Kicking Off National LGBT Month with a Story, a Pledge, and a Dragon (And Why I Need Your Help)

Hello Trickyverse,

Thank you for Coming out to a special edition of Writing is Tricky.  Today, October 1, marks the start of the 20^th anniversary of LGBT History Month. Its intent (summed up nicely from Wikipedia) is “to encourage honesty and openness about being LGBT.” 

There are quite a few milestones in LGBT history, but the day that I most enjoy is October 11: National Coming Out Day

This reason this day resonates for me is because it is a day of both recognition and of action. It is a day, where those of us struggling with our sexual orientation/identity are not only reminded that others came before us but also that we are not alone. We are not outcasts. We are not ugly things, grisly things, disgusting things, undeserving of decency, respect, or a basic right to love who we want to love, or even to love ourselves. It’s a day where our community, including our closest friends and allies, step forward to say: You are you, you are human, and you are beautiful but most importantly, you are never alone.

Coming out is not an easy thing. We hear gay jokes, religious-misinformed rhetoric, and some equally shocking things from the mouths of those we feel closest to when they think no one will hear. For me, I sometimes feel like I had it easy. Most of my family supported me, even if most of them didn’t always understand what it meant having a gay cousin, brother, uncle--back when it was new. Just having that support, knowing that I always had a place to go, seeing their courage, gave me (and still gives me) strength.

 

Not everyone has had a family or the support that I have had, but luckily, there are now programs out there that didn’t exist years ago, or at least they didn’t exist in the tiny neck of the woods where this little magician grew up.

I know I just said coming out was not easy.  Scary is a closer word to the feeling. Terrified is closer still. Back then, I worried about my life, my morality, my soul (not to mention fearing retribution with a tire iron for finally being honest about who I was).

Knowing where I grew up and knowing that I would not be here today without the love and support I had (seriously, I despised myself back then) . . .

. . .I will be donating all of my royalties from my novel Only Human, purchased from Amazon (Kindle version or paperback) for the month of October to the Boston Allianceof Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, & Transgender Youth (BAGLY). 

“BAGLY works with LGBTQ youth across Massachusetts—and beyond!  Through leadership development, health promotion & services, social support, events, and the statewide GLBT Youth Group Network, BAGLY is at work in our communities to support LGBTQ youth.”

It is my sincerest hope that this turns into a monetary gift that far surpasses anything I could have given on my own.

Please help and spread the word!

Share this with your friends, family, coworkers . . . anyone who you think might be able to help. Heck buy them a copy!

Tell me about it @mikemehalek so I can share as well. And next month, I hope I have a big number to report.

Thanks and Love,

-Mike

         

                                           

Kindle Edition

         
                                                                                               
                                                                                                Paperback Edition

My book Only Human is out now

Hi everyone,

There is a great new Urban Fantasy that is part action, part romance, part mystery and suspense, and part horror.  It's my novel Only Human.  I hope you take a look, and I hope you enjoy.

I'd love to hear that you think.

-Mike



“Dragons do not cry. They control their emotions. That is what all dragons were taught, but I am now the only one alive to remember this lesson.” 

 

Only Human by Mike Mehalek

Cover Art by Allie Raines
Now for sale at Amazon

What does it mean to be a human? 

Meet Vincent, a most unusual dragon who has been trying to avoid answering that particular question for thousands of years, ever since his kind banished him and forced him to spend the rest of his life as a human. When a new love arrives unexpectedly, Vincent discovers that the only way to find happiness is to revisit his violent past and to confront his uncertain future. Haunting, heart-felt, and sometimes funny, Vincent discovers that even through tragedy, the things we most often try to avoid are those that make us whole.

What others have said

ONLY HUMAN takes you on a journey through Vincent's past lives and loves as he navigates his present incarnation and the darkness that follows him throughout the ages.

-Heidi Ruby Miller, author of Greenshift

There's lots to love about ONLY HUMAN: action, mystery, secrets revealed and redemption. Add to that dragons (who doesn't love dragons?), wicked bad guys and an all-too-human narrator who will win your heart...the strongest element of this book is the love story...This is an epic, timeless story and a small intimate one at the same time. Dip your toe in, I don't think you'll be disappointed. -Jennifer Barnes, editor at Raw Dog Screaming Press
Purchased and enjoying!!...AND I had a dream I was a flying dragon last night! It was awesome! -Amazon Reader
Watch the trailer below

For fun
Who would play the characters in the movie version?

About Me

Mike Mehalek writes fast-paced lyrical books that can be enjoyed with one reading but have enough substance for re-reading. He brings stories to life that demand to be told, regardless of the hopes/dreams/fears/desires of his characters-the Story first-always the Story. 
He'd love for you to visit him at his blog, Writing is Tricky or on Twitter @mikemehalek
If you'd like to join his email list, please email mike.mehalek@gmail.com with like to join in the subject line.

Blog Hop

Blog Hops

The Next Big Thing – Week 16 

First off a special thanks to Heidi Ruby Miller who’s not Just A Girl (@Heidirubymiller on Twitter) but one hell of a writer and personal friend for tagging me.  Check out her post then, hop over and visit these other talented writers.  They are an awesome mix of genre and literary writers  

Natalie Duvall (@Natt444) -- Www.natalieduvall.com

What is the working title of your book?

ONLY HUMAN

Where did the idea come from for the book?

It started as a writing prompt: what would it be like for a dragon to have to live its life as a human? From there all sorts of social implications starting creeping in.  I really liked the concept of how something with complete power would cope (or not) when said power was removed.

What genre does your book fall under?

I would call it Urban Fantasy although it is light on the fantasy.  The fantasy mainly comes from world building of dragon society.  If I took out the dragons there wouldn’t be any other fantasy tropes in it—I guess that would make it...hmm an action/adventure coming of age story?

Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition?

It’s taken me so long to get to a point where I am proud of this story I had to change that a few times!

  








David Boreanaz as Vincent/Shylock


  Zac Efron as Kevin

Meryl Streep as (voice of) Spectre

Laurence Fishburn as (voice of) Bison



What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?

Love is human and never dies.

When a dragon is wrongly convicted for the murder of his mother and sister after losing control over his emotions, he must, for his punishment, spend the rest of his days as the most vile and irrationally emotional creature--a human

Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency?

That is yet to be determined

How long did it take you to write the first draft of your manuscript?

Well I thought it was 6 months.  It turned out that what I thought was my final draft was my first draft—that took two years.

What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?   While not necessarily in my genre, the books I’ve read that remind me of this include: Glen Duncan’s THE LAST WEREWOLF, Annie Proulx’s Brokeback Mountain, Dean Koontz’s Odd Thomas, or Bart Yates’ The Brothers Bishop

Who or What inspired you to write this book?

I really fell in love with my main characters.  I loved the relationships they had with one another.

What else about your book might pique the reader’s interest?

I wanted this to be a fast, fun thrill ride with a little sentimentality and gentleness to it but I wanted hints of literary tools to enhance it. They’re in there for people who are willing to look.  Tea was originally made from dragon scales. Dragon skeletons are made of cartilage.  If ONLY HUMAN were a song it’d be a rock ballad.  If it were a symbol, it’d be the double helix.