Wednesday, December 03, 2014

Me2: Chapter 11

(from M.Christian's Queer Imaginings)

As part of a huge - and much needed - marketing push, I'm going to be serializing a few of my all-time favorite books ... starting with the (ahem) rather infamous novel that I may or may not have actually written: Me2

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0092B8VOA/ref=cm_sw_su_dp

"Absolutely brilliant!" says Lisabet Sarai, author of Incognito and Fire, about Lambda finalist M.Christian's controversial manlove horror/thriller. 


He looks just like you. He acts exactly like you. He takes away your job. He steals your friends. He seduces your male lover. None of them can tell the difference. Every day he becomes more and more like you, pushing you out of your own life, taking away what was yours … until there’s nothing left. Where did he come from? Robot? Alien? Clone? Doppelganger? Evil twin? Long lost brother? Then you discover there are still more "yous." Can you be sure you are the real you? And how do you fight to take your own life back? 


An absorbing new approach to the question of identity, Me2 is a groundbreaking gay chiller you’ll remember for a long time – no matter who you are, or who you think you may be. 


(Despite rumors that this book was written by an impostor - but, rest assured, this is the real 'M.Christian.' Accept no substitutes!)



Chapter XI
Me11


"You've heard it a lot.  Hell, I know you've heard it a lot.  But I mean it, you to me – honestly, truthfully – I know what you're feeling, the shit you've been going through.

"There's a lot of things going on.  Real things.  It's not just in your mind, not just in the space between your ears.  It's not just you.

"That's the problem, too.  But at least you aren't alone.  So you can relax, if you can.
"I'm so glad you came in.  I've tried to track down a few others like us, but when I got close, they got pretty freaked out.  A few even got punchy.  Can't really blame them, I guess.  Some of them are pretty ... busted up.  So that's why I stopped looking, let them come to me.  Like you have.  So glad you're handling it ... as well as you are.  You seem to be one of the better ones.

"Have you figured it out yet?  No?  I'm not surprised.  A few of us have had bits of it – a part here and there – but none of us have had all of it.  Don't know why I did.  Luck, maybe.  Could be I've had more time to think.  I don't know.

"We're all the same.  That's what it's all about.  That's what's going on: none of us are unique.  No one is.  We've all become types, we wear nothing but costumes, we act only like we're supposed to act –and we like it that way.  We've made ourselves into what we want to be, how we want to be seen.  It doesn't matter what that is: rich, poor, stupid, smart, beautiful.  It doesn't even matter how we start either – no parents, one parent, both parents, whatever – because no matter how we grow up, we all want to be the same as everyone else when we do.

"It's always been kind of like this, but it's different now.  Worse, I think.  Things used to travel slowly.  But now it just rushes at you, doesn't it?  TV, the Internet, magazines, books.  Life – all of it.  Sometimes you feels like it's too much, right?  It's too loud, too crazy, too angry.  So you try to find ways not to feel tense, outside, alone: you listen to the top ten, watch the top ten, think the top ten are sexy, want to look like the top ten, want to become the top ten, because everyone else does.  It's safe.  It feels good to know what you're doing is what everyone else is doing.

"There's something else, too: the TV, the Internet, the magazines, the books are all made to get to the most people, right?  That's the way it works, isn't it?  They're successful when they get the most number of people to read the same thing, watch the same thing, think the same thing, become the same thing – and they keep getting better and better at it.  Something's a hit because it was made to be a hit – and we make it a hit because if we don't watch it, listen to it, be like it then we won't be like everyone else.

"Think about it.  We want to be wanted, so we buy what they're selling, so we become what everyone wants: a predictable model, a type, a unit.  Everyone's the same – and that way we not only know what we are, but everyone else knows what we are, too.  Then to stay that way, we buy what we're supposed to buy and live the way our types are supposed to live.  It goes round and around and around and around!

"Have you listened to your thoughts?  Really listened?  Close your eyes and pay attention: they aren't yours, are they?  They're stuff from movies, from TV, from all over the place.  They aren't yours because you're just what you've read or watched or seen.  You're just bits and pieces of stuff.  Stuff that other people are thinking about too, people who want to be the same kind of person you are.
"Even people who don't think they're not the same are the same, I mean.  They think they're special but they're not.  They're types too – just different types.  They think they're beyond all this shit but they're not – they've all read the same books, seen the same flicks, listened to the same music.  They all want to be accepted, but accepted by people like them, so they wear their costumes and put on their act.  Just like us.  Just like all of us.

"Maybe we're ... better at all this, being 'types' I mean.  Maybe we're so outside of it, being queer and all, that we just want it more.  You know: to be part of something we get and that gets us.  So we make ourselves into special shapes and shit and lives to do that.  Some of us talk a certain way, walk a certain way, create lives that are just like our type so we don't have to be different.  More different, I mean.

"No shit that some of us – some of 'me' you could say – 'broke'.  You could see why it happened, when you figure it all out.  Others, like you, have handled it okay.  That we have become a standard model of a person, I mean.  I'm just glad you saw me and came in, so we could talk.

"Others ... like me, too, I guess.  How many like me are there?  Sitting down and talking to others like you.  Explaining about it all?  Telling the story?  I don't know how many others – but there's more than one.  That's the point, I guess: that there's always more than one."

Sitting in Starbucks, listening to him.  Listening to me.  The other me.  A path in his talking, a winding road through my head, going from refusal to belief, from belief to fury, fury to wanting to work things out, wanting to work things out to deep darkness, and then finally from deep darkness to understanding.

We sipped our caramel macchiatos together, one side of the mirror facing the other.  Maybe one set of eyes a bit more frantic, the other set of eyes more exhausted.  Otherwise the same man here, the same man there: Tommy Hilfiger facing Tommy Hilfiger in a Starbucks that could be any Starbucks.  The hair was the same, styled and modeled and clipped in imitation of the same look seen in the same magazine, on the same model who was chosen to appeal to the greatest number of men.

What was he thinking?  I could almost hear the words in my head – but only almost.  The tone of voice was there, but the details were slippery, sliding from getting caught and nailed down.  He'd figured it out, after all.  I hadn't.  He was me, but a me that was farther along the road, waving back to my slower pace.  I might be able to think like he did, given enough time.

I thought about him.  I thought about me.  I thought about other ... hims and mes and Is and theys and uses.  One end of the road marked by a sideways, out-of-the-other-corner-of-the-eye, "Weren't you just here?" the first sign that something-may-not-be-right, that there might be someone out there who looks like me, acts like me, and who wants to steal what's mine.

The other end was this me, who had seen it all, pondered and thought, deduced, and then tried to tell others what he'd pondered, what he'd thought, what he'd deduced.

My coffee was warm in my hand, so I sipped at it.  Across the table, my coffee was warm in my hand, so I sipped it.  A delay, perhaps, of a moment, a pause, a consideration between the two of us.  One at this side of the road, the other at that side of the road.

But what was right?  No, not a road.  That was only one direction: this way or that way.  There were others, maybe many others.  Only some of them were just beginning, only some of them were finally ending.  He said that a few of us hadn't ... taken it well.  How not well?

Not well of tears?  Not well of sleepless nights?  Not well of sadness?  Not well of fear?  Not well of fright?

I could imagine that too well, and then did, as the coffee filled my mouth with warm excitement: a mirror-image walking through my life, stepping on my toes, taking my place in line, getting everywhere before me, moving in, taking everything.  I could see where that would push and push and push until I fell over into tears, from sleepless nights of paranoia, sadness of loss, fear of vanishing, and fright from being replaced.

But there were other kinds of not well.  Different direction I could have gone.

Not well of tears?  Not well of seduction?  Not well of temptation?  Not well of escape?  Not well of capture?

I could imagine that too well, and then did as the coffee filled my mouth with cooling excitement: a mirror-image fantasy lurking around every nasty corner of my life, crooking a finger at my conscienceless dick, licking duplicate lips, offering a perfect self-dream of narcissism, an enrapturing embrace of the one person I knew would be there and love me no matter what – but then there was the bad stuff of it, the swirling-down-the-drain shivers at the thought of gazing from now until whenever at my own navel.  I could see where that would shove me into tears from the allure of seduction, the tug of temptation, the fever to escape, and then the dark wish for capture.
But there were other kinds of not well.  Different direction I could have gone.

Not well of tears?  Not well of stalking?  Not well of pursuit?  Not well of corners?  Not well of desperation?  Not well of blood?  Not well of red and blue lights?  Not well of prison?  Not well of hail of gunfire?

I could imagine that too well, and then did as the coffee filled my mouth with cold dread: around every corner, behind every closed door, a leering face from a warped mirror; every step from behind belonging to him, every sound coming from him, every face at first his – until proven otherwise, every threat his, everything everywhere a scheme belonging to him.  I could see where that would shove me into frightened tears, drive me quivering insane from his real or imagined stalking, his real or imagined pursuit, his real or imagined face around every corner, then a moment when it didn't matter if he was real or imagined – it had to stop, then a moment of blood, then an afterworld of alleys and darkness escaping from the police, then an afterworld of bars and rape – or an afterworld of bullets burning hot holes through his body.

So many other kinds of not well.  So many different directions I could have gone.  Not a road.  No, that wasn't right.  So many stories with so many different versions of me.  I could see them as separate, unconnected, single stories – or even like a novel, with each chapter only looking like the same me on a trip from suspicion to seduction to smashing a supposed copy's brain to gray pudding – but in reality each me is a different one, lots of little stories instead of a big one in little pieces.
And I, sitting in front of another me sipping coffee, is just one more.  One more false chapter.  One more me.  In some books I'd be the end, in others only the beginning.

We got up to refresh our caramel macchiatos, he and I, perfectly together – as were the grins we shared at getting up together to refresh our caramel macchiatos.  Then we were broken, he doing something I wasn't doing – but only for a moment as I followed the turn of his head to look out the window, and saw what he turned his head to see.  Outside, looking in, worn and tired, scared and sleepless, Tommy Hilfiger over an older look as disguise, eyes too wide from too many shocks, was another me.


With what I hoped was a friendly beckoning, I crooked my finger at him; welcoming him into the company of himself.

Wednesday, November 26, 2014

The NEXT Leather, Lace & Lust: An Evening Of Erotic Storytelling and Sexual Merriment!

(from M.Christian's Classes And Appearances)

Check it out: coming up is the next installment in the regular Leather, Lace & Lust: An Evening Of Erotic Storytelling and Sexual Merriment event ... sponsored by the great folks at WriteSex! 

See you there!



Come one, come all* to an evening of lusty literature by many of the best erotica writers in the Bay Area!

From the tempting tease of delicate lace to the steamy heat of hardcore leather, these authors and performers will amuse, delight, and most of all excite you in all kinds of new and provocative ways; This is an evening of witty, carnal, and provocative literary endeavors that will tickle just about every kind of fancy, a festival of playful sensual fiction that will make you laugh, cry, and get that oh-so-special tingly feeling in your nether-regions.

In other words, a night of kick-ass erotica performed by ass-kicking writers!

Sponsored by WriteSex: Everything a writer needs to know about the business of publishing erotica!

Our featured performers include:

Suz deMello, a.k.a Sue Swift, is a best-selling, award-winning author of seventeen romance novels in several subgenres, including erotica, comedy, historical, paranormal, mystery and suspense, plus a number of short stories and non-fiction articles on writing.

Molly Weatherfield: "Twenty years ago, a mild-mannered computer programmer decided to spend some quality time with her erotic fantasy life, and Carrie's Story - BDSM for smart girls - was born."

Mistress Lorelei Powers is a well-known bi poly sadist and Domme. She is the author of several BDSM classics, including On Display, The Mistress Manual, and Charm School for Sissy Maids.

Blake C. Aarens is an author, poet, screenwriter, playwright, and a Black Girl Nerd.

Jean Marie Stine is the author of a number of pioneering works of erotica published in the late 1960 and early 1970s, beginning with Season of the Witch in 1968, which was filmed as the motion picture Synapse. Her erotic short stories and novelettes have been collected as "Trans-sexual: Fiction for Gender Queers."

Xan West refuses pronouns, twists barbed wire together with yearning, and tilts pain in many directions to catch the light. Xan adores vulnerable tops, strong supportive bottoms, queer activist communities, red meat, and cool, dark, quiet rooms with comfortable beds.

M.Christian is a recognized master of erotica with more than 400 stories in such anthologies as Best American Erotica, Best Gay Erotica, Best Lesbian Erotica, Best Bisexual Erotica, Best Fetish Erotica and many others.

Saturday, December 6th
The Center For Sex And Culture
1349 Mission St, San Francisco, CA 94103
Doors at 6:30PM, Event starts at 7:30PM
Admission: $10

*no guarantees

Wednesday, November 19, 2014

Jean Marine Stine & I: Using Social Media To Grow Your Adult Business And Build Your Client Base - The Working Smarter And Not Harder Way!

(from M.Christian's Classes And Appearances)

Okay, I know I say this a lot but this is very, very, very cool: I'm going to be joining my great pal, Jean Marie Stine, in doing a class on PR and adult business for the Center For Sex And Culture on Nov. 29th. Here's the info:


Using Social Media To Grow Your Adult Business And Build Your Client Base - The Working Smarter And Not Harder Way...

... for Retailers, Therapists, Photographers, Video Makers, Sex Workers, Writers & Others

Nov 29, 2014 2:00 PM - 4:00PM
Center for Sex and Culture
1349 Mission St,
San Francisco, CA 94103
$20

Let's face facts: the adult business world has totally, completely changed marketing and advertising tricks that used to work simply don't anymore ... which is why, more than ever, thinking outside the box is key to raising above the rest and, best of all, bring in exposure and, hopefully, sales.

Twitter? Tumblr? Facebook? While there are a lot of options, many of the techniques that a lot of gurus and experts recommend only work for those same experts and gurus ... and not for anyone else.

But in this fun and provocative lecture you'll learn to learn the differences between what other people say you should do and what actually works including when to play by the rules and when not to, how to rise above the rest, and how to manage your marketing time and dollars.

Among some of the subjects covered will be:
  • How to blog, tweet and post effectively and efficiently
  • How to handle fast media like Twitter versus slower ones like Facebook
  • When national social media is what you want and when it's something you don't need
  • The power of FREE
  • Knowing your audience ... and developing great techniques to reach them
  • Understanding the difference between likes, friends and actual sales
  • How to make your social media presence rich and interesting without taking valuable time away from your company
  • How to think innovatively about advertising, public relations, and marketing that don't involve social media or even the internet
Jean Marie Stine is the author of a number of pioneering works of erotica published in the late 1960 and early 1970s, beginning with Season of the Witch in 1968, which was filmed as the motion picture Synapse. Her erotic short stories and novelettes have been collected as "Trans-sexual: Fiction for Gender Queers." She is the Publisher of Renaissance E Books, which includes the Sizzler Editions imprint of premier and groundbreaking erotica

M.Christian is a recognized master of erotica with more than 400 stories in such anthologies as Best American Erotica, Best Gay Erotica, Best Lesbian Erotica, Best Bisexual Erotica, Best Fetish Erotica and many others. He is a sexuality and BDSM educator for venues all across the country -- and an Associate Publisher for Renaissance E Books.

Monday, November 17, 2014

This Tuesday: Creative Sex Play At Good Vibrations!

(from M.Christian's Classes And Appearances)

This is going to be a real blast - come if you can to hear little ol' me chat about sex and creativity!



Even the most experienced sexual adventurer may run short of ... shall we say 'inspiration'? In this wild and provocative seminar with noted erotic writer and teacher M.Christian, participants will not just learn all kind of new techniques and sexual worlds to explore and do that exploration safely (both physically as well as emotionally) -- but they will also have lots of fun with various techniques to expand their basic imagination muscles: picking up new and enjoyable games to help them add a lot more to their lives and not just their bedroom play.

About the presenter:

M.Christian has been an active participant in the San Francisco BDSM scene since 1988, and has been a featured presenter at the Northwest Leather Celebration, smOdyssey, the Center For Sex and Culture, The National Sexuality Symposium, QSM, San Francisco Sex Information, The Citadel, The Looking Glass, The Society of Janus, The Floating World, Winter Solstice, and lots of other venues. He has taught classes on everything from impact play, tit torture, bondage, how to write and sell erotica, polyamory, cupping, caning, and basic SM safety.

M.Christian is also a recognized master of BDSM erotica with more than 400 stories in such anthologies as Best American Erotica, Best Gay Erotica, Best Lesbian Erotica, Best Bisexual Erotica, Best Fetish Erotica, and many other anthologies, magazines, and other sites; editor of 2t anthologies such as the Best S/M Erotica series, Pirate Booty, My Love For All That Is Bizarre: Sherlock Holmes Erotica, and more; the collections Dirty Words, The Bachelor Machine, Love Without Gun Control, Rude Mechanicals, and more; and the novels Running Dry, The Very Bloody Marys, Me2, Finger's Breadth, Brushes, and Painted Doll. His site is www.mchristian.com

Good Vibrations Polk Street Store
1620 Polk Street (at Sacramento Street)
San Francisco, CA 94109

$20.00 or $25 at the door, as space allows

Thursday, November 13, 2014

Please Help Elvis!

(from Arthur Byron Cover's site)


Arthur Byron Cover's partner Lydia Marano has posted a call on Facebook to help their beloved dog Elvis:
Elvis needs your help. As you may know, Art and I literally picked him up off the side of the road, in March, where he'd been hit by a car. Our vet gave him a 25% chance of walking again. We worked hard, everyday, to rehabilitate him and Elvis beat the odds. He can run now but as winter approaches it becomes more and more obvious that he still needs ACL surgery. The cost: at least $1500. That's half of what we already spent and, frankly, we're tapped out. Saving up on a fixed income is hard, but we’re trying.By sheer chance, we noticed that Elvis has a tumor in his mouth which is growing over his side teeth. The vet said it had to go ... duh. In one week it’s extended to his lower, right canine. The vet estimated it will cost about $700. We put down what we had — $100 — but he needs more. To date, we've raised an additional $364 -- more than half of what we need for his oral surgery! If you can donate any amount it would be greatly appreciated. 
I’ve added new designs to my Red Bubble page.  
http://www.redbubble.com/people/Telzey. Elvis will get $4-6 per item sold. You can send funds to lcmarano@gmail.com at PayPal. Or, better yet, send money directly to my vet: Rim Forest Animal Hospital at 909-337-8589. 
To those of you who have already donated, you have our eternal thanks. Everyone else -- thank you for listening. Asking for help is the hardest thing I've ever done, but Elvis is worth it.
Please help any way you can!  As Lydia has said, Elvis is more than worth it!


Confessions Of A Literary Streetwalker: Knowing Me Knowing You

Check it out: a brand new essay I did on smut-writing just went up on the great Erotica Readers and Writers site:



Confessions Of A Literary Streetwalker:
Knowing Me Knowing You


On the surface it sounds like a ... well, no duh. But it's really quite remarkable how many writers – especially erotica writers – put huge amounts of work into their craft, yet neglect an essential part of the process of actually getting people to read their work.

They slave over characters, plot, setting, language; they set up sites, join Facebook and Twitter and Good Reads; they network and network and network; and, in the end, they may be very well known ... but only by other erotica writers.

Believe me, my own glass house has plenty of smashed windows: I'm far from immune to intimidation that can come from reaching outside your authorly comfort zone.

A certain level of anxiety is expected, after all: as I've said more than a few times, writing is a very tough life ... and far too often the only people we can get to understand and appreciate what we do are other writers. Yes, they understand and, if they are good people, they will be supportive but the cold hard fact is that writers just don't buy other writers' books ... or at least not often.

Sitting on the other side of the fence – as an editor and Publisher for Renaissance E Books/Sizzler Editions – I see the side effects of authors not willing or able to understand their audience: poor sales. As said, they pour massive amounts of time and effort into their books but when they put their work out there it's like they haven't spend a single minute trying to think about who the book was written for ... who the audience is.

Sure, it's uncomfortable – as I've also said, writing is a very solitary thing so it goes very much against the grain for us all to have to deal with publicity – but it really is vital to spend some quality time thinking about who your readers actually are.

And it's not exactly rocket science – though there are a few tricks, as you might expect. The main one, of course, is when you reach out to sell your work keep in mind that's what you are doing: selling ... and no one likes to be sold to. There is a fine line between letting people know about your kick-ass erotica book and becoming a spammer. That is why simply throwing ads about your stuff out into your audience pool is never a good idea.

Instead, try to meet your readers halfway. Example: you've written the greatest gay Western romance ever. Congratulations! So where should you focus your social media and such? Not to be rude but ... come on! The answer is right there: Gay. Western. Romance.

Join or reach out to queer sites -- especially gay western or romance ones. Reach out to romance sites – especially western or gay ones. Reach out to western sites – especially gay and romance ones. Not just book sites (and I can't emphasize that enough) but sites for folks who like what you have written. Send them announcements but also share other things as well.


[MORE]

Saturday, November 08, 2014

Tuesday, Nov, 11th: Sensual Caning: How To Use The Rod In New And Exciting Ways

(from M.Christian's Classes And Appearances)

This is going to be a blast!


Sensual Caning: How To Use The Rod In New And Exciting Ways

SF Citadel
181 Eddy St, San Francisco, CA

Cost: $20 at the door, $15 in advance

The cane is one of those 'legendary' BDSM toys that is far too often used with dramatic flare – rather than erotic effectiveness. In this very special class, cane wielders will learn the difference between using a rod as a prop and, instead, how to use various types of cane (wood versus plastic, thin versus thick, etc) to send the receiver to new erotic heights. With this unique – and sensual - technique even those scared of the rod will be enticed to being on the receiving end of the not-so-scary cane.

Class from 8-10pm, doors open at 7:30pm
Cost: $20 at the door, $15 in advance via PurplePass: http://www.purplepass.com/sfc11112014

About the presenter:
M. Christian has been an active participant in the San Francisco BDSM scene since 1988, and has been a featured presenter at the Northwest Leather Celebration, smOdyssey, the Center For Sex and Culture, The National Sexuality Symposium, QSM, San Francisco Sex Information, The Citadel, The Looking Glass, The Society of Janus, The Floating World, Winter Solstice, and lots of other venues. He has taught classes on everything from impact play, tit torture, bondage, how to write and sell erotica, polyamory, cupping, caning, and basic SM safety.

M. Christian is also a recognized master of BDSM erotica with more than 400 stories in such anthologies as Best American Erotica, Best Gay Erotica, Best Lesbian Erotica, Best Bisexual Erotica, Best Fetish Erotica, and many other anthologies, magazines, and other sites; editor of 2t anthologies such as the Best S/M Erotica series, Pirate Booty, My Love For All That Is Bizarre: Sherlock Holmes Erotica, and more; the collections Dirty Words, The Bachelor Machine, Love Without Gun Control, Rude Mechanicals, and more; and the novels Running Dry, The Very Bloody Marys, Me2, Finger's Breadth, Brushes, and Painted Doll. His site is www.mchristian.com

Sunday, November 02, 2014

Me2: Chapter 7

(from M.Christian's Queer Imaginings)

As part of a huge - and much needed - marketing push, I'm going to be serializing a few of my all-time favorite books ... starting with the (ahem) rather infamous novel that I may or may not have actually written: Me2


http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0092B8VOA/ref=cm_sw_su_dp

"Absolutely brilliant!" says Lisabet Sarai, author of Incognito and Fire, about Lambda finalist M.Christian's controversial manlove horror/thriller. 

He looks just like you. He acts exactly like you. He takes away your job. He steals your friends. He seduces your male lover. None of them can tell the difference. Every day he becomes more and more like you, pushing you out of your own life, taking away what was yours … until there’s nothing left. Where did he come from? Robot? Alien? Clone? Doppelganger? Evil twin? Long lost brother? Then you discover there are still more "yous." Can you be sure you are the real you? And how do you fight to take your own life back? 

An absorbing new approach to the question of identity, Me2 is a groundbreaking gay chiller you’ll remember for a long time – no matter who you are, or who you think you may be. 

(Despite rumors that this book was written by an impostor - but, rest assured, this is the real 'M.Christian.' Accept no substitutes!)



Chapter VII
Me7


"They used to think it was a big circle, a loop, you know?  Around and around, all the way to the end, then back again – like that.  But that's until they got to know more about the way it all works.  Last I heard it was actually like a piece of paper that's rolled out then put back together but with different sides at the end.  Mobius strip, it's called.  So even though it's a real thing, in three dimensions, it's also only two, because if you follow it all the way around you come right back to where you started from, but not the way you'd normally think about it.

"Funny how they use paper to talk about it.  People in a thousand years won't probably understand what the hell we were talking about.  I can see them now, scratching their heads – if they even have heads anymore – and wondering what we meant by paper, and creasing and folding ... stuff like that.

"But that's the way they explain it now.  I also heard how they think it ends, how everything ends, really.  One is that it all just stops.  It all runs out of power ... the suns, black holes, all of it.  It just keeps going out and out, expanding but there's not enough out there for it to collect back together, right?  Out and out until everything's broken up into grayness.  Everything.  Just gray.

"I think that's fucking depressing, actually.  But there's others who think that there is enough matter and stuff that it won't just keep going and going, that sometime way off in the future it's going to stop and then get sucked back together.  They thought this wasn't going to be the way, but then they found this new kind of matter.  It's really weird.  You can't see it, but it has to be there, right?  But they found it – don't know how – and now a lot of professors and doctors think that because of it the world, universe and all, won't just keep going.  So it stops, right?  It stops and then because of this dark matter it'll start to pull back, shrink until everything's this big, then this big and then so damned small you can't see it – just like it was at the beginning again.

"Then something happens.  Maybe it gets so damned small and tight it can't get any smaller, so it has to explode again.  Another big bang right?  So it begins all over again.

"I like that, you know?  That it just keeps going, over and over again.  Out then in, bang to bang.  But time's like that strip, right?  So even so it goes around and around it also passes itself by, so things kind of repeat.  That's also kind of cool, you know?  That what was around before is still here, just passing us by – or layered on top of us.  Screw your eyes up and you could maybe see what happened before, just before our bang, the time before.  Maybe that's why we feel that deja vu thing – that it's just us passing the universe that was the last time, just bleeding through.

"I have this friend, a real stoner, you know?  But he's also kind of deep in his own way.  I told him about all this and he goes off and starts talking about how it also could explain a lot of other things.  Like history repeating itself, because it really does.  There's an echo, see, that plays in the background and sometimes it just gets so loud we can't help but follow right along.  Like a groove on a record that gets worn deeper and deeper each time it goes around.

"Shit.  There's something else people might not understand in a few years.  Records ... miss 'em sometimes, you know?

"But this friend of mine also says that's also what ghosts are.  That the world gets thin sometimes so what was before then comes through.  Or maybe it's the future that's coming through.  Or both.  He also said something else ... and this really freaked me out.  I mean really freaked.  Like I couldn't sleep that night.  You know?  Really disturbing.

"He said ... well, he said that it might be that we just think we can't remember each cycle.  He said that it might be that the people we think we are, are made up of each of these 'run-throughs,' that we didn't really have minds, that we were just robots going through the motions, because that's just the way the world works.  But, because we've gone through it so many times, we think we're getting close to being really conscious.  It's the repetition, the echoes, that causes it.

"But what got me is that he also said we might not really be there yet, that we have a few more cycles to go through.  We might just still be machines going through the motions but we wouldn't know it.  We'd never know it.  Creepy, huh?

"I thought about it a bit more.  I also thought that sometimes there might be a problem, like things might repeat too many times and so there's a ... I don't know, a tear, a rip, shit like that.  Paper again, right?  But it might happen, and when it does, something really weird might happen, like something from a long time back might get here, or we might fall back to a few bangs ago.  I don't know what it'd look like, but it could be really freaky – so freaky we might not know what it is.  We might never know what it is.

"In the future they might know all about this.  Big foreheads or no foreheads, something like that.  But then possibly the future is the past, so maybe we did know, but for some reason we aren't sharing it.

"Gives you a headache, doesn't it?"

* * * *

"Maybe you'll have a good time."

One, two, three, four – it didn't look like a Lexus neighborhood, but there they were, one after another, on the right as well as the left side of the street: points of smooth luxury in an area that seemed more comfortable with affordability – either that or lots of people were getting a giggly thrill out of crossing the line and parking in an area more suited to Toyotas or Hondas.

My Volkswagen was neither a completely left or a totally right machine, not a Lexus or even a Honda, and so was suitable for the area.  That didn't put me at ease, but at least it didn't ramp up my already jittery nerves.  The bees in my knees, the wasps in my ears, the spiders tap-dancing up and then down my back didn't need any more nervous encouragement.

"Maybe you'll have a good time."

I didn't want to be there.  A possible parking place – between the expensive fire-hydrant red and the faded status of a filthy Civic – but I passed it by, not wanting to risk a tow or a ticket and feeling down enough without a WASH ME contact humiliation.  Another was close by – sandwiched between the driveway of a heavily shaded ranch-type monstrosity and a pristine SUV – but I kept on driving, not wishing an angry homeowner's raving insanity at blocking his drive or the infection of being too close to a politically incorrect vehicle.

Face it: I didn't want to stop.

Ah, there it was: I didn't want to stop – catch the lean on the "I"?  The 'me' that was still rolling around in my head, the old 'me,' the failed 'me,' the crappy 'me,' the disappointing 'me,' the abandoned 'me,' was the 'me' that just wanted to keep circling the block until my tires went bald, then flat, and the engine went completely dry.  That 'me' loved parties, itched to throw myself into the chattering, laughing, glowing pool of a good get-together: "Did you hear?" "How didn't you know?" "Ohmigod!" "I can't believe that!" "Never in a million years!" "That's something else" "Who'd have thought it!" "So like him" "Saw that coming" "Can't believe he did that" "Like we couldn't tell" "That's fine – for him" "Talk about dating down" "Someone's still reading from last month's issue" "I know!" "Mee-ow!" "You'd think he'd take the hint" "I tried to be nice" "Did you see what he was wearing?" "Did you see what he was driving?" "Did you see who he was with?" "That’s not what I heard" "Girlfriend, you’ve got to pay attention to those kinds of things" "What a bitch!"

But that was before my neck got a stabbing lightning-bolt of pain from looking over my shoulder: was that him?  Was that him?  Was that him?  But that was before my back got a crushing cramp from duckng down: what does he want?  What does he want?  What does he want?  But that was before my eyes roasted in their bitter juices from not sleeping: why’s he better?  Why’s he better?  Why’s he better?

Twisted, bent, sore, the last thing I wanted to do was go to a party.  I was scared of what I’d become: "Will you look at him?" "Someone needs to crawl under a rock" "Can’t believe he came out here looking like that" "Choo!  Choo!  Here comes a train wreck!" "Girlfriend needs to go home" "Shoot me if I ever look that bad" "Troll seeks bridge, money no object" "God, I hope he’s hung – 'cause he ain't getting it any other way, and then with the lights off"

Calm down.  Take five.  Breathe in.  Breathe out.  Get a grip.  Relax.  Let go.  Loosen up.  Lighten up.  Unwind.  Settle down: that was the old me.  The new one was freshly shaved, showered, powdered, manicured, preened, producted, clipped, styled, shopped, and carefully assembled by Tommy Hilfiger.

The new me loved parties more than ever.  The new me was full of green-springy life, brilliant hope, frisky play, pearly wit, satin-smooth flirts, tough-ass slaps, and razor-sharp darts.  The new me was bright and beautiful, starchy and fresh-from-the-box, a me ready to knock packing peanuts off his shoes and strongly stride out into the spotlight of "how have you been?" "You look fabulous darling!" "Long time no see!" "Fabulous!" "You're giving me the vapors" "You look good enough to eat" "Bravo!" "Fathers lock up your sons" "Way to go, girlfriend" "Fabulous!"

Goodbye me.  Hello me.  Time to live again: Time to try again.

Still that voice in my ear, the one at the end of the invitation: "Maybe you'll have a good time."

It was the only party I'd heard about – even though I doubted anyone there knew me.  Open call and all that.  But I was still going.  If anything just because the old me wouldn't have.

Besides, I might have just that: "a good time."

* * * *

Digest people, at least.  Architectural (thank god), not Reader's: the door swung open on the first ring (no knock) and there was a tight hall expanded with silver-framed mirrors, burgundy walls adding to their Latin dimension.  The opener was swarthy, a charcoal-brazier tan, mesquite-dark hair, eyes like dots of mole sauce on fine white linen.  Once I heard a feline acquaintance – a hissing and spitting little twink with a fondness for drawing blood and wrapping himself in old boyfriends' cashmere – call people who liked Latins "bean queens" and even though I was known to smile while cutting my own share of vicious wounds, I did not grin at that.  A better term was added to my dictionary by a ripped, flexed, buff, oiled, and toned friend who told it while eating far too many corn chips with far too much salsa as he eyed – and was eyed back by – our South American waiter: "A Latin Lover."

That the man who opened the door fit this description was evident, that he was already claimed was the same.  A minute later a this-side-of-young and that-side-of-old intellectual appeared from a connecting room and put his arm around him.  "So glad you could make it," the leather-patched tweed coat said with a grin.  The light from carefully recessed lamps dazzled me with the reflections from his tortoise-shell glasses.

"Wouldn't have missed it," the new me said, full of life and flirt.

Did I know him?  Was he the one who called?

Leading, they brought me from the hall into the living room.  Mexico continued, filling the corners with lumpy, heavily glazed terra cotta pots, hanging heavy iron chandeliers from the ceiling, radiating everything from bulbs copying candles in black metal sconces.  On the tables – of which there were quite a few – were tablecloths that looked like shawls stolen from prostrating Catholic mothers, their knees sangria-red with the stigmata of crawling to see the Virgin of Guadalupe.

It was a good room, clipped out of a quality publication and made real.  It made me feel comfortable to be in it, style by association, and crave to hold my own corn chip and look at ease.

The place was busy, full, almost packed: my appreciation of the place was intermittent, glances between turning torsos, ambulating arms, nodding noggins.

"Hey, there." Urban look, black pants, black shirt, heavy steel in the ears, goatee below pale lips.  Hair a color not found in nature, or in anyone bottle of dye (try three, maybe four, mixed up).  Belt something Rambo would hang himself from.  On his feet, combat boats, like thick-shelled venomous beetles.

"Hey!  Good to see you," the new me said, all cool and collected.

Did I know him?  Was he the one that called?

A toast was raised to me, the drink Kool-Aid bright and full of as much fruit as ice, in a glass that looked cut from the bottom of a cheap wine bottle.  The toaster was a Hawaiian eye: shirt that needed to be adjusted for vertical hold as well as Red/Green tint, shorts that were way too short, sandals that showed off tanned-to-begin-with feet, but then recently burned.  His face, too, had gone from golden-brown to crispy, and his hair was toasted to the point of being broken enough to cut your hand.

The new me nodded back to him, all warm and cheery.  Did I know him?  Was he the one that called?

Next to him, tracking from the drink to what it was doing and then to whom it was doing to, was a queen.  Eyelashes, lipstick, rouge, hair, dress, shoes, nails – all applied with a skill and diligence that made real women hiss "bitch." He was a thin one, fine about being between the two, as opposed to some who might have giggled into their perfumed hankies at tricking the unwary.  A caterpillar as well as the butterfly, he could fly as well as inch along the nearest branch.  After the track, he smiled and blew me a pink bubblegum kiss.

Two fingers to my own lips I passed the same back, the new me all relaxed and comfy.

Did I know him?  Was he the one that called?

A drink was passed over, the same brightly colored and cold combo the Man from Maui was still sipping.  Sangria, that was it: the decor immediately traveling a few thousand miles to the right, landing in Madrid rather than in Acapulco.  Did that mean the professor's partner was a Spanish Fly, to be catty, or a Spanish Dancer, to be less so?  A sip made the fluttering in my mind still, quieting the stupid question.  I was there.  I was at a party: a chance to begin again, to grow into a brand new person.  Another sip, and with it a thought about it, the drink, and myself, the drinker: it was good, and this new me liked drinking it.

"Maybe you'll have a good time."

So far so good.  Yes, so far – only a few minutes, so good – nothing to complain about.  A third sip and I felt a few previously unknown knots of muscle begin to loosen.  They all seemed to be nice people: grins wherever I looked, the bodies of the same all casual, contented, at ease.

Contented, casual, at ease, and so far (oh, yes) I was as well.  There was absolutely nothing to complain about.  If anything, it was worth celebrating.  I'd almost forgotten what it felt like, being contented, casual, at ease.  I might not have known everything about this new self, but I did know that this new me liked it.

Sipping and mixing, I found myself accidentally rubbing elbows (literally) with an outdoorsman.  Tanned and rough, frizzled and calloused, denim and well-worn boots, he looked like Half a Dome, a class-six climb, an up-at-dawn, six-mile hike, a fifty-pound backpack, a kayak, or a scuba tank.  Out of our bump, he flashed me a strong, toothy grin, eager, it seemed, to tell of his latest perilous adventure hundreds of miles from the nearest Internet connection.

From this I drifted away, further into the party, but not before returning my own version of his smile; the new me assured and confident.

Did I know him?  Was he the one that called?

"Maybe you'll have a good time."

A rocker ("Righteous, dude!  "), next season's model ("Well, that's what they're saying this year"), a sneering sexfiend ("...  just before I fucked him in the ass"), a sticky meth freak ("If you got the bucks I know where we can score"), a jolly Santa ("Hohohohoho"), wit ("the only thing worse than not being talked about..."), and my mind swam, my thoughts did the crawl, my brain frantically performed the butterfly – and I needed to piss.

Retreating, one half of the hosts, the Intellectual, touched me arm, asking if I was okay, if there was anything he could help me with.  I must have mumbled something ... something about what had been happening because he told me about theories, science, loops, and time.

Not understanding a word he said, I finally managed to escape and stumble off to relieve the one pressure I could.

* * * *

The bathroom was a little boy's version of the main room: burgundy walls, ferns, decorative baskets, and mirrors framed with hammered silver.

After washing my hands in a mosaic sink, I glanced up from the bits of tile and glass to see my eyes (no bags), hair (needed a trim, but okay), teeth (needed a bit of cleaning but okay), and skin (pretty damned good) in reflex and even though the eyes, hair, teeth, and skin were familiar, the person they were part of was someone I didn't immediately recognize.

Bit of brains in the eyes, a tad of stylish in the hair, a touch of good humor in the smile, health and stamina in the glow of his skin.  He seemed like a nice enough guy.  Cute but not precious.  Sexy without being sleazy.  Clever without being trite.

The new me.  I liked him.  More important, I could see where other people might like him.

The mirror, though, also brought up a ghost: the spirit of the last few days.  Somewhere he was out there, walking around in my old shoes, doing my old job, living in my old space, making my old friends laugh, making my old lovers come.  What was he?  Who was he?  What did he want?

Reflections: maybe he was me, but a me that'd gotten bounced here, a self that was somehow tweaked or twonked, or shifted, or twisted, or warped from his native world to a place that already had me in it.  Maybe he was a slightly different me, one that was me but with a little something extra, a tiny 'whatever' that'd made him better suited for the slot I thought I'd, been ideally filling.

Whatever.  Let him have it.  The old me had been good, or so I'd thought.  Now, though, looking at my new and improved character in the mirror I didn't miss myself at all.  This was a good thing, a chance to become a new person, with new hopes and new potentials.  He was the past, he was a bad memory, decisions I shouldn't have made, regrets better left unsaid.  Now I was fresh and clean, spotless and full of potential.  Lots of good things could be in my future.

And so, after drying my hands and winking at the sexy devil in the bathroom mirror, I stepped out into the chattering party to see what kind of good things my new life had to offer.

* * * *

"Did you hear?" said the Latin Lover when we found ourselves away from the main gaggle.  When I said that I hadn't, all the time trying to catch his deep mahogany eyes, he replied: "How didn't you know?" When I said I had no idea how I couldn't have known, moving closer all the time, working my way to an accidental touch, he answered: "Ohmigod!" When I laughed at his indignation I thought seriously about simply putting my hand on his shoulder – but then didn't.  There was warmth, certainly, but he wasn't what I wanted.

"I can't believe that!" said the intellectual as he refilled my glass.  When I said that it was the god's honest truth, all the time trying to look deep into his bright blue eyes, he replied: "Never in a million years!" When I said I had no idea how I couldn't have known, inching nearer all the while, making my way to an inadvertent contact, he shot back: "That's something else." When I chuckled at his disbelief I honestly played with the idea of just putting my hand on his hip – but didn't.  There was a heat there, obviously, but he wasn't what I wanted.

"Who'd have thought it!" Urban said when we found ourselves on the couch together.  When I said that it was all totally true, as I made a move to lock my eyes with his deep brown ones, he replied: "So like him." When I said I had no clue who he was talking about, sliding down the fabric toward him, he zapped back: "Saw that coming." When I giggled a bit at his dismissal, I truthfully entertained the fantasy of simply placing my hand on his thigh – but didn't.  There was clearly interest from him, but he wasn't what I wanted.

"Can't believe he did that," said the Hawaiian eye as we both stepped out of the living room.  When I answered that I'd been completely truthful, as I edged nearer to him, he replied: "Like we couldn't tell." When I said I had no answer as to why he couldn't tell, stepping so our bodies were just about touching, he countered with: "That's fine – for him." When I chuckled at his catty comment, I pondered just kissing him – but didn't.  There was a very positive vibe coming off him, but he wasn't what I wanted.

"Talk about dating down" said the Queen as we stood by a picture window looking out onto a tropical back garden.  When I answered that I knew what he was talking about, as I eased up next to him, he replied: "Someone's still reading from last month's issue." When I agreed that I might be a little out of touch, moving ever-so-nearer, he affirmed with "I know!" When I laughed a bit at his playfulness, I thought seriously about just grabbing his ass – but didn't.  There was a hunger between us, but he wasn't what I wanted.

A rocker ("You're righteous, dude!"), next season's model ("You've really got potential"), a sneering sex-fiend ("I could fuck you in the ass"), a sticky meth freak ("If you can score, I'll suck you"), a jolly Santa ("Hehehehehe"), wit ("...  you know what they say about a big dick."), and my mind swam again, my thoughts did the crawl again, my brain frantically performed the butterfly again – and once again I needed to piss.

Having a choice was wonderful.  No, it wasn't wonderful, it was fantastic, glorious, spectacular, incredible and ... well, it made me something I thought I'd never feel again: happy.  Yep, having a choice was wonderful, but trying to decide ... it wasn't unpleasant, but it was confusing.  I barely knew who I was, what I was all about, let alone what I liked – and the kind of man I liked to do it with.

Puzzled, confused, distracted, I wandered deeper in the house, hoping my body's memory (because it certainly wasn't in my bubbling brain) would remember which door was the one to the bathroom, I pushed the door I thought was the right one.

Partial darkness, just enough for me to see more Spanish colors, shapes, textures, and elements – but not the ones I'd seen in the bathroom.  As the door closed behind me and it became pitch as in 'pitch black,' I fumbled for where I thought the switch was.  Instead, I hand grazed smooth fabric and then the whisper of bare skin.

No, not the bathroom.

"Sorry," I stumbled around, the words squeaky and childish in shock and embarrassment, trying to turn, to find the way out.

"Wait," came a voice, one husky and heavy, and with it a quick touch to my shoulder, my hip, my thigh, and even my ass.

I did – I waited.  I hesitated, slowing down from my exit, and he said: "Good." Then he said something else, something that made me stop completely: "Maybe you'll have a good time."

* * * *

His hands went back to my shoulders, this time with a firmer rubbing of my unconsciously tensed muscles, massaging to where my shoulders lead to my back and then down ... down to where my pulse was already making my pants far too tight.

His hands went to my chest, caresses to my pecs, down along the miniscule swell of my stomach, a mischievous tickle to my belly button.

His hands went back to my hips, this time with strong grips to my corded physique, a tug forward that brought me up onto the balls of my feet and then stepping forward – so off balance I had to put out a hand to stop myself.  A hand that made contact with the flat, ripped plane of his own trunk.

His hands went to my arms, contacts delicate as well as determined down from upper to lower, and then from lower down to my wrists.  Each movement of his own fingers, each sensual gesture of his own hand, sending tingles mixed with goose bumps with a touch of shiver up and down my body – and not just where he was touching.

His hands went back to my thighs, this time with much more determination.  Confident and eager, he kneaded rather than just touched, rubbed rather than tickled, squeezed rather than just poked, and with each knead, rub, and squeeze I got hotter and hotter and hotter still.

His hands went to my ass, both hands reaching around to grip, then clasp, then clench them both firmly.  In answer, I gripped, clasped, and then clenched: a dialog developed between what he was saying with his fingers and how I was responding with my cheeks.  The translation was simple.  He: I like this.  Me: So do I.

Then we were kissing, hot breaths becoming hotter breaths when shared – and we shared (oh lordy, we shared) for what seemed like ... well, a really long time.  Metaphors, similes, and awkward and forced observations are for when you're cold, thoughtful, and contemplative, and I was not.  No, I was – we were – hot, primitive, and urgent.  And it was good.

Then we were hugging, arms and legs wrapped around arms and legs in a knot of please don't let this stop.

Kissing and hugging, me very aware of his hard cock, he no doubt aware of mine, I couldn't help but think two things: who was he and please don't let this stop.

Then it was time, a kind of mutual turn-on schedule: breaking the kiss with a soft, wet pop of moist suction, he carefully, precisely, tortuously, began to slide down my body.

I was still standing, but now he was kneeling.

Yes, you know what happened next. 

No, you don't know what happened next.

In the darkness, the bell chime of my brass Tommy Hilfiger buckle being undone.  In the soft, warm, darkness, the raspberry of my steel zipper fly being undone.  In the black, the rustle of my pants being loosened.

In the gloom – no sound.  But a sensation, a feeling: his mouth swallowing my very hard cock.  Sounds simple, direct, doesn't it?  But it was anything but.  The Latin Lover, the Intellectual, The Urban, the Hawaiian Eye, the Queen, the Rocker, The Model, the Sex Fiend, the Meth Freak, the Santa, or the Wit knew what he was doing – knew exactly what he was doing: the right amount of tongue, the correct application of lips, the perfect usage of throat, the ideal performance of teeth – each and every one a seductive coaxing of sweat from my skin, moans from my throat, tremors from my muscles, and come from my cock.

No, not yet – I thought, trying to think of anything but baseball.  I mean, trying to think of baseball instead of the superb job the Latin Lover, the Intellectual, The Urban, the Hawaiian Eye, the Queen, the Rocker, The Model, the Sex Fiend, the Meth Freak, the Santa, or the Wit was doing with my dick.  The problem was I didn't know anything about baseball – or at least I hadn't found out yet if this new me even liked baseball – and the only thing I did know, with absolute certainty, was that the Latin Lover, the Intellectual, The Urban, the Hawaiian Eye, the Queen, the Rocker, The Model, the Sex Fiend, the Meth Freak, the Santa, or the Wit was a master of the blowjob.

So what to think about?  How to distract myself from the excellent performance the Latin Lover, the Intellectual, The Urban, the Hawaiian Eye, the Queen, the Rocker, The Model, the Sex Fiend, the Meth Freak, the Santa, or the Wit was giving my cock?  I had to think of something ... anything, or it would be over too soon, the play concluded too fast, the fun finished too early.

There was a problem.  I was fresh, unblemished, clean, and spotless: I was new, too new to have anything that wasn't still tainted by my old self, the one that had been stolen from me.

My cock began to sag.  I'd thought of something better – no, worse – than baseball: that being new could be good, but it also meant that I was empty, shallow, and hollow.  The Latin Lover, the Intellectual, The Urban, the Hawaiian Eye, the Queen, the Rocker, The Model, the Sex Fiend, the Meth Freak, the Santa, or the Wit was sucking a cock – but whose cock was he sucking?

No.  In the dark room I shook my head, cleaning away the storm thoughts.  No.  This was a good time, a great time.  I might not have a past but I had a huge future.  Tommy Hilfiger shirt, Tommy Hilfiger pants, Tommy Hilfiger socks, and Tommy Hilfiger underwear, and the rest for me to pick and choose.

And a great guy was giving me the best blowjob of my new – or even my old – life.  It was good.  It was damned good.

Fuck baseball.  I decided right then that whoever I was – I sure as hell didn't like, or care, about baseball.  Blowjobs, though ... that was another matter.

A great matter.  A fantastic matter.  A glorious matter.  A matter that in a matter of minutes pushed out every doubt, every hesitation, every falter out of my mind – and then in a shake from my feet to the top of my head, a quake from one hand to the other, a rattle all up my throat and out my mouth, a roll all along my spine, what I'd kept bottled up came squirting out and into his mouth.

My strings were cut, my bones jellied, my heart fluttered, my knees failed, my eyes rolled, my jaw twitched, and I fell backwards.  Luckily, the door was behind me, so when I did, something stopped me going from standing to sitting in a painful, and worst of all, embarrassing collapse.

After a time – how long I had no idea – my senses switched back on.  First was taste, and with the taste a smile that what I was tasting was my own come, a sweet gift of his kiss after sucking me off.  The next was sound, known because I could hear our ragged breathing.  After sound was touch, announcing itself in the weight and texture of him curled up in my arms.  After that was smell, the room redolent with salt from sweat, and best of all salt from come.

The last was sight.  As the room had been lightless, it was the longest to come back – it took as long as our time together for my eyes to adjust to the black.  Adjust they did, enough for me to look down and see what my other senses had told me: that in the gloom I was sitting down with my back against the door, a very dim glow leaking down where its paneling met the floor, my lover curled up in my still-shivering arms.

He wasn't the Latin Lover, the Intellectual, The Urban, the Hawaiian Eye, the Queen, the Rocker, The Model, the Sex Fiend, the Meth Freak, the Santa, or the Wit.  Nope, he was better than any of them.

He was exactly what I'd wanted: what I'd always wanted in a lover.

One last logical thought: funny, isn't it, how you never recognize your own voice.  Recorded, or on the phone.

Sunday, October 26, 2014

Coming Up - Sex Sells: How To Write And Sell Erotica @ Center For Sex And Culture

(from M.Christian's Classes And Appearances)

There's special and then there's special: I'm going to be teaching my celebrated (if I do say so myself) class in advanced smut writing, Sex Sells: How To Write And Sell Erotica, for the Center For Sex and Culture on Wednesday, November 5th!

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B006YGDE6G/ref=cm_sw_su_dp

The market for erotic fiction and nonfiction is booming! There actually is a secret to writing great erotica - and you'll discover just what that is in this fun, hands-on workshop with well-known erotica writer and teacher M.Christian.

For the beginning writer, erotica can be the ideal place to begin writing, getting published, and - best of all - earning money. And for the experienced writer, erotica can be an excellent way to beef up your resume and hone your writing skills. M.Christian will review the varieties of personal and literary expression possible in this exciting and expanding field. He'll also teach you techniques for creating love and sex scenes that sizzle.

Plus: current pay rates, how to write for a wide variety of erotic genres, where and how to submit your erotic writing, and more.

Sex Sells: How To Write And Sell Erotica
The Center for Sex and Culture
1349 Mission St.
San Francisco, CA 94103

Wednesday, November 5th

6:00PM to 8:00PM

$20 (purchase pre-event tickets here)


M.Christian has been an active participant in the San Francisco BDSM scene since 1988, and has been a featured presenter at the Northwest Leather Celebration, smOdyssey, the Center For Sex and Culture, The National Sexuality Symposium, San Francisco Sex Information, The Citadel, The Looking Glass, Floating World, Winter Solstice, and lots of other venues. He has taught classes on everything from impact play, tit torture, bondage, polyamory, cupping, caning, and basic SM safety.

M.Christian is also a recognized master of BDSM erotica with more than 400 stories in such anthologies as Best American Erotica, Best Gay Erotica, Best Lesbian Erotica, Best Bisexual Erotica, Best Fetish Erotica, and many other anthologies, magazines, and other sites; editor of 2t anthologies such as the Best S/M Erotica series, Pirate Booty, My Love For All That Is Bizarre: Sherlock Holmes Erotica, and more; the collections Dirty Words, The Bachelor Machine, Love Without Gun Control, Rude Mechanicals, and more; and the novels Running Dry, The Very Bloody Marys, Me2, Finger's Breadth, Brushes, and Painted Doll. His site is www.mchristian.com

Friday, October 24, 2014

Relationships And The Scene Discussion/Support Group @ SF Citadel

(From M.Christian's Classes And Appearances)


Just wanted to share the cool news that the next Relationships And The Scene: A Discussion/Support Group is coming up on Monday, October 27th, at the SF Citadel.

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Occasionally people in "The Scene" forget that they are not just dealing with sexual play but human interactions and relationships as well. In this discussion and support group, participants will be encouraged to share their experiences in an open environment to receive support and understanding from others who may have experienced the same, or just similar, situations.

You're welcome to pack snacks/dinner and munch during the discussion!

Time: 7:30PM to 9:30PM
Location: SF Citadel, 181 Eddy Street, SF
Cost: $10
Dress: casual

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M.Christian has been an active participant in the San Francisco BDSM scene since 1988, and has been a featured presenter at the Northwest Leather Celebration, smOdyssey, the Center For Sex and Culture, The National Sexuality Symposium, San Francisco Sex Information, The Citadel, The Looking Glass, The Society of Janus, The Floating World, Winter Solstice, and lots of other venues. He has taught classes on everything from impact play, tit torture, bondage, how to write and sell erotica, polyamory, cupping, caning, and basic SM safety.

M.Christian is also a recognized master of BDSM erotica with more than 400 stories in such anthologies as Best American Erotica, Best Gay Erotica, Best Lesbian Erotica, Best Bisexual Erotica, Best Fetish Erotica, and many other anthologies, magazines, and other sites; editor of 2t anthologies such as the Best S/M Erotica series, Pirate Booty, My Love For All That Is Bizarre: Sherlock Holmes Erotica, and more; the collections Dirty Words, The Bachelor Machine, Love Without Gun Control, Rude Mechanicals, and more; and the novels Running Dry, The Very Bloody Marys, Me2, Finger's Breadth, Brushes, and Painted Doll. His site is www.mchristian.com

Sunday, October 12, 2014

Reminder: Polyamory: How To Love Many And Well @ Good Vibrations, this Thursday!

(from M.Christian's Classes And Appearances)

This is gonna be a blast!  I'm going to be teaching my class Polyamory: How To Love Many And Well at the Polk Street Good Vibrations store on Thursday, September 16th - see you there!



Sure, you've heard of itand maybe have been intrigued by itbut what is polyamory and how do you love more than one person and make it work? How can you deal with jealousy, time-management, emotional rough patches, and more to enter into multiple sexual relationships?

In this class with M.Christian, participants will learn to separate the myths from the realities of polyamory, how to make tentative steps towards having more than one partner, and how to approach and deal with the problems of sharing yourself with others, and being involved with someone who, in turn, is involved with someone else.

Included in this class will be simple emotional exercises, true life experiences, unique techniques and innovative approaches to understanding the joys and the risks of entering into a polyamorous relationship.

Good Vibrations Polk Street Store
1620 Polk Street (at Sacramento Street)
San Francisco, CA 94109


$20.00 or $25 at the door, as space allows