JamesSavik

Driver- Simply the Best? Perhaps. Top 5 for sure. His work is simply amazing. Many readers become quite jaded about net fiction. The quality varies greatly and honestly, some of it is a waste of consciousness. Driver however sets the bar and sets it quite high. Driver has a way of making the story, setting and characters into a living thing. Completely coordinated, quite deft with an economy of words and characterization that is so keen that it's scary. Driver is the complete package. If you are a regular at Barnes&IgNoble or Borders, you pay for the work of less capable authors all the time. Driver is the ultimate deal-- available free on the internet! All of his stories rate a solid five stars from the wide eyed innocent fun of Falling Off a Log to the heart wrenching drama of Sudden Storm. Plans A, B, C and D [four stories], and A Horse Named Phil: you simply can not go wrong. They are all great. However- the Quarry and spin off Quarry Tales deserve special mention. In my humble opinion, it is one of the very best stories of the genera. This is one story that you will not forget. There is a sweetness and innocence about Driver's work that is difficult to describe. Many readers will see themself- a long time ago in a galaxy far away- unjaded, seeing the world for the first time again- young, new and golden. You KNOW the characters. You have probably been one of the characters. If not, then you have at least met a few of them. You'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll be amazed, inspired and hungry for more. >>>

the Great Drake Drake is without any doubt one of the very best net authors currently active. His writing is technically very sophisticated and is laced with keen insight, a dry wit and a unique style that draws you into the worlds that he creates. Drake is a good friend of Dewey (author of the Brian & Pete Saga). Two of Drake's works are spin offs using characters and settings originally created by Dewey: Chris Forn and his family and friends and Tony Braden and his family. In Finding His Own the romance between Chris Forn and Tony blooms, with its highs and lows and the challenges that result from their sexuality and relationship. In A Place to Live, their relationship continues as Chris and Tony grow and find themselves. The Last Word is a coming of age story about a group of college friends who take a spring break trip to New Orleans in which the characters grow through a lot of changes. A Royal Thief is a fantasy epic that is one of the best of the breed. Drake's stories are long but well worth your time. They are easily good enough for publication. But beware! Reading Drake's stories creates a time warp in which you become engrossed in the story and time is distorted. I found myself saying just one more chapter and found that dawn had caught up with me. >>>Drake's Place

heh heh heh, now I don't care who you are, that is funny.

the Eggman- A Pioneer of the Genera Once upon a time gay stories were little more than text porn- poorly written, unrealistic sexcapades in which everyone was gay- whether they knew it or not and hung like heavy artillery pieces. Gay erotic stories were ALL about sex. Relationships were barely mentioned. Once you had read three of these cum-splattered epics, you had read them all. In the late nineties several net authors arose that set a new standard for gay themed fiction. A standard in which sex was placed in a more realistic perspective- as a part of life, not all of life. Life in which relationships were paramount beyond the narrow focus on erotica. For many gay and lesbian people who had been smeared for decades as sex crazed perverts, this sort of story in which our lives were portrayed in a manner beyond the pornographic- this was an idea whose time had come. The Eggman began a long running story that appeared at Nifty and then eventually his own site the Glass Onion called The New Life. The New Life begins in Southern California as a young Texan named Prez and his recently divorced mother move to L.A. Prez who had known that he was gay for years met Keith and the rest of Hundster clan and started a new and better life. What makes this story so unique is not huge drama, it is the 10,000 tiny ones. Don't expect car chases and special effects. TNL is about a group of kids growing up, their friendships, their relationships, their fears, their struggles, their temptations and triumphs. This is a story about life, one day at a time, at a time when so many have forgotten that is quite enough drama for anyone. The Eggman's characters are endearing and real. You get to know them and see what makes them tick. They are you, me, everybody. I challenge you to read the story, pick a favorite character and stick with it. That is part of the message of the story- there is something special about everybody. Something unique, something endearing and lovable. Life Goes On continues the story as the boys enter their college years. Sadly the Glass Onion is no more and now the Eggman writes only for himself these days but his work lives on. It can be found at Nifty's Prolific Authors Page Check it out if you haven't already discovered the Eggman. He's one of my favorites and will probably become one of yours too.

Since I usually write in the 70s and 80s, I don't have this problem. It's like Dude, man, I'd be like seriously trippin trying to figure out how to write for another era. If I tried to write in the 50's I'd have to shake off the dirty, long haired hippie thing and get greasy and wear white socks.

Few authors work, gay or otherwise, have had a deeper impact on me than Dewey's Brian & Pete Saga. When I first started reading it last December, I hated it. I quit reading it in disgust because of the rawness of the emotions that it stirred in me. At the time, I had quit feeling. I didn't like to feel because everything that I was feeling was searing pain- over and over again. The suicide of a close friend, the way AIDS killed so many people that I was close too, getting bashed so bad I was unconscious for four days and last, but not least, the crap I went through when I was Brian & Pete's age. For years I hid in a bottle or stayed high whenever I wasn't at work. I didn't want to feel. Feelings suck. But... I got clean and sober October 1st. I had a choice: learn to live without those feelings or kill myself quickly or slowly like I had been doing for years. I was seeing a shrink who told me I that had Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. No shit. There was just a little problem: I had been suppressing emotion for so long I was "shut in". I told my Shrink about Brian & Pete and the feelings that it did stir up in me. She encouraged me to keep reading it. So... In January of this year, I started reading it again. Brian & Pete are two seventh graders who figure out who they are and who they want to be with- each other. They go through all the same things that I did- how do you know that you are gay? You're just a kid. You're too young to know what love is. Let's separate them and they'll forget all about each other- right? Let's get a kristian kounselor to "fix" him. Wrong. The reason that I reacted so strongly to Brian & Pete is that they were like me...ME! Reading about them going through all that shit- it unlocked the deep, dark cellar doors of my mind to the festering garbage that I had been carrying around since I was their age. The only way I could keep it from overwhelming me was to get drunk or get high on a regular basis. Reading B&P I laughed, I cried, I swore- and through it all, I began to see myself in a different light. Yeah- I was a deeply disturbed kid that grew up in some of the worst kind of abuse imaginable. But I began to see that I faced things with courage and compassion. I may have been gay but I was by no means a pussy. Brian & Pete is an amazing story that any gay person will instantly recognize as painfully authentic. The angst, the bullying, the harassment, the bewildered parents, the friends that stay and the ones that go. It is so good at describing how gay kids are wired that my Shrink has recommended it to other shrinks that have gay patients. Dewey's work is very intense. He has a knowledge of emotion and psychology that is deep and very rare and his writing is both skillful and powerful. Brian & Pete is a classic of the genera. If you have missed it, what the heck are you waiting for? >>>Dewey's Place

It?s Hard to be OK It?s hard to be all right, The feelings come late at night. I thought that I would spend my life with you. Now you are gone I don?t know what to do. It?s hard to say that I am OK. It?s hard to say that I am fine. It?s hard to face the day Music is flat and the sun don?t shine. All I can think about is your tender face. All that I want is to fall into your embrace. It was a cruel December, When I heard the news. Nothing could save you, The best part of me died too. It?s hard to say that I am OK. It?s hard to say that I am fine. It?s hard to face the day. Music is flat and the sun don?t shine. I prayed to God to take me instead, Now I lie alone in a cold, empty bed. It is so hard to talk about it, No body really wants to know. It is so hard when love don?t quit, And you have to live on afterglow. It?s hard to say that I am OK. It?s hard to say that I am fine. It?s hard to face the day. Music is flat and the sun don?t shine.

BTW- the Storm Nation is back in business. They were down for a big chunk of the summer after a hacker took a bite out of their server. =D>

As I have already read this story, I won't spoil it for you. I will say that it is one of the best that I have read in a long while and well worth your time. Welcome Freethinker :!:

Emotional Chemistry One wakes you up in the morning, Don?t forget a few lines of blow. The white one is good for parties, The red ones make the day go slow. The yellow one gives you energy, The blue one makes everything feel all right. The round one is good for when the pain comes, The capsule is good when you feel uptight. The caplets make nightmares go away, The hash makes you just feel swell. But don?t dare ever miss a dose, Or you?ll find that you live in hell. Clever self deceptions, We tell ourselves such sweet, sweet lies. And watch the man in the mirror, As his soul slowly withers and dies.

I have written a lot in 1st person and find it awkward transitioning to 3rd person. It is more of a problem of getting out of a rut than a true problem with the mechanics of writing. It is a lot like a Pascal programmer writing an application in C. Sure it works but it's harder and it just doesn't look right. :scratch:

:albino: :mrgreen:

Rereading it, i'm thinking eighties hair band. It was 4:00am on a bad day.

Spirit War How do you know that you are beaten? How do you know when it?s time to quit? How do keep your soul from being eaten? When is it time to just submit? Is it when you can?t take the pain? Is it when you are circling the drain? Is it when you don?t care anymore? Is it when the game is just a bore? Never surrender, Don?t give up the fight. Never surrender, Hang on to what?s right. Never surrender, Dawn will end this long night. Is it when it has all gone wrong? Is it when you don?t belong? Is it when you don?t want to feel? Is it when you forget what?s real? Never surrender, Don?t give up the fight. Never surrender, Hang on to what?s right. Never surrender, Dawn will end this long night. I got my doubts, Faith ain?t easy for me. How can I believe, When darkness is all I see? Never surrender, Don?t give up the fight. Never surrender, Hang on to what?s right. Never surrender, Dawn will end this long night. In the darkness, Hold fast to the light. Because in darkness, You lose your sight. Never surrender, Don?t give up the fight. Never surrender, Hang on to what?s right. Never surrender, Dawn will end this long night. Hold on until daybreak With all you?ve got, Whatever it takes.

This is a crinium also known as a Confederate lily. Daisies! Daylilies, Coneflowers and Yarrow. Someone else was fishing too.

Yeah- it's hard to get a picture of them together because they bloom at different times. They are called buddleia. Butterflies and hummingbirds are drawn to them. Butterflies get kinda drunk on their pollen which is useful for photographers cause it's easier to take their picture while they are staggering around. They grow wild in swampy areas. All they require is lots of moisture. There's a trick to having a green thumb. Just grow indestructable plants and everybody thinks you're a genius. Can't fish without worms or minnows or crickets. However, he is a bit skinny. He was catching catfish and bluegill at that spot. I have no idea about what else might be biting. :oops:

Monarch butterfly on what else could it be but a butterfly bush. This beauty is a Louisiana Iris. Got worms?

Here are some images from this summer in Mississippi. This is English Dogwood (white) and two different Azaleas. This is a Hibiscus bush. These "common" daylilies are anything but common.

They are back. Power failures in LA wacked a lot of network traffic. LA Blackout

Deweywriter is having a server issue. D & Bubba are aware of it and working on it.

Sir, as a gentleman, you disgust me! (However, as a fellow perverted minded person, I laugh with you.) :) (: Why an invitation to dinner of course.

I agree. You are supposed to sell out to become a billionaire, not the other way around. It's backassward and annoying.

This story was before my time but it is quite interesting. If you haven't read it, it's a lot of fun. Thanks to Joel for a good story and Dude's picks of the week.

The word "Master Storyteller" doesn't really mean much. It is all subjective. It's like the guy who doesn't know art but he knows what he likes. For instance, I think that Joseph Conrad is great but other critics think that his stories and novels are "sea stories".

TR- I have a theory about writing. The more sociologically or culturally relevant a work is, the more controversial it is going to be. Historically, a number of writers during the civil rights era received the very same type of criticism. I suspect that those that yelled the loudest have a big, ugly racist chip on their shoulder. So don't be unsure about your writing. It got under their skin. The reaction that you got proved that it is right on target. -JS