I can't help you with wine, I drink nothing.  I can link you with my semi-straight friend, Scott, if you have a specific wine question.

Kink, I can help you with a bit.  I claim research for my excuse.

Tirz

Jeni Decker wrote:

I'm thinking along the lines of: merlot goes with so and so, chardonay with so and so... things like that.  Matching not necessarily a brand but a type with a food product.  How you'd teach someone what wine to choose at dinner with what type of food.

Like that!

Just give me the menu/

I can do a decent pairing for you. Not somalier level, but decent.

On the other Um... subject.

I have to deal with similar issues. There is a unpleasant occurence in my book with a similar issue. It's not graphic in the book, but I write things grraphic in first draft.

If you want you any information let me know on that too.

Rian

Jeni--Your email bounced back.

Where should I send Jackson's Toys Email?

HavePenWillScribble wrote:

I love merlot. I wish I hadn't strayed here. Now I'm feeling a merlot desire. I've got some sharp cheddar, french bread, home made apple butter...but no merlot. Hmm, I have cheap red table wine. Have to do. I don't know what goes together. When you live as far out in the woods as I do, whatever you have on hand seems to go perfect together.

Scribbler.. are you 'wining' like me.  " I don't have any Merlot!"  "I don't know what goes together!"  "I live in the woods!"   Wine Wine Wine...  Well, I don't have any homemade apple-butter so there... I feel a 'wine' coming on... oh nooooooooo..

Ha!

Flo

I think I got my wine stuff covered.  Found a great site that gave me specific examples of dishes for things like:

Chardonay with Caesar salad and crab cakes, Cabernet Sauvignon with steak or dark chocolate, Merlot with camembert--STUFF LIKE THAT.  And it goes with what I'm writing the 'lesson' from the older more sophisitcated gay male (rich) gives Jackson and I've already started weaving in the sex toys--it's all in the same bit of dialogue, and it's coming out well, I think.  Working to show the personalities of both men and it's a bit funny.  Or, I hope so, the readers are THE DECIDERS.

Jeni

Jeni Decker wrote:

TirzahLaughs wrote:

I can't help you with wine, I drink nothing.  I can link you with my semi-straight friend, Scott, if you have a specific wine question.

Kink, I can help you with a bit.  I claim research for my excuse.

Tirz

What I spotted RIGHT AWAY was the 'semi-straight' moniker.  How about giving me a bit of description of that as well.  I'm finding so many interesting gray areas while writing (and researching) for Jackson.

I read The Lure by Felice Picano, then reread the whole book two days later.  Good for research but the story itself was fantastic.  I can't get it out of my head, probably because it was inspired by real events and it was a well written psychological thriller with mostly gay characters.  But the protag sees a crime, is pulled into becoming a Lure for a serial killer and, well I won't go further, but knowing that much of the story was inspired by real crimes investigated in NYC in the 70's--frightening.  Of course rogue governmental CIA like operatives are involved...  nasty, nasty business.

But a great read.

Now I'm on to  Alfred Chesters 'The Exquisite Corpse'

Jeni

I answered in the expert section.  I didn't want to fill this poor post with kink.

Tirz

Jeni, I haven't read this whole thread, but in response to your last post... Have you seen the movie 54?  It's about the rise and fall (mostly fall) of Studio 54 in the 70s.  Sex, drugs, rock&roll, some of it gay.  Thought you might want to check it out!  I saw it free On Demand a few weeks ago.

kaysee

Jeni Decker wrote:

I haven't seen it, no.  There are a couple of things I've found I want to watch/read.  Cruising the Deuce is something i want to check out also because it's specifically about 42nd street, which is where my protag. lives and works mostly.

I'm actually writing about the 80's through the 90's during the time that NYC was undergoing gentrification by Mayor Giulianni.  But I've read so much from the 70's era on the 'hustling' topics and so many of my favorite authors are gay males.  (all, I think.  That's weird, I know.  I mean I've got some books by Djuna Barnes and Gertrude Stein--and I think Nathalie Barney was VERY interesting.)  But all of my fave authors are gay men.  I realized that when I was writing FFH:

Edward Albee
David Sedaris
John Rechy
Oscar Wilde

Maybe I've just been going through a ten or fifteen year phase.  hahaha.  Dunno.

Its not in the same tone of your book, but a great movie on gay/transgender is "TransAmerica".

Great movie.

If you are looking for a grittier movie, try "My Own Private Idaho".

On TNBW Jeni, read Cecil's "The Love Thing".  Its a sweet gay love story. 


Tirz

TirzahLaughs wrote:

Jeni Decker wrote:

I haven't seen it, no.  There are a couple of things I've found I want to watch/read.  Cruising the Deuce is something i want to check out also because it's specifically about 42nd street, which is where my protag. lives and works mostly.

I'm actually writing about the 80's through the 90's during the time that NYC was undergoing gentrification by Mayor Giulianni.  But I've read so much from the 70's era on the 'hustling' topics and so many of my favorite authors are gay males.  (all, I think.  That's weird, I know.  I mean I've got some books by Djuna Barnes and Gertrude Stein--and I think Nathalie Barney was VERY interesting.)  But all of my fave authors are gay men.  I realized that when I was writing FFH:

Edward Albee
David Sedaris
John Rechy
Oscar Wilde

Maybe I've just been going through a ten or fifteen year phase.  hahaha.  Dunno.

Its not in the same tone of your book, but a great movie on gay/transgender is "TransAmerica".

Great movie.

If you are looking for a grittier movie, try "My Own Private Idaho".

On TNBW Jeni, read Cecil's "The Love Thing".  Its a sweet gay love story. 


Tirz

OH, I'm gonna go put that on my reading list right now!!

Haven't seen TransAmerica, but have seen My Own Private Idaho.  Fantastic movie.  Depressing but fantastic.  River Phoenix could have gone on to do such good stuff.  It's a shame...

s_thatcher wrote:

corra wrote:

winestone wrote:

Out of pure interest, and as my parting contribution to this site - here is a harsh review of 'talent' given on a Brit audition show. It is worth watching.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yKjMTlSZAMM

Somebody has been telling the guy he is 'sooooo good', and look at what it has done to him.

Don't be this guy!

LOL -- Yikes! That guy was delusional!

Great youtube. I'm baffled people like that really exist. Kinda funny, but mostly sad.
Unfortunately, the overinflated rankings and ratings given to poor writers on this site perpetuate such delusion.

Now, I'm gonna go read something truly funny that makes me laugh and guffaw, by a writer who is not only really, really, really good, but also modest; a rakish wannabe lounge singer, with a penchant for blueberry muffins.

LOL! Sounds like a great idea! Humor is an important part of daily life. (wink)

I agree though, wacthing a truly deluded person can make your heart sink. That's why I have never watched Amercian Idol. I hear it gets really good after they finish the public humiliations, but I never could get past that part. Simon is a shock-value pop-culture sadist. People tune in to be entertained by the public humiliation of others. That baffles me more than anything else.

(Sigh) I'm not one to judge, I have my wicked pleasures too. They usually involve millions of dollars of machinery screeching along concrete walls or plowing through turf. It's all set up to prevent bodily injury, however and can be an amazing demonstration of a "chain of events." A distubance in aero-dynamics... on miscalculation on camber or timing of a move then... calamity. The masters and rookies can all get taken out at random. And I tune in for it every week.

Rian



If only they had a flash of insight, after all.

I went back and read parts of this thread (and others about reviewing on site; I just ended up here), though not all of it (or them) by any means. But from what I did read, there seems to be an informal debate about the star system and the way reviewers use or abuse it. I admit that I did once upon a time in the beginning give a 2 rating and got a bit of an ass chewing for it. Doesn't really matter; I was using the designated descriptions as a guide.

For the author of a piece, the stars should be irrelevant because the value or lack thereof to improvement of your work will be in what the reviewer has to say, not what number they arbitrarily place on it for whatever reason. If a "reviewer" corrects punctuation, makes suggestions for content, flow, dialogue, etc., points out errors of whatever type, tells you what they like or don't like, asks questions of unclear passages, or anything else, whether praise or negative criticism, then the author has room to benefit from what is said if they are so inclined. If the author thinks the reviewer is full of bullshit, then they should simply discard anything said just as, hopefully, they will discard a more valued observation if it does not meet their needs or is contrary to their personal belief.

So, it is what is said in the review that means a hill of beans and any "star-number" is totally irrelevant regardless of whether it might cause some earth shattering fluctuation in the scoring system used to determine whether you make it to the top ten novel list. If making the top ten list or whatever is your goal, then you only need to round up a bunch of friends and get them to sign on and give you a thousand reviews - won't cost them or you a thing if they don't post anything. But what have you accomplished? You aren't getting objective feedback for improving your writing. You get that from what others on this site give you when they review honestly - you are the judge to that honesty, not some star system no matter whether it's 2, 3, 5, 10...1,000 stars. You can receive helpful info from a one or two rating if that person points out something you need to work on even if they thought it was total trash (a subjective opinion).

Under our star system as is, I may, now, on rare occasion give a 3 for a writer I think is very early in their writing development; otherwise I give a 4 or 5 because if I like it enough to give a review, then IMHO, it is worthy. I will often start with a four to leave room for improvement and will also drop back if so warranted, primarily as a love-kick in the butt because I know the author can do better. But in any case, I try to make some suggestions where I think they could improve and try to point out at least some positive aspect because there is always something to meet that qualification also. I could say the same things and give a 1 or 2 rating and the words would mean exactly the same thing. Should you choose to listen to one and not the other because of a rating number? That is a choice to possibly learn from or ignore advice.

To me the star system is oft times more a rating of how much a person enjoys the story and/or the author (yes, I know it's not supposed to be), rather than the merit of the writing and thus should be taken as totally subjective by the author (just as other opinions are) and not seen as a devastating blow to the psyche or your ability as a writer. This would be especially true of newbies which may or may not be sensitive to the star system and it's possible traumatic effects.

It is up to the author to decide what they will take from a review. Honesty in critiqueing is the only criteria I ask from a reviewer and that is what I try to offer and no star system can measure that. Just my humble opinion. Take care. Vern

Last edited by vern (10-11-2008 22:02:52)