How do we like our men?

A conversation with my partner today about alpha men and the women who love them, got me to thinking about my M/M work, and really about the whole sub-genre in particular. In my M/M writings, I set one hero up as the decidedly alpha partner. He's a French sailor in the story Samhain accepted (For Love and Country slated for a Jan 08 electronic release), he's a show-jumper who knows what he wants (Riding Partner available now from Ellora's Cave), and in a work, which I hope my EC editor will like once it's submitted, he's a suave dressage rider with a European flair. Yet, their partners aren't beta men. Yeah, they might be wounded, such as Derek (in Riding Partner) who has money and other issues with which to deal. In the aforementioned work in progress, he's a rodeo cowboy whose seen a bit too much homophobia behind the chutes. And, in For Love and Country, he's a Union soldier who literally died for his country. All strong men, not really beta, yet certainly not swaggering alpha, either.

As a woman, I know what kind of men I like. As a woman interested in homoerotic relationships, I know what kind of men I'd like to see together. I also know from talking to gay friends that what I'm exploring in my fiction as a M/M iceberg is just the tip. There's a wide world out there, and most of it is waiting to be explored.

So is it an alpha-alpha relationship you're looking for? Or maybe a nice dose of bondage and submission, to watch a strong man submit to another out of pleasure and love? Perhaps it's just a couple of average joes finding out they're not alone? Or maybe... just maybe... it's something a little wilder?

The question remains..how do you like your men?