Kenn
Dahll (Guest Blogger)
It is possible to
write a gay romance without explicit sex−possible but in my view
unrealistic. Authors who eschew depicting realistic sexual encounters
employ various devices such as euphemisms, “the two handsome young
men kissed, hugged and united blissfully”; or behind closed doors
transitions, “the pair went into John’s bedroom hand in hand.”
I’m not fond of either avoidance mechanism. My take is that gay
romance by definition requires hot, erotic coupling depicted in
exquisite detail. Hence, my style is often criticized as “raw” or
“gritty,” and I won’t deny the criticism is fair−if coming
from the perspective of someone puritanically inclined. Based on my
published works, I’ve identified several reasons for injecting
graphic sex in gay romances.
Gay
men often initially connect through sex frequently through cruising
in gay bars for sex partners, engaging in sex in gay baths, or even
trolling gay internet hookup sites as a means to meet other gay men,
ostensibly for sex, but often with the ulterior motive of connecting
on an emotional dimension. It would be inaccurate to eliminate such
venues and motivations from a story about contemporary gay romance.
Stories
with an historical setting are considerably different in that the
means of same sex partners meeting are more constrained. In the few
non-contemporary stories I have written, getting the main characters
into situations were sex develops faces a thin line between
consensual and non-consensual. Depictions of brute force and
master/slave relationships must be carefully crafted to tread
carefully while maintaining the power dynamics of the time period
selected. One mechanism I used in an early story−Soaring with a
Hawk−was to force myself to limit common vulgar terms such as
“cock,” or “ass” to more faithfully capture the encounters
between a young pioneer son and a Native American brave. They had sex
but the language was “softer.”
Additionally,
explicit sex in gay romances can reveal a character’s personality
allowing for the storyline to portray an evolutionary change in his
personality. In my works I’ve done this for various types of
personalities.
In
one category, the Main Character (MC) is portrayed as a Machiavellian
manipulator. Two stories make this point. In Naughtical Buoys,
the extremely wealthy MC uses his fantastic yacht to lure attractive
young men into virtual sex slavery, fully described in gritty detail.
He also uses money to buy sexual favors from hustlers and strip club
dancers, often paying for humiliating sexual demands in front of an
audience, also depicted in full rawness. In At Your Service, the
charismatic scion of a wealthy family uses his sex appeal, as well as
his position as boss over his valet, to procure elaborately detailed
sexual services. In both stories, the MC experiences crises
motivating him to drastically change his views on sex and commitment,
resulting in more romantic−yet explicit−sex.
A
second type I’ve depicted is the naive MC who experiences uncaring
or even manipulative sex before meeting an individual who respects
his sexual autonomy. They then engage in romantic sex as sensitive
lovers in a thoroughly depicted sexual encounter which becomes a
dramatic highlight of the story.
Finally
in a story involving a dominant MC, usually in a BDSM situation, the
control over other characters’ sexual release becomes a major
factor in the narrative’s direction and ultimate resolution. My
most common resolution in this type of story is redemption. Some
event causes the abusive MC to realize the concern and even love his
abused has for the MC. A primary example of this, one recognized by a
reviewer, is Irish Punk.
Given
my belief in the validity of explicit sex in gay romances, I face one
big issue−a largely female audience preferring more romance for gay
erotica. Recognizing the problem, I engaged a female editor for a
story included in a Valentine's Day bundle under Selena Kitt’s
Excite Spice forum. Other than some grammatical changes she had two
issues: 1) she questioned including what she termed "icky
behavior” involving armpits, and 2) she felt the story lacked
romantic buildup. I followed her advice and managed to keep the sex
toned down−took out the armpit scene, for one thing−so it's not
as explicit as many of my stories, leaving it caught between gay
romance and gay erotic sub-genres. I also upped the romance factor,
delaying overt sex until mid-story. Even then, I held back for a sex
scene or two before going fully raw. Since it was part of an
anthology, I didn’t get any exclusive reviews of my story, but the
anthology reviews were favorable and one singled out my story.
About
Me
Kenn
moved from the gay ghetto called Wilton Manors, Florida to the much
more dynamic, yet still extremely gay, District of Columbia area.
More than twenty-five years ago he submitted a short story to a
“one-hand magazine” contest and won a year's subscription. Since
then he has written many stories, none of which he submitted for
publication until August
2008 when one was included in Alyson Books’ Island
Boys
Anthology.
Currently,
he is thrilled
to be published in eXcessica.com with over thirty titles. He is also
published in two additional Alyson Books anthologies: Best
Gay Love Stories 2009
and 2010.
Generally,
Kenn says he sees a hot male and constructs a fantasy story around
him−how he’s dressed, what he might be thinking, what is his
relationship with the other males around him be it in a bar, a bus, a
restaurant, a bank, or even a church. Sometimes a situation
encountered in Kenn’s daily routine, on vacation, or simply on a
casual stroll around the neighborhood, inspires him and a story will
take shape in his mind, which is then populated from his vivid
imagination. Kenn claims to find few outlets outside of erotic
fiction for his innate creativity and is pleased others are
interested in reading what he writes.
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me on Twitter: @Kdahll
Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/Kenn-Dahll/e/B015BNLVOY
