Hello everyone! Today, I am pleased to have with us, Lisabet Sarai! Welcome to my little slice of the blog-sphere!
The Fantasy of Acceptance
By Lisabet Sarai
I write erotica and erotic romance in a variety of genres. My last two pubs, however, have been M/M erotic romance. As a result, I've also been reading more gay romance lately. One thing that I've noticed about this genre is that in many books, “gayness” is a given, a normal and accepted aspect of society and relationships. Many gay heroes seem to live in a world where every other
man is also a lover of men (especially the handsome and muscular
guys!). Homoerotic relationships are the norm rather than the exception, and the non-gay characters completely accept the gay heroes and their lifestyles
Authors of historical M/M books frequently do highlight the legal and societal risks of homosexuality. The criminalization of homoerotic activity is often a
major source of the conflicts in these works. Quite a lot of contemporary gay
romance, though, seems to ignore the enduring problems faced by GLBT
individuals, even today.*
- FBI statistics show an 11% increase in gay-related hate crimes in 2008,
compared to a 2% increase in all hate crimes.
- Lesbian, gay and bisexual youth are at a four times higher risk for suicide
than their straight peers.
- 85% of teachers oppose integrating lesbian, gay and bisexual themes in their
curricula.
- A survey of 191 employers revealed that 18% would fire, 27% would refuse to
hire and 26% would refuse to promote a person they perceived to be lesbian,
gay or bisexual.
- In thirty U.S. States, LGBT citizens can be fired on the basis of their sexual
orientation and/or gender identity without any legal recourse.
- Thirty states have passed constitutional amendments or laws explicitly banning
same-sex marriage.
Our M/M heroes tend to live in a golden world where these facts don't exist. I
can understand this, of course. Romance readers are seeking escape. They don't
want to think about problems the hunky heroes might encounter in society. They
want to focus on the developing relationship.
Still, I can't quite seem to banish such concerns from my own M/M work. In
Necessary Madness, my M/M paranormal novel released last December, one of my
characters is a gay police sergeant. He's a great cop, with more than ten
years experience, yet he's been passed over for promotion time and again, most
likely due to his sexual orientation. He's afraid to have a real relationship
because it might jeopardize his job. Rob's concerns about being visibly “out”
are not the most critical conflict in the tale, but they play a role in his
personal decisions and his initial reluctance to become involved with Kyle,
the other hero. Significantly (for me at least), by the end of the book the
heroes are not only together, but also publicly proclaiming their mutual
commitment.
Even in the clinches, the risk never completely vanishes from the heroes'
minds:
--------------------
They’d left in a rush, barely polite. In their eagerness to get back to Rob’s
apartment, they’d refused offers of coffee and breakfast. The one-hour trip
from Petersham to Worcester seemed endless, especially since the state of the
roads demanded extra caution.
Rob’s erection throbbed, painful and demanding. He guessed that Kyle was hard
too, though with the bulky jacket and scarf, he couldn’t tell for sure. Kyle
felt Rob’s gaze. He raised his eyebrows in an unspoken question and his full
lips curled into a smile, but he didn’t speak.
Rob couldn’t stand it any longer. They were coming down the hill into
Gardner. There was a rest area near the city line. Rob yanked the steering
wheel and the car swerved into the exit lane, cutting off a truck easing up
from behind.
“What the hell are you doing?” Kyle yelled. The rest area hadn’t been ploughed
yet. The Saturn skidded for several yards before it came to rest in a parking
spot. Rob scrambled out, then came around to open the passenger-side
door. “Come on. I just can’t wait anymore.”
The lot was deserted. Wind rustled the tall pines sheltering the building that
housed the toilets, knocking clumps of snow onto the windshield. Rob grabbed
Kyle’s hand and practically dragged him out of the car.
“Rob, it’s probably locked.”
“I’ll break down the door if I have to.” Rob was desperate. But the men’s room
was open, although the electricity appeared to be off. Wan light entered via a
dirty window near the ceiling. He pulled Kyle through the door and pressed him
against the tiled wall, devouring his mouth. Kyle responded with equal
passion. Rob ripped open the snaps on Kyle’s jacket and grabbed at his crotch.
“I’m sorry. I’ve got to have you. Now. I can’t concentrate. I can’t drive. All
I can think about is you.” He unfastened Kyle’s belt and unzipped his fly,
then yanked the jeans down around Kyle’s knees. The young man’s cock sprang
out, huge and ready. Rob cradled it in his hands, then squeezed hard. Kyle
groaned.
“Rob, what if somebody comes?”
Rob chuckled as he wrestled with his own cold fly. “Somebody is going to come―you and me!”
“No, really. If a state trooper came in to take a leak and found us here―you
might lose your job.”
“I don’t care. I can’t help it. Honestly, if I don’t fuck you right now…” Rob
didn’t bother to finish the sentence. He turned Kyle to face the wall, bracing
the other man’s hands against the cold ceramic surface. He wrapped his arms
around Kyle’s chest and rubbed his cock back and forth in the boy’s ass
crack. Kyle whimpered and ground his butt against Rob’s hardness, until Rob
was sure he’d explode.
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I enjoy a hot, hard M/M romp as much as the next reader. Nevertheless, I'm
always aware that the aura of acceptance is, at this point in time, just a
fantasy. I'd love to live in a world where you could love whomever you wish,
of whatever gender, freely and without fear. I'll do whatever I can, in real
life and in my writing, to bring that world closer to reality.
Statistics with original sources cited at
http://www.now.org/issues/lgbi/stats.html and
http://gayrights.change.org/blog/view/a_few_statistics_on_lgbt_issues
LISABET SARAI has been writing fiction and poetry ever since she learned how
to hold a pencil. She has published six erotic novels and two short story
collections, as well as contributing stories in more than two dozen print
anthologies. In addition, she is the editor of four anthologies, including
two in the charity COMING TOGETHER PRESENTS series. Lisabet also reviews
erotic books and films for ERWA (www.erotica-readers.com) and Erotica Revealed
(www.eroticarevealed.com). For more information on Lisabet and her writing
visit Lisabet Sarai's Fantasy Factory (http://www.lisabetsarai.com) or drop by
her blog Beyond Romance (http://lisabetsarai.blogspot.com).
Buy Link for Necessary Madness:
http://www.total-e-bound.com/product.asp?P_ID=655
