in a multiple book series, if they’re done right. Do you like or dislike series? And for what reason?
Portia: I love series. Once I fall in love with a fictional character or community, I love going back to visit. I love seeing how the author is going to expand on a story. Series like RJ Scott’s Sanctuary series are great because they kept getting us closer to the bad guys. And in the case of Stephani Hecht’s EMS series, I read to see if she will finally mess up and make a medical error that I can spot.
Pixie: Well now, that’s a loaded question, because there are different sorts of series. You have the series that follows two main characters as they progress through their relationship and hardships, you have the series where it’s focused on the storyline and the MCs are integral to it, and you have the series where it’s a group of guys and they all have their own book about their relationship, and then, you have a series where the only thing any of the characters have in common is they live in the same area or vaguely know someone from an earlier book. (Ha ha you hate me now don’t you Scotty lol) Personally I love series, I love getting to know main characters better, I love meeting new characters and getting to know secondary characters better. And I absolutely adore complex storylines that demand their own series.
Portia: I am always amazed at how Pixie keeps all those characters straight in her head. She remembers who did who, and who said what…and god forbid the author slips up and attributes actions to the wrong character…Pixie will find it. It’s actually kinda spooky.
And I wanted to add, that sometimes I’ll drop into a series in the middle, like when I read Foundations of Love, I fell in love with Brad and Mac and HAD to go back and read their story. But, I’ve also seen series that have gone on tooooo long and I avoid them, because the same story keeps getting retold…boring.
Scotty: God, I don’t know where to start. Okay I’ll start with Pixie. No I don’t hate you, but I have a series that fits all those categories and I just don’t know what to think about that. And according to Portia, it appears that lots of characters live in your head and I’m not sure what to think of that either. LOL! And Lady P, thanks for mentioning one of my books. And since you mentioned one of mine, I’ll tell you that when I find time to read, MM Book Good Reviews is the first place I go first to check out what you have to say about the latest releases. Now I’m not trying to blow smoke up your butts, unless you enjoy that of course, but it really is the truth. Where do you guys go to see what’s hot?
Pixie: Publishers coming soon page and author pages lol. I will tell you a secret I am a book whore, Portia says I will do anything for a book and it’s true (well nearly, I won’t sell my kids for one). I also breeze fanfiction pages and book forums, I want to know what readers are talking about and I want the truth about it! It is amazing the little gems that are out there, especially in the self-publishing world, that you hear about on forums that you might not have otherwise ever heard of.
Portia: I usually troll the coming soon pages on Sunday evening and place my request Monday morning. I also follow many of my favorite authors online, so release information just pops onto my FB.
Scotty: Now that I know, you’ll be bombarded with my new release information. Sorry, but that’s why I asked that question. Poor lil ole self-serving me. Bad Scotty!
Okay, I’ve been good so far, but can we finally talk sex here for a minute. Tell me what turns you on when you’re reading a hot sex scene between two men?
Portia: For me, it depends on the story being told. The sex has to fall seamlessly into the story. I hate feeling like the sex was stuffed in to up the word count. I also hate sex that is inconsistent with the out of bedroom behavior, unless the writer works that into the story.
Pixie: There has to be some tangible emotional connection between them, at the end of the day some authors can flower it up as much as they want and it would still be porn on paper, yeah it’s hot but it doesn’t get me hot. What I want is that something extra that shows that there are feelings involved, that the characters are making love, not hot sex. Nothing gets me hotter than two men in love showing with their bodies, how much they love each other.
Portia: I, on the other hand, have absolutely nothing against porn on paper and wished that more well written smut was available. J
Scotty: Why Lady P, I blush. You’re nothing but a big ole porn whore. I do think I just wet my pants a little. Let me ask you this, do you prefer bossy bottoms, or masculine tops, or do you prefer that both men are versatile?
Portia: I like my gay men the same way I like my straight men…masculine. I don’t care how effeminate a man is, he is still a man and I’m expecting a certain maleness from him. I don’t see tops as more manly then bottoms and I actually like it better when they are both switches. Chatty men and weepy men turn me off.
Pixie: Honestly, I prefer a mix of all of them; I like the diversity in M/M which means that I never have to choose ;-) I am a greedy Pixie; I like to have a bite of all the men.
Scotty: Amen sisters! I really agree, if I want to sleep with someone feminine, I would have stayed married. But again I digress. Okay so where was I? Oh yeah, I know when I really enjoy a book, I find myself thinking about the characters well after I finished the book. Do you do the same? And at what level?
Portia: I don’t know if I think about the characters so much as the feeling that I had when I was in their world. When I’m writing, I try and remember the elements of a book that drew me in and try to recreate that feeling.
Pixie: Yes, I admit it, I have thought about characters from a book after I have finished it. And I have actually wrote complete new books in my head for them as well *holds hands up* sometimes the characters are that good that you just can’t help but imagine some more books for them, and sometimes if I am in the middle of a book I will dream about them ~checks Portia and Scotty~ *nervous laugh* I shouldn’t have admitted that should I?
Scotty: Sure you should have Pix. This is an honest interview and there’s nothing wrong with getting lost in a story and carrying it around with your for a few days. I did that with the Cut & Run series, by Abi Roux. I loved that series, but I hated how one of the books ended and it stayed with me for at least a week. Now it’s my turn to *facepalm*.
Okay, so once I asked Elizabeth North, Executive Director of Dreamspinner Press how she determines what books to publish and which ones to pass on and she said that if she reads the first chapter and she cares what happens to the characters, then she feels like others will follow suit. If you were a publisher, can you tell how you would choose what books to publish?
Portia: I think Elizabeth got it just right. There are books that I’ve finished only because I’d committed to review them, which I knew I wasn’t going to like from two paragraphs in.
Pixie: Only if I read them all the way through. I mean yeah, you have to care for the characters but you also have to care for the storyline and plot, there’s no point having wonderful loveable characters if the storyline and plot is crap and nine times out of ten you can’t tell that in the first chapter. *Shrugs shoulders* that’s my opinion anyway.
Scotty: And a point well taken. Also, can you give us some of the elements that constitute a good story versus a great story for you?
Portia: Readability and plausibility. Readability is basic storytelling. Is this story progressing in logical way? Is the plotting complex enough to hold my attention, yet simple enough that I don’t need a didactic memory to keep the elements straight? Do people really talk like that? Is the pacing for the romance/suspense thread unfolding nicely? Could this shit happen? Of course, the rules of plausibility are different for fantasy/paranormal/sci-fi, but even then, has the writer created a world where I can believe.
And do I connect with the characters? Did my heart race as the characters ran from the bad guys? Did my belly clench the first time they touch? Do I cry when the hardass finally says “I need you”? A book that makes me feel what the characters feel…is a great read.
Pixie: I can’t really say what elements for me constitute a good story or a great story, because it could change from book to book. All I can really say is to me a good story is a book that gives you a nice gentle ride and leaves you satisfied, a great story is a book that gets your emotions racing and leaves you wanting more, a fantastic story is a book that makes you want to hunt down the author and force them to write more for your own personal reading pleasure ;-)
Pix, I’m going to stay on your good side, cause I don’t want you crossing the pond to hunt me down. J
Thank you guys so much for taking the time to chat with me today. I really enjoyed getting to know both of you better and seeing what makes you tick. Will we be seeing either of you in New Mexico at GayRomLit? And lastly, do you have any other news you want to share with our readers?
Portia: Not sure if GayRomLIt is in going to happen for me this year. But, I’m still working on it. I’m trying to get over to England. Pixie has promised she’ll play tourist with me.
Scotty: Oh Good Lord Portia, I can’t see the two of you running around England with cameras and bottled water wearing sensible shoes and big floppy hats. Well maybe I can see the hats but that’s all. DON’T DO IT!
Pixie: It was a pleasure gatecrashing Scotty *g*, unfortunately I won’t be at GayRomLit as it is way too far for me to travel and mean leaving my comfortable little Island, but someone does something similar over here in Brighton so I might get to that next time it is on. And as for other news, well… hmmm… obviously you all know that I am the greatest reviewer of all time *innocent smile* and that Portia is a great boss, but the most important thing of all is that myself and Portia are NOT the same person despite rumors that seem to have sprouted up. I will leave Portia to point out all our differences (which are really all my faults lol).
Portia: Scotty don’t listen to Pixie. We are the same person. But, for convenience we live in two separate counties. When we are Pixie, we live in England, are married to a cop and have four children. When we are Portia, we live in Florida, are married to a nurse and have six children. Oh, and Pixie reads all the fantasy, sci-fi and horror. Portia doesn’t even allow that stuff on her hard drive. Portia does the contemporary, suspense and erotica, because Pixie always guesses who done it and thinks that love and sex are the same thing. *rolling eyes* We’re still working on how to overcome the black and white thing, but don’t like to bring it up, as Pixie is still suffering from imperialist guilt. ;-)
But, seriously. Pixie and Portia are two separate people. MM Good Book Reviews is my brainchild, but I could not have realized it without Pixie. The rumor that we were the same person was actually kinda funny, as you can see; we are different as night and day. But, we work. I couldn’t ask for a more wonderful business partner. She makes me better.
And thank you for letting us stop by. This was fun.
Scotty: You gals are hilarious, and a cop and a nurse, I see my next book right in front of my eyes. Do send me pictures of this cop and this nurse, you know, just for eye candy and inspiration. JNo really, it’s been a blasts and look forward to meeting you both in person at some point in our lives. My humble thanks!
Well gang, this brings to a close another Spicy Wednesday. I can’t tell you who I’m interviewing next Wednesday because I received confirmation, so you’ll just have to trust me on this one. So for now, Scotty Cade out! Oh and soooo proud! JSee you next week.
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August 7, 2012
This is Why Fertility Has An Expiration Date.
Conversation (totally one-sided, mind you) between myself and my four year old granddaughter:
"Grandma, when we get home we need to play Candyland, you can be the blue, and I can be the red, and Dylon (her twin brother) can be the green, and Grandpa can be the yellow, and then I want Sponge Bob Mac and Cheese, but Dylon wants chicken nuggets and then the dinosaur will eat the walls and we're going on vacation with Mommy and Daddy and Aunt Kelly was playing a game on her 'puter and I want to play Candyland when we get home, you can be the blue, and I can be the red, and Dylon can be the green..."
I'm exhausted.
I love my grandchildren dearly. They make me smile, and I cherish every moment we're together, from listening to their sweet stream-of-consciousness conversations, to their hugs and sticky-faced kisses, to their tyrannical control of the television. I love everything about babysitting them.
Including the part where I get to give them back to their parents.
Human fertility comes with an expiration date for a reason. As we grow older, our patience wears thinner in direct proportion to the number of years since menopause. There's probably an algebraic equation for it, but since my memory has atrophied in conjunction with my patience, I don't remember it.
Plus, keeping my work separate from the wee eyes continually trying to peek into my office is a trick and a half. Right now, they're too young to read, so it's all good.
Grandchild: *Points to one of my book covers* "That man has no shirt on."
Me: "He's going swimming."
Grandchild: "Oh. Can I have gummy bears now?"
That lie will not hold for very long. I suppose I'll have to hide my books and man-candy from sight in the future, at least when the kids are over the house. Maybe I could get the hubs to install one of those cool revolving walls. Push a button and my bookshelf swings around, revealing a wall that looks like Walt Disney threw up on it. Yeah, that'd work.
On the other hand, they have no prejudice, and no bigotry, which is refreshing and wonderful, and I hope they never, ever outgrow it.
Grandchild: *Points to one of my book covers* "Those two boys are kissing."
Me: "They love each other."
Grandchild: "Oh. Can I have gummy bears now?"
Ah, youth. Sigh.
"Grandma, when we get home we need to play Candyland, you can be the blue, and I can be the red, and Dylon (her twin brother) can be the green, and Grandpa can be the yellow, and then I want Sponge Bob Mac and Cheese, but Dylon wants chicken nuggets and then the dinosaur will eat the walls and we're going on vacation with Mommy and Daddy and Aunt Kelly was playing a game on her 'puter and I want to play Candyland when we get home, you can be the blue, and I can be the red, and Dylon can be the green..."
I'm exhausted.
I love my grandchildren dearly. They make me smile, and I cherish every moment we're together, from listening to their sweet stream-of-consciousness conversations, to their hugs and sticky-faced kisses, to their tyrannical control of the television. I love everything about babysitting them.
Including the part where I get to give them back to their parents.
Human fertility comes with an expiration date for a reason. As we grow older, our patience wears thinner in direct proportion to the number of years since menopause. There's probably an algebraic equation for it, but since my memory has atrophied in conjunction with my patience, I don't remember it.
Plus, keeping my work separate from the wee eyes continually trying to peek into my office is a trick and a half. Right now, they're too young to read, so it's all good.
Grandchild: *Points to one of my book covers* "That man has no shirt on."
Me: "He's going swimming."
Grandchild: "Oh. Can I have gummy bears now?"
That lie will not hold for very long. I suppose I'll have to hide my books and man-candy from sight in the future, at least when the kids are over the house. Maybe I could get the hubs to install one of those cool revolving walls. Push a button and my bookshelf swings around, revealing a wall that looks like Walt Disney threw up on it. Yeah, that'd work.
On the other hand, they have no prejudice, and no bigotry, which is refreshing and wonderful, and I hope they never, ever outgrow it.
Grandchild: *Points to one of my book covers* "Those two boys are kissing."
Me: "They love each other."
Grandchild: "Oh. Can I have gummy bears now?"
Ah, youth. Sigh.
August 6, 2012
Two Sentence Movie Reviews by Cardeno C. (Part One)
Some of these movies are incredible, some are blah, and some are somewhere in between. There are movies on the list that could be the topic of a multi-hour coffee house hang session, some that could be the topic of a rambling post-drinking night, and some that might just get a shrug and a smile. What they all have in common is a gay theme. I’m going to do my best to narrow my thoughts about each movie to two sentences. So here’s part one of my two sentence movie reviews (in no particular order).
1. Dream Boy: Good book, good movie – falling in love with the boy next door. But there’s a darkness here that’s hard to watch and the ending … almost makes me wish I’d skipped it.2. Torch Song Trilogy: Unbelievable cast, terrific movie (especially for its time). I’ve never gotten over what happened to Matthew Broderick’s character, though – still haunts me. 3. Edge of Seventeen: In a lot of ways, it’s realistic. But it made me feel a little gross.4. My Beautiful Launderette: Another oldie but goodie - one of my favorite movies. Daniel Day Lewis is mesmerizing. 5. Big Eden: Nothing flashy, no six-pack abs, no tragic AIDS or gay-bashing death. Just a nice, heartfelt movie. 6. Boy Culture: Loved the 1st person narration, the biting humor, the friendships. Didn’t love Darryl Stephens in this (he should have stuck with Noah’s Ark).7. Get Real: Well written, well acted. But the ending … I prefer Beautiful Thing.8. Beautiful Thing: Loved this movie. Friendship, young love, quirky families, and a happy ending – it was accurately-titled.9. Latter Days: The slut and the missionary. Yeah, I know, but it’s pretty great watching both of them grow.10. Shelter: Good plot, well made, happy ending, love the friend/brother. But I felt like there was heat/chemistry missing between the main characters.11. Make the Yuletide Gay: Cheese on a stick served at Camp Over-The-Top. Still liked it.12. Yossi and Jagger: First and foremost, it’s a war movie, a heart-breaking, realistic, war movie. And a reminder that waiting until tomorrow to live your life, might mean never having a chance to live it.
August 3, 2012
Old Dogs, Old Tricks, Old Technology...A Lesson To Be Learned (D.W. Marchwell)
Each time I’ve moved, I’ve come face-to-face with the evidence of my addiction: 103 boxes filled with books. From as early an age as I can recall, I have been obsessed with reading. Whether it is historical biographies, crime and spy thrillers or my most recent - now three-year old - discovery of m/m romance, I cannot seem to get enough of escaping into the stories for a little while. As a result of this passion for reading, I was beyond excited when I found - in 2009 - a website that introduced me to something called an “eReader”. I, as an old dog, was eager to learn yet another new trick. It wasn’t anything as fancy as what’s come on the market in recent years, but I purchased one right away and eagerly awaited its arrival. I was going to be able to read just about anywhere and everywhere, including school, and I would no longer need to create a plain paper cover to hide the beautiful cover art and story synopsis: Why would I want to advertise to my students or fellow laundromat patrons that I was reading a book about two men falling in love?When the eBookwise 1150 eBook Reading Device arrived, I began to load it with every m/m romance story that I could find. For the time, the steps I had to take to purchase, download and enjoy these stories seemed unrelentingly complicated. But I knew it would be a matter of time before this particular niche took off and the advancements would become just as unrelentingly rapid. And I wasn’t wrong. There are so many eReaders out on the market now that a quick search on your favorite search engine will reveal all manner of device, memory capacity, downloadable format, color, protective pouch and weight. I’ve always prided myself on keeping up with the latest trends and keeping a smart head on my shoulders when it came to things like doing my research into which technologies would best suit my needs. But I must also confess that this old dog was one of the many savvy shoppers out there who managed, finally, to waste a sizable amount of money of all of the “new” eReaders that made all sorts of promises and delivered on almost none of them. It wasn’t anyone’s fault but my own, really. After all, one of the first lessons I learned about money is that a fool and his are soon parted.I’m happy to report, however, that even though my eBookwise 1150 is not the latest model or the lightest or the most stylish, it has now regained its position on the top of the nightstand, while all the others (and there are six of them) sit, unused, in the top drawer. Even the vinyl pouch that accompanied my 1150 is still intact, something I cannot say for the various covers that cost more than my 1150 did back in 2009.So, for the second time in my life, I’ve been shown that function and form do not always go hand-in-hand. While I’m sure I cut a dashing figure in the laundromat with my ultra-thin and fancy eReaders that allowed me to download wirelessly, achieving a successful download was an exercise in frustration. I’d never once experienced a problem with my 1150, even though I had to be tethered by a cord to the computer. My 1150 still allows me to read in any kind of light - because it is backlit - whereas the other eReaders did not afford me the same freedom. While I showed an instructional video to my students with the lights dimmed - or out completely - I did not have to struggle to stay awake through my 100th viewing of the video; I was at the back of the room enjoying my stories. And even though the 1150 may not hold as many books as the other six models, eBookwise still maintains my “bookshelf” so that I can switch out the stories any time I choose, like the old dog I am knowing exactly where he’s buried his favorite bones.It would seem, then, that despite all of the technological advances, some dogs prefer the old tricks. And this old dog is one of them!
August 2, 2012
Guilty! (Pleasures, that is...) from T.C. Blue
We all have them. Those little things we're ashamed or embarrassed about enjoying, or even loving. Things we only rarely admit, and even then only to our closest, most trusted confidants.
They can be anything. Certain books, or movies, or TV shows. Even certain kinds of music, though I've talked music enough here already. J
So in thinking about what to post today, I've decided to come out of the… well, not closet, really, but out of the dark little room in which I hide while watching bad movies from the 80s, and certain television programs.
Hi, I'm Tis, and I LOVE my guilty pleasures. After all, what's not to love about "My Best Friend is a Vampire" (starring a very young Robert Sean Leonard who went on to House fame, among other things), or "Love at First Bite," or "Weird Science"? Or "UHF," and "3 O'Clock High," and "Trancers"? What about "Two Moon Junction"? Or pretty much anything with Rutger Hauer or Bruce Campbell. Haha! There are too many to even list here, and I saw them all. Usually a few years after their release, and on VHS, but I saw them. Loved them. Still do. (My personal favorite is still "The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai - Across the Eighth Dimension," of course.)
Television is a whole other story. I hate to admit it, but I actually watch "Gossip Girl" and "Pretty Little Liars" regularly. I blush while doing so, but damned if I'm not there, eyes glued to the screen (or monitor, rather). I watch "Vampire Diaries" and "Revenge" and a few others that I won't go into right now, and "Dante's Cove" will forever be on my list of shows I revisit on DVD.
So what is it about these shows that appeals to me? I have no idea. They have no relevance whatsoever. No real meaning with regards to having a message that applies to real life. They display some of the worst and most ridiculous behavior ever -- things that would likely get people in real life arrested or worse, and yet… I love it. J
I love to tune in to find out what Chuck Bass is going to do next, what Blair Waldorf is plotting. What twisted plan Serena's involved in. I love watching Damon and Stefan screwing up, and Elena at a loss for words or actions. Yeah, it all makes me giggle. Still blushing, but giggling none the less.
So what are YOUR guilty pleasures? I've opened the door. Now I need people to join me. No judging here!
~Tis
August 1, 2012
Welcome to Spicy Wednesday withScotty Cade at Café Risque...
Welcome to Spicy Wednesday withScotty Cade at Café Risque!
Good Morning everyone. Today I'm very happy to bring to the boards my friend, Ms. Shae Conner, author of “Sand & Water,” published by Dreamspinner Press.
For those of you who don’t know Shae, she resides in my former hometown of Atlanta, GA and is a true Southern Belle. You can find her on any given day sitting under a very large oak tree sipping mint juleps and fanning her self to keep the Atlanta heat at bay. J
Shae and I first met virtually when she entered a giveaway for my first novel Final Encore and also won tickets I was giving away for the opening of “Rent,” at the Fabrefaction Theater Company in Atlanta where we finally met in person. Before we get started, here’s a little blurb for Sand & Water.”
Widower John McConnell gets along fine raising his daughter on Georgia's Tybee Island, though he wouldn't exactly say he's happy. Haunted by the memory of his dead wife, John hasn't considered dating again until he meets Bryan Simmons in the park. It isn't long before John realizes that what he feels for Bryan could be something real, but how will he know he's ready to move on?
As John soon discovers, Bryan carries some heavy emotional baggage of his own. With John's help, Bryan starts to put his demons to rest, and together they lay the foundation for a relationship. It looks like they might finally leave their tragedies behind them—until John takes a misstep that could turn a magical night together into their last.
Scotty: Good Morning Ms. Connor. How is Hotlanta this fine morning?
Shae: Hey there, Mr. Cade! Well, it's kicking off August down this way, and you know what that means: HOT HOT HOT!
Scotty: Oh yeah, I do remember. You just keep fanning girl and everything will be okay!
Shae, it's a real pleasure to finally get to interview you about your novel “Sand & Water.” To be truthful, I read the first half in one sitting and had to put it down to get some work done, but read the second half the same way. I love these two guys! They are scarred for different reasons, but scarred just the same and it’s great the way you bring them around, at their own pace, to see each other and what’s right in front of them. I always ask authors where the inspiration for the novel came from and did you based these characters off of anyone in particular?
Shae: I'm so glad you enjoyed John and Bryan's story! The initial inspiration for Sand & Water came from the Beth Nielsen Chapman song of the same title, which she wrote after her husband died, leaving her to raise their child alone. Bryan's story is based on the experiences of a family friend whose husband suffered a traumatic brain injury in an accident and never recovered. So the backstory for both characters was based on actual events, but not the plot or the characters. While pretty much every character I write ends up with some traits from people I know, or even from me, it's rare for me to have a specific character be based on a specific person. My current novel project is an exception!
Scotty: The novel is based on Tybee Island, which is an island off the coast of Georgia near Savannah. I’ve been there and you describe it and capture the charm perfectly. Have you ever been there, or did you do your research online?
Shae: I love Tybee! I've been there a number of times over the years, along with both Jekyll and St Simons islands. I grew up in south Georgia with a mother who loves the beach, so we spent quite a bit of time along the Georgia coastline, as well as the Florida Gulf Coast. My last trip to Tybee was about five years ago, a day trip as part of a weekend in Savannah with my sister. The beach and pier images that Reese Dante used for her beautiful cover are actually shots that I took on that trip.
Scotty: Wow, the cover is really beautiful and I love me some Reese. She’s done several of my covers and is working on my latest as we speak.
As I’ve mentioned here before, I never read the description of a novel when I’m interviewing an author so I have no expectations and go into the story totally blind. I really enjoyed “Sand & Water” from the get go. I was immediately intrigued with the characters and the setting and I really got into the story and couldn’t wait to see if and when the characters made the leap of faith. You didn’t disappoint. So many of us writers say we have the entire story plotted out in our head before we get started, but as you probably know, the story takes on a life of its own and no matter how we try to rein it back in, it always wins and goes where it wants to. Did you know from the start how the book was going to end?
Shae: You probably won't be surprised for me to answer yes and no. I had the story planned out—I tend to write story summaries rather than outlines—but since I'd never written a full novel-length story before, I had no way to judge how much story I'd need to fill it up. As it turned out, I came up short—or, more accurately, I realized that some things I'd thought might go into a sequel needed to be in this book instead. The final plotline ended up about a third longer than what I'd initially planned for. And, of course, some scenes and moments found their way in that hadn't been planned for at all!
Scotty: I think it happens that way for most of us. But I must say, I LOVE a book with underlying themes and this one had several that I recognized. Gay bashing being one, tolerance being another, but the one that hit me like a ton of bricks was the reference to women liking to see two guys get it on, just like men like to see two women get it on. So many of our authors and readers are women and I never got why until now. Being a gay man, I couldn’t write HET romance or lesbian romance, but the way you put it made all the sense in the world to me, you go girl! Bravo! Did you plan all this or did it just work its way into the story?
Shae: I didn't plan it, but the subject of women enjoying gay romance/sex/porn is one I've thought, written, and talked a lot about over the past few years. Liking to watch (or read about/imagine) two (or more!) men together is a pretty small part of things, really. Yes, there's definitely an eye candy aspect to it, but that's more the gravy than the meat. So to speak. ;)
For me, romance is romance, no matter the participants. The specifics of every story will vary widely based on the people/characters involved, but gender is just one aspect of that. Personalities, tastes, backgrounds, and interests: these are all important parts to any relationship, including non-sexual ones. It's about chemistry, not body parts. And when sex does enter into things, the physical aspects are much less important than what's going on in the minds of the people involved.
Scotty: Very well put. As I mentioned earlier, I loved the pace of the story, not too fast and surely not too slow. When they finally got together I was itching for it to happen and I was ready. You didn’t disappoint here either. Their first time was hot and steamy in a hesitant sort of way. They were both ready, but so so scared and I felt every emotion as I took the journey with them. Did you have a hard time determining the right time to make the move? And how far to take it the first time?
Shae: John and Bryan led me right to it. I knew well in advance that their first time needed to happen about when (and where) it did for a number of reasons, but exactly how it did was all about them. They'd been heading that direction, and they both knew it, and when the opportunity arose, they took it. I especially loved that there was some emotional backlash afterward, too. It wouldn't have worked for me otherwise, and I don't think it would have worked for the readers.
Scotty: Isn’t it funny how that works, you are a true artist my dear. And after what they both went through, I would have expected it to be John who freaked out first, but he’d been with other people, so I guess it makes sense that it was Bryan. After all, Bryan hadn’t been with anyone since Eddie and well I won’t give away too much, but you’ll see when you read this lovely book.
Now for those of you who know me, I rarely cry. Yes, I have tear ducts and there’s nothing wrong with me, I can feel stuff, I just don’t cry that often. But…boy did you get me with that baby blanket scene. I actually wet a tissue, well to be truthful two tissues. I don’t want to give too much away, but OMG, in my mind I saw him carry Bethy through the front door in the blanket her mother knitted for her and then loosing it and dropping to his knees so distraught with grief. It really got to me. The scene unfolded in my head and I saw the entire thing so clearly and more importantly, I felt it. Scenes like that can be such a drain on the author, was that difficult for you to write?
Shae: Sad scenes are very, very difficult for me to write. I'm generally a happy, upbeat person, so I have to dig in deep to get to that kind of place. The blanket scene was one; the scene with Eddie got to me even more. I just wanted to give him a huge hug!
Scotty: I think we all did. Eddie acted so mature, even with his injuries he wanted Bryan to be happy. I love that about him.
Okay this is spicy Wednesday, so I need some dirt to make our readers happy. When these guys finally got it right, the sex was really hot. The fact that one of them, and I won’t give away which one, liked it a little rough with just a hint of restraint surprised me. Did you plan that or again, did it unfold? The scene in the little carriage house was, well I don’t want to spoil it for the readers, but hot and over the top. Tell us about the process you use when you write the hot steamy scenes.
Shae: That's just how it worked out! As I said, there are parts of me in many of my characters, and at the risk of delving into Too Much Information, that hint of restraint and rough-around-the-edge passion is a huge turn-on for me. Don't get me wrong; I find lots of different sexual and sensual scenes hot, from gentle and loving to bend-me-over-and-fuck-me-hard. If it works for the participants, it's probably going to work for me, even if the actual act involved is something I'm not personally interested in (or, for that matter, couldn't physically do anyway!).
Scotty: LOL! You can never delve too deep, so to speak but please do tell us more.
Shae: Writing sex has never been something I've had to think that hard about. I try to let it flow from the characters and the story. I believe that if it feels like I'm forcing it, it doesn't need to be there, or it needs to be approached in a completely different way. A sex scene is just like any other scene: it needs to drive the story forward in some way, whether it's plot, character development, relationship development, or some other aspect. If it doesn't mean something, it should hit the cutting room floor.
Scotty: Now the big question, will there be a sequel? It’s the perfect setup for another novel. Please! Please! Please!
Shae: As I've told some other readers who asked the same question, I never say never! I have some notes on a possible sequel, but since it's been a year since Sand & Water's release, I think it's unlikely at this point. I'd love to revisit them, though, so cross your fingers that they'll jump up and demand my attention again!
Scotty: Oh I can see a wedding and then John’s mother trying to take Beth away, all sorts of things are going through my head. Anyway, I digress. J But I’m sure everyone is really tired of hearing me talk about this book, so here’s an excerpt for you to sample and I hope all of you like this as much as I did.
They kissed messily, hungrily, Bryan stepping out of his khakis as they half stumbled toward the bed. John wrapped one arm around Bryan's waist and turned to lower him onto the mattress, following close behind, propping himself up with his other hand so he could hover over him as they kissed. Bryan wasn't having that distance, though, bringing up one leg to hook behind John's waist and pull him down until they were skin to skin, only the soft cotton of their boxers between them. John slid his hand into Bryan's hair, running his fingers through the soft strands. Every touch seemed to set his nerve endings on fire. He hadn't felt like this since Liz, warmth and comfort underlying the raw passion, adding layers and layers of feeling, amping up every sensation until he burned with it.
He tore himself away from Bryan's amazing mouth to press kisses across his jaw and onto his neck. Bryan shuddered when John ran his tongue over his Adam's apple, gasped when he scraped his teeth along the tendon at the side. Bryan's hips bucked up, and John ground down in response. He wanted to touch Bryan everywhere, wanted to taste him, but after so long without and so much anticipation, he didn't know how long he'd last.
He brought his head back up to catch Bryan's gaze and reached down to hitch Bryan's leg higher on his hip. He rolled his hips forward, pushing a gasp from Bryan's mouth. Bryan's lips were red and wet, eyes dark and wide, and John cupped Bryan's head with both hands.
“Want this.” He rolled his hips again. “Want to watch you come.”
Bryan moaned, and John felt his other leg come up behind him as Bryan crossed his ankles at the small of John's back. John thrust down, the angle perfect to slide their cocks together through the thin layers of fabric. It felt dangerous somehow, with a tinge of innocence, as if they were teenagers making out in one of their parents' living rooms, just beginning to explore life and love and this thing between them.
It felt like they were starting over, and maybe they were.
Scotty: Oh my, now I’m fanning myself. Again! Good job Honey!
Shae: Thanks!
Well our time with Shae is about up. But before we go, will you be making an appearance in October at GayRomLit in New Mexico?
Shae: Yes! I had an amazing time at GRL in New Orleans last year, even though I signed up late and was officially there as a reader rather than an author. I'm all official as an author for this year, though! I've never been to Albuquerque, or New Mexico for that matter, so I'm looking forward to exploring another new place as much as spending time with so many great people.
Scotty: Yeah, so we will meet again real soon. I’m very excited. This was really fun and I truly enjoyed Sand & Water. I look forward to meeting at GRL. Thanks for taking the time to talk with us.
Shae: It was all my pleasure Scotty. See you in October.
Well gang, this brings to a close another Spicy Wednesday. Tune in next Wednesday when I’ll talk to the reviewer extraordinaire, Ms. Portia De Moncur from MM Good Book Reviews, about her reviewing process and what she looks for in a great novel.
So for now, Scotty Cade out! Oh and proud! JSee you next week.
Oops, I almost forgot, here’s where you can buy Shae’s books:
Buy links: http://shaeconnorwrites.com/bibliography/novels/
Complete bibliography: http://shaeconnorwrites.com/bibliography
Good Morning everyone. Today I'm very happy to bring to the boards my friend, Ms. Shae Conner, author of “Sand & Water,” published by Dreamspinner Press.
For those of you who don’t know Shae, she resides in my former hometown of Atlanta, GA and is a true Southern Belle. You can find her on any given day sitting under a very large oak tree sipping mint juleps and fanning her self to keep the Atlanta heat at bay. J
Shae and I first met virtually when she entered a giveaway for my first novel Final Encore and also won tickets I was giving away for the opening of “Rent,” at the Fabrefaction Theater Company in Atlanta where we finally met in person. Before we get started, here’s a little blurb for Sand & Water.”
Widower John McConnell gets along fine raising his daughter on Georgia's Tybee Island, though he wouldn't exactly say he's happy. Haunted by the memory of his dead wife, John hasn't considered dating again until he meets Bryan Simmons in the park. It isn't long before John realizes that what he feels for Bryan could be something real, but how will he know he's ready to move on?
As John soon discovers, Bryan carries some heavy emotional baggage of his own. With John's help, Bryan starts to put his demons to rest, and together they lay the foundation for a relationship. It looks like they might finally leave their tragedies behind them—until John takes a misstep that could turn a magical night together into their last.
Scotty: Good Morning Ms. Connor. How is Hotlanta this fine morning?
Shae: Hey there, Mr. Cade! Well, it's kicking off August down this way, and you know what that means: HOT HOT HOT!
Scotty: Oh yeah, I do remember. You just keep fanning girl and everything will be okay!
Shae, it's a real pleasure to finally get to interview you about your novel “Sand & Water.” To be truthful, I read the first half in one sitting and had to put it down to get some work done, but read the second half the same way. I love these two guys! They are scarred for different reasons, but scarred just the same and it’s great the way you bring them around, at their own pace, to see each other and what’s right in front of them. I always ask authors where the inspiration for the novel came from and did you based these characters off of anyone in particular?
Shae: I'm so glad you enjoyed John and Bryan's story! The initial inspiration for Sand & Water came from the Beth Nielsen Chapman song of the same title, which she wrote after her husband died, leaving her to raise their child alone. Bryan's story is based on the experiences of a family friend whose husband suffered a traumatic brain injury in an accident and never recovered. So the backstory for both characters was based on actual events, but not the plot or the characters. While pretty much every character I write ends up with some traits from people I know, or even from me, it's rare for me to have a specific character be based on a specific person. My current novel project is an exception!
Scotty: The novel is based on Tybee Island, which is an island off the coast of Georgia near Savannah. I’ve been there and you describe it and capture the charm perfectly. Have you ever been there, or did you do your research online?
Shae: I love Tybee! I've been there a number of times over the years, along with both Jekyll and St Simons islands. I grew up in south Georgia with a mother who loves the beach, so we spent quite a bit of time along the Georgia coastline, as well as the Florida Gulf Coast. My last trip to Tybee was about five years ago, a day trip as part of a weekend in Savannah with my sister. The beach and pier images that Reese Dante used for her beautiful cover are actually shots that I took on that trip.
Scotty: Wow, the cover is really beautiful and I love me some Reese. She’s done several of my covers and is working on my latest as we speak.
As I’ve mentioned here before, I never read the description of a novel when I’m interviewing an author so I have no expectations and go into the story totally blind. I really enjoyed “Sand & Water” from the get go. I was immediately intrigued with the characters and the setting and I really got into the story and couldn’t wait to see if and when the characters made the leap of faith. You didn’t disappoint. So many of us writers say we have the entire story plotted out in our head before we get started, but as you probably know, the story takes on a life of its own and no matter how we try to rein it back in, it always wins and goes where it wants to. Did you know from the start how the book was going to end?
Shae: You probably won't be surprised for me to answer yes and no. I had the story planned out—I tend to write story summaries rather than outlines—but since I'd never written a full novel-length story before, I had no way to judge how much story I'd need to fill it up. As it turned out, I came up short—or, more accurately, I realized that some things I'd thought might go into a sequel needed to be in this book instead. The final plotline ended up about a third longer than what I'd initially planned for. And, of course, some scenes and moments found their way in that hadn't been planned for at all!
Scotty: I think it happens that way for most of us. But I must say, I LOVE a book with underlying themes and this one had several that I recognized. Gay bashing being one, tolerance being another, but the one that hit me like a ton of bricks was the reference to women liking to see two guys get it on, just like men like to see two women get it on. So many of our authors and readers are women and I never got why until now. Being a gay man, I couldn’t write HET romance or lesbian romance, but the way you put it made all the sense in the world to me, you go girl! Bravo! Did you plan all this or did it just work its way into the story?
Shae: I didn't plan it, but the subject of women enjoying gay romance/sex/porn is one I've thought, written, and talked a lot about over the past few years. Liking to watch (or read about/imagine) two (or more!) men together is a pretty small part of things, really. Yes, there's definitely an eye candy aspect to it, but that's more the gravy than the meat. So to speak. ;)
For me, romance is romance, no matter the participants. The specifics of every story will vary widely based on the people/characters involved, but gender is just one aspect of that. Personalities, tastes, backgrounds, and interests: these are all important parts to any relationship, including non-sexual ones. It's about chemistry, not body parts. And when sex does enter into things, the physical aspects are much less important than what's going on in the minds of the people involved.
Scotty: Very well put. As I mentioned earlier, I loved the pace of the story, not too fast and surely not too slow. When they finally got together I was itching for it to happen and I was ready. You didn’t disappoint here either. Their first time was hot and steamy in a hesitant sort of way. They were both ready, but so so scared and I felt every emotion as I took the journey with them. Did you have a hard time determining the right time to make the move? And how far to take it the first time?
Shae: John and Bryan led me right to it. I knew well in advance that their first time needed to happen about when (and where) it did for a number of reasons, but exactly how it did was all about them. They'd been heading that direction, and they both knew it, and when the opportunity arose, they took it. I especially loved that there was some emotional backlash afterward, too. It wouldn't have worked for me otherwise, and I don't think it would have worked for the readers.
Scotty: Isn’t it funny how that works, you are a true artist my dear. And after what they both went through, I would have expected it to be John who freaked out first, but he’d been with other people, so I guess it makes sense that it was Bryan. After all, Bryan hadn’t been with anyone since Eddie and well I won’t give away too much, but you’ll see when you read this lovely book.
Now for those of you who know me, I rarely cry. Yes, I have tear ducts and there’s nothing wrong with me, I can feel stuff, I just don’t cry that often. But…boy did you get me with that baby blanket scene. I actually wet a tissue, well to be truthful two tissues. I don’t want to give too much away, but OMG, in my mind I saw him carry Bethy through the front door in the blanket her mother knitted for her and then loosing it and dropping to his knees so distraught with grief. It really got to me. The scene unfolded in my head and I saw the entire thing so clearly and more importantly, I felt it. Scenes like that can be such a drain on the author, was that difficult for you to write?
Shae: Sad scenes are very, very difficult for me to write. I'm generally a happy, upbeat person, so I have to dig in deep to get to that kind of place. The blanket scene was one; the scene with Eddie got to me even more. I just wanted to give him a huge hug!
Scotty: I think we all did. Eddie acted so mature, even with his injuries he wanted Bryan to be happy. I love that about him.
Okay this is spicy Wednesday, so I need some dirt to make our readers happy. When these guys finally got it right, the sex was really hot. The fact that one of them, and I won’t give away which one, liked it a little rough with just a hint of restraint surprised me. Did you plan that or again, did it unfold? The scene in the little carriage house was, well I don’t want to spoil it for the readers, but hot and over the top. Tell us about the process you use when you write the hot steamy scenes.
Shae: That's just how it worked out! As I said, there are parts of me in many of my characters, and at the risk of delving into Too Much Information, that hint of restraint and rough-around-the-edge passion is a huge turn-on for me. Don't get me wrong; I find lots of different sexual and sensual scenes hot, from gentle and loving to bend-me-over-and-fuck-me-hard. If it works for the participants, it's probably going to work for me, even if the actual act involved is something I'm not personally interested in (or, for that matter, couldn't physically do anyway!).
Scotty: LOL! You can never delve too deep, so to speak but please do tell us more.
Shae: Writing sex has never been something I've had to think that hard about. I try to let it flow from the characters and the story. I believe that if it feels like I'm forcing it, it doesn't need to be there, or it needs to be approached in a completely different way. A sex scene is just like any other scene: it needs to drive the story forward in some way, whether it's plot, character development, relationship development, or some other aspect. If it doesn't mean something, it should hit the cutting room floor.
Scotty: Now the big question, will there be a sequel? It’s the perfect setup for another novel. Please! Please! Please!
Shae: As I've told some other readers who asked the same question, I never say never! I have some notes on a possible sequel, but since it's been a year since Sand & Water's release, I think it's unlikely at this point. I'd love to revisit them, though, so cross your fingers that they'll jump up and demand my attention again!
Scotty: Oh I can see a wedding and then John’s mother trying to take Beth away, all sorts of things are going through my head. Anyway, I digress. J But I’m sure everyone is really tired of hearing me talk about this book, so here’s an excerpt for you to sample and I hope all of you like this as much as I did.
They kissed messily, hungrily, Bryan stepping out of his khakis as they half stumbled toward the bed. John wrapped one arm around Bryan's waist and turned to lower him onto the mattress, following close behind, propping himself up with his other hand so he could hover over him as they kissed. Bryan wasn't having that distance, though, bringing up one leg to hook behind John's waist and pull him down until they were skin to skin, only the soft cotton of their boxers between them. John slid his hand into Bryan's hair, running his fingers through the soft strands. Every touch seemed to set his nerve endings on fire. He hadn't felt like this since Liz, warmth and comfort underlying the raw passion, adding layers and layers of feeling, amping up every sensation until he burned with it.
He tore himself away from Bryan's amazing mouth to press kisses across his jaw and onto his neck. Bryan shuddered when John ran his tongue over his Adam's apple, gasped when he scraped his teeth along the tendon at the side. Bryan's hips bucked up, and John ground down in response. He wanted to touch Bryan everywhere, wanted to taste him, but after so long without and so much anticipation, he didn't know how long he'd last.
He brought his head back up to catch Bryan's gaze and reached down to hitch Bryan's leg higher on his hip. He rolled his hips forward, pushing a gasp from Bryan's mouth. Bryan's lips were red and wet, eyes dark and wide, and John cupped Bryan's head with both hands.
“Want this.” He rolled his hips again. “Want to watch you come.”
Bryan moaned, and John felt his other leg come up behind him as Bryan crossed his ankles at the small of John's back. John thrust down, the angle perfect to slide their cocks together through the thin layers of fabric. It felt dangerous somehow, with a tinge of innocence, as if they were teenagers making out in one of their parents' living rooms, just beginning to explore life and love and this thing between them.
It felt like they were starting over, and maybe they were.
Scotty: Oh my, now I’m fanning myself. Again! Good job Honey!
Shae: Thanks!
Well our time with Shae is about up. But before we go, will you be making an appearance in October at GayRomLit in New Mexico?
Shae: Yes! I had an amazing time at GRL in New Orleans last year, even though I signed up late and was officially there as a reader rather than an author. I'm all official as an author for this year, though! I've never been to Albuquerque, or New Mexico for that matter, so I'm looking forward to exploring another new place as much as spending time with so many great people.
Scotty: Yeah, so we will meet again real soon. I’m very excited. This was really fun and I truly enjoyed Sand & Water. I look forward to meeting at GRL. Thanks for taking the time to talk with us.
Shae: It was all my pleasure Scotty. See you in October.
Well gang, this brings to a close another Spicy Wednesday. Tune in next Wednesday when I’ll talk to the reviewer extraordinaire, Ms. Portia De Moncur from MM Good Book Reviews, about her reviewing process and what she looks for in a great novel.
So for now, Scotty Cade out! Oh and proud! JSee you next week.
Oops, I almost forgot, here’s where you can buy Shae’s books:
Buy links: http://shaeconnorwrites.com/bibliography/novels/
Complete bibliography: http://shaeconnorwrites.com/bibliography
July 31, 2012
Chik Fil-A: Choosing Sides To Go With That Chicken...
I don't think there's anyone with access to a computer and the Internet who doesn't know about the hubbub going on with Chik Fil-A, the Holy Roller of the fast food industry. Since everyone's talking about it, and I figured I might as well throw my two cents out there.
Chik Fil-A is a Christian-owned company, and their CEO recently admitted publically that he and his company support, both in spirit and financially, anti-gay groups. Like many people and institutions who wave the Bible to support their views, they pick and choose only those biblical references that give credence to their hate, and ignore the rest.
Here's the thing -- it's their right to do. We humans with moral compasses might not agree, but they are entitled to funnel their profits into whatever group's pocket they wish, including Neo-Nazis for Christ (if such a group exists, and I have no idea if they do). That's Chik Fil-A's prerogative. They can also refuse to hire, or fire anyone based on their sexual orientation. Until laws are put into place on the federal level, there's not a damn thing you, I , or anyone else can do about it.
At the moment, gay rights are not protected by law. Florida, for example, is a Right to Work state, which means it is perfectly legal (as much as it sucks big, fat, hairy donkey balls) to fire someone because of their sexual orientation. It is equally legal to fire someone because of their weight, the model car they drive, their hairstyle, or for no reason at all. People who fall under the federalanti-discrimination laws (color, sex, religion, or disability) cannot be fired for reasons pertaining to their protected statuses. For everyone else, terminations for trivial reasons can be fought in court, but it's expensive, and the odds are good that you'd lose anyway.However, it is myprerogative not to put a dime of my money into their accounts, and that means not buying food at Chik Fil-A. Less profits mean fewer dollars to donate to anti-gay groups.
Tomorrow, August 1st, people are planning all sorts of demonstrations involving Chik Fil-A. Those individuals who share Chik Fil-A's bigoted views are encouraged to march in and order up, showing their support. Those of us who disagree are urged to avoid Chik Fil-A like the plague. Some people plan to go into the stores and request a large glass of water (testing Chik Fil-A's Christian principles, in particular, Proverbs 25:21, which states in essence, if your enemy is hungry or thirsty, give them food and water. Okay, cool, but chances are good Chik Fil-A has heard of this, and already sent orders down through the ranks to deny no request for water, so I'm not sure what good such a protest going to do. For all I know, they may be ready to hand over a sandwich as well, if someone says they're hungry.
The truth is that no display of solidarity is going to change Chik Fil-A's mind about its policies except one that hits them directly in their corporate pocketbook, and even then, we'll only truly stop them when we get the laws changed on the federal level to include discrimination against sexual orientation.
Chik Fil-A is a Christian-owned company, and their CEO recently admitted publically that he and his company support, both in spirit and financially, anti-gay groups. Like many people and institutions who wave the Bible to support their views, they pick and choose only those biblical references that give credence to their hate, and ignore the rest.
Here's the thing -- it's their right to do. We humans with moral compasses might not agree, but they are entitled to funnel their profits into whatever group's pocket they wish, including Neo-Nazis for Christ (if such a group exists, and I have no idea if they do). That's Chik Fil-A's prerogative. They can also refuse to hire, or fire anyone based on their sexual orientation. Until laws are put into place on the federal level, there's not a damn thing you, I , or anyone else can do about it. At the moment, gay rights are not protected by law. Florida, for example, is a Right to Work state, which means it is perfectly legal (as much as it sucks big, fat, hairy donkey balls) to fire someone because of their sexual orientation. It is equally legal to fire someone because of their weight, the model car they drive, their hairstyle, or for no reason at all. People who fall under the federalanti-discrimination laws (color, sex, religion, or disability) cannot be fired for reasons pertaining to their protected statuses. For everyone else, terminations for trivial reasons can be fought in court, but it's expensive, and the odds are good that you'd lose anyway.However, it is myprerogative not to put a dime of my money into their accounts, and that means not buying food at Chik Fil-A. Less profits mean fewer dollars to donate to anti-gay groups.
Tomorrow, August 1st, people are planning all sorts of demonstrations involving Chik Fil-A. Those individuals who share Chik Fil-A's bigoted views are encouraged to march in and order up, showing their support. Those of us who disagree are urged to avoid Chik Fil-A like the plague. Some people plan to go into the stores and request a large glass of water (testing Chik Fil-A's Christian principles, in particular, Proverbs 25:21, which states in essence, if your enemy is hungry or thirsty, give them food and water. Okay, cool, but chances are good Chik Fil-A has heard of this, and already sent orders down through the ranks to deny no request for water, so I'm not sure what good such a protest going to do. For all I know, they may be ready to hand over a sandwich as well, if someone says they're hungry.
The truth is that no display of solidarity is going to change Chik Fil-A's mind about its policies except one that hits them directly in their corporate pocketbook, and even then, we'll only truly stop them when we get the laws changed on the federal level to include discrimination against sexual orientation.
July 30, 2012
Crepe Recipe and Book Excerpt by Cardeno C.
Happy Monday! For today’s blog post, I’m going to share an excerpt and a recipe. He Completes Me is a story about Zach, who hasn’t felt like he’s had a family since his father died when he was a child, and Aaron, who comes from a big family, has created a family with Zach’s relatives, and wants nothing more than to make his own family with Zach. There’s a scene in the book where Zach and Aaron cook breakfast at Zach’s brother’s house. I’ll share a bit of the scene and then my crepe recipe. I hope you enjoy both!
He Completes Me by Cardeno C. - Excerpt http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=2237
“I’ll get the milk and strawberries out of the fridge. Do you want me to make the crepe batter, or should I sauté the spinach and onions?”I walked over to the fridge and got the stuff out.
“And don’t fucking say you’re doing both. We’re making breakfast together. It’ll take half the time and then we’ll both get to relax and hang out.”Aaron opened his mouth to object, but before he could say a word, I walked over to him, pulled his head down, and covered his lips with mine. He had an egg in one hand, but he took the other and rested it on the small of my back. I parted my mouth to let his tongue in and sucked on it. When we finally separated, I whispered to him, “Don’t argue with me about this, Aaron, or you’ll have to give me a spanking when we get home.”His eyes were glazed, and he panted out a response.“I think you have that threat backward.”I waggled my eyebrows at him. “No, I don’t. Why shouldn’t I get a little bonus if you choose not to behave? Come to think of it, maybe you should spank me either way.”He laughed.“I’ll make the batter, you make the filling.”“That’s more like it.” I kissed his cheek. Then I rinsed the spinach and looked through the cabinets for a cutting board.“There’s a narrow cabinet below and to the right of the sink. That’s where they keep the cutting board. The knives are in the block next to the stove. And the frying pan is in the deep drawer next to it.”I got everything out and diced the onion. Aaron was stirring the batter and then got a crepe pan out of a drawer. We worked together in companionable silence. While we were standing next to each other in front of the stove, Aaron making crepes and me sautéing onions, I nudged him with my hip. He looked down at me, and I smiled.“This is nice, Aaron.”He sighed, smiled at me and, in a wistful voice, said, “Yeah, it is. It’s the best. I love you, Zach.”
Crepe RecipeYou can make these the night before to save time. Just mix together all the ingredients except the butter (add the butter before cooking).
Batter:
Sift together dry ingredients:
· 2 cup flour
· 1/2 teaspoon salt
· 4 tablespoon sugar
Beat together wet ingredients:
· 4 eggs
· 2 cup whole milk
· Just shy of 2/3 cup water
· 6 tablespoon butter+ extra for pan
· 2 teaspoon vanilla
Slowly whisk wet ingredients into dry ingredients until well incorporated and smooth. Pour some batter into a pitcher or glass measuring cup so it’s easy to pour into your crepe pan.
Heat pan on med-high with a little butter. Pour a small amount of batter (approximately two tablespoons), tilt the pan and rotate back and forth to make a thin layer all around. When the edges are cooked and the center has dried, loosen the edges and flip the crepe quickly. Cook the second side for a short time, just until done, and then remove from pan. Keep on makin’ more crepes.
Savory Filling:
Sauté onions in a little oil until they’re translucent. Add spinach and cover. When spinach is completely wilted, stir it with onions and add garlic. Put the spinach/onion sauté in a crepe and top with goat cheese or feta cheese.
Sweet Filling:
Slice bananas and strawberries. Spread Nutella and/or peanut butter on crepe and add a scoop of the strawberry/banana mix.
July 27, 2012
What Gender Are You? (D.W. Marchwell)
It doesn’t surprise me that my parents and siblings were confused about me when I was a child. On the one hand, I had all the “usual” toys that a boy would have - G.I. Joe, Big Jim (and his camper), although I never played with them together or fantasized about the two of them shacked-up in the camper for a nice relaxing long weekend. On the other hand, I also enjoyed playing with my sister’s Barbies, making clothes for them and making them look pretty. And, as I got older, I remember having crushes on both male and female teachers and classmates. Even the television shows I watched could not provide a definite clue about what my brother would eventually call my “leanings”. While I was riveted to the television every Thursday evening so that I could watch the bionic man, Steve Austin, I was equally enamored of his girlfriend, Jamie Summers, the bionic woman.
Of course, I knew all along that I wanted to spend time with Steve Austin in a completely different way than I wanted to spend it with Jamie Summers, but despite the fear of further teasing from the bullies and repercussions from my ultra-religious mother, I also knew that it was no one’s business but my own. And as the years worn on, I also came to realize that people would think whatever they wanted to think, regardless of what information I provided - or didn’t provide, for that matter. Even throughout my career as a high school teacher, I found myself to be very protective of students who were either struggling with their identities (and not just the sexual one) or those students who had already been “labelled” by the “normal” students. Unfortunately, as my post of last week will prove, we no longer live in a time when someone’s incredibly intimate details - those that touch at the very core of who they are as a person - are considered to be anything but fodder for those who feel they have every right to comment on something that is still none of their business.
Such is the case with Caster Semenya. Those who read my post of last week will know that I am so often turned-off by what’s in the news that I choose not to pay it any attention. However, I happened upon the story of this South African running sensation when a rerun aired three days ago, and, as is usually the case when I do pay attention, my brain started turning, the rust fell away, and I found myself wondering - as I had done during my adolescent years - what, precisely, does “gender” mean?For the uninformed, such as I was, Caster Semenya ran into some problems back in 2009 because she was apparently too fast in the women’s 800-meter race during the World Championships. Of course, the natural conclusion was not that she was a gifted athlete, but that she must be a man. What made me even more livid was the fact that the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) went as far as to lie to her when they told her to come in for some “standard” drug tests so that they could, in fact, subject her to a sex verification test. What followed were some dark days for Ms. Semenya - during which she probably found no solace in the sacking of these officials for their heinous act of subterfuge and even more heinous invasion of her privacy - and a two-year long battle before she was finally allowed to run again in any international competition. The results of her test were never made public, and nor should they ever be.
Unfortunately, Ms. Semenya’s tale is not an aberration. Even though the Olympic Committee (in 1999) and the IAAF (in 1992) no longer mandate sex verification tests for all female athletes, they do “invoke” the right to do so for special cases. Kudos for such forward thinking. But what about those women (and I discovered the list is extensive) who were subjected to the humiliation of not only being told they “failed” to prove themselves female, but were stripped of their hard-earned medals?Now, before I receive loads of comments and emails, I understand the debate about men pretending to be women and then competing, as I understand the debate about doping and performance-enhancing drugs. We’re all agreed that anyone who is caught doing anything unethical or illegal should not be considered to be the winner of the race or the competition, nor should they be allowed to keep any medals or financial compensation. But what about a higher level of testosterone because a woman is born with it? What about the realization that some individuals are “gifted” with a different genetic makeup and are therefore predisposed to being able to run faster or jump higher or throw farther? Is this not the basis for these competitions? Is the point of a competition not to seek out who is “the one” who can perform better than all others?
Of course it is. I have enough testosterone in me to give me hair on my chest and to put my speaking (and singing) voice in the range of a bass-baritone, but I don’t have a visible Adam’s apple (a visible sign of manhood, at least according to society) and my sister (who is my height) can still beat me in a 50-meter dash. Does this mean my sister isn’t a woman? Of course not. Could it mean that I am not a man because I could not beat a girl? I will not dignify that question with an answer, other than to state - for the record - that I had a bad case of cramps - each of the nine times we raced.
So, now the only question to be answered is ‘Are you a man or a woman?’
For those of us faced with such a query, we should all use the wise words uttered - with a smile - by my 9-year old nephew (who is half-caucasian and half-Cherokee) when an ill-informed teacher asked him how he identifies himself - “Are you white or are you an Indian?”
My nephew's answer: “I’m me.”
