a little fantasy * a little sci fi * a little love
Writing these blogs is helping with my research. I realised this during the past week. It's a great way for me to categorise the different themes I want to explore in my novel set in the 1990s. In the last blog I talked about my first impressions of the pages I copied from the Sydney …
Continue reading "Researching the Sydney Gay Scene of the 90s – Part 2"
A whole box of microfilm was waiting for me at the State Library of NSW. A lovely librarian arranged copies of the Sydney Star Observer from the 1990s, as well as a couple of years' worth of Capital Q, at my request. Both were significant street press which covered queer issues. The former still exists. …
Continue reading "Researching the Sydney Gay Scene of the 90s – Part 1"
Yesterday I logged into 'Gay Fiction, Gay Lives,' a forum hosted by Jerry L. Wheeler for Bold Stroke Books. It's an interesting time for publishers. I applaud this initiative by Bold Stroke Books as there is a large audience sitting at home looking for distractions, and a whole weekend of discussions and book readings is …
It's hard to write a review that encapsulates how charming this book is. Yes, there's a love story, but that's only part of what this tale explores. The world building is excellent, especially as the entire first chapter sets the scene of a small town from centuries ago about to brave a horrendous storm. All …
Continue reading "Book Review -The Moth and Moon by Glenn Quigley"
I normally don't read YA books or gay stories where the main theme is about coming out and self-acceptance. The reason for the latter is because that part of my life is ancient history and there are so many great books in all genres where gay characters simply exist. But Invisible Boys has become a …
Continue reading "Book Review – Invisible Boys by Holden Sheppard"
A father and daughter team were on the radio the other morning. Like me, dad obviously enjoyed the house party days of the nineties. He told his daughter (and us) about the Primal Scream track, 'Loaded'. Hearing people still affectionate about that decade is why one of my WiP's is set in that era. I'm …
Continue reading "Getting a manuscript ready for submission"
Please note that I'm back home in Australia now, but this blog was written while overseas. I just got my first notes for my new ebook, Winter Masquerade. I'm working with a new editor so I wasn't sure what she might say. My usual problem is passive voice. So, the first thing I was asked …
Perhaps 'agonise' is too strong a word. You see, I've gone back to work on the fifth draft of The Midnight Man, a novel I need to get right. I haven't been this obsessed with perfection since my first book. It's currently novella length and tells the story of Stan, a middle aged man in an …
Okay, I've written one. That was as a dare from my friends and it always sells. But apart from that, all my books are, well, books. But there seems to be a misconception from the mainstream. Unless you're published by a major company then the novel with gay content you're writing must be dirty. This …
Continue reading "For the hundredth time, I don’t write porn!"
A week ago a tweet came into my feed. It promoted a free ebook of poetry by Harry F. Rey. I downloaded it and a few days later started reading. Instantly I fell for the surreal imagery. Each poem hit me with its honesty about gay life and in some instances, the heartache attached. So …
Continue reading "Finding my way home – Guest blog from Harry F. Rey"
