Laylah Hunter's Blog, page 8
September 12, 2012
the promise of romance
This week I'm struggling to keep reading Karin Lowachee's Warchild, which is wrenching, excellently-written, serious sci fi about a boy orphaned in wartime and trained as a soldier. It's powerful. It's smart. It's unflinching.
And the problem is that I'm flinching. I can see it winding up for more crises, more emotional hurt and confusion, for its main character, and...as a writer I can respect the craft with which it's done, but as a reader I don't want to go along.
It turns out this is why I am so drawn to the romance versions of my favorite genres: it isn't the sex (though that can be a bonus), it's the emotional promise. The crucial difference for reader-me between, say, military sci fi and military sci fi romance is the reassurance the latter gives me: the connection between these characters will be strong enough to survive. The connection between characters is the central thing I read for—which may also explain my failure to be interested in a lot of modern literary fiction; stories about detachment and lack of affect leave me cold. I don't believe there's some kind of powerful commentary or deep truth inherent in the literary thesis, "people fail to understand each other"; that's pessimism, not a law of the universe.
(By counterexample, in Heidi Belleau and Violetta Vane's The Druid Stone, which is urban fantasy/romance, the scene that undid me and made me fall for the book was Sean coming along to Cormac's family's Beltane party. The warm, welcome chaos of that scene made me feel like my heart would be safe with this story—it clearly valued kinship and camaraderie as highly as I did.)
I don't know. I'm going to keep trying with Warchild, but maybe slowly. And probably with doses of something more comforting in between, because I care so much about Jos's relationship with his mentor and I fear it's going to be a casualty of war. Damnit.
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And the problem is that I'm flinching. I can see it winding up for more crises, more emotional hurt and confusion, for its main character, and...as a writer I can respect the craft with which it's done, but as a reader I don't want to go along.
It turns out this is why I am so drawn to the romance versions of my favorite genres: it isn't the sex (though that can be a bonus), it's the emotional promise. The crucial difference for reader-me between, say, military sci fi and military sci fi romance is the reassurance the latter gives me: the connection between these characters will be strong enough to survive. The connection between characters is the central thing I read for—which may also explain my failure to be interested in a lot of modern literary fiction; stories about detachment and lack of affect leave me cold. I don't believe there's some kind of powerful commentary or deep truth inherent in the literary thesis, "people fail to understand each other"; that's pessimism, not a law of the universe.
(By counterexample, in Heidi Belleau and Violetta Vane's The Druid Stone, which is urban fantasy/romance, the scene that undid me and made me fall for the book was Sean coming along to Cormac's family's Beltane party. The warm, welcome chaos of that scene made me feel like my heart would be safe with this story—it clearly valued kinship and camaraderie as highly as I did.)
I don't know. I'm going to keep trying with Warchild, but maybe slowly. And probably with doses of something more comforting in between, because I care so much about Jos's relationship with his mentor and I fear it's going to be a casualty of war. Damnit.
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September 10, 2012
seriously.
Also yesterday my snake bit me. I am really hoping today will be the start of a shift in my general luck.
(I'm fine, and it was my fault; I reached into his tank at feeding time because I was worried about some shed skin caught at the corner of his mouth. He has a brain the size of a pea and tracks food largely by sensing temperature, so a moving warm thing is obviously for biting. I, on the other hand, have a brain that weighs more than he does and can process consequences. I should have known better.)
The weather has suddenly decided we're changing seasons, so perhaps it will be a good change in my personal universe.
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(I'm fine, and it was my fault; I reached into his tank at feeding time because I was worried about some shed skin caught at the corner of his mouth. He has a brain the size of a pea and tracks food largely by sensing temperature, so a moving warm thing is obviously for biting. I, on the other hand, have a brain that weighs more than he does and can process consequences. I should have known better.)
The weather has suddenly decided we're changing seasons, so perhaps it will be a good change in my personal universe.
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September 2, 2012
snippet: "Bad-Luck Stars"
Less Than Three runs little prompt challenges through their Goodreads group, and y'all know what a sucker I am for both prompts and challenges. The current theme is "just get in the car!" and I figured, hey, why not write a bit of Drake/Gabriel mobster AU?
So that's what this is. :3
Established relationship, m/m makeouts, offscreen organized crime violence.
~650 words.
Somebody needs to be clear-headed enough to drive, and Gabriel’s the best torpedo man in the city, so there was no question of him waiting outside.
( Bad-Luck Stars )
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So that's what this is. :3
Established relationship, m/m makeouts, offscreen organized crime violence.
~650 words.
Somebody needs to be clear-headed enough to drive, and Gabriel’s the best torpedo man in the city, so there was no question of him waiting outside.
( Bad-Luck Stars )
comments
August 20, 2012
moderation and the Muse
I often feel like Dream's curse on Ric Madoc is one of the most insightful moments in all of Sandman. For those who aren't fans, Madoc is a writer who has, through unscrupulous means, captured the muse Calliope and is keeping her prisoner because she provides him with ideas. To make him release her, Dream curses him: You want ideas? You want dreams? You want stories? Then ideas you will have. IDEAS IN ABUNDANCE. The flood of ideas that overtakes him reduces Madoc to a desperate wreck, struggling to write everything down, hurting himself in the frantic attempt to turn all of these ideas into words at once.
I'm not in nearly such dire straits as Madoc (but then, I haven't been abusing any Muses, either). Still, I'm suffering from a milder case of the same thing, where no single story is making progress because there are just too damned many of them. I probably need to be banned from looking at any press's open calls for the next few weeks—at least until after the end of the month, when I am staring at three separate deadlines right now.
The problem seems to be that I have decided that I need to Get My Name Out There by submitting to as many places as possible. I've been enjoying working with FFP and I feel like in many ways they're a great fit for my most erotica-focused work—the lack of limits on who can participate and what kinds of themes are acceptable are really nice, given the directions my interest goes—but I also want to reach the audience already following some of the more established presses, and I want to find homes for the stuff that has less on-page sizzle. I need to keep reminding myself that I don't need to (indeed, I can't) do everything at once. That, in fact, I'll be happier with both my time spent and the results thereof if I slow down, take things one at a time, and try to submit to my favorite calls rather than every single one that looks plausible.
Moderation, self. We'll get the hang of it one day.
comments
I'm not in nearly such dire straits as Madoc (but then, I haven't been abusing any Muses, either). Still, I'm suffering from a milder case of the same thing, where no single story is making progress because there are just too damned many of them. I probably need to be banned from looking at any press's open calls for the next few weeks—at least until after the end of the month, when I am staring at three separate deadlines right now.
The problem seems to be that I have decided that I need to Get My Name Out There by submitting to as many places as possible. I've been enjoying working with FFP and I feel like in many ways they're a great fit for my most erotica-focused work—the lack of limits on who can participate and what kinds of themes are acceptable are really nice, given the directions my interest goes—but I also want to reach the audience already following some of the more established presses, and I want to find homes for the stuff that has less on-page sizzle. I need to keep reminding myself that I don't need to (indeed, I can't) do everything at once. That, in fact, I'll be happier with both my time spent and the results thereof if I slow down, take things one at a time, and try to submit to my favorite calls rather than every single one that looks plausible.
Moderation, self. We'll get the hang of it one day.
comments
August 15, 2012
sometimes the line walks you
So there's a story I've been poking at over the last few weeks, trying to coax it into shape for a deadline at the end of the month, and I think it's time to admit that it's defeated me. I'm trying to negotiate Here Be Dragons territory, and it's just too tricky for me to manage on a deadline.
The as-yet-nameless protagonist (first person lets one get away with that for a while) is of uncertain gender, you see. I know how the character presents, and what anatomy the character has, but not how that translates to identity. And depending on how I went with it, that could wind up being extremely problematic—because the character is also not entirely human.
If I decide I'm writing a butch lesbian, then the problem is somewhat ameliorated: she's a strange magical thing, but she's not the only lesbian in the story. The other woman is fully human and not a magical creature at all. She doesn't take on the complete-otherness stigma of having her sexuality represented by magical monstrosity.
If, on the other hand, I decide I'm writing a trans man, then I'm in trouble. He'd be the only trans character in the story, which means there are drastically unpleasant implications to having him be so inhuman that his true face scares the piss out of someone. It becomes way, way too easy to equate his monster nature with his gender, and holy mother of whores do I not want to go that direction.
Laid out like that it sounds like my choice is easy: like my protagonist should be a lesbian, end of discussion. Except that doesn't feel right. Pinning this character down to a female identity leaves me feeling unsettled and unhappy. Am I writing too close to my self, here, trying to write a character who's somewhere in that no-man's-and-no-woman's-either-land, maybe shifting, maybe just straddling a line? Would I be better off trying to just discipline myself and write it as straight-up (ha) lesbian fic? Is it worth trying to wrestle this gator to the ground and find a way to write it as trans fic without making it gross?
I don't think I have any chance of getting answers to this one quickly. Probably I'm going to have to shelve this draft and let it stew—and write something else for that deadline.
comments
The as-yet-nameless protagonist (first person lets one get away with that for a while) is of uncertain gender, you see. I know how the character presents, and what anatomy the character has, but not how that translates to identity. And depending on how I went with it, that could wind up being extremely problematic—because the character is also not entirely human.
If I decide I'm writing a butch lesbian, then the problem is somewhat ameliorated: she's a strange magical thing, but she's not the only lesbian in the story. The other woman is fully human and not a magical creature at all. She doesn't take on the complete-otherness stigma of having her sexuality represented by magical monstrosity.
If, on the other hand, I decide I'm writing a trans man, then I'm in trouble. He'd be the only trans character in the story, which means there are drastically unpleasant implications to having him be so inhuman that his true face scares the piss out of someone. It becomes way, way too easy to equate his monster nature with his gender, and holy mother of whores do I not want to go that direction.
Laid out like that it sounds like my choice is easy: like my protagonist should be a lesbian, end of discussion. Except that doesn't feel right. Pinning this character down to a female identity leaves me feeling unsettled and unhappy. Am I writing too close to my self, here, trying to write a character who's somewhere in that no-man's-and-no-woman's-either-land, maybe shifting, maybe just straddling a line? Would I be better off trying to just discipline myself and write it as straight-up (ha) lesbian fic? Is it worth trying to wrestle this gator to the ground and find a way to write it as trans fic without making it gross?
I don't think I have any chance of getting answers to this one quickly. Probably I'm going to have to shelve this draft and let it stew—and write something else for that deadline.
comments
August 10, 2012
(he's) the thorn in your side, makes you wriggle and writhe
Today is release day for Devil's Bargain, Devil's Kiss! (Link takes you to the publisher's site: you can buy directly from them, or from the third-party sites linked there—the links to each site will go live as the story gets added there.)
The best thing about working on this story, hands down, was getting to write Doctor Nicholas Black. I have a perennial weakness for the charming villain, the fellow who tips his hat and smiles politely while he ruins everything. The fellow who's friendly and well-spoken and only a touch sly, only a touch pointed...until you try to cross him, and it turns out there's an iron fist in that velvet glove. I love that archetype. I love watching them wreak havoc. It's not quite the trickster type—tricksters have more energy, and are more likely to be motivated by curiosity ("What happens to your culture when I pull this sacred cow's tail?")—but it's close. They're cousins, perhaps, the trickster and the gentleman bastard; they'd each tell you the other is the black sheep of the family.
And the good doctor is a chance for me to indulge myself shamelessly in that trope, slathered liberally with old-time Southern politeness (itself often a pretty veneer over the ugly reality of inequality and injustice). Doctor Black's Patented Tonic can fix what ails you, but it's one of those cases where the cure really is worse than the disease. It tastes so sweet, though, and the first dose comes so cheap. Ain't easy to resist a deal like that, not for most folks around here. Never has been for me, anyhow.
You neither, I hope. ♥
comments
The best thing about working on this story, hands down, was getting to write Doctor Nicholas Black. I have a perennial weakness for the charming villain, the fellow who tips his hat and smiles politely while he ruins everything. The fellow who's friendly and well-spoken and only a touch sly, only a touch pointed...until you try to cross him, and it turns out there's an iron fist in that velvet glove. I love that archetype. I love watching them wreak havoc. It's not quite the trickster type—tricksters have more energy, and are more likely to be motivated by curiosity ("What happens to your culture when I pull this sacred cow's tail?")—but it's close. They're cousins, perhaps, the trickster and the gentleman bastard; they'd each tell you the other is the black sheep of the family.
And the good doctor is a chance for me to indulge myself shamelessly in that trope, slathered liberally with old-time Southern politeness (itself often a pretty veneer over the ugly reality of inequality and injustice). Doctor Black's Patented Tonic can fix what ails you, but it's one of those cases where the cure really is worse than the disease. It tastes so sweet, though, and the first dose comes so cheap. Ain't easy to resist a deal like that, not for most folks around here. Never has been for me, anyhow.
You neither, I hope. ♥
comments
August 5, 2012
"Devil's Bargain, Devil's Kiss" getting ready for release!
My first solo release! I'm really excited for this one.
"Devil's Bargain, Devil's Kiss" is a standalone short story set in the early 20th-century American South: When handsome Doctor Nicholas Black brings his wagon full of patent medicines to Jonah's small town, it seems like the answer to the whole town's prayers. But the good doctor's cures don't come cheap, and for Jonah in particular there might be too high a price to pay. Release slated for August 10!
I'd class it as erotic horror more than straight-up erotica—Southern Gothic in style, not splatterpunky. I had an absolute blast with the voice for this story (you know how much I love doing voices), and I want to thank my editor at FFP, Lon Sarver, for making some great suggestions that I think added a lot of punch to the finished product.
FFP is generally pretty good about labeling content so readers can make informed decisions, but let me highlight one bit of that now: most of the sexual content in this story is coerced. There's no attempt to pass the coercion off as romantic—this is a horror story about the devil holding the high cards—but it is a major theme.
If that's your cup of tea, I hope you'll pick up a copy of the ebook when it goes on sale this Friday! I'm proud of how this story came out and I hope you enjoy it.
comments
"Devil's Bargain, Devil's Kiss" is a standalone short story set in the early 20th-century American South: When handsome Doctor Nicholas Black brings his wagon full of patent medicines to Jonah's small town, it seems like the answer to the whole town's prayers. But the good doctor's cures don't come cheap, and for Jonah in particular there might be too high a price to pay. Release slated for August 10!
I'd class it as erotic horror more than straight-up erotica—Southern Gothic in style, not splatterpunky. I had an absolute blast with the voice for this story (you know how much I love doing voices), and I want to thank my editor at FFP, Lon Sarver, for making some great suggestions that I think added a lot of punch to the finished product.
FFP is generally pretty good about labeling content so readers can make informed decisions, but let me highlight one bit of that now: most of the sexual content in this story is coerced. There's no attempt to pass the coercion off as romantic—this is a horror story about the devil holding the high cards—but it is a major theme.
If that's your cup of tea, I hope you'll pick up a copy of the ebook when it goes on sale this Friday! I'm proud of how this story came out and I hope you enjoy it.
comments
July 28, 2012
Taking stock
Over on my other account I'm signed up for
![[community profile]](https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/hostedimages/1380983018i/3670695.png)
inkingitout
this year, and one of my goals for myself -- along with my overall word count -- was to come up with 80k words of original fiction by the end of the year. I know, that doesn't sound like much to those of you who are habitual novelists, but given how short my usual form is it sounded like a good number to aim for.
So how am I doing?
Well, the longest piece I've finished this year was "Ground Mission," which clocks in a little over 16k. Then "Devil's Bargain, Devil's Kiss," but I really only feel I can count 2k of those words for this year, since the first draft had been sitting on my hard drive for quite a while before I sent it to FFP. "Falling Into Her Arms" is around 3k. My current must-finish project, The Camellia Missions, is another one where I'm only going to count part of the total; I'm aiming for a final word count around 18k, of which about half was written this year.
So that's about 30k of new original words, plus the scattering of barely-started scenes in files with working titles like "crossroads" and "ss fuck yeah." I'm definitely behind, but it's not insurmountable. Particularly if I stop writing this blog post and start writing fiction, like I meant to be doing this morning.
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inkingitout
this year, and one of my goals for myself -- along with my overall word count -- was to come up with 80k words of original fiction by the end of the year. I know, that doesn't sound like much to those of you who are habitual novelists, but given how short my usual form is it sounded like a good number to aim for.So how am I doing?
Well, the longest piece I've finished this year was "Ground Mission," which clocks in a little over 16k. Then "Devil's Bargain, Devil's Kiss," but I really only feel I can count 2k of those words for this year, since the first draft had been sitting on my hard drive for quite a while before I sent it to FFP. "Falling Into Her Arms" is around 3k. My current must-finish project, The Camellia Missions, is another one where I'm only going to count part of the total; I'm aiming for a final word count around 18k, of which about half was written this year.
So that's about 30k of new original words, plus the scattering of barely-started scenes in files with working titles like "crossroads" and "ss fuck yeah." I'm definitely behind, but it's not insurmountable. Particularly if I stop writing this blog post and start writing fiction, like I meant to be doing this morning.
comments
July 20, 2012
on Goodreads!
Well, I mean, I've been on Goodreads as a member for two years. But I am now a Goodreads Author!
Here's my profile -- currently it lists me as a contributor for All Wrapped Up and for Connections; my ForbiddenFiction titles will be added once they're finalized enough to go into Goodreads' database (FFP has been really proactive about getting their stuff on the site).
If you have an account and you're preordering All Wrapped Up, or you bought a copy of Connections when it was available, please consider adding them to your shelves!
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Here's my profile -- currently it lists me as a contributor for All Wrapped Up and for Connections; my ForbiddenFiction titles will be added once they're finalized enough to go into Goodreads' database (FFP has been really proactive about getting their stuff on the site).
If you have an account and you're preordering All Wrapped Up, or you bought a copy of Connections when it was available, please consider adding them to your shelves!
comments
July 19, 2012
"Ground Mission" in upcoming anthology All Wrapped Up - preorder available
"Ground Mission," my first sale of the year, will be published next month in Storm Moon Press's All Wrapped Up anthology! Preorders are available now at a 20% discount.
All Wrapped Up is a collection of gay male tentacle erotica, featuring four stories in the 15-20k word count range. The "sample excerpt" link on the preorder page will let you check out a snippet from each (click "read more" at the bottom of the first one to see the other three). I like to think that mine came out pretty well, and I had the privilege of reading Morgan Harcourt's story ahead of time (you might know her as
![[personal profile]](https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/hostedimages/1380840198i/3130798.png)
gamera
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megan
) and can promise you that her piece is both an exciting adventure and a sexy xeno powerplay good time."Ground Mission" is about a pair of cybernetically enhanced corporate soldiers who have been thawed out of cold sleep as part of the recon team exploring a newly discovered planet. They're cogs in the machine as far as their higher-ups are concerned, and they're potential prey to the monstrous life planetside—and they mean the world to each other.
And because I can't help wanting to share—I do really like these guys—have an excerpt (different from the one on SMP's site!), from right before their day goes entirely to hell:
( Don't eat the alien fruit. )
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