Webcomic: It's Always Raining Here

Another cutsey teen-love webcomic!

It's Always Raining Here is about two awkward gay guys fumbling through unrequited romance.

Carter Brooks, seventeen years old, has just come out of the closet. His first priority: get laid. Unfortunately, there's only one other attractive gay kid around. His name is Adrian, and he hates Carter.

The webcomic is a lot like The Less Than Epic Adventures of TJ and Amal, or Tripping Over You, in that it's light and amusing, and it's much more about the relationship between the two than the sex. (In fact, there are no explicit sex scenes.) There's lots of humor, and it's easy to fall in love with the immature-yet-mature teenage cast.

At 82 pages (as of this moment) it is incomplete. It updates once a week (so far, very reliably!) I would highly recommend this comic. It's not gonna change your life, but it's great.

Nightrunner Series: Bridging the Gap Between "Gay" and "Mainstream"

Recently, I've been lucky enough to encounter the work of the ultra-talented and rather popular Lynn Flewelling.

Let's be honest: while the vast majority of queer folks are comfortable reading about straight characters, a lot of straight folks aren't comfortable reading about queer characters. Consequently, in genres dominated by straight male authors and straight male readers, gay characters simply don't exist. Or, if they do, they are side characters; their relationships fail; their lovers die; their sexuality is a constant source of pain, and they rarely (if ever!) are shown in normal and healthy relationships.

There is some protection in the romance genre, where m/m literature is steadily growing more and more popular. But, unfortunately, not among other genres.

Lynn Flewelling's books are the exception.

She's well known for her award-winning Nightrunner series. The books aren't what I'd call romance -- they're hardcore fantasy, complete with wizards and swords and dragons -- but they do feature loving gay couple as the protagonists.

Let me stress how awesome this is.

How To Write Gay Romance

"Anytime you put on the mouthpiece of somebody that you're not, there's a professional responsibility to get it right."
-- Jodi Picoult

As we know, most readers and writers of m/m romance are female. And, because of this, most gay romance follows a very heterosexual pattern: one person is intensely dominant and handsome; the other is passive and pretty. This is pattern is troubling enough in heterosexual romance. In gay romance, it's just plain wrong.

Links and advice under the cut.

Webcomic: Enthrall

Normally, I'm not a fan of vampire storylines. They've a bit trite. But every once in a while, someone manages to make it interesting again.

Today we have Enthrall. Enthrall is told from the point of view of two men -- both human, both living their entire lives in a world that enslaves their kind to serve vampires.

Scarrow is a free man, the leader of a "terrorist" group of abolitionists; the comic begins with his capture, and he is sold into slavery as punishment for his crimes. The story deals with Scarrow's increasingly desperate escape attempts, and his conflicted affection for the vampire who got him caught. Meanwhile, Arin -- a ex-slave - must struggle to adjust to his newfound freedom.

I love, love, love this comic. There's no non-con, which is both a shock and a blessing for a story that is part of not only the m/m genre, but the vampire genre as well.

Webcomic: Starfighter

Today I'm here to talk about Starfighter.

I hate Starfighter.

But it's growing on me a little, and a lot of people seem to like it, so I feel obligated to mention it. So. Starfighter. Science fiction yaoi webcomic in which men come in two varieties: super-aggressive assholes and super-intelligent pansies.

Lots of D/S. Some rape? Maybe / sort of? It's difficult to tell if the bottom is consenting or not, and the top makes it pretty clear he doesn't care.

You know how some stories have this top who's intensely dominant? And at first he's an asshole, but then you get to know him better, and it turns out that deep down inside he's secretly this nice guy with a lot of angst. Like Edward Cullen, or Mako from Legend of Korra, or Atros from Teahouse.

This is not that story. This is the story of an asshole, who deep down inside, is an asshole. And I like that.

Different Categorizations of Guy-on-Guy: What Do They Mean?

Today I'm gonna be talking about a few different terms that are often, but not always, synonymous.

On this blog, I talk about a variety of things related to gay men, from webcomics to art to books (and, in the future, yaoi). While you're likely familiar with some of these, you might not know them all!

Sites That Sell M/M Romance, Part II

The second part of my "Site That Sell M/M Fiction" post.

BLIND EYE BOOKS
An independent press dedicated to publishing science-fiction and fantasy stories with gay and lesbian protagonists. I love this press! Here you'll find books length 70,000 to 150,000 (300-600 pages), which, in true fantasy style, are longer than romance novels. 

SILVER STREAM PRESS
A publisher of various genres with LGBT, straight, and menage stories available.

Sites That Sell M/M Romance Fiction

A fan of m/m romance novels, but don't know where to get started? An author looking for a home for your new manuscript? Here's a short list of publishers and sites that sell m/m!

DREAMSPINNER PRESS

A well-known publisher of anything from pure BDSM erotica to sugary-sweet romance. They sell only m/m; no straight or lesbian fiction. They market towards straight women, and the majority of their authors are straight women. 

TORQUERE PRESS

A publisher of LBGT romance. They have a wide selection, focusing mainly on m/m. Lesbian, transgender, bisexual, and menage stories are available as well.