FreeThinker

My stories all take place in the America of the late sixties and early seventies. I often use cultural references that might be understood only by someone who lived in that place and period. I use them to add verisimilitude to the stories. In everyday conversation today;, one might use a popular phrase from a commercial or TV show in the same way someone in 1962 would have said, "I'd rather do it myself, Mother!" or in 1968 might have said, "Sock it to me," or in 1971 might have said, "That's a spicy meatball!" Does using such arcane or obscure tags serve a good purpose in the story? Are they irritating and confusing to someone who wasn't living in America at that time or is too young to be familiar with them? Does it help establish the atmosphere for only the reader who was around then? Should I attempt in an unobtrusive way to explain them, use them without explanation, or not use them? I don't want the explanation to ruin the scene I'm trying to create, yet I don't want to be so arcane that a twenty-five year-old in 2013 has no idea what I'm talking about or is lost. When I was 15 (1972) I was a volunteer in a political campaign. Our local manager wanted me and several other teens to stand on a street holding Burma-Shave signs with a message about our candidate. Not having driven down highways in the thirties and forties, I had no idea what a Burma-Shave sign was. This might also apply to people writing for more than one country. We have frequently joked on the board about Americans and Britons being one people separated by a common language, but should someone try to avoid cultural references that readers in another country might not understand? I know American culture tends to be rather smothering of other cultures so people in other countries might not have a problem with Americanisms, but it might not be true the other way around. For example, concerning our Canadian neighbors, how many Americans know what a double-double at Tim Horton's is-- or have even heard of Tim Horton's- unless they watch an NHL game with a Candaian team? Or Poutine or Smarties? And the only reason most of us older than twenty-five know what a hoser is is because of Doug and Bob McKenzie. (I thank Wikipedia for giving me these examples, well except for the last one). And though I can't think of any right off the bat, I am sure there are lots of Americanisms people in other countries may not understand. Does my using them make the story difficult for others? Oh! And another thing.... I keep fighting my urge to have my characters call each other "Dude," because Dude wasn't that ubiquitous in 1970 and was used in a different and quite unflattering way then. Also, a friend who read the final draft of Wicked Boys pointed out to me that Uncle Teddy accused Rafael of "having issues." That phrase would never have occurred to someone in 1970.Is it difficult for others when writing about different times or different countries to avoid phrases or references that wouldn't have existed then? Do you have this problem? How to use time or cultural references in stories. Thoughts?

Republican Senator Rob Portman of Ohio, one of the House co-authors of the Defense of Marriage Act in 1996 now supports the repeal and hopes the Supreme Court will strike it down. His change of heart came after his son, a student at Yale, came out to him. As more and more right-wingers discover they have gay children or gay friends, opposition to gay rights is crumbling. What a shame it takes actually having a gay family member before these bigots "see the light." Of course, he still took the coward's way of doing so, declaring it should be up to the states. If it's a civil right, it's a national issue. Hell, it took Mississippi 147 years to ratify the constitutional amendment to outlaw slavery. Will it take them that long to ratify Same-Sex marriage? http://www.cbsnews.c...e-sex-marriage/

Far be it from me to presume to disagree with Kurt Vonnegut, one of the giants of the Twentieth Century and the author of Slaughterhouse Five, one of the greatest books I have read, but I suggest that there are times when a story requires that not all the facts be laid out in the first chapter. Sometimes, it helps the mystery of the story and to build interest for readers if they aren't quite certain what the story is about, as long as they know that it actually is about something and they won't be abused by being led to read a story without a purpose. I did as Vonnegut suggested in Dance of the the Wicked Boys. In Chapter One, I immediately reveal that Jeremy is a dancer, that his parents are dead, that he lives with an uncle who believes dancing is a sin, that Rafael and his mother don't get along, and that if Rafael doesn't help Jeremy, no one will. However, in the sequel, I am taking my time revealing the critical issues, bringing them out slowly and taking several chapters to present the entire conflict. I think there are situations in which the story demands the facts be brought out at the beginning and situations in which it is better to take some time. One of my creative writing teachers in the eighties said that all rules are made to be broken and that sometimes, breaking a rule can actually strengthen the writing and make a more profound impression on the reader. Of course, breaking the rules just for the sake of breaking rules may not improve the story. It is a rule that breaking the rules must have a purpose. (or is it? Hmm.) I do try to follow Vonnegut's other suggestions Merkin lists as well as the excellent points Pecman lists. These are excellent guides for aspiring writers.

Today is 3/14 or 3.14. Pi Day. Celebrate by solving a math problem, but if you're British, you have to wait until 22 July. 22/7.

Awesome Dude member Sequoyah has won the 2012 Readers Choice Award at GayAuthors.org for Best Non-GA Story for his novel Sentinel Mountain, which is hosted here at this address: http://awesomedude.com/sequoyahsplace/Stories/SM/index.htm

It's a brilliant and fun story with a terrific twist at the end. It is a bit different from Cole's other work, but still of the same quality. A must-read!

A friend from Germany sent me this link. Warning- it is very emotional and will deeply move you. http://www.upworthy.com/bullies-called-him-pork-chop-he-took-that-pain-with-him-and-then-cooked-it-into?g=2

And, by the way... I am disappointed no one posted "I knew General Zeitgeist. General Zeitgeist was a friend of mine. You, sir, are no General Zeitgeist." Or am I being too obscure? :-)

I was being facetious, but still... it seems strange that on a gay site featuring stories about gay boys that there are so many conservative comments in various threads that almost seem anti-sex. Sometimes kids mess around. It happens. Big deal. Get over it. Several years ago, when I lived in Austin, a nine and ten year-old were caught masturbating with each other at a school in Marble Falls, not far outside of Austin. The prosecutor charged the ten year-old with something ridiculous because he was the older of the two so, automatically in that troglodyte's mind, he was the aggressor and the abuser. Yes, that is an extreme case, and yes it was Texas, so we have to expect a little drooling Neanderthalism, but in general I am constantly amazed at some of the posts on this board that seem so anti-sexual. I don't mean to generate a controversy, but lighten up people. I don't advocate abuse, but two kids messing around shouldn't be a crime. I'm not picking on specific posts or posters, just the general zeitgeist. I am frequently surprised by the conservative attitude toward sex sometimes expressed around here.

Sometimes, when I read posts here, I feel like I have to remind myself I'm not on a conservative Republican anti-sex site.

If you get a chance to see The Who on their Quadraphenia tour, GO. It was amazing. It was incredible. It was The Who! I was late to work tonight, but it was worth it. I felt like a teenager again.

OMG! Chris, that was just precious! I never watch the country channels, so I missed Hunter when he was a kid, but he was amazingly talented! He had a great voice and great style. And, how brave of him to appear before so many thousands of people and sing so well! He must have had good parents.

Hunter Hayes is a very attractive young man and, though I am not into country music, I do like his voice. He is very sexy and we can always hope that maybe he's changing pronouns in his head and actually singing to his boyfriend! I've had to accept that not every hot guy is one of us.Damn it.

I enjoyed watching the videos of the Beatles' performance partially because it was interesting to see the differences in broadcasting between 1964 and today, the black and white picture, the graphics, the camera techniques, the fact that there is no way Ed Sullivan could have made it on TV in the Twenty-first Century, the way the show was introduced. I enjoy watching vintage TV clips and seeing how culture, society, entertainment, and broadcasting have changed and evolved. Plus, imagine. In 1964, most cities had only 3 or 4 channels, instead of hundreds, so watching TV, watching a particular program was an experience that united people in a way TV can't now. A hit show today might be considered a success with 3 or 4% of the audience. Then- 25 or 30% and a special might draw 50% or more, as the Sullivan show did on February 9, 1964. In a way, its a shame that we have such a diverse selection of programming now. Its all ratings driven and most producers go for the lowest common denominator. It's counter-intuitive, but even with the diversity, most of it is just sex and violence driven and when a channel is created for something meaningful, the way TLC, Bravo, A&E, History, etc were, they devolve into reality shit like tattooed pawn brokers, a redneck trash family in Georgia, gator-hunting, hateful bitches in Orange County, or the daughters of a famous shyster who spend their days cheating on their husbands and are known only for being rich and slutty. Back then, yes, we had My Mother the Car, Please Don't Eat the Daisies, and Petticoat Junction, but we also had Playhouse Ninety, the National Geographic specials, Leonard Bernstein's Young People's Concerts, and The Twentieth Century. People would watch quality programs and be exposed to the arts and music because there wasn't that much else to watch. The very diversity in programming that is supposed to be such a blessing today instead gives us a plethora of crap. There was a great quote on Elementary, one of the few programs on commercial television I watch now (CBS-Thurs 10 ET 9CT). Sherlock refers to something as "soul-crushing in its awesome banality." That's TV today. Let's hope the Republicans don't have their way and kill PBS. At least there's one channel with something meaningful on, though even there we see them dumbing down programming, too. Wow, this post sure went in an unexpected direction!

I was a teenager in the early seventies before I realized what a sex god Jim Morrison was. Well, actually, it might have been a little earlier. I was a precocious little devil.

A history lesson. On Sunday night February 9, 1964, music changed forever in the United States. On that night, more people tuned into one television program than had ever done so before when The Beatles made their first appearance in the United States on The Ed Sullivan Show. I watched it and I was six years old. Here it is: The Beatles, Ed Sullivan, 9 February 1964 The second clip is my all time favorite rock-and-roll song and was certainly my favorite in the first grade! I'm not sure what night they performed this on the Sullivan show. I know they were on three Sunday nights in a row and the set is different in this clip, so I am thinking it might have been the second or third performance, which seems strange since "I Want to Hold Your Hand was their debut song in the US. it was first played by DJ Carroll James on WWDC in Washington before it was released on December 26, 1963 when he had an illegal copy flown over on BOAC- The first case of pirated music? I Want to Hold Your Hand

The makers of Monopoly had an online vote to choose a new token and the votes are in. The Iron is out and The Cat is in! Scotty dog now has a cat to chase through Atlantic City (or London, depending on which side of the Atlantic you're playing the game).

One of my parents favorite albums when I was a young child was comedian Allen Sherman's album, My Son, The Nut. One of the songs on the album was the classic, "Hello Muddah, Hello Faddah," which I performed in my pajamas on Christmas Eve in 1963 when I was six years-old. I almost cried tonight when I came across this video on YouTube. I hope you enjoy it. Yes, things were cornier back then, but we loved them just the same. "And, the head coach wants no sissies, so he reads to us from something called, Ulysses." Damn. Was that all I had to do?

Complete with shoulder-length blond hair? Oh, my... And, by the way, young man. What are you doing up and surfing Awesome Dude at 4AM? You should be spanked. I volunteer.

Isn't "I am not a crook" from Act Two of Richard III?

One of my favorite Shakespearean quotes, from Richard III. And, now, it seems that a villainous wrong is about to be righted. Richard III has been found in a parking lot in Leicester. No, this is not a Monty Python skit. The bones of King Richard III have been discovered in an archaeological dig under a car park in the city of Leicester. The much-maligned king, killed by the army of Henry VII in the Battle of Bosworth Field in 1485, has been identified by DNA testing and by the scoliosis of the spine for which he was noted. He will be given a proper royal burial soon in a ceremony at Leicester Cathedral. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/02/04/king-richard-iii-skeleton-found_n_2614269.html There are those who wish to resurrect his reputation, badly maligned by Tudors and by Shakespeare, and I am of mixed feelings about this. He probably wasn't as bad as they say, though anyone who could throw the princes, Edward and Richard, into the Tower, isn't high on my list of heroes. Speaking of the Princes in the Tower, I saw the famous painting by Sir John Millais from the Royal Holloway collection on tour several years ago.I have loved this painting since I was a teenager.

I'm in gay heaven! Tickets to Diana Ross! I just hope she doesn't have to use a walker.

Dancers have hotter legs, though. And, he'd better be spending his summer at an SI with SAB or something equivalent! In another six or seven years, I want to get tickets to NYCB and see him flying across the stage!

Since my Resource trained this summer with perhaps the greatest ballet company in the world, I suppose I should defer to his judgement. Imagine my embarrassment!

I'm grateful you posted it, Mike, and I thank you. It was inspirational for me.