The New Black

It's New Year's Eve and my long-time friends are bemusedly asking yet again "What is it you're writing?"

I glanced up from trying desperately to get through Metallica's "One" on Guitar Hero III. "Male/male erotic romance. And it's primarily for a straight female audience."

They laughed but I could still hear their disbelief. I tried to find a way to explain. After staring at my onscreen avatar, I said, "It's the new black. You know those bands your daughters listen to, Panic! At the Disco, Fall Out Boy? They're wowing their audiences with male/male kisses and other suggestive things on stage. And their female fan base screams for it."

I could tell I still didn't make much headway with my friends of seventeen years. If I'd had my laptop, I could have sent them to youtube to look at Brothers and Sisters or Luke and Noah from As the World Turns or to watch some of Torchwood: Jack and Ianto, Jack and John, or even Jack and Jack.

My favorite flavor of romance is no longer locked away on pay cable or in hard-to-find independent films. Look at the media blitz created by the fans upset over the lack of Luke and Noah kisses on As the World Turns. In addition to an AP run in big newspapers (and all my local ones) it's made British news websites, CNN and even NPR. And other than the obligatory conservative rant about the homosexual
agenda (Now, where did I put mine? I have to look up my apointments), everyone seems to be on the side of more boy kissing. Male/male romance is the new black. I couldn't be happier to see our favorite romances making news and new fans.

And by the way, I totally rock on Guitar Hero. I just wish I could get some of the avatars to mimic the aforementioned bands. Ah well, maybe in Guitar Hero IV.