BrokeBook Fever -- Spreading the word on our book: news, brainstorming, etc.

[KittyHawk]

Son of a bitch, son of a bitch, the book arrived.  As easily as the right key turns the lock tumblers, the stories come together, and hard... drawing blood and tears from our souls...

Little Darlins, you have done it!

Beautifully said, Oregondoggie! About 50 volunteers and 120 authors are the Little Darlins who made this happen! 

- KH

[Brokeback_1]

I may not read this until after the BBQ. Started last night, it is a heavy read. And a slow one, I want to give it all the time due  to it.

But it is an elegant book, that's for sure. Everything flows visually.

[KittyHawk]

Does anyone know why the purchase link at the book website is broken? Should I buy it through Amazon?
Is there some other issue going on with supply?

Thanks.
Rick

Rick, I just checked the link from our book page to WingSpan and they seem to be back in business today! And their supply is fine, for now. They've got about 300 books to sell and then we do our second printing.     

- KH

[KittyHawk]

I have a very nice stash here of business cards and postcards.    The graphic is a version of the book cover. If you can think of some ways to let other people know about the book, just PM me with your name, address, and how many you want. (Up to 5 postcards and 20 business cards for free!)

Ideas that others have come up with include slipping a business card into an Annie Proulx (or other appropriate) library book, leaving a small stack on the counter at your gym, using one as a bookmark, handing them out at your book club, wearing one on your shirt pocket, etc., etc.

This offer is also good for our friends overseas - not just here in the US.

- KittyHawk

[Jaysmommy]

My books arrived today!



YAAAAAAAAAAAAYYYYYYYYYY!

 

[ChrisFewa]

lol this is no fair...I want my book...

[planetgal471]

I got mine, but I was afraid to open it... 

[LoveEmBoys]

I got mine, but I was afraid to open it... 

LOL Jess!!  Open it!  Yes, it's powerful, it's poignant.  But it is wonderful at the same time.

[planetgal471]

LOL Jess!!  Open it!  Yes, it's powerful, it's poignant.  But it is wonderful at the same time.

Beeh! But I need to be able to concentrate on work and get stuff done pre-BBQ, so if I'm sitting at work all day blubbering or obsessing, that would be bad. The timing is sort of bad when you think of it that way! But I'm glad it came before the BBQ. I want to read it before the BBQ... such a dilemma. I'm just afraid of being an emotional wreck again.

[cynical21]

This morning, I opened my mailbox, and there it was.  I felt a bit like I'd been holding my breath for a very long time, but I didn't then understand exactly why I felt that way.  I'm thankful that now, hours later, I do understand it.

I think I want to run and shout and dance and sing to the world - to make sure everyone hears and understands.  I last felt this way in January of 2006, when I walked out of a movie theater knowing that my life had been changed forever.

Do you all remember it?  Do you remember what you felt?  Given that we are all unique individuals, I'm pretty sure the experience differed for each of us, but I remember exactly what I felt, although that memory faded with time.

The thing for me was - and is - that this story, this film, despite providing a vivid picture of the culture that formed Jack and Ennis and the world that created their tragedy, was not a big, sweeping, overwhelming story.  It wasn't about those towering mountains; it wasn't about herding sheep; it wasn't about the erotic aspects of two hot guys falling in love; it wasn't even about the dire consequences of homophobia, although it certainly touched on that.  What it was about, for me, was the simple, fundamental love of two people, caught up in a world in which they would never find a place to belong.

Above all, Brokeback Mountain was an intimate story, and it felt as if there were only the three of us in that theater, no matter how thick the crowds.  It felt like I was the confidante, the shoulder to cry on - and the trusted friend who was allowed to cry the tears that they never allowed themselves. Jack and Ennis became, for me, the treasured friend - best I ever had - who lost his battle with AIDS not so many months before this film premiered, and I wished with all my heart that he had lived long enough to see it, and to see the reactions of those who were transfixed by it, those who understood for the first time, in spite of the ugly, bigoted teachings of a cruel society, that love is an elemental force that knows no gender and needs no excuse for its existence.

It broke my heart and filled me with light, all at the same time.

Sustaining that feeling wasn't easy, but finding the DC forum was a source of encouragement and support.  So many lovely voices; so many stories; so much inspiration.

I'm a writer.  That's how I define myself; it's what I've always been, so it was natural for me to gravitate to the fan fiction boards.  Annie Proulx's elegant, spare prose touched my heart, and drove me to attempt to explore the story more deeply, even though there was a little voice in my mind that kept telling me it was a form of sacrilege to mess with perfection.  Nevertheless, I began to write, and to read the stories created by a group of incredibly gifted writers who found their way here, probably driven by the same impetus that drove me:  a wish to share the incredible experience, and to find more understanding with companions who were affected the same way.

It was a wonderful experience, and I don't regret it in the least.  I honestly believe that some of these authors will eventually be published writers; they're that good.

Nevertheless, after a time, I began to feel a certain restlessness - almost a disconnection, and I couldn't quite figure out why.  I read fabulous stories about Jack and Ennis and the lives they might have led, had fortune been kinder; then the writers began to expand their horizons, and visualize the two characters as they might have been in different settings, emerging from different cultures, under different circumstances.  These stories are known in the forums as Alternate Universe stories: J&E as cops & criminals, as doctors or lawyers or writers or gunslingers or convicts; the possibilities seem endless.  The number of plots and scenarios grew at an astounding rate, and it was, for the most part, incredibly well written.  Intricate plots and expanded characterizations were tremendously enjoyable, and, of course, the erotica was intense and inspirational and exhilarating.

But still, something seemed just slightly off-kilter for me.

Today I know why.  Today, I rediscovered the intimate Jack and Ennis, the soft, gentle voices that spoke to me like they would have talked to a trusted friend.

I know - it doesn't really make sense, and I don't expect anyone else to understand it, but it feels so right to me.  I read through all the comments made by so many wonderful people, and I feel the kinship, the shared sense of hope, the determination to make this story count for more than a memorable piece of fiction, because, ultimately, it is NOT a piece of erotica, or a stirring melodrama, or a thriller.  This is about real life, illustrating in a way that few can dispute that, in a world so full of hatred and violence and bigotry, love can never be the problem.  It can only be the solution.

I thank the people who put this incredible book together, for giving me back the intimacy of Brokeback Mountain. 

To steal just two of the intensely emotional quotes that struck me so deeply, let me cite the words of Danac: " . . .I don't want to get over it.  I love the fact that this film made me sad. . . . I love the fact that I can still be moved to tears by love and by passion, not just by tragedy."

And, from bluehorse:  "Why do some people walk out of the movie and go to dinner and talk about the weather while others walk out of the theater to find the horizon has been erased?"

I don''t want to get over it either, and I plan to make sure to remember to look at that horizon, and watch it stretch to infinity.

CYN

[mario]

started reading The Book today.....from 8:30 am till 12 noon.......glad i had plenty of napkins (sitting outside MacDonalds, w/my coffee.......damn.....thought i was past it already......first few sentences sent my Pavlovian eyes into spasms.........haven't quite recovered yet........picked myself up and went to seashore to gaze at sailships, birds, glad it was an overcast day......skyline of SD, Coronado bridge.....collage of thoughts streaming, all times, all places, all persons......a good cry.....a damn healthy  cry......

[alma]

My book arrived!!!

My husband immediately went to the index to find my two contributions (both about him! LOL) and the whole time he thumbed through it, he kept saying how beautiful the book was, how professional it felt, how powerful it would be. This means a lot because both of us are editors and in publishing. So I loved that he felt the significance of the project too.

Thanks to all those who worked so hard to make this project a reality. It is humbling to be a part of it in my small way. The rest of you rock!

Julie

P.S. Today a friend emailed me to tell me that in her South Carolina city, a gay friend of her daughter's was beaten to death outside a bar last night. They believe the beating was related to his homosexual orientation. I'm just sick that this still happens. Glad we have yet another book to give validation to the plight of the homosexual community.

[mountain boy]

    Mine came last night!! Wonderful - congrats everybody!! 


   so Alma, where did this happen? I grew up in SC...

[paintedshoes]

Oh, God, Julie!  How horrible about that ugly and vicious death of someone just for being.  I hate that, and sincerely hope that our book will change the mind of even one person about how all human beings should be treated.

[alma]

   Mine came last night!! Wonderful - congrats everybody!! 


   so Alma, where did this happen? I grew up in SC...

Greenville.