Most boogie men make your feet want to run, but this boogie man makes your feet want to dance. I still remember getting Part 3, my first KC & the Sunshine Band album. I set it aside that night to watch the premiere of the Spider-Man TV pilot on CBS but then got back to KCSB and still love their music now.
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Sunday, December 28, 2025
Sunday, November 30, 2025
Featured Website: Liminal Fiction
Please read my biography at Liminal Fiction and explore this multi-made presentation of Taldra: Two Science Fiction Adventures.
Saturday, November 29, 2025
The Food of the Gods
Thursday, November 27, 2025
Gay Book Review: The Emp Test
The Emp Test by J. Scott CoatsworthMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
J. Scott Coatsworth’s fantasy story The Emp Test involves two men from different cultures, thrown together and obviously attracted to each other. Jey must let Avain care for him, though their people see each other as enemies.
Coatsworth works a great deal of mythology into the story in a natural way that both connects the two men and divides them. Jey also faces conflict within himself, but I won’t give any of that away.
Readers who want a gay story without tired settings or predictable tropes should enjoy this emotional, fast-moving, and empowering fantasy.
I had been following Coatsworth for years via social media and the book sites he runs with his husband but had honestly never gotten around to reading one of his books. The Emp Test provided a brief but enjoyable introduction that made me want to read more.
View all my Goodreads reviews.
Learn about the author via J. Scott Coatsworth’s Press Kit.
Thanks for visiting my blog! Please read about my books, including the small-town fiction collection The Acorn Stories and my free eBook Degranon: A Science Fiction Adventure.
Sunday, November 16, 2025
Odd Bird
Sunday, October 19, 2025
SciFi Sons of Taldra Images, Interviews, Etc.
Sons of Taldra: Animated Cover 1.
Sons of Taldra: Animated Cover 2.
Sons of Taldra: Animated Cover 3.
Sons of Taldra: Futuristic Music BookTok.
Sons of Taldra: The Iroquois Scientist BookTok.
Sons of Taldra: Thought the aliens wouldn’t find us. BookTok.
Sons of Taldra: Stranger Things/Alternate World: BookTok.
Sons of Taldra: She Needed to Protect: BookTok.
Sons of Taldra: She wants more power: BookTok.
Sons of Taldra: Argen’s Room: BookTok.
Sons of Taldra: Emergency: BookTok.
We thought the aliens wouldn’t find us. We thought we could trust the Maintainers. We were wrong.
The Iroquois scientist Taldra became Leader of our world a year before the alien shapeshifters attacked. Her twin gay sons, Telius and Argen, will rally to her side.
Telius, a former time traveler, wants to marry his boyfriend, a former spy. Argen, a prodigy with a troubled past, modifies a handsome captain’s vessel for the battle.
Our world’s other protectors hold dark secrets that might pose an even greater threat than the invaders.
“A major voice not only in American literature but also in the LGBTQ genre. Highly recommended.” –Author Grady Harp
“A gripping science fiction novel.” –Scribble’s Worth
“Truly unique and amazing!” —Author Eric Rench (formerly Shay Mills)
“Refreshingly different, and at its beating heart is some much needed diversity that slots in effortlessly and with purpose.” –Sebastian J. Brook. Read the review at Doctor Who Online.
“Overall, this book was a quick fun read for anyone who enjoys sci-fi and adventure books. The plot was compelling and the characters were engaging.” –Fiction Flock
“An explosive book that will mean different things to each reader. The familial love and romantic love that shine make it even a deeper read.” —N. N. Light’s Book Heaven
“I recommend this book to science fiction readers and those who like complex storylines.” —Review Tales
Nook eBook * Kindle eBook * Smashwords eBook * Kobo Plus eBook
Character artwork for Sons of Taldra: General Sydra, Taldra and Argen, Telius and Jase-Dawn, Telius and Argen, Telius and Argen.
Degranon and Sons of Taldra in One Volume.
Add Sons of Taldra to Your Goodreads Reading List.
The Navajo Influences on the Aliens in Sons of Taldra.
Why Taldra’s Family is Iroquois.
Queer SciFi Novel in Consideration for LGBT Book Award.
Interview About Sons of Taldra and More at BooksGoSocial.Com.
Character interview with Taldra at Feed My Reads.
New! Character interview with Admiral Nil at The Protagonist Speaks.
Sons of Taldra Review at Strange Book Reviews.
Sons of Taldra Review at Enas Reviews.
Sons of Taldra: What is Gay SciFi?
DuaneSimolke.Com: Pressure Tournament: Scene Cut from Gay SciFi Sons of Taldra.
Prism Book Alliance: Sons of Taldra Interview.
Book Excerpt at A. O. Chika Book Blog.
Saturday, October 18, 2025
Science Fiction: TV in an Alternate Reality
Meet the Antagonist Nil at The Protagonist Speaks.
The Protagonist Speaks features character interviews from a variety of writers and includes details on how other authors can participate, as a type of book promotion and content creation. Author Assaph Mehr of egretia.com created and manages that site.
Admiral Nil becomes a nemesis of the heroic Taldra in Sons of Taldra: A Science Fiction Adventure.
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Wednesday, September 17, 2025
Book Review: Remember Always by BL Maxwell
Remember Always by B.L. MaxwellMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
With Remember Always, author BL Maxwell sidesteps all the tragedy and hatred that permeate too many books and movies about LGBTQ characters. Here, two gay men in love navigate how to best plan their lives together, with the support of a loving community. Thanksgiving might provide a special opportunity for bringing those plans in an even happier direction.
Maxwell keeps the narrative moving quickly, with both men trying to balance their career goals with their undeniable connection. While the book perhaps needed more editing for punctuation, the writing is polished and enjoyable in every other way. I highly recommend Remember Always for fans of MM romance.
The small-town setting makes it even more appealing, adding to the sense of supportive community and giving queer lit fans a break from big-city landscapes. Everything about this story feels fresh and welcoming.
View all my Goodreads reviews
Thanks for visiting my blog! Please read about my books, including the small-town fiction collection The Acorn Stories and my free eBook Degranon: A Science Fiction Adventure.
Tuesday, August 26, 2025
Gay Movie Review: Bear City (repost)
Learn about bear culture in a rowdy comedy from the director of Raising Heroes. A bear chaser bursts onto the scene, where he finds friendship and conflict.
Text:
Aside from Bear Cub, few gay films give much screen time to the bear community. BearCity not only provides a crash course in the unapologetically hirsute gay subculture but also provides frequent laughs and shows a heart much bigger than any of the exposed bellies.
Though young and cute, Tyler (Joe Conti) hates the twink culture that welcomes him. He secretly longs for the company of less fashion-obsessed and thin-obsessed men. When Tyler finally gets up the nerve to visit a bear establishment, he finds some of the same gossip and cattiness that he found elsewhere, but also finds men that he sees as potential friends, or potentially more.
The movie quickly spins into subplots, but keeps them threaded together. The comedy and sexual tension often give way to surprisingly dramatic or tender moments.
When Tyler moves in with Fred (Brian Keane) and Brent (Stephen Guarino of Logo’s The Big Gay Sketch Show), he becomes intertwined in their rising relationship changes and in their circle of friends. From the attractive and unattainable Roger (Gerald McCullouch) to the loving mama bear Michael (Gregory Gunter), all the characters help Tyler discover himself and his place in the local bear community.
Douglas Langway (Raising Heroes) directs, from a script he wrote with Lawrence Ferber. They provide a fast pace, with the more serious moments interjected between lighter ones.
Some of the more graphic scenes will offend many viewers. However, the movie’s honesty and the characters’ search for acceptance in a world of supposed perfection will attract many other viewers.
I wrote the above review long before the sequels arrived and haven’t seen them but hope to do so in the future.
Thanks for visiting my blog! Please read about my books, including the small-town fiction collection The Acorn Stories and my free eBook Degranon: A Science Fiction Adventure.
Sunday, August 24, 2025
El & Em by M. E. Samm LGBTQ Book Review
El & Em by M.E. SammMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
At times, M. E. Samm’s novel El & Em feels much like a music biography or an episode of MTV’s Behind the Music. However, this rock narrative also centers around the attempts of two bisexual men to form a lasting relationship in an atmosphere where that love could easily destroy their careers. It starts in Philadelphia, in 1972, continuing decades beyond that.
Luke seems to love nothing more than his music, and he often fails to see the ways he dismisses the feelings of others while trying to make the live performances and studio recordings match the vision he creates for his songs. Complicating matters, his desire to add a trumpet player will awaken other desires.
As a fan of both classic rock and stories about gay or bi men, the premise of this book caught my attention. It delivers on both fronts. The descriptions of the long tours and long studio sessions ring true, along with how the musicians must endure both obscurity and the pressures of fame. The fear and longing the two men experience also seems all too real as they constantly attract and repel each other.
Samm writes with subtle grace, turning a lingering touch or gaze into a stepping point for a relationship that will take years to even begin. At times, I wasn’t even sure if Luke and Emmett were really the title characters El and Em, thinking maybe one of them might fall in love with some other guy who could fit within that title. Still, the connections exist and keep reemerging over the years.
The novel’s long span of time not only captures the highs and lows of a popular band but also shows how AIDS, racism, and homophobia impacted countless lives in countless ways during those years. Fortunately, the focus mostly stays on music and love. M. E Samm gives us an entertaining rock and roll story about people who often seek perfection in their work but often miss it in how they treat themselves and each other. I won’t give more away, but I hope more people download the book and hit the road with El & Em.
View all my Goodreads reviews
Thanks for visiting my blog! Please read about my books, including the small-town fiction collection The Acorn Stories and my free eBook Degranon: A Science Fiction Adventure.
