Xalir: Blog

I just posted chapter 11 and it should be up for reading shortly. This covers the worst date of Ham's life and an event that sets his life on a path he couldn't have imagined.

Thanks to everyone who's supported me patiently. I can tell you that I AM still writing, every day. Sometimes events slow to a crawl and I can only manage a few paragraphs that feel like they fit. Sometimes the words flow like water and my fingers can barely keep up. I AM still working on My Journey, Book 4, but I don't have an ETA on it. The last time I put aa tentative schedule together, my Muse took great offense to that and made her displeasure known. Creativity is fragile, but still favoring me in it's own way.

The new chapter is up for posting and should be available soon. It covers Ham's return to LA starting with the late-night phone call and continuing through his arrival and the reception he gets when he arrives.

Thanks to everyone who writes. I sometimes take a day or three to get back to everyone, but I read and reply to everyone, even the rare letters that are less than kind.

Just posted Chapter 9 to be posted. It covers Ham's journey toward the place he'll call home and the rest of his future.

Only a short note today, I'm afraid. I'm having problems with my internet, so I'm only on through the miracle of tethering. Thanks to everyone for writing and I'll be able to catch up on my backlog as soon as my net is back up full time.

A lot of people have been pointing me to the Clitoride Awards and congratulating me for the wins. To be honest, I was in shock for a little while when I looked them over. I mean, we all hear the "honor just to be nominated" thing once in a while at awards time, but this was the first time I felt it. I was nominated for a lot of awards that I knew I wasn't going to get near the top three. But I felt thrilled, just knowing that people thought that my work was good enough to be put up there to be compared alongside the works of some of SOLs best and most respected authors. Those nominations will be available on the website for years to come for anyone looking through previous years to see what other stories and authors were worthy of mention. It left me feeling very touched at the thought that you all judged me worth that mention.

My Journey did extremely well, picking up first and third in the category for Best Story By A New Author and second place for Best Incest Story. The real thrill for me though was to see first and second place for Best BDSM Story and that's because that genre is so easy to miss the mark and SO unforgiving when you do. As someone who's practiced in my private life, I've heard the tales of scenes gone wrong and seen the scars, both physical and emotional, from moments when someone takes it too far. I tried very hard to portray those themes in My Journey in terms of a loving relationship rather than an abusive exploitation and the outpouring of support in that category is clear proof that I've done my job.

That was also a category that was important to me for another reason. It was a category that didn't focus on new authors cutting their teeth for the first time. I was competing against everyone on the site. That makes me proud of that accomplishment. To me, it was a very personal triumph to be told that I had offered the best BDSM story of last year, not once, but twice. Don't get me wrong, I loved seeing the awards for Best New Author and ALL the love that My Journey got, but that theme was one that I wanted to do justice to and you all told me I knocked it out of the park.

But enough about my excitement. I can tell that you're all really eager to get to the part where I post a new chapter. Chapter 8 is the end of Ham's time in Austin and the beginning of his return to Birmingham and his reunion with Mike, Mary and the kids. It's a turning point in his relationship with them since he's been someone they've had to actively take care of in the past and now he's returning on his own, independent and undamaged.

As a final word, I want to thank everyone who voted for me and I hope I continue to delight your imaginations with my words.

I just posted Chapter 7 to the queue. It should be up shortly. This is one of the chapters that was really hard for me to write. It's sort of a gut-punch after the accident and with Linda's visit, it was a scene that had no better place to turn things in a different direction.

On a side-note, there's been one thing I've meant to ask about in the past. I was rereading parts of My Journey, Book 3 and found the passage where he describes his feelings about the tale of Lot and his daughters in Sodom and Gomorrah. I'm no theologian, but I wondered if that passage rang true to some of the more religiously learned than I can claim to be or if my understanding of the biblical story was lacking. I put it on my list of questions that I'd like to ask you all and never remembered to put out the call until now.

For those of you frantic for news, Book 4 is moving along. I've been working actively on four of the five books I have open currently and that's one of the 4. My muse has bounced me back and forth with startling efficiency, drawing me to one book or another each day.

On another note, Greg Younger has the pre-release copy of Stupid Boy, Junior Year II available to interested parties. Once I got the email, I couldn't say "Shut up and take my money!" fast enough. Having read the whole book in one long, sleepless sitting, I can attest that he has another winner on his hands. My only complaint is that the book ended, but that's a common complaint. LOL

Finally, I want to thank everyone who supports me on here, whether you send me notes, score the story or just download and enjoy. I'm motivated to keep writing as much by the support as the stories to tell.