Fiction

WIPpet Wednesday: Offerings, part 3

Books, Fiction, Other Relationships, Writing

Happy Wednesday! One dance recital down, one to go. It’s testing week, so the kids have exams. It’s hard to believe they’ll be out for the summer next week. I’m ready…I think.

It’s been wild the last few days, dealing with a situation involving one of my daughter’s classes. Overall, we love their school, but occasionally something like this crops up. For that reason, it’s been a little hard to focus. Still, I’ve managed to do a little bit in between.

I’ve been posting bits from my various short stories/flash fiction about Cat and Micah. I’m hoping to have them all finished and ready to go in mid-July, but we’ll see. Today’s bit is from yet another part of the series of flash fiction on the theme of “I brought you something.” These are 5 very short pieces in which Micah has a gift for Cat. This one ended up in a different place than I thought it would.

LR glanced at the book in Micah’s hand. “‘Dave and Brad’s Steamy Seaside Summer.’” She snorted. “It’s not one of yours, is it?”

“No, of course not!” Despite the grim circumstances, Micah chuckled. “I picked it up in town.”

“It does look like the sort of thing he’d like.”

They both fell silent and looked at Cat. He’d always been an avid reader, enjoying a wide range of books. His favorites, though, had been the cheesiest romance novels with the most contrived plots and a lot of—often badly-written—sex. Micah had never been able to figure out why.

LR had told him once that when they were in their teens, Cat had kept a stash of books under his mattress. He would buy them from the used bookstore and dog-ear what he called “the good parts.” When he was done with them, he would pass them along to LR, mainly to see her reactions.

She took Dave and Brad from Micah and flipped it over. Micah didn’t even know what the book was about. He’d chosen it because the cover was so awful. He figured it had to be good with two naked men, made modest by adding shells and badly edited onto a beach background. The scrolling font was a bonus.

LR laughed. “This is the worst. He’ll love—” She stopped herself. After an uncomfortable pause, she said, “Did I ever tell you about the first time he brought home a gay romance?”

Like what you read? Be sure to check out the other entries and add your own. Just post a bit of your WIP, connect it to the date, and link up with us. Many thanks to Emily Witt for giving us this space. Happy reading and writing!

Rainbow Snippets: Under the Weather, part 2

Books, Fiction, Other Relationships, Writing

Happy Saturday! It’s recital weekend part 1. Dress rehearsals today, then the big shows tomorrow. Tap, jazz, ballet, and hip hop. It’s a long and exhausting weekend, but the shows are always wonderful. Their dance studio does a good job with these shows. There’s a group of littles (maybe age 6-7?) all dressed up as villains and doing a tap dance to Despicable Me. So cute and fun. My 11yo’s class is dancing to Super Mario Brothers. It’s adorable.

And now for this week’s snippet. Last week, Nate was out with Rocco the Jerk. This week, he’s…well. You’ll see. And yes, it’s relevant.

The minute Nate opened his eyes, he knew something was wrong. The gritty, sandy feel when he blinked; the headache spreading down from his forehead; the fire under his skin. He was positive he had a fever, though he didn’t own a thermometer to check. It wasn’t surprising he’d picked up a bug, since he’d already sent multiple cast members home with illnesses. Working in close proximity made fertile ground for passing things around. He’d been feeling tired and a little off for a couple of days already. Still, he’d hoped he was wrong and he would escape the germs or at least meet them in weaker form. Apparently, no such luck.

Rainbow Snippets is a safe and welcoming space for LGBTQIA+ authors, readers, and bloggers to share 6 sentences each week from a work of fiction—published or in-progress—or a book recommendation. Feel free to join in!

WIPpet Wednesday: Offerings, Part 2

Books, Fiction, Love, Marriage, Writing

Happy Wednesday! The school year is drawing to a close. Recitals the next two weekends, with final exams in between. I think there might be only 10 days or so left in the classroom. Yikes!

Meanwhile, I’ve finished a short story and edited it, and now I’m working on the rest of what will go in my “leftovers of Cat and Micah” collection for this summer. I’m hoping for a release date of July 12, which is also my 20th wedding anniversary.

Here is the second in a set of flash fiction, all of which start with “I brought you something.” In this one, Cat and Micah are on their (delayed due to work) honeymoon. Poor Cat was expecting hot monkey sex, but Micah’s been having a crisis of perfectionism.

WIPmath: 6/7/17 = 7 paragraphs for the 7th.

Cat had been sort of napping when Micah returned. He’d said he wanted to go out for a bit, and Cat was too tired to join him. So he’d slipped under the luxurious comforter in their upgraded room for a little sleep. It had turned into an internal debate on whether or not to relieve the tension. That conflict had remained unresolved when Cat drifted off into a restless state of half-sleep.

Micah startled him, and Cat sat bolt upright in the bed. Looking apologetic, Micah held up the bag. Cat couldn’t begin to imagine what was inside. It could’ve been anything from food—though he didn’t smell anything—to a snow globe of the Falls.

“Okay,” he said, extending a hand.

“Not yet.” Micah smiled, and something in it made Cat’s heart thump. “Um…can you…uh…” He watched Micah’s throat bob as he swallowed, and Cat had a pang of sympathy at seeing how nervous Micah was.

“Yes?” Cat ducked his head and peered up at Micah through his bangs. He knew the look got him every time.

“Get undressed?”

“You want me naked.” Now Cat curled his lip in a coy smile, and Micah nodded, his face red. “I believe I can do that.”

Rainbow Snippets: Under the Weather, part 1

Books, Fiction, Writing

Happy Saturday! I’m running really late posting because we spent yesterday at a nearby amusement park. My 13yo son plays saxophone in his school’s jazz band, and they were there competing yesterday. They won first place, and my son’s BFF got an award for outstanding soloist. He absolutely deserved it; he was incredible.

On to the snippet. I’m still posting bits of Nightsong until I have enough of something else to post. This week, we’re back with Nate. Here, he’s hooked up with an old flame. It’s more than 6 sentences, but it wouldn’t make sense otherwise.

Nate was almost too blissed-out to notice when Rocco’s phone rang. Through his sleepy haze, Nate felt motion next to him. He rolled over and admired the curve of Rocco’s ass as the sheet slipped to reveal it when he reached over to the nightstand.

“This is Rocco.” Pause. “Yes, that would be fine.” Pause. “I’m with a client right now, but I can set it up after my meeting.” His eyes flicked to Nate. “No, that’s not possible.” He covered the phone with his hand and whispered, “Be right back.”

He rose from the bed and stalked into the bathroom. For a moment, it was quiet, and then he heard Rocco’s muffled voice. He sounded angry, and Nate caught a few words like “let’s not do this now” and “we’ll discuss it later” and “it’s not a good time.”

WIPpet Wednesday: Offerings

Fiction, Love, Writing

Happy Wednesday! I missed last week because it ended up being busy. This time of year seems like an endless stream of concerts and recitals. The joys of being a performing arts family. We’re down to the last five, though. And they’ve announced next year’s school musicals: High School Musical (junior version, grades 6-9) and Big Fish (all-school show, grades 6-12). We joked that my son might be cast as the bad guy in HSM and how he’s now “typecast” as “tall, skinny villain” (he played Scar in 2016’s The Lion King).

Anyway, on to the WIPpet. I’m pausing on snipping from Drumbeat because I’m working on the last odds ‘n’ ends of some Cat and Micah flash fiction. These are going in a self-published collection this summer, which I’m hoping to have ready for July. Also included will be several short stories set in the same world, from various perspectives. Working title is Leaps of Faith.

WIPmath: 5/31/17 = 5 x 3 – 1 = 14 sentences

“I brought you something.”

Micah set the bag from Linder’s on the bed. Cat shifted his feet to make room, and Micah sat down. He did his best not to flinch at Cat’s dry, cracked lips or the tubes tucked behind his ears and under his nose, delivering oxygen. This bout of pneumonia had taken nearly everything out of him.

Cat’s smile, though, was as bright and cheerful as ever. Micah reached into the bag and pulled out a coral-colored tube. He took off the cap and leaned in with the small brush.

“Petroleum-free lip gloss,” he explained as he swiped it over Cat’s lips.

Micah wasn’t as expert at it as Cat, but he’d watched him apply it often enough. He finished, and Cat puckered to spread it evenly. The color looked nice on him. “You want me to do your eyes too?”

Cat glowered at him, and Micah chuckled.

Blog Tour: Sex in C Major by Matthew J. Metzger

Books, Featured, Fiction

About the Book

Title: Sex in C Major

Author: Matthew J. Metzger

Release Date: May 27th 2017

Genre: GLBT, BDSM, Interracial Romance

Find Sex in C Major on Goodreads

Synopsis

Stefan has … fantasies.

He knows chasing those fantasies is only going to end in disaster, but he can’t seem to stop his self-destructive spiral. He’s a transgender man struggling to come to terms with the intersection of his identity and his sexual fantasies as a submissive. He needs someone to take control before he loses it completely.

Daz can take control. He can teach Stefan everything there is to know about sex and submission, but for some reason, he can’t get inside Stefan’s head. Daz can stop Stefan’s self-destruction but not the fear that fuels it.

Stefan needs to know who he is before he can accept what he is. And it’s Yannis — Daz’s aromantic, asexual, stern, and sarcastic partner — who has the answer.

Purchase Links

Amazon US | Amazon UK | JMS Books | iBooks

Excerpt

Other people wanted vanilla sex and dating out of a hookup in a gay bar. But Stefan wanted— this. He wanted to jump from nothing to Daz bending him over the end of the bed and fucking him like he was nothing but a sex doll.

What was he doing?

And yet he kept walking, step by step by step towards the house. A jogger had to go around him; a car hooted angrily as he walked out in front of it. He didn’t care. The house was calling. The man inside was calling. The promise of his fantasies becoming real was calling.

And it was terrifying and stupid and utterly crazy… but Stefan just couldn’t say no.

At exactly eight fifteen, the terror enough to make him throw up and the arousal so intense he could barely walk, Stefan knocked on the door.

Footsteps.

A key in a lock.

Then the door was jerked open, and a hand fisted in Stefan’s coat and hauled him inside.

“Upstairs,” Daz said, slamming the door. “Now. Nobody sees you.”

Stefan scrambled to obey, almost running up the stairs, still in his coat and shoes. He was shoved back into the small bedroom from the night before, and the door slammed behind them.

“Strip,” Daz said.

About the Author

Matthew J. Metzger is a twenty-something British author of queer novels, primarily focusing on relationships, be they familial, platonic, sexual or romantic. He was dragged up in London, but currently lives in West Yorkshire, where he carves out a living in an office crunching numbers before going home to write books at night. Matthew particularly writes working-class queer life, and queer people who exist outside of the standard M/M romance fare written by and for well-educated, middle-class sensibilities. There be nasty words ahead, children. Better buckle up.