Good old Al wrote a song to help those who need to ‘up’ their writing game.

https://youtu.be/8Gv0H-vPoDc?si=s637RNLhPbxcpxCc

Enjoy.

with love,

HER

Once in a while, I bare my soul; more often my soles bear me.

Let us cut the bullshit.

There have been repeated reports in the past of Amazon Kindle stealing money from consumers. As well as Kindle being a proprietary and closed standard for content delivery. The underlying issue is not only restricted to Amazon Kindle, but any and all cloud-based streaming content providers.

Who controls the content that is saved on the cloud? Is it the owner of the content? Or is it the owner of the infrastructure?

From A Veteran Editor of 'Stars And Stripes'

Regulars here will know I’m not a fan of BS and half-measures. Don’t piss on my boots, and tell me it’s raining …

This has been a horrible month for anybody who still cares about America, her place in the world, and her duty to her people.

We are under attack by Donald Trump’s soulless, gutless Republican Party, and the United States of America will never be the same again.

There is nothing to worry about with Trump and Republicans in charge

-- The State Department is now not even issuing renewing passports to transgender people.

--The National Park Service (NPS), a bureau of the U.S. Department of the Interior changed the information about Stonewall on their website. They erased four of the leaders of the riots who were transwomen and changed the phrase LGBTQ rights to LGB rights.

-- As of February 7, 2025, transgender individuals were banned from enlisting and having publicly funded gender-affirming surgeries in the U.S. military.

I just ran across this 13 minute video on road safety in Europe (and more specifically the UK) versus the development of electric vehicles at NEWS: UK Bans Cybertruck - 5 Fatal Design Flaws Tesla Can't Fix.

This is more for those techno-geeks and EV geeks out there. So you might like this FYI,

Great news everyone!

To try and help us move away from reliance on Amazon so much, we're going to be starting some experiments on the Patreon with making books and/or stories available to purchase there.

Right now we have two options available in this way: the complete collection of Quillian, and my own story Fresh Start. We'll be working on moving more work over there in the future.

Between cvs and humana I am unable to obtain my jardiance medicine. It's too expensive: $500 for a 30 day supply. Never mind the fact that I need it for my heart. I have exhausted all avenues. It would take Elon Musk or Trump to intervene to make it possible. So, I will not go that route, okay? It doesn't look like I can get it anymore. So, this is the beginning of my end. The protection that it gave me will wear off me this morning, so I am prepared for a heart attack and going. I made it this far huh? Thank you all for allowing me to have been here at the end.

The events of the recent USA administration fall into 2 basic categories. #1 Information overload. With the Tsunami of strange, weird, unsettling and scary actions taken by the new administration the news media, other politicians and the general public are overwhelmed by crazy and can not seem to decide which action to tackle first, so they are caught in stasis. That way the administration keeps doing whatever they want.

If you are willing to see how Europeans view the current political developments in the United States of America, you might want to the following broadcast posts on YouTube. Be warned that these could be triggering to you, and therefor a risk to your personal mental health. So viewer discretion is advised.

I just discovered that at Amazon I can specify "Made in Canada Only" products. So to test I bought some cookies.

Just being as snotty and disrespectful as possible.

Gwen Brown

It occurred to me - years late - that the male street hero should be named Mano Duro rather than Mano Dura. However, my two years of high school Spanish are decades in the past. Can someone with more knowledge of Spanish let me know which is correct?

I have been around this site almost from the beginning. Sephrena (hope I got the spelling right), sent me a PM to invite me over. I "think" it was around 2005 or 2007, don't really know. My first story here shows 2008.

I am writing this blog to see how others do their writing.
I write on a desktop computer with keyboard elevator. It used to be that PAIN ! was my way of life and I took lots of prescription opiate drugs back then. Nowadays, I rarely take any drugs at all and since I don't work anymore, I hurt less.

So...here I am at the end of my contract, having reached the mandatory retirement age in my country of residence. Theoretically, I should have plenty of time to complete all of my unfinished stories, but it goes without saying that nothing is ever as simple as it first appears.

While I have a small pension provided by the government, it's not quite enough to make ends meet, meaning I have to decide what to do next. Basically, its a choice between finding another job in the private sector or moving to a cheaper country.

The classic line from Captain Renault in Casablanca, just before he collects his gambling winnings, is a perfect lead in to today’s latest news from the Orange Asshat in Washington, D.C.

Trump today announced that he is firing the director of the Office of Government Ethics, a man who was confirmed by the US Senate in November 2024 and sworn in December 16, 2024 for a five year term - a term that would have lasted completely through Trump’s second term. See the attached news article:

The latest installment of the Light saga is now posted complete! Thus for anyone waiting to binge-read the new novel in its entirety, it's waiting for you! Specifically here: Hope's Light

While taking a break from a story I am working on I saw a photo of a 2025 Corvette Z..... something. 1000 hp, twin turbo V8, claims very good mileage if the driver keeps the foot out. 233 mph. Performance suspiciously like an Audi R8 which they stopped making. The driver of this beast MUST be a very masculine woman or perhaps TG ????

This must be edited into the new story !!!!

Gwen Brown

Nell is the new girl in school.

Curse of the Fountain
9. Mystery Meat
by Melanie Brown
Read on Patreon

Well everyone is now telling me to put it back up, I feel like I'm a tennis ball LOL.

I'll put it back up.

It is a simple question really? Why?

There is plenty to talk about in White Balance, and The Matinee. I just do not ever see comments. I believe her writing warrants a response. She has put in the same time and effort as others, why not grace her story with a comment?

Sephrena

An ending for a new beginning?

Dawning
by Erin Halfelven
A BCTS Story Challenge

I have finally finished posting all of her already written stories. When she is ready, Clara will post her newest stories up :)

I thank her for the privilege of having been allowed to host them here. And I hope Clara will post as soon as she can.

Thank You Clara.

Sephrena

The Protagonist does online investigations for a fee until "they" graduate college. They found a remote cabin in the Rockies and stayed there to do the investigations. They go into town for groceries at times and eventually go to a family gathering where "gramps" offers him the ranch.

I hope this is enough

Ahabidah, Gwen Brown

Well... I guess Holly's gone and done it, as per usual!

'Fake it Till You Make It' has been wildly more popular than I ever expected, and for that I am eternally grateful to all of you who have read and commented on it. As we head toward the final chapter of the book, I have some news... and thoughts I would like to share with you, my wonderful readers.

Truthfully, it's disturbingly gory. So much so that I couldn't continue it until now. If it took me over two months to be able to handle one image, I'm not sure about subjecting the unwary to it. How should I tag something like this, maybe a warning at the beginning and a spacer after that or should I just hold on to it. It shares the first several paragraphs with the lynching tree to let you see where the gore is coming from.

Thanks to some of my mental health issues playing up, I havent been able to work on my stories.

So it might be a while before you guys see anything new from me.

Sorry.

As a card carrying member of the ACLU, I regularly get communications from them. Yes, many of those are asking for money to support their programs, but many others are asking for me to sign a petition or to reach out to my Congressman or Senator. They also send out communications regularly to help keep members informed.

I received this one today………

https://www.aclu.org/news/lgbtq-rights/trumps-executive-orde...

I've just posted the final post of "My Summer in Pantyhose" It's the epilogue. It's short because, summer is over and the title of the series limits the story to that summer.

Is this the end of Jamie’s story? Are there no more adventures for Jamie, Tabitha and Mike? And what about Megan?

Obviously not. Jamie and co. have their whole life ahead of them. Where will Jamie end up; will he and Tabitha become a lifetime couple; what will Megan do after? Dear readers. Turn your imaginations loose and fill in the blanks that are the rest of their lives.

We are currently working on fixing a huge amount of errors and know that they are up. Piper is trying out new features and the errors will be taken care of asap! Thank you for your patience.

Sephrena

Hello everyone,
I've been meaning to do this for a little while. My takes on the best interest in and so so stories on BigCloset TopShelf. Feel free to add stories to any of the categories also feel free to add any categories you wish as well.

Most read stories.

Somewhere Else Entirely By Penny Lane.
This is one of a few stories that I actually binge read And he still took me a couple of days to get through it.

When I first started going out as myself, I got to talk to a lot of women who told me they didn't like most of the feminine stuff.

They would avoid dresses and skirts and the rest unless they had no choice.

I got the impression they saw being feminine as being less, which is an attitude I would expect from guys, but it was a little strange to hear it from women.

Me, I would have given anything to be allowed to be feminine, so hearing women say they saw it as at best kind of meh . . . well, I really dont know what to make of that.

I know all of you here enjoy this closet, as do I, but I will publicly state for the record that I will never again live in a closet. With Trumps new Executive Orders, being Trans has now become the new witches of old Salem. All I can think to do right now is be firm in my resolve and stand tall against this wave of zealousness. To quote Trump himself.....Fight, Fight..Fight. Love you all, Emily

I cannot remember much about this story except from a few facts no specific order

medieval type fantasy

witch/sorceress believes she is wronged by king, curses a royal child

curse can only be broken by a selfless act

monarch's magic is life of land

A friend of MC runs a clinic that soldiers burn to ground with patients still inside

another character saves MC from making bad mistake, and turns MC's life around, think is mercenary and teaches MC swordsmanship

The news gets worse every day. Has time run out???

In certain cases such as medicine, I'd expect Artificial Intelligence to regurgitate provide useful information, although it might provide bad, wrong information as well. In other cases, such as analyzing President Biden's term as president, I would expect word salad.

Read on for why.

I'm going to have a go at a continuation to this story with some glossaries of dance terms I downloaded. Thanks all who commented on parts one and two your encouragement is very helpful. Unfortunately, they don't have a term for a Smudge cat who launched herself off the floor with forepaws patting together as she tried to catch a fruit fly. It looked as if she was saying her prayers in mid-air. It was really quite amusing to watch.

When they learned she was transgender IBM fired her.

Lynn had managed to put together some fragile bits of support and help from her family and friends. However, when IBM fired her everyone lost confidence in what she was doing and her support system collapsed. Lynn went abroad for her surgery, all alone. She had lost not only her career and professional reputation, but also her family, relatives, friends and colleagues. She faced a frighteningly uncertain future without a soul in the world to help her other than her doctors.

So, the events in the states has me feeling very helpless, which is triggering my PTSD rather badly.

all hugs and prayers appreciated.

I am looking for a story,

Magical? gender change, Grandmother dying, mother last of the matriarchal clan, son changed.

I say "magical?" as I cannot remember if magic is involved

I can however remember the clan is a clan of were's and they are big cats, Lion, Tiger, Puma, Panther type big cat.

I think he gets injured in a car accident, before change

also I seem to remember he was at college/university studying forensics (CSI), which also helps when members of another clan in the town begin to reappear dead

Yep, a new short story collection from yours truly!

to the post i put up this morning?

I have started to dream of my family. a couple of nights ago it was my grandmother, last night it was my aunt and her family.

I really dont understand my brain . . .

A day few thought we'd ever see. A day some even dreaded. But after being away from the top since 2020, the man of the hour has finally arrived at his new home.

Sir Lewis Hamilton has arrived at Ferrari.

Was something else meant to be happening today? I prefer to only give oxygen to things that improve my life and the world around me.

Debs xxxx

Hey all,

Looks like I'm back after about a year hiatus. I had three strokes in 2024 so here's hoping that pattern doesn't continue. I'm back with a new attitude, new graphic novel, and writing about dark transfomational tales that usually includes Tg.

The "swearing in" is tomorrow. If I don't get the chance, you have my gratitude for all your support. I is not clear how unsafe things will get. My primary medical facility is the VA and I considered calling them tonight. What is the use???

Thank you all so much.

Gwen Brown