Congratulations, Azy!

Editor Extrordinaire, Azy, celebrated his 19th birthday early in November. Six weeks later, on Wednesday 15 December, he graduated from Otago University, Dunedin, with a BSc in Maths and Computer Science. He begins work with an IT firm in Auckland in January.

If you think he's a little young to be graduating... well he completed most of the first year of his degree while still at high school (and at the same time finished high school a year early) and managed to knock off the rest of the course in two years. Smart little fellow, isn't he?

Seriously, Azy has been a wonderful friend and colleague, and I'd like to extend my congratulations on a pretty fine achievement. Well done, Azy!

Two Years Old...

It's just over two years since alienson.com went live, and May 26 marks the day Google Analytics began keeping tabs on the site.

Since that day there have been 3533 visitors, who have clocked up 6807 visits and 15294 pageviews. These numbers are peanuts compared to many other sites, but for the son of humble dairy farmers from a tiny town in the Gippsland region of Victoria it's pretty exciting.

I remember asking myself after I began work on Black Dog, "Who am I to think I can write a novel?" I have always loved writing, but this time I felt like I'd bitten off more than I could chew. I've never had much confidence in myself, and I have a bad habit of beginning things and never finishing them, so you can probably imagine the sense of achievement (and a little surprise :)) I felt when I completed the story.

I haven't heard from anyone who identified themselves as a teenager—my target audience—but I have received emails from readers who told me how Black Dog helped them. In a couple of cases Michael's realisation that he needed to forgive his attacker struck a chord with men who had been struggling with the aftermath of trauma for many years.

It seems that only a small proportion of people who read stories online actually contact authors, but those who do make it all worthwhile. It's especially gratifying to know that my efforts have helped people.

Thank you readers!

John

Writing again!

After a very long delay I've begun writing again. It shouldn't be too much longer before Will You Love Me? begins appearing on the site! Thank you for your patience.

Accidentally Poetic

A small collection of poems dating from 1970 to 1972. These were mostly written during a six-month hospital stay following a car accident.

Click here to go directly to the poems.

Happy Birthday, Brody!

About a year ago I received an appreciative email from a history professor / freelance journalist who curled up on his couch over a cold weekend with a long cup of coffee... and read Black Dog all the way through. He even included praise for my editors.

Some time later we began talking via IM, and soon became fast friends. Passionate about equality, fairness and the elimination of hatred, he later began blogging on gay and lesbian issues. He also began writing his own novel about a gay teenager who experiences in the worst way the hatred some people feel towards gay people.

Today (March 1) Brody Levesque turns... oh, never mind, he's old - that'll do. So, happy birthday Brody!

Brody's blog is at Brody's Notes and Scribbles. Be warned, he's hyperactive and produces an amazing amount of material.

Brody's story is being published here: What About Max.