Happy Birthday Carrma!

I think it's safe to say, that were it not for my girl Carrma, my most recent books wouldn't have been written. On April 3rd, she turned 27 years old (that's 81 in horse years.) Lipizzans are a fairly long-lived breed, so she'll be around for a while yet. I don't ride her much (I don't have a saddle, anyway.) Mostly, we use the round pen for a little longeing (which basically means she trots and canters while I wave a whip around) or, if it's empty, I let her loose in the fenced jump arena where she can go for a good gallop. Then we go out for some grass, with the added bonus that since she's not a horse that's easily spooked, I can pretty much just drape the halter over her neck and let her wander around to her favorite nibbling spots.

And in celebration of Carrma's birthday, my birthday (at the end of March) and the upcoming release of Passage on 4/29 from Loose Id (http://www.loose-id.com), I'll give a e-copy of the first two books in the series, Capriole and Levade, to a lucky commenter. Please leave a method of contact in your comment, and I'll pick a winner on Monday, 4/14!

And, as Carrma sez, let the good times roll (and all the better if it's in the mud.)

 

Hi ho Carrma, Awaaaaaay!!!

Fall has finally made it to Southern Arizona. Which means it'll be about two or three weeks of lovely temperatures before it gets darn cold. (Yes, it gets below freezing here in the desert. It will get near zero, though rarely. Let me tell you about the burst pipes and frozen, dying trees...)

So, it being a pleasant morning, I figured it was time to go for a ride. I hadn't been on my horse for probably a couple of months. Got the bridle. Got the whip. (I don't smack her with it, it's more of a guidance tool.) Took Carrma into the round pen and put the bridle on. Lick chew, lick chew, which means she's happy. I don't have a saddle or bareback pad, so we get to ride with her nekkid.

This is how it went:

1. Park horse by mounting block.
2. Step on mounting block, gather reins.
3. Horse moves.
4. Try not to fall off mounting block while going to wrangle horse.
5. Use whip to try and get across, "NO, DON'T MOVE!"
6. Repeat steps 1-5.

Horse: 20. Human: 1/2

See, I managed to get a leg partway over (thank goodness she's a short horse, only 14.2 hands) and Carrma walked away. Having an off-balance monkey on her back made her go faster, so I bailed. Fell on the ground, but not hard enough to bruise. Carrma looks back. Lick chew, lick chew.

Carrma has her quirks. Being a former broodmare, she's bossy. She never was ridden much, and while she has the basics, the finer points need some improvement. (And, admittedly, so does her non-horsey Human.) But Carrma is not an easily spooked horse; she won't run just to be a pest. If she got loose, she'd go to the nearest patch of grass and stop to eat. If she doesn't do something I want her to, it's because I'm not asking right or not listening to what she's trying to tell me. She's a smart pony, and generally when we're in the round pen she'll follow me around, which is great until I want her to stand still. It just took time and patince, but she figured out what I was trying to do, because:

Round 2:
1. Stand on mounting block.
2. Carrma circles around with minimal prompting
3. Get horse parked in front of mounting block.
4. Repeat steps 1-3 until, finally, SUCCESS!

Horse: 5. Human: 1.

And that 1 is all that counts. Then it was VROOM around the round pen until she got used to carrying me and proved that, yes, she would go where I wanted her to even if she protested a bit, and then we went Out to wander around the barn property. We got to the arena, and VROOM, trot, trot, trot with me bouncing along like a sack of flour. We didn't do much of that, because I am chicken (nekkid horses are a bit slippery) and our steering is not good enough that I trust her to just trot around the arena, which is a large gravel area with no fence, and not go zooming out to the nearest patch of grass.

And because she wanted to go ZOOOM I let her loose in the jump arena,, which is fenced, and off she went to race around, looking good for a 26-year-old mare.

But she was happy, and she got her apple, which had to be shared with her three nosy neighbors. Then big yawns, which means she's relaxed and feeling good after her exercise.

Anyway. Adventures in horse-dom, brought to you by the fact that my e-book LEVADE will be out in paperback here shortly, and Carrma's got a cameo in it, so, you know you want to buy it...

Evey Brett

Looking for Ms. Right

So there's an article making the rounds recently called, "I Hate Strong Female Characters." There are several good points, including how many princesses now know "kung fu" and prove their strength by beating up the bad guys and/or their love interest. It also points out via three movie posters--Smurfs 2, Inception, and Avengers--how the groupings seem to be a ratio of five guys for every girl--and that girl better not be weak in any way, shape or form, but has to be a total badass and keep up with the boys.

It got me thinking as to why I write so few female characters. Part of it relates to the article mentioned above--I'm tired of the kickass women, and the women who are there only to be rescued, and the ones there just to be a sexy sidekick, love interest or one-nighter for the hero. I don't want her there to be sexualized (although, since I write erotic romance, the sex is going to be there at some point.) I want her to have brains, and a life, and to be something other than the stereotypical female we so often see in movies, TV and books. 

I'm not a girly girl. I don't relate to fancy clothes and make-up and gossip magazines. I think I'm looking for a female protagonist that can simply be human without being subjected to the stereotypes of what women are and have to be. Equal footing with her counterparts, whether male or female, without having to sacrifice who she is because of what she is. I don't want her to have to learn kung fu or be a braniac to keep up with a guy just because he's a guy and automatically gets the deference due.

I suppose that's why I write gay fiction. It's not because I find men sexy. I don't, usually (though I'll make an exception for dancers and performance artists.) But as a lot of other authors have said, gay fiction is a means to explore gender and sexuality without having to worry about the usual gender inequalities.

Looking at my book Eliana, which has one of my few female protagonists, I think for parts of it I fell into the same trap--girl has to be tough. I gave her a painful, chronic injury, put her through a lot of bad stuff, gave her a willingness to hurt people if she had to and gave her the roots of becoming a Mistress--but she has very few moments of weakness while I gave the guys plenty.  

I suppose I don't know exactly what I'm looking for in a female protagonist. If I did, I'd be writing her. I just know that, like the article's author, I'm tired of "leading" ladies and sidekicks that have to be kickass and surrounded by guys, carrying guns and black belts just to be equal to their male counterparts. Talented, yes. Brains, wit, personality, yes (although overplaying high intelligence isn't necessary.)

How about you? What trends and stereotypes in your leading ladies and female sidekicks are you tired of?

Evey Brett

Paranormal Week: Gothic Roots

Since I have a Gothic e-book out on Sunday, it seemed appropriate to point out that Paranormal Romance has Gothic roots. There's a nifty infographic here about the history of Paranormal Romance and how it started way back in the 1700's with Horace Walpole. Gothic novels usually combined elements of horror (such as a monster or a family curse) and romance (cue moody, secretive hero and vulnerable heroine.) Dracula is probably the most well-known, though of course there is Frankenstein, Phantom of the Opera and others.

And then women started taking over the genre, and we had books like Wuthering Heights, Jane Eyre and Rebecca, with the interesting turn that all three explore how women are trapped in the home and subjected to male patriarchy, themes that are popular today with all the kick-ass, take-no-prisoners female heroes

Though lately, paranormal romance has lost much of the horror element--i.e., vampires aren't scary any more--and taken on fantasy creatures like elves and fairies and those with supernatural powers from magical to psychic abilities. Monsters aren't the enemy, they're the love interest and/or the protagonist.

As for me, I rather like the darker elements. I don't have a monster in my book--it leans more toward the occult, but it does have the requisite moody lord, an innocent heroine (well, hero in my case) and a mysterious servant who is more than he seems. It's set in 1780's Whitby, England, home of the famous Whitby Abbey and St. Mary's church, which features prominently in Dracula.

So, hooray for Gothic Roots! And now I'm going to go home and watch this boxed set of 100 classic horror movies, which includes a number of Gothic tales. It's research, you know. Even Attack of the Giant Gila Monster. Though, really, I just had to watch that one since we found one at work the other night. Normal, not giant. :>)

What's your favorite Gothic book and/or movie?


Coming Sunday, 7/14...Saints and Madmen from Amber Allure!

 

When tragedy leaves his family nears destitution, farm boy Cadmon—named after the famed saint and poet—has no choice but to accept a position with Lord Vance, the so-called Mad Lord of Whitby, posing for paintings…nude.

After contracting an illness during his travels, Lord Vance was left both impotent and prey to fits of madness and now lives vicariously through painting handsome subjects. Cadmon is shy at first, but his affection for his lordship quickly grows and he regales his master with tales of erotic, recurring dreams.

Lord Vance’s servant Tamar, a handsome Batavian slave gifted in the healing arts, attempts to hide the enormity of his master’s affliction until the night Cadmon stumbles onto the truth linking his dreams and Lord Vance’s madness. Passion flares between the three of them but is shattered when Cadmon discovers he was hired under false pretenses.

Heartbroken, Cadmon seeks refuge in the ruins of Whitby Abbey. There, haunted by the memories of both saints and madmen, he must find the strength to offer his body and risk his sanity to save the men he loves.

Green-eyed Monsters and Advice to Slay Them

I've been to a lot of writing workshops and writing conventions. I have an M.A. in Writing Popular Fiction. That means I know a lot of writer folks, newbie, pro and in-between, all of whom have various levels of success. I know pro writers pulling up out-of-print novels, fixing them up and selling them as e-books with increasing success (check out Book View Cafe for some of these re-releases, as well as a good blog with tips and insight from F/SF and romance writers.) Some of them still have a good career in print. Some don't.

And then there are the newbies and fellow workshoppers who've gotten into print with big publishers and getting lots of good reviews and even nominations for awards.

And some little piece of me goes...why isn't that me? I want an award. Heck, at this point I'd settle for a review, good or bad, of the latest book.

There are plenty of factors as to why my friends and I have varying degrees of success. Our writing styles and content are vastly different. At least one of my co-workshoppers has writing sessions with pro writers because he happens to live in the right place. Admittedly, other than a couple short stories I haven't written anything lately to target outside of e-book land. There are pro writers in my area, but they generally don't get together.

This past week, one of my pro writer friends, Steven Leigh (aka S.L. Farrell) put together a an essay called "Ten Things I've Learned (As a Writer)" . There are many good points, but the one that got me the most was this: "Early in aikido, I was told 'Never compare yourself to the other people who started about the same time you did. Only compare yourself to yourself.'"

Makes sense, yes? Hard to do, especially when I'm sitting at the library staring at an award-nominated book by a fellow workshopper. Though, on the flip side, there are also several fellow workshoppers that don't write anymore, or very little, for whatever reason.

Later on, Steve makes another salient point. Writers have egos, but: "Here’s the problem with chasing fame: you can’t catch Fame from behind. Fame, if it wants to, will instead catch you." Meaning, that if you try to jump on, say, the Steampunk bandwagon, by the time the book is written and submitted, the genre is already changing. And, "Whether or not you ever become famous is not under your control: therefore, don’t worry about it. At all."

So, Capriole is not destined to become the next e-book bestseller, obviously. But Steven points out there are two ways of looking at success, however minor: "You can think that it’s about fucking time the universe recognized your awesome talent and allowed this to happen, and now that it has happened, it’s probably going to be fucking forever until it happens again. Isn’t that what you’re thinking, Eeyore?

"Or you can embrace those successes and revel in them. Each time, you can taste all the pleasure the moment holds, then carefully place the memory in the section of your mind labeled “Excellent Stuff To Recall.” You can think that maybe, perhaps, the universe has just aligned itself a little more in your favor, and that it’s now more likely that things like this will continue to happen."

And I've had plenty of good things.I've made lots of friendships and received lots of advice from writers. One of the golden rules is Pay it Forward. Steve mentions this in his essay, as you can't always find a way to repay a writer who's helped you, but there are plenty of newer writers in need of aid, and most of us have been in their shoes at one time or another.

Another writer friend, Deborah J. Ross (known for continuing the Darkover books, but who's just released a new SF entitled Collaboraters under her other name, Deborah Wheeler) relates one of her experiences this weekend at Baycon.

"One of the people from the audience, a bright and earnest young woman, was there, and we struck up a conversation. The topic quickly switched from the panel itself to writing and then became one of those magical interactions, a chance to pay forward for all the support and advice I've received over the years...I need to remember that I too was once a beginner trying to figure out this writing business. I've made my share of mistakes, but I've figured out what works for me and I've heard a lot of stories about what works for other people, too. We don't have to re-invent the wheel if we're willing to be generous with our knowledge."

Nearly seven years ago, I met Deborah at a convention just like that lucky girl she mentions. We're still friends, and she included my short story, "Rent Girl" in her anthology, Lace and Blade 2. My first print story, nestled in with pro writers. Yes, I put it under my pillow when I got my contributer's copy.

So. There are little successes to combat those little green-eyed monsters that insist on popping up from time to time. Good memories, good friends and acquaintances to remind me that they, too, have been in a similar spot.

And by the time this is out I will be on vacation in a place where there are trees rather than cacti, and it's not 100 degrees. And writing. And writing some more.

Evey Brett

Puzzling out the story

I love jigsaw puzzles, but alas have to content myself with online versions (National Geographic has some nifty ones) since  I have cats that would come along and either eat the pieces or lose them for me. I adore the Sudoku app I have for my iPod, because I get to find the patterns and pieces and fit them all together. Then there are word games like Bookworm, in which I stare at the board for ages in an attempt to make a word with high points and hope I don't cause any tiles to catch on fire.

Writing, for me, is all about the puzzles. I don't plot things; I write scenes as they pop into my head, and they might come from anywhere in the story. As the plot becomes more clear, the scenes get rewritten or rearranged, details changed to make everything more coherent. It's a lovely feeling when everything goes "snap" and it all falls into place.

I've noticed there are a couple ways I tackle stories in this way--create a world from scratch (especially if it's SF) or use an existing template--that is, put characters and elements of my own creation into a world based on ours.

Probably the first instance I did this was a book written as my alter ego called Consort, in which  my protagonist fell in love with a muse and was cursed to rise every seventeen years to exist for a month on sex and song. The basic setting was Greece and the accompanying myths and male/male sexual practices, then I mixed in elements of a cicada's life cycle which influenced the plot and outcome. I even looked up details like food and native Greek butterflies.

A more recent example where existing references entirely influenced the plot was a short story written for a call for queer stories based on Bram Stoker's Dracula. (The anthology will be out in July from Lethe Press; I don't have more details as of yet.) In that, I focused on the scene in the churchyard where the men confront Lucy in the churchyard and she's taken a child to feed on. I got the idea of telling the story from the child's point of view--but it had to fit within the world created in the book. Fortunately, that child's gender was never mentioned, so I made it a boy. I needed a plausible reason why Arthur decided to take this particular child in when Van Helsing left Lucy's other victims for the police to find--and had the child share Arthur's obsession with Lucy as he grew.

There were other details like dates--how long did the men chase Dracula? How old would the child be when everyone went back to Transylvania to visit? Where were Arthur's homes and when did he inherit his title? All little things, but necessary to the story--and fun to find out.

And that story led me to the e-book I'm working on now. I had an idea to do a Gothic. Okay; needed a moody English town. "Whitby" popped into my head. I didn't realize I'd already written about it in the Dracula short story until I looked up the town (and what a nifty town it is, too.) So Whitby is famous for its abbey founded in 657 by St. Hilda. St. Mary's Church--site of several scenes in Dracula--was founded around 1110. Then there are more local interests to add--famed explorer Captain Cook trained in Whitby, so if one of my characters went along as, say, a painter to record what he found, where would they go? Who would they encounter? What kinds of diseases might they have caught? If he brought a foreign manservant back, where would that manservant be from?

And the famed 199 steps leading from the town up to the church and the abbey--when were they built? 1710 or so, it seems, but, oh, they were wood. When were they changed to stone? 19th century, sometime, which is later than I'm setting my story, but still important to know because if someone say, needs to break his neck on those stairs, I need to know if they're wood or stone. There's a donkey trail next to those stairs, which is good to know, because I need to get a horse up there, too.

And then there are more details like Whitby Jet (fossilized remains of a monkey-puzzle tree) and the hundreds of people that made a living carving it (it's organic, not a mineral, and made famous by Queen Victoria when she wore it for mourning.) and the fossils, including ammonites, which legend says are snakes turned to stone by St. Hilda.

There is more, but that's probably already more than enough for a blog, let alone a book. Ah, well, I suppose I'll have to write another one, because, really, who wouldn't find inspiration for a gothic novel here?

Evey Brett

Eliana: Pain and Pleasure

Take an extra 10% off Eliana this week at Loose Id!

While my new book, Eliana, is set in the same world as my previous books (and features a character from Levade), there are no horses in this book. My mare Carrma is somewhat displeased, but I have mollified her by taking her lots of apples.

Thinking back to the inspiration for this book, Eliana whas a character I had created for an ill-fated sequel to my first demon book, Demon's Dance. She was a dominant, no-nonsense kind of woman who knew both how to inflict pain and how to help others heal from it. I didn't want to give her up and started thinking about how she might have gotten involved with the Wardens--a group of men and women dedicated to hunting incubi and aiding their sexually promiscuous offspring. And, more importantly, why and how she became a dominant.

In one way, this book is Eliana's origin story, but  after finishing Levade I realized how Eliana could mesh with Konstantin, one of the characters introduced in that book, and that became an interesting story in itself--how does the son of a crazed Nazi geneticist become a healer as well as a submissive, and what lasting effect will that have on him?

So despite the title, Eliana isn't just about Eliana. There's Kon, and his male dominant, Dane, and all sorts of learning and growing and healing for all three.

Oh, and sex. Did I mention there's lots of sex?

Cover art by the fabulous Anne Cain.

Also--now available from Amazon and Barnes and Noble: Love, lust and Lipizzans. Capriole. In PRINT!!!!

Carrma sez, "Buying my human's books will help her make sure I have enough hay to eat and a warm blankie during freak snowstorms in southern Arizona. Plus you get to read about Lipizzans like me."

Evey Brett

On writing "queer" fiction

Recently I was asked to write an introduction for one of my writing idols an mentors (can't say who, yet, as I don't know much of the project beyond it being to support queer fiction and writers) and came across an interview in which the author said they don't consider themselves a queer author. They are in a same-sex relationship and the novels they write involve same-sex relationships, but if a label needs to be applied to the author, they're a writer. A good one.

Which got me thinking about the characters I write. The vast majority are gay or bisexual. That's just the way my writer brain spits things out. And I don't think I've written anything where the characters worry about being gay or coming out and worrying what their friends or family are going to think. My stories aren't about being gay and coming to terms with it; that fact is just a part of who they are and they have other things to worry about, like saving the world or killing an incubus before it kills them.

I recently found the movie A Single Man at the library and picked it up. It's a gorgeous film based on the book by Christopher Isherwood (whose boyfriend has a brief cameo in the movie, as does the director's.) It's set in 1962, and notable in that there's only one overt reference to discrimination toward same-sex relationships. Otherwise, the characters just are who they are and love who they love. In the "Making Of" special feature, the director mentioned that the film wasn't about being gay; Colin Firth's love interest could have been a woman, and the overall message of the film would have been the same. Colin, too, said he didn't worry about "being gay" for the character. The character was a man who'd loved and lost and it didn't matter what sex his lover was. (Colin Firth is an amazing actor in this movie, and there are several nice shots of Nicholas Hoult's bare behind.)

One time I did a critique for an author who wanted my input on the gay sex scenes. I looked at it--and not only did they not work as gay sex scenes, they didn't work as sex scenes in general. They were flat and emotionless and did nothing to further the story. In the end, I told the author the same thing--Love is love. Sex is sex. The emotions involved are the same. In the end, we're all just people, whomever we love.

And, speaking of all types of love, my next book, Eliana, will be out on Feb. 19th from Loose Id. M/M/F BDSM.

Evey Brett

Capriole is now available!

I'm pleased and excited to announce the release of Capriole, an M/M Paranormal Romance from Loose Id!

After fleeing a brutal mental hospital in Barcelona, Felipe Camarena is trying to forge a new life as a psychology student in San Diego. Trouble is, he has a knack of knowing things he shouldn’t about people, and the all-too-real demons from his past are coming back to haunt him.

Professor Lukas von Rainer is a Warden—someone who hunts incubi and tames their sexually ravenous and dangerous offspring. As a fellow Sensitive, Lukas is the only one who can help when Felipe is severely injured by an incubus. He takes Felipe to his ranch in hopes that his Lipizzan horses will help him recover, but Felipe refuses to face his past and attempts to seduce Lukas instead. Lukas fends him off, surprised to find himself falling for the young man he’s vowed to aid. For years, he’s believed a physically satisfying and truly loving relationship is impossible because of his abilities, but is it?

He may not get the chance to find out. Even as he and the horses work their magic to heal Felipe, the incubus tracking them means to kill him and anyone who gets in its way.


To coincide with the release, I've also put together a video so you can meet me and the Lipizzan horses who inspired the book. As an added bonus, I'm having a drawing to win a copy of Capriole. All you have to do to enter is tell me about your favorite horse, whether real or fictional. Let me know in the comments below and I'll pick a name by Friday the 16th, 11:59 pm PST.

Excerpt:

Felipe slid into the Mustang’s passenger seat, too exhausted to care what Lukas planned on doing with him as long as he didn’t have to move or think. Lukas didn’t seem like the kind of man who would be cruel, but without being able to sense him, Felipe couldn’t be sure.

Felipe stared at Lukas’s key fob as it knocked against the steering column. It was leather burned with a picture of a running horse—the Mustang’s symbol. “Did you get a Mustang because you have horses?”

“Of course. White horses, white Mustang.” Lukas switched on the radio. “Do you like classical music?”

Felipe shrugged. His head lolled against the seat as he gazed out the window into the darkness beyond. Wherever they were, there were no streetlights.

Lukas drove east out of the city for about a half hour. The sky was just lightening to gray as he turned down a dirt road and drove through an iron gate inscribed SPIRIT HORSE RANCH.
He parked in the gravel driveway near a small ranch house and gestured to Felipe when they got out. “Come meet the herd.”

Reluctantly Felipe followed him toward a fenced area containing four white horses and two mottled gray. They were beautiful animals, strong and well built and emanating an intense presence that made Felipe uncomfortable.

“Have you ever been around horses?”

Felipe shook his head. Nervousness rooted his feet to the ground. He stayed several feet back while three of the animals arched their heads over the top of the fence and studied him. Their brown eyes held an unsettling amount of intelligence.

“This herd is very friendly. They won’t bite, and they love attention. Don’t you?” One horse whickered in answer. Lukas scratched the nearest under the jaw, inciting a stab of jealousy in Felipe at how comfortable he was with them. “These are all Lipizzans. I trained with a man from the Spanish Riding School when I lived in Austria, and brought Graciela in foal when I emigrated. This one is her son, a gelding. His official name is Pluto Graciela, but I call him Grady.”

“Pluto like the dog? And why is the riding school in Vienna Spanish?”

Lukas chuckled. “He’s not named after the cartoon character. There are six foundation stallions: Pluto, Maestoso, Favory, Siglavy, Conversano and Neapolitano. Purebred colts are given their father’s name followed by their mother’s, hence Pluto Graciela. The riding school is Spanish because the original horses were of Spanish heritage.”

They’re from home. The thought sent a surge of homesickness through him.

Lukas reached into a coffee can and put a sugar cube in Felipe’s palm. “Here. Grady loves these. Keep your hand flat and he’ll use his lips to take it.” Lukas gave him a push, sending Felipe within three feet of the fence. He extended his arm, and Grady artfully craned his neck to snatch the proffered treat. Soft, furry lips brushed his skin, but Felipe also felt something nontactile, something…

He jerked his hand back, trying to figure out just what he’d sensed. It was like that knowing when he bumped into a person, only the horse had felt somehow…clean. Pure.

The corner of Lukas’s mouth crooked up. “See? That wasn’t so bad.”

Lukas’s amusement annoyed him. “I’m tired,” Felipe said.

The slight grin vanished. His tone didn’t hide his disappointment. “Come on. I’ll show you to your room.”

* * * *

Lukas left Felipe alone in one of the bedrooms, frustrated by the kid’s reaction. But then, he hadn’t known what to expect. He’d hoped Felipe would show some interest in the horses rather than keeping his aloofness and gazing at them from behind the same wall of self-protection he used to distance himself from people. So he couldn’t break through it for an animal, either. Lukas had faith the horses would have something to say about that—if he could get Felipe close enough.

Evey Brett, 2012

Horses being silly--for a reason

Next month, my new book, CAPRIOLE, will be out from Loose Id. Hooray! It's M/M and features Lipizzans based on this herd.

(No. No cover yet, sadly. I am anxiously waiting for it...)

Actually, for a much more detailed blog by a professional writer and breeder about using horses in fiction and for horsey worldbuilding ideas, I point you her posts on Book View Cafe. Me, I don't claim to be a horse girl. I never had a horse crazy stage. I rode a horse once in summer camp when I was maybe nine. I still don't know what color a bay or a roan is, though I do know that most "white" horses are actually gray.

And all this comes in handy when writing fantasy or historical, since so much of it includes horses, and horse details are so easy to get wrong even when you think you're right.

For a few ideas, I'll give you some Lipizzans in action.

Want to have a mischievous horse? The pose above is something the gelding started, and this mare, Tia, learned. A couple of the other mares can do this too. See the hay on the ground? This is where the horses get groomed and saddled, and we give them a bit of hay to keep them occupied. Tia and her buddies like to reach under the fence to get as much hay as they can reach. See the hose? The gelding has figured out if he tugs on it, he can get a mouthful of hay to come out with it.

Ahhh, nothing like a good roll, as Tia and Pandora like to do. Actually, Tia's down for a nap while Pandora is actually rolling, something all the horses like to do for several reasons. It provides a good stretch, it helps with itching, and the dirt helps to keep the flies from being so bothersome. In the summer we hose the horses off to keep them cool (in 100+ degrees, they ask for it,) and they usually go for a roll right afterwards and come up looking like paint ponies.

And here is my horse Carrma, the matriarch of the herd. That's Tia lying down for a snooze. She slept for about forty-five minutes that day. Horses sleep for around four hours a day, and while they can sleep standing up as their legs lock into place so they don't fall down, they do like to get the weight off their feet and will lie flat like Tia here (which panicked me the first time I saw it, because I thought the horse was sick or something.)

Or the horses will sleep curled up like Pandora is. And they don't often do it in front of humans unless they're totally comfortable. We had eight humans with the herd that day, and three horses decided to take a nap all at once, which means the horses really trusted us.

No, that image is not digitally enhanced to add the tongue. Camilla really is sticking her tongue out. It's a way for the horses to relax. Yawning doesn't mean they're tired--it means they're relaxed and releasing tension much the same way humans do. And if you see a horse lick and chew, it means they're happy.

Anyhoo. That's probably more than enough horse picture spam for today. If you have any horse questions, holler, and if I don't know I probably know who would.

All pictures copyright Evey Brett. Thanks. :>)

The one thing that made a difference

A workshop mentor of mine recently asked her workshopees, "What was the one thing that made the biggest difference in your writing, whether it was a piece of advice, a teacher, etc.?"

For me, it was hard to pin down. I remember other significant epiphanies; the moment when I realized I could actually read when I was about five and reading the Little Golden Books version of Snow White. Or the time when I finally understood how to read music while practicing flute on the Indiana Jones theme for band. (I made it to first chair after that.)

But...writing? Several things came to mind. The first is actually non-fiction. My tenth grade English teacher asked us to write an essay saying, "I am like a . . ." I decided I was like a crow (don't ask the reasons, either I don't remember or don't want to remember) and wrote about it. A friend read the essay and said it wasn't really an essay because I didn't prove why I was like a crow and went on to explain how to format an essay. That one little conversation made a world of difference when it came to writing high school and college papers and prompted one college teacher to write, "Too bad the English department lost you to music!" Ah, foreshadowing. . .

As far as fiction...I've written since I was little but didn't start seriously writing until after college, but I can't pinpoint one great epiphany.

Maybe it was in grade school, when I was lucky enough to know that creative writing and storytelling was valued because the teachers were kind enough to type out my stories, laminate the covers and bind them with my illustrations.

Maybe it was the initial realization that writing in other people's worlds, fun though it can be, will only take me so far. Writing in the Star Trek universe helped jumpstart my writing, because I didn't have to worry about the world, but could focus on character and story. Once I had the story, I moved it to my own world and began to hone my craft--which resulted in five fantasy novels I had high hopes for but will likely remain in the depths of my hard drive forever.

Maybe it was the online writing workshop which kindly told me info dumps and fantasy names like Eryk'esth'y'a'valen were bad things.

Maybe it was the community college teacher and her short story class where she assured me my story was good, which gave me the courage to write more stories and put them in front of people, which eventually got me into the Clarion SF/F workshop.

Maybe it was Clarion, where I didn't have to be published to feel like a writer, and the friendships I made, which meant connections with more people and other workshops and whole networks of writers whose advice and friendship I continue to value.

Or maybe it's simply knowing I can tell stories people want to read.

What about you? Was there something that really, truly made a difference for you in your writing?

Evey Brett

Why I write M/M

So, really, I had this all written before Tara Stevens wrote about why she likes to read M/M on the Carina blog, but it makes a nice companion piece to why I write M/M.

Recently I was a bit surprised when I read another blog someone stating something to the effect of, "M/M is written by straight women for the enjoyment of other straight women."

I've heard sentiments like that before. There are plenty of reasons--and myths--about why women in particular write M/M, anything from two hunky guys in bed must be better than one, right? to getting a chance to see guys be emotionally vulnerable to seeing a relationship without the built-in differences an M/F couple has. But--only by straight women for straight women? I don't think so.

I'm a bit of an exception to the stereotypical M/M writer. I'm not straight. Big, hunky alpha males don't do a thing for me. Don't get me wrong, I appreciate a fine male figure, but more as a piece of art than an object of desire. Modern dancers? Those guys from Cirque du Soleil? Oh yeah. I could watch them all day. So why write about guys if they're not my thing?

I've always liked to say I blame Mercedes Lackey for getting me started on M/M. I picked up her books in college after a long period of reading nothing at all and was hooked. And then I found Vanyel and finally understood what a gay relationship really was. Then gay characters started showing up in my fiction and never went away.

So that's one reason I write M/M. The other reason is because it's the type of relationship that makes the most sense to me. It's what comes naturally when I write, though I do have some M/F relationships in my work.

And since I don't have the requisite parts or, um, access to them, I do research. I have this nice deck of cards with all sorts of gay sex positions, including threesomes. (They have one for girls, too.) There's a fun site that uses those wooden art mannequins to show all sorts of combinations. (Sadly, I can't find the link at the moment, but if I do I'll update this.)

So what does this have to do with fantasy? One reason is that we can write characters that are gay or bi or trans or omnisexual without having to deal with the constraints forced on us by society. We can create worlds where being queer isn't a point of conflict; it's just a part of who the character is. The conflict can be the relationship, or saving the world, or rescuing a child, or whatever without having to focus on the character's need to come to terms with his/her own sexual orientation, which is what happens in a lot of mainstream books.

Besides--as SF/F writers, we get to play with magic and science when it comes to sexuality. Enter Dr. Tatiana's Sex Advice to All Creation: The Definitive Guide to the Evolutionary Biology of Sex. This is an awesomely cool book written in the manner of anything from protozoa to bats asking sex advice Dear Abby style. It shows a huge range of sex and procreation techniques, all of which are natural and "normal," and provides some lovely story ideas.

So, for me, M/M is not about all the hot mansex (though it's certainly fun to write.) It's got story. It's got the same human issues as "straight" romance, fantasy, mystery, whatever--not just gay issues. When the sex comes, there are reasons for it other than pure lust. And while I understand why M/M is so often a separate "genre," there's a large part of me wishing it didn't have to be differentiated. It ought to belong in the romance section, because it's romance, just with two guys instead of a guy and a girl. M/M has the same diversity within the "genre" as any M/F book, and is equally well-written.

So if straight women like my work, great, but I hope it reaches out to a vaster audience and that I write something everyone can relate to on one level or another.

And before I go, here are a few of my favorite print fantasy authors who feature LGBT characters: Marion Zimmer Bradley's Darkover series with Deborah J. Ross continuing it, Nicola Griffith, Kelley Eskridge, Samuel R. Delany, Lynn Flewelling, Sherwood Smith, Steven Leigh/S.L. Farrell, Pearl North and Steven Harper.

So why do or don't you read M/M? Why do you write it if you do?

Evey Brett

The writer's voice--more than just style and prose

So. . . what do you think of when you think of Voice? Prose? Style of writing? That’s what I took for granted it was, until I went out to visit my friend and fellow M/M writer, Jessica Freely, and we had several good writing discussions including one about voice. See, I was worrying about how I kept using the same themes in my books, and Jessica told me about a presentation about voice at a convention she went to, which basically boiled down to: Voice is what’s important to you and what you have to say about it.

This is also an extension of Write What You Know. It doesn’t just mean that, say, I have nine Lipizzans in my backyard and therefore I know about horses and will write stories involving horses. It’s more about the reasons the horses are there. In Demon’s Due, out August 8^th, the horses are there for spiritual and physical support, not just because I wanted one of the main characters to be a rider or set the story at a ranch. What I know about horses isn’t merely the names for the tack and how its used, but what it means to be with my horse Carrma, how she makes me feel better if I’ve had a bad day or gives me that look (see picture) to guilt me into taking her for a walk or giving her a treat. I know the connection that’s deeper than any I’ve had with any other animal. The human/horse relationship is fascinating and important to me, so I write about it. Though, my perspective on it is different than my housemate's, and my riding teacher's, someone who rides once a month, someone who's ridden once but fallen off, and someone who's never ridden. This is my viewpoint on that relationship, and therefore, my voice.

It’s a deeper sort of knowing than, “I lived in San Diego, the streets go XYZ, Sea World is laid out like this…” It’s what San Diego means to me. I love San Diego. I loved my apartment there. That’s why I put it in the Demon books; I wanted to show everyone else how beautiful the landscape is and how much I loved certain locations—Torrey Pines Reserve and Cabrillo National Monument in particular. (This is me at Cabrillo.)

There are also other elements I know and that are important to me, which are the recurring themes in my stories: psychologically broken characters, characters trapped and manipulated by others, older/wiser mentor figures, evil doctors/healers, and my characters are nearly always psychic or telepathic. The stories are largely the same; character overcomes traumatic past and finds his true self with the help of his new lover. I won’t give you the details on why I write those things specifically, but there are reasons which took me a long time to figure out. Sometimes we don't know why we write what we do--it just happens.

So you can probably tell from the above list my stories are dark and not for everybody. I can’t help what I write. Demon’s Due is going into the horror category and so will Demon’s Dawn, which is out in October. My voice is dark. Maybe after I find Ms. Right my voice will change to something lighter and I’ll finally be able to write romance because I'll know what romance is and it'll be important.

Until then…this is my voice, and I’m sticking to it. Now tell me about yours. What themes keep appearing in your stories? What's your voice?

Evey Brett

Demon's Dance

Demon's Due, 8/06/11

Demon's Dawn 10/17/11

Location, location, location. . .

Whee! Today is release day for my first Carina Press release, DEMON'S DANCE. Here's the blurb:
Desire roused the demon within him...

Wanting to live freely as a human, half-incubus Tristan flees the Wardens. Broke and starving, he accepts Cory's offer of a paid photo shoot, never dreaming he'd find a man with whom he could be aroused and erotic in his own body without having to submit to his demonic half.

Psychically sensitive Cory didn't meet Tristan by accident; he volunteered to find the beautiful, exotic man for his patron. Cory had never before been able to touch a man without discomfort and soon can't stop, but the hotter the sex gets, the more he can sense the darkness Tristan is trying desperately to escape.

Cory will do anything to keep Tristan safe, even if it means going against both his patron and the Wardens. Cory must learn how to soothe the demon—and to love the man within.

One of the things I've discovered about writing is how important setting can be. The location can add all sorts of fun complications to the plot (like if your hero takes the subway in the wrong direction during an emergency, or a hurricane bears down on the tropical isle he's vacationing on) or it can add to the mood of the story.
The location for this series is San Diego. I lived there for several years and loved it, and one of the activities I enjoyed most was playing outdoors at the beaches (Coronado beach behind the Hotel del Coronado was my favorite) or visiting some of the state parks, such as Cabrillo National Monument.
You've probably heard of Torrey Pines with regards to the famous golf course, but there is also the Torrey Pines State Natural Reserve. It's a gorgeous place, quiet, peaceful, stunning views and several hiking trails, one of which takes you all the way down the cliffs to the beach. It's a rather fantastical place to set a few scenes of a paranormal romance novel.
Here's one of the namesake Torrey Pines. Looks a bit like a large bonsai tree, but these are special pines that only grow in a couple of places because of the particular climate they need.




And here's the rock where my protagonists--well, I'm sure you can guess what they might get up to when they find themselves alone on a gorgeous beach. . .



And here's the view from the top of the cliffs. How could one not be inspired by such an awesome view?



So now I'm curious--I've shown you one of the places that inspired me. What locations, real or not, have you put in your books, and why? Or what setting have you read about that you will always remember?