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A soldier courts a young woman on the eve of battle. An aircar chauffeur tests the boundaries of his enslavement. A despairing captive must choose whether to obey the deadly command of a lord.
Sweet Suffering offers speculative fiction and contemporary fiction on friendship, romance, and faithful service amidst transformation.
CONTENTS
PRINCELING. In a world in which only the pitiless nobles who wage war hold power, and those who cannot fight must suffer or seek slow death . . . What would you do if you were a noble, and you lost the ability to fight? ¶ Princeling is a speculative fiction series set in a world where war has lasted for generations.
DARKLING PLAIN. Separated
in time and place, these young women and young men are united
in their goal: to protect those they care for from the destruction of
battle. The odds are against them. ¶ Darkling Plain
is a collection of
speculative fiction tales about
young disabled people in times of conflict.
MASTER/OTHER. Masters
come in many forms. Some don't even know they're masters.
¶ Romantic and poignant, Master/Other
offers
speculative fiction
stories exploring the dangers and sweet bonds of power.
REBELS. There's
only one thing worse than leather-clad, kinky gay bikers
demanding
their rights: mild-mannered vanilla heterosexuals demanding their
rights. ¶ Rebels offers humor and satire
about
transgressive sexuality
in the twenty-first century.
LOREN'S LASHES.
Leather is a world of rich pleasure palaces and endless sensual
delights,
where dreams can be pursued without limit, provided that a man has the
strength to stand the test. . . . But in the rural town of Mayhill,
population
32,000, leather life is a little different. ¶ Loren's
Lashes is a retro series about a
Midwestern community
of closeted leathermen. In a time and place where being gay is
reason enough
to be arrested, the leathermen of Mayhill struggle to keep their small
community alive.
LEATHER IN LAWNVILLE. The
adventures of a suburban leatherman. ¶ These humorous stories on erotic
power take gay leathersex out of its usual bars and back alleys,
setting
it in unexpected locations: A 5&10. A potluck. A hamburger
joint. A
waltz party. Even when the leatherman who narrates these stories
returns
to the Eagle bar, things don't go quite the way he expected. . . .
UNMASKED. Behind
the screaming news headlines, behind the hype and the
sensationalism,
lies the quiet but dramatic tale of people whose actions may change the
lives of the next generation. ¶ Unmasked is
a contemporary fiction series
on a challenging topic.
RAGBAG. My early creative efforts: stories, poetry, illustrations, news stories, mail, and journals.
PIXEL-STAINED.
A
documentary memoir of
the electronic publishing revolution in gay genre fiction.
Progress reports. Status of upcoming stories.
Noble. "Selig had placed me next to the fire, both as a way to emphasize my honor – what little honor I had left – and as a way to keep me from dying of a chill. He had made it more than clear during the past three years that he considered me a frail creature, incapable of enduring the hardened life of a soldier. But, then, his opinion was shared by all in the Tascanian Army."
He has lost his title, his work, and everyone's respect. That will be the easy part.
When Corbin is taken hostage by York, the King of Fossenvita, he refuses to surrender to the sadistic King's demands that would allow York to win the war between the world's two kingdoms. Only thus, Corbin believes, can he help the petties of Tascania, on whose behalf Tascanian nobles such as himself are fighting the Fossenvites. Rather than lose his honor, Corbin accepts York's "gift": a wounding that will prevent him from ever again fighting with his blade.
But Corbin lives in a world that has been at war for generations, in which only the nobles who command the battles and raids are considered to have honor. Stripped of his title and his ability to fight, Corbin begins to see that the petties alone may hold the answer of how he should live his life. Maimed as he is, though, Corbin cannot seek answers from the petties unless he receives the help of one man: York's son Firmin, who has warned Corbin that he will betray him.
Petty. As far as the world knows, Corbin is dead. He is simply the latest of many victims of violence in the generations-long war that the Tascanian and Vovimian nobles have been fighting to determine who will rule the world, at the expense of the petties who are subject to them.
Corbin has a purpose for hiding from public view, a purpose that has not even been guessed by his closest confidants: Firmin, the devious son of Corbin's greatest enemy, and a pettywoman who will offer Corbin a chance to voice his thoughts to others. Yet Corbin cannot hope to fulfill his purpose without the help of other petties . . . and he cannot hope to live if they guess that he is the man who has destroyed their lives.
¶ Upcoming. To receive notice of new
fiction, subscribe to Dusk Peterson's e-mail
list,
blog, or Patreon account.
See below for a progress
report on upcoming fiction in this series.
Darkling Plain is a collection of speculative fiction tales about young disabled people in times of conflict.
Right or Right. "He looked at Linnet, smiling as sweetly as though she had offered to buy the man's shop. 'Tell me,' said the shopkeeper, 'what caused you to leave your barony?'"
Linnet is trouble. Everyone agrees about that. Driven from her native barony, she arrives at Goldhollow in hopes of beginning a new life, only to discover that she cannot escape her past.
As Linnet is drawn into memories of a dark young man she once knew, she must deal in the present with a boy who is headed toward danger, as well as a child-like baron who may force her to betray her past.
Crossing the Cliff. "I tell you all this, Erastus, so that you will understand. I owe a debt to my master, and a debt like that cannot go unpaid."
After ten years as apprentice to a Peacesteward, the one thing Erastus is sure of is that he's ill-prepared to become a master. Unfortunately, he's about to discover just how ill-prepared he is.
When he and his master stray into forbidden territory, Erastus is thrust alone into a community that is on the brink of war. His only hope for bringing peace is to ally himself with a young boy . . . a boy who has stolen what Erastus values most.
Night Shadow. "That will be your death."
A prince who could see beyond his borders but not see the people around him. . . . An enemy who would take any measure to get what he wanted. . . . And now a stranger has brought news to the prince of an approaching danger.
Young though he is, Farsight has inherited a powerful gift from his father that allows him to protect his realm. But when a conniving king in a neighboring country sets his sights on Farsight's mountain of gold, the prince will need help to protect himself against an assassin's knife. Will a newfound companion-in-arms be enough to save Farsight, once the Night Shadow crosses the border?
Wizard of the Sun. "The room before me was empty – but I was still bound."
When Tyne's father makes plans to rid himself of his dull-witted son, Tyne climbs the wizards' mountain, hoping to find there an answer to his troubles. The power he receives there brings him joy beyond measure. Gradually, however, he comes to realize that the land of his people lies in danger. Tyne sets out to fight the danger, though he realizes that in doing so, he risks losing the power he has gained and returning to the lonely life he led as a boy.
Web-exclusive bonus:
Revenge. Revenge is sweet . . . unless you are haunted by dark memories of your own misdeeds.
Romantic and poignant, Master/Other offers speculative fiction stories exploring the dangers and sweet bonds of power.
Debt Price. "He kept his gaze cast below the belt. In the chill cell, sweat was beginning to form now on his neck, running down his back and between his bound wrists. 'Lord,' he said softly, 'I would be glad to pay to you my debt in any way I can.'"
No one would pay his debt price to gain him release from prison. So he sought to pay it himself by offering the only thing he could, his body. But one man would require more.
Convicted of helping to wage a campaign of terror against the lords who oppressed the commoners, the prisoner comes to realize the full implications of what he has done. All of his attempts to mend what he has broken will fail until he meets a young lord whose own struggles have just begun.
Set in an imaginary world based on Renaissance Europe, "Debt Price" takes the reader from the gritty punishments of prison life to the delicately balanced world of a farming estate, showing the slow healing of a prisoner who knows both what it means to be abused, and what it means to be the abuser.
Pleasure. "Halvar leaned forward. His eyes were the color of an arctic sky. 'I am not a fool, Egon,' he said softly, 'so do not treat me as such.'"
Egon had a position that won him respect, friends who raised his spirits, and lovers who gave him pleasure. Then a man came into his life who would take all that away from him. If Egon was lucky.
As a slave, Egon has already reached the highest position he will ever achieve: he is the household's airship chauffeur. Forced to confront the contradiction between his ideals and his behavior, Egon must make a choice between continuing to pursue immediate pleasure or willingly submitting himself to another man for the sake of a higher goal. What Egon does not yet know is that his guide on this journey into the unknown is hiding a secret that will transform both their lives.
The Fool. He'd abducted him, bedded him, and taught him every position he knew. So why wasn't the fool grateful?
Eternally Divided: A Missing Canto from Dante's Inferno. If you fall in love with one of the damned, should you join him in his damnation?
Cold Stars. The prince was told that he must find himself. But what if finding oneself means losing one's love?
O Most Unthankful. An Arthurian tale. A simple Greek lesson reaches deep when a tutor seeks to teach a prince what can happen when love and duty clash.
Rebels offers humor and satire about transgressive sexuality in the twenty-first century.
If Dante Had a Beta Reader. Who needs the Muses for inspiration when you have a beta reader to tell you what to do?
The Slavefic Plot Creator. When fan fiction writers have had way too much caffeine.
A Sexual Minority Speaks Out. With additional material by Ruthless. "I am an adult male belonging to a rare minority group that is called, in layman's language, Plain Vanilla Straight. I have had these sexual desires for as long as I can remember . . ."
What Slaves Do When They Aren't Cleaning Toilets: A Tale of Web Accessibility in the Cybersex Era. "What I want from you is quite simple. I want you to design a Website that's compatible with Section 508— Stop sobbing, damn it!"
What Slaves Do When They Aren't Cleaning Toilets is the first story in the world that presents web accessibility information for the disabled in the form of gay leather erotica.
Loren's Lashes is a retro series about a Midwestern community of closeted leathermen. In a time and place where being gay is reason enough to be arrested, the leathermen of Mayhill struggle to keep their small community alive.
"Dress code: Leather optional. White sneakers encouraged."
In 1965, Loren was initiated into the mysteries of leather by a motorcyclist passing through his isolated Midwestern town. Twenty years later, he is owner of the town's gay bar, which serves as a leather bar after hours. He is a master, trained to control and discipline men.
If only he could convince other leathermen of this fact.
Having given
up hope of ever finding someone who will submit to him, Loren is forced
to content himself with secret fantasies. Then he meets the perfect man
for his fantasies: handsome, uniformed, full of confidence and
strength.
But Loren doesn't realize that Ken holds secrets which will initiate
them
both into a new mystery. . . .
=== VOLUME CONTENTS ===
Negotiations. Danger has more than one edge.
Preparations. Twenty years have been building up to this moment.
Scene. You cannot hide what you are forever.
Everyone calls her a fag hag. But Gay Pride Day has arrived, and her best friend is about to give her a new name.
There's nothing more embarrassing than feeling up a guy on a date, only to discover that he's gay. But when Zephyra realizes that her fellow college student has his own feelings of shame to overcome, she forges a friendship with him, only to watch as he blooms and grows in his new-found freedom.
Then another young man arrives in the big city, and Zephyra finds herself torn between an old bond and a new one. Now she must seek the strength to offer love to two very different men, who both need her.
First Lesson. "He couldn't remember later why he began talking about bondage."
When a security guard walks into the wrong bar in town, he learns about the dark side of desire, and also about the hope that lies beyond it.
Clothesline. An encounter with clothesline at the Lawnville 5&10 leads the narrator to discover his neighbor's secret fantasy.
Spontaneous. Can an Old Guard top survive in a world with safe words?
¶ Award: Runner-up, 2006 Rauxa Prize for erotic writing.
Bad Habit. The narrator shows off his leatherboy to a skeptic.
Leatherdar. The narrator goes on the hunt at a college ballroom dance.
Pinned. A rude top and an interfering family member prove to be an explosive combination at the Eagle bar.
Short Sharp Shock. His life seems secure enough: an endless round of leathersex and fun. The trouble with gay leather, though, is that you never know when it will take a turn for the unexpected. Now a top finds himself questioning who he is, and just what it is that he wants.
¶ Upcoming. To receive notice of new fiction, subscribe to Dusk Peterson's e-mail list, blog, or Patreon account. See below for a progress report on upcoming fiction in this series.
Unmasked is a contemporary fiction series on a challenging topic.
White Rose has lived a double life for too long. For too many years, he has struggled alone to determine how he should handle an ethical dilemma he never wanted to face. Now, finally, he has found help online. But is it the right help?
Twenty Thousand Gold Stars describes an online world where anonymity is all-important, and where a knock on the door can spell disaster. Yet behind the masks that are unwillingly donned, men and women seek answers to imperative questions that will determine, not only their own futures, but the futures of those they meet in real life.
¶ Fan translation into Russian by Rose Red (with the assistance of Honeysickle).
My early creative efforts: stories, poetry, illustrations, news stories, mail, and journals.
(I was born in April 1963.)
My Fun and News Paper. My first journalistic project, self-published. According to my mother's note, I created this at the tender age of eight.
Jimmy and Sabrina dug up bottle caps on July 12.
Robert Lace, Best Soldier/Spy Ever. The map, creative chronology, and outline of my first attempted novel, age eleven. Includes a note about my creative process back then.
July 17 - Made Questionnaire, Illustrations, List of Illustrations, The Parts of my Book, and copied down the publishers address.
Retro
Daily Life. My journals, started at age eleven.
If you look around (and I find that adults find that very hard to do)
you'll see that signatures of famous writers such as Dickens or Carroll
are hard to come by. So they are worth a whole lot of money, more than
I'd care to mention. (And I bet even if they weren't scarce,
they'd be worth a lot.) Manuscripts, letters, doodles to pass the time
of day away with. All are worth thousands, even millions. Even the brown
shoelace from the left workshoe of Dickens cost $300.
Anyway, as I'm to be a famous writer someday (I hope) I'm saving my things up.
Ad Infinitum. From my high school literary magazine, the first science fiction story of mine that was ever published. Includes a note about how I came to write the story.
The shot at Reynold was wide; Dexter stepped behind a cliff to avoid letting the answering bullet reach its target. His body was wet with sweat, but at least he had stopped shaking; his shots were steady, it was just that Reynold's were better.
A Matter of Principle. A poem that was published in the 1980 issue of my high school literary magazine. It was one of a handful of fantasy narrative poems that I wrote in my mid-teens.
The War of 1305
(As everyone says)
Is a remarkable one
In the history of Kleiku and Juid.
Grey Dawn. Another narrative poem published in my high school literary magazine, this one from 1981. I posted it at my blog, along with some samples of my early stories.
Sky too grey for comfort,
Sun was cued, enter east,
When he hadn't yet accepted
The impending night.
Bookstore work. A letter I wrote in 1984, when I was a student aide at my college bookstore.
Enclosed you will find a copy of J. Winfree Smith's A Search for the Liberal College, beautifully wrapped by our Trusted Student Aide.
Life as an editorial assistant. An exasperated 1991 memo from my time at the John Hopkins University Press.
P—— wants me to call Congress and tell Representative —— to Federal Express his article to us in triplicate right away.
Irreversible Threads. A story I started in 2001. Includes a summary of the missing scenes and a note on how I came to write the story.
I am Jason son of Hegesippos, leader of the Sixth Light Cavalry in defense of Athens.
All that changed on the day that I awoke to the sound of a clock-radio.
Sweet Revenge. An abandoned work-in-progress fantasy story I wrote in December 2001, right before I discovered the fan fiction world. I've included a summary of the final, missing scene, as well as a note on how I came to write the story.
Lyf chuckled softly. "You're such a skilled liar. You're wasted on Xavier; you ought to be an acting-boy, playing in tragedies and comedies."
Fan Fiction Fan. A decade before e-books and
self-publishing
shook up the publishing industry, an author faced a dilemma: When
you've
written stories in a genre that is rarely published, what do you do?
At the beginning of 2002, I stumbled across the fan fiction community, where tens of thousands of readers and writers enjoyed gay genre fiction, which publishers rarely published.
I didn't want to write fan fiction. That didn't matter. Gleefully, I began posting male/male stories with original fantasy settings and characters to "slash" fan fiction e-mail lists, at the same plunging into fanficcers' world of online fiction, "songvids," conventions, celebrations of movie premieres, and endless discussions of literature, history, sexuality, and ethics. In the process, I became part of a community that was taking advantage of the Internet's power in order to distribute stories, art, and videos that couldn't be professionally published.
This first volume in the Pixel-Stained series includes reminiscences, stories, and art from yaoi author/artist mdbl; Steve Berman, founder of the gay and lesbian speculative fiction publishing company Lethe Press; J. M. Snyder, founder of the queer fiction press JMS Books; and m/m romance author Emily Veinglory.
Resources for Loren's Lashes and Leather in Lawnville:
The Leather Research Reference Shelf.
True Tales: An Erotic
E-zine of Masculinity
and Power.
Resources for Pixel-Stained:
Private Parlor: Online Male Homoerotic Fiction Recommendations by Guest Reviewers.
The Slash Skinny: Publishing News and Market Report on Original Slash.
Edgeplay in Mayhill (Loren's Lashes volume).
Mastery in Mayhill (Loren's Lashes volume).
In progress.
Drought in the Desert (Loren's Lashes side story). Nearly completed.
Short Sharp Shock (Leather in Lawnville story). In progress.
This
text, or a variation on it, was originally published at duskpeterson.com
as part of the series Commando. Copyright © 2004-2020 Dusk Peterson.
Some rights reserved. The text is licensed under a Creative
Commons Attribution Noncommercial License
(creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0).
You may freely print, post, e-mail, share, or otherwise distribute the
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(duskpeterson.com/copyright.htm).
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