"25" - Real vs. Fantasy

For those readers who pay close attention, they might notice the last chapter was 22 and the new chapter is 25. This might prompt a question or two. Let me explain.

In my “books,” my main goal is to create love stories between men, but I want my characters to be relatable and therefore, the narrative will seem very realistic. That means my men are flawed, and their mistakes sometimes have sad consequences.

When I decided to tell Jakob’s full story, the bits of information written in Hi, I’m Lance started the framework. From that, I had to flesh it all out. Jakob is four years older than Lance, so I had to start his tale with him being 17, which he had shared, and his caring time with Anson. From there, only glimpses of roommates and the art fair were given, so there was a lot of space for me to fill. By the time I got to “22,” I felt I had covered the hardships rather well. A 23, 24 and 25 would have just been really tough. Realistic or not, those were some years I could omit. I just condensed it down to a single chapter, thus the jump from “22” to “25.” (I’ve had readers already tell me the dark chapters are just too tough.)

People around the world have lousy roommates and great roommates. I feel the mix that Jakob has had to live with is pretty indicative of the variety that people might encounter. The jerks — particularly when drunk — I don’t feel are too unrealistic. I haven’t endured what Jakob has gone through, but I’ve know a lot of assholes, for sure.

But I digress. From the beginning, I’ve said this book is darker. But now that we are past the halfway point, we know things brighten soon. We’ve defined who Jakob is as a whole. I’ve felt I’ve kept it real to get to this point.

Click here to read Ascension: Jakob’s Ladder, “25” [Chapter7].

While my stories are certainly fictitious, I feel I’ve kept them grounded. The Nifty platform emphasizes the sexual content, of course, but I hope the scenes play out as realistic. I confess I haven’t read an abundance on the site, but I’ve seen a fair share of those that have coaches and students getting it on, or dads wanting to be dominated by their son’s best friends, etc. To each his own; there is an audience for that, I suppose. I just want my characters to be individuals with traits with which readers can identify. Fantasy scenes are one thing, but I want my characters to develop, not just make it to the next locker room scene, if you catch my drift.

I am sure that is why I really don’t care for my first two chapters in Extracurricular [Book One]. Mike and Trent weren’t developed enough. The locker room scene just seems trite looking back. It is when they go out for drinks afterward that they begin to develop some depth to their characters.

Fantasy may be the grail for some readers who just might want to get off. I hope I'm respecting the reader by going a little deeper. I like keeping it real.

I think we can all look forward to Jakob meeting Lance next chapter.