In no ways did you offend me, nicknames, and I very much appreciate the props! (It sounds like you already downloaded the complete, colored and lettered version of this comic, but just in case you haven’t, be sure to get that link by filling out the form at the Free Comic page!)

And yeah, I am trying to create yaoi stories that are a little different — that focus on the kinds of worlds and characters I’ve always wanted to read about. I do have a soft spot for “pretty High School BL” — as one commenter called it — but placing my romances in an action context — particularly with fantasy or sci-fi genre elements, just adds to the fun for me…

I’m actually very happy that there are men out there that write yaoi comics. I mean, who better to get the idea from than a man himself.

Thank you. Man, woman, three-headed alien — as individuals with our own unique life experiences, I think we all have something new to contribute to romantic stories.

For me, I think the biggest factor is how in love you are… with love. Some of the best male-male romances are written by women — and I’m not talking yaoi here, I’m talking explicit gay fiction meant for a gay male audience. And hey, want to know what my favorite romance comic of all time is? It’s True Story, Swear to God by Tom Beland — a full-on heterosexual romance! But it’s so sweet, so well written. with such warmth and humor, it doesn’t matter that it’s a straight guy’s experience written by a very straight guy — what matters to me is the love.

So, while I wouldn’t say that men are any “better” at yaoi ideas than women — (and I know that’s not what you meant, just making a point here ) — I’d like to think that I have something unique to offer, something that will appeal to cool yaoi fans like yourself.

If you’d like to support this work, please tell all your friends about us and the comics we’re creating — obscurity is our biggest challenge. And please keep coming back and checking in — I always love to hear from cool people like yourself.

Thanks for letting me know what you thought of our work!

Alex

I agree with pawapawapo we do live in a very sexist world. I mean if u love what you’re doing, who cares what other people think. (I said that because i know a few guys that are ashamed to be gay, which i don’t get at all.) I’m really happy that i got to read this comic, its very original. Most of the time the main characters are child hood friends or they met in elementary school and have known eachother since, but this it totally diferent and i love it. I’m actually very happy that there are men out there that write yaoi comics. I mean, who better to get the idea from than a man himself. (I’m sorry if i offended you!)

I’m very pleased that you enjoyed the comic and that you like what you see — but, believe it or not, there actually are lines of dialogue in this comic, these are just the inked pages, pre-lettering. If you’re curious what this story would be like with words, you can actually get a download link to the finished comic by filling in the form on our Free Comic page.

That said, it was definitely an important goal of ours to have the storytelling work on a visual level, so I’m glad to hear that it worked for you without any spoken lines of dialogue.

(And in an ironic twist, we actually are working on a story with no words — or very few words anyway — about two guys who don’t speak the same language yet still fall in love, but that won’t be ready for a little bit…)

I’m glad you stopped by. Thank you for your comments and the encouragement!

Your style is very clean and bold, which I really like. And the idea to have no speaking in the comic was pretty original, and I think it really does play a huge role in this story. I really enjoyed it, and look forward to checking out other information on your book.

Thank you so much for your kind words. I’m very glad to hear you are liking what you’re seeing. Please keep coming back — I’ll be putting up the colored pages for “A Shot in the Dark” soon and we are hard at work on the other comics for this book (which also combine action with the sweetness.)

As for the issue of sexism, the truth is, my experience of yaoi fans is that they have been overwhelmingly supportive and positive. (Shout out to all the cool gals I met at YaoiCon!) Of course, not everyone has been (or is going to be), but knowing that there are yaoi fans out there who might enjoy these stories makes all the hard work worth it to me.

It’s true that we do live in a sexist, racist and gay hating world. It is my hope that, as time goes on, people focus more on building bridges than creating moats and walls. And it is my belief that it will be thoughtful people like yourself who will make that a reality.

Thanks for commenting,

Alex

I also read your articles on yaoi and how it excludes gay guys. I always wondered why I could never find yaoi made by actual gay men. I’m sad that we live in such a sexist world. I hope this issue will be raised in the yaoi community. Sexism is inherent in our society, and so people must be consciously aware of it in order to overcome it.

I’m really glad you’re liking the art — I feel very lucky to be working with Karla and Winona and I can’t wait to show you the colored pages.