• 10:45 @seanr1978 Happy birthday to you. (It's my b-day, too) #

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Title: 117th and Oak
Characters: Ross Morgan and Alec Dillinger
Chapter: 2/?
Point of View: First Person - Alec
Rating: M
Warnings: Contains swearing, violence, sex, hustling/prostitution, drugs, alcohol, abuse, potential nonconsenual sex.
Summary: Ross is a 19 year old hustler wise in the ways of the street, but not the heart. Alec is a 15 year old boy who's been kicked out of his house for coming out. When Alec shows up on Ross' street corner confused, alone and scared, Ross sees promise in the pretty, young boy and offers to help him find work...for a price. However, what starts out as an arrangement slowly turns from business to friendship, from friendship to something neither can explain, but while Ross' hardened up bringing prepared him for the harsh realities of the real world, it never prepared him for love - an emotion to which he is determined not to fall victim.
Author's Note: I don't think that this chapter is quite as good as the first, I'm so sorry!
 

Previous Chapters.

Chapter Two.

My friend Philip Clark releasing an anthology of poetry co-edited with David Groff entitled Persistent Voices:  Poetry by Writers Lost to AIDS.  He and the co-editor have spent years with the estates of  poets of all genders and ethnicities to create this volume.  The book will be released on December 1, 2009: World AIDS Day.

Poets included are:

Reinaldo Arenas
Sam D'Allesandro
Melvin Dixon
Craig G. Harris
Essex Hemphill
Paul Monette
Cookie Mueller
Assotto Saint
Reginald Shepherd

Facebook Fan Page

I come from the world of fanfic where posting is expected and encouraged and feedback, when offered, is relatively immediate. I'm slowly phasing into the world of original fic, breathing life back into an original story/novel started several years ago. I'm hoping that once it's complete and has been edited within an inch of its life, I will be able to submit it for publication consideration... somewhere.

Haven't quite figured out that part yet. I need to get the thing written first.

My question to you is, if one's goal is publication (not self-publication, but submit-to-agent-type publication) is it allowed or appropriate to first post pieces of said fic online for feedback?

I've heard both ways: that it's encouraged and that the feedback helps you know if you're on the right track and that it's a definite no-no and if you post online, then 'real' publication houses won't even look at you because they consider your work already published in some manner.

I'm not sure what to trust, or where to go for a definitive answer, and the fear of the second possibility keeps me from attempting the first.

Any suggestions or experience in this area would be appreciated. I would very much like feedback on the novel -- have gotten quite addicted to it, actually. But not at the risk of a possible future for the story...

Thanks in advance.

I'm shuffling dates and things to do around in my head. And oh, look. Orycon, Thanksgiving weekend. If you see this lj entry and are planning Orycon, make a comment here. Tell me what is cool about Orycon.Comments are screened because it's one of those questions that can be innocuous or highly flammable.


I shall discuss this further with Himself. He can probably get away from work. Miss Molly could go visit her doggy daycare buddies.

Haven't been to a con in far far too long.

After an enlightening conversation earlier about the appeal of thug lit, I find myself tempted to convert one of my soap opera fanfics and see if it sells. Because going by the discussion I had it sure sounds like the draw is about representation, not just race but also socioeconomic status all framed in that same escapist mindset as any soap fan. But it comes with the added bonus of not only having black leads, but black leads that have faced the same struggles as the reader. I will have to ponder this some more later. The kids are off tomorrow so I suspect a trip to the Field Museum is in the offing. Expect to be subjected to more pictures because I want a shot of kid #2's face when he gets to the big dinosaur fossil. The intro to the dragon story is officially on my hate list, but I hope to fix it soon (along with getting caught up on some other things) now that I'm past this whole dance I had to do with VA's office side. I need another me to run my life while this me focuses on the creative.

Holy poop! Check out the number six way that the earth could end, you'll see a familiar short and busty Latina. o_O

Seven Ways the World Could End in 2012

Title: Writers' Block: The Great Myth
Summary: ... since I began writing, I've heard many different people exclaim "What shall I do? The horrid Overlord Writer's Block doth wound me greviously!"

Down the Rabbit Hole, Alice

Home from VA. So tired I may actually need to nap, but first I want to share this lovely bit of victim blaming. Only look at the comments if you absolutely hate yourself and want to be sure that you hate all of humanity forever and ever.

I woke up grumpy, despite the sunshine. Grumpy and vaguely restless. I took care of some of the restlessness by cleaning up my office/the computer room a bit. I don't know about you, but I accumulate a lot of paper. Alas, some of it could be considered "important" so I can't quite just toss it in the bin. This leads to a lot of clutter. So I sorted and boxed up some of it for eventual transfer to the archives (don't laugh, I have one!)

Anyway, I can't get too comfy. I have to go schlep Shawn to her dental appointment. (We're a one car family.)

Title: 117th and Oak
Characters: Ross Morgan and Alec Dillinger
Chapter: 1/?
Point of View: First Person - Ross
Rating: M
Warnings: Contains swearing, violence, sex, hustling/prostitution, drugs, alcohol, abuse, potential nonconsenual sex.
Summary: Ross is a 19 year old hustler wise in the ways of the street, but not the heart. Alec is a 15 year old boy who's been kicked out of his house for coming out. When Alec shows up on Ross' street corner confused, alone and scared, Ross sees promise in the pretty, young boy and offers to help him find work...for a price. However, what starts out as an arrangement slowly turns from business to friendship, from friendship to something neither can explain, but while Ross' hardened up bringing prepared him for the harsh realities of the real world, it never prepared him for love - an emotion to which he is determined not to fall victim.
Author's Note: I just started this, I'm hoping that it's good enough to continue, I know that the whole thing's a little cliche, contrived, and average, but I'm going to try (emphasis on TRY) to make it unique.

Chapter One.

I have to spend a significant chunk of today with the lovely folks at VA, so I'll direct everyone looking for social commentary to my last post, since I have no idea if I'll get back to the internet today. I'm supposed to be going to some networking event tonight, but I'm not sure I'll have the wherewithal to make with the chit chat after 8 hours with the government. I need to hash out some things with all three books and get cracking on Mu. Maybe while I play hurry up and wait, inspiration will strike and I'll get some fiction out of my brain. What are you up to today?

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A Simple Plotting Technique

Here's a simple plotting technique you can use to organize your novel!

Hello, there!

I'm a major fan of supernatural creatures/ fantasy/ mythology, so based on those motifs I will be writing much about them!

I usually like to write about 19th century England or Russia with an accentuation on dystopian attitudes.

I'm also, dare I say, a hopeless romantic. Romance does come into play in most of my stories.

I'm starting out with the first chapter of a new story I came up with.  It's called "To Death", so please check it out!

I will be sure to have more stories soon!!

A little synopsis of my story: It is about a young girl who moves to California and the exciting and portentous adventures she faces when she is kidnapped by five attractive, yet murderous men who harbor mysterious powers and abilities.

Please read and tell me what you think!!

Love you all!

--Tolstoy247

Title: Window Seers:Love
Rating: Overall PG13
Characters:
Leoline (protaganist)
Fallyn(protaganists father)
Michelle(protaganists mother)
Chapter: 2/unknown a lot
Warning:contains swearing
Summary:
Leoline awakes and must go to town to sell his maize. His father and mother are in the kitchen waiting for him. His fatehr, as always is in a foul mood and his mother is getting breakfast on the table. Eventually he leaves and begins his trip. When he stops for the night he finds himself in the forbidden woods and there is someone screaming. He goes in to help the person and finds out why they are fobidden.

Authors note: There is somebackstory in chapter 1 as to what a window is but simply put it is a way for someone to see a glimpse of thier possible future. They have ot make the right choices.

Here it is:
creativgal13.livejournal.com/834.html

Someday someone will explain to me this fascination America has with the idea that Michelle Obama has white relatives like it's remotely unusual for a descendant of slaves in America. I notice with all the talk of "So and so was impregnated by X slaveowner" and the rush to interview the white relatives so they can say the obligatory "I'd love to reunite with that side of the family and talk about our history" no one discusses exactly how so many mulattoes came to be born during and after slavery. I know the story of the relationship between Thomas Jefferson and Sally Hemings has been played as very romantic, but I sincerely doubt that even if it was that way for them, the same is true of Michelle Obama's great great great grandmother's relationship with the man that bought her when she was 6 and impregnated her at 15.

I know romance has nothing to do with why my maiden name is Irish. The slaveowner on that side kept very detailed records of everything. Including Or why my grandmother's mother had straight hair. My great great grandfather raised her (and presumably loved her) anyway, but there's some pretty clear evidence in the records that their reasons for moving north to Chicago weren't based on a desire to leave the farm land that he worked so hard to acquire and hold onto through Reconstruction. My great grandmother was born in 1894 and she's listed as mulatto, but her parents are listed as black. It's on that list of things that was never explicitly discussed, but no one in our family is laboring under the delusion that the way she got here was about romance you know?

The power dynamic between slave and slaveowner is almost never recognized in these romanticized revisionist histories, much less what it meant to be a WOC assaulted and impregnated by a white man in a society where you had no hope of him ever facing anything approximating justice. There's a lot of talk about how long ago slavery ended, but there's not a lot of talk about the impact it, (and all the events that followed) have had on family dynamics in the black community. Or the psychological effects of institutional racism in any community. Even here there's no discussion of how the white relatives feel when the new found cousin isn't the First Lady. Because let me tell you what, our Irish relatives weren't so excited when we found them. A whole lot of those "Cherokee" relatives people like to claim weren't NDN, but it was a convenient lie for white families looking to avoid the stigma of having been touched by the tarbrush.

I blog a lot about sociology, critical race theory, and history. I'm not alone, after all there's tons of research being done in those areas. Not so much when it comes to the psychological effects of racism on an individual level. It's difficult enough to talk about being a POC and what we deal with as a result of modern institutional racism without trying to articulate the generational emotional and physical trauma of living in a society that's innately hostile to your very existence. There's been some work done but it's not an area that's easy to navigate academically or socially. Because really when you're talking about these kinds of family stories it's easier to smile politely and just not discuss it than to dig up all those bones and really face the pain.

There's such a stigma attached to seeking mental health assistance (including some very specific intra-community impediments) that I can completely understand why this is the proverbial elephant in the room when it comes to discussing race and racism. But (like all the other aspects) it's one that cannot be ignored. Because even when it's not acknowledged the fact remains that racism has an impact on every aspect of life. Everything from parenting choices, to jobs, to housing, to how our communities function is impacted by this huge awful weight and that doesn't happen in some emotionless vacuum. Even the "positive" stereotypes are hurtful because they're rooted in deeply ugly historical and social context. Is it really so difficult to at least consider the psychological impact of that kind of ongoing trauma might be beyond the grasp of the casual observer?

• 22:35 @ecmyers Explosions! Guns! Downey and Law slash! Hot Victorian chicks! Sherlock Holmes as you've seen him... #
• 13:04 @ronwood77 Thanks! I hope you like it #

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