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It's Only Me from Across the Sea
This author has contributed to our Writing Masterclass
I was inspired to write stories by reading those written by several authors. One of the first I wrote to was Rick Beck, way back in the 1990s.
My main inspiration has been the young Chicago writer who goes by the name of Comicality. His encouragement and friendship has started me writing about young love, forbidden love.
I am grateful to him, and will be for ever in his debt.
Each of the stories has a history. Each of them has a vision that inspired it. I've created a set of background notes for you to see exactly what was in my mind before I put finger to keyboard.
In addition, as you'll see from the notes, there have been boys in my life who have inspired the stories. Some of these I was at school with. I've put a Rogues Gallery together with those I have pictures of. They're old extracts from school photographs. There's even a poll to vote for your favourite boy.
Chris and Nigel
Dedication
This story is dedicated to John, the imperfect boy whom I fell for totally and for ever in September 1965 and never told until May 2001, regrettably by letter, not in person [I was, of course, rejected by being ignored]. We were both thirteen when I fell in love with him.
"John, without loving you, I could not have written this tale, nor become the man that I am. The story is of my undying love for you, even though you never knew. You, John, made me feel alive when we were in school, and, though you never knew, I hope you somehow felt loved. I am for ever in your debt."
This story is not about me and him. It is about two other boys entirely. But it was nice to dream while writing it
Book 1 - France and Beyond
Book 2 - Back to School
Book 3 - Abusive Behaviour
Or, to put it another way, who's in it!
I'm proud of the comments I've been receiving. So I added this section on 5 March 2000.
Nice Try!
- Nice Try! - Jake has a shock. A bad one. (Published 7 May 2001)
- Nice Try! - The Prequel, Do read Nice Try! first, or this one will spoil it! It starts before the beginning. But then that's what a prequel is. (Published 15 May 2001)
- Nice Try! - Back, This is the third instalment. Written in a different style. The whole series has been fun to write. There is scope for more, but I think it's finished now. (Published 29 May 2001)
Like all my short stories it's an experiment, and, like all my stories, there are background notes about it.
Short Stories
"Hello Buoys!"
[A series of occasional vignettes, almost certainly only six]
The best date one can work out for this tale is that it is set 'round about now', or broadly the year it has been published, that is 2017. It's fiction, though. No real businesses are depicted in this tale except where stated in this notice, though some seem very real, nor does the story portray real people. The sport of sailing? That is represented faithfully. The Royal Yachting Association (RYA) is a well respected management, training, and certification body administering sailing and motorboating in the UK. Every attempt has been made to represent it correctly and in the light of excellence it would wish. The GP14 Class Association is treated similarly. The author has a fondness for the design of dinghy having both learnt to sail in it and taught sailing in it. The RNLI is a hugely professional charitable organisation of almost 100% volunteer lifeboat crews. It is an organisation very dear to the heart of the author. It makes a brief appearance and is represented correctly as an equal opportunities organisation. If you want to find out more about each organisation please use a search engine
Queer Me!
Halfway Between Flying and Crying
This is a seven chapter tale, but don't let that fool you into thinking it is short! It's available as eBook, paperback, hardback, and audiobook (virtually voiced by Amazon's AI speech generator, which does a really good job)
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Tim discovers to his horror at 13 that he has fallen deeply in love with another 13 year old boy. The coming of age story of a shy queer teenager in the Swinging Sixties in the UK, this true story is the dramatised diary of Tim's teenage school days. The emotional ride starts on his 13th birthday on the 5th of August 1965, in a grey coast town in North Wales while he still thought he was heterosexual, and ends as he leaves school in December 1970 aged 18.
His parents never understood who he was, never realised he had insecurities, was failing, was in love, was afraid of them, that he needed help. They told themselves he was a perfect China Doll. Queer China Dolls were faulty. In his family faulty China Dolls were smashed. This is the UK when homosexuality was first illegal; then, in the days leading up to its legalisation for consenting adults in the UK in 1967, it was talked about in parliament and the press as abhorrent, a perversion, an abomination.
These were bleak times to be a gay teenager, yet Tim shows his hopes and fears throughout. The places are real, so are the boys. The names are changed to protect the innocent and the guilty alike
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Sometimes life gets a little tough. Or a sentiment is evoked, or help is needed. We have a small community of friends here, and you are invited: to come as a friend, to watch as a friend, to join in as a friend, to become "permanent", or to flit through our lives. The choice is yours.
Drop by the community and see for yourself. From small beginnings, large friendships and support can blossom.