What does male sexuality have to do with Martin Brant Novels?
Within the general brotherhood of man, concerning male sexuality, a significant percentage of men live with a closely guarded secret. More common than most people think, these men are dealing a same sex attraction. Most people, other than those they may have shared their secret with, don’t realize how many men have some degree of sexual attraction to other men. Contrary to most moral codes and various religious beliefs, these feelings are quite common and natural. They are feelings that number among the human emotions I deal with through the characters in my novels.
A writer’s first priority, mine included, is to tell a good story. Any writer worth his or her salt wants to create a thoughtfully written story and entertain those who read his or her work. It could be a murder mystery like my latest novel, Copperas Cove, where Jonathon Scott, recently divorced, leaves Pittsburgh to start a new life and finds himself entangled in the bigoted dramas of 1950s Mississippi; or a WWII action/adventure like The Partisans, where two men on an important mission in France stumble upon a bright new future; or a tale of romance like A Song in the Park, where two men at odds with their past cross paths and start facing life’s challenges together. Good stories have characters and characters have personalities, personalities that are very much a part of the whole and make for a more intriguing book. Often the character’s personality can be a story within a story, or it can be the story itself, as in books such as Catcher in the Rye, or my first novel Five Married Men.
Why the element of same sex attraction?
For me it’s a fascination with the vast diversity of human nature. It’s a part of the human race that, for various reasons, many don’t understand. Many of us have been indoctrinated to belief there is something wrong with being attracted to a member of our own sex, which includes the majority of those who are. These are the men who keep secrets, who often feel guilty, who somehow believe there is something wrong with them. Though you may not feel attracted to members of your own sex, you know someone who does. It may be your brother or sister, your neighbor or a colleague at work, your cousin or best friend; it may even be your husband or wife. And chances are you don’t know their secret exists.
Considered a blessing or a curse, or both, the degree of same sex attraction varies from one man to the next; from a mild curiosity that leaves him feeling either guilty or warm inside, to a full blown and exclusive attraction to one’s own sex. Though the same holds true for both men and women, my focus and my novels are about men (and the women in their lives). And for some reason, same sex attractions seem more prevalent in men, though it is also considered by many as more unnatural and less acceptable.
So why would an author that wants to write a compelling mainstream tale include characters with a same sex attraction? Maybe I believe human sexuality in itself is compelling. Maybe, through my novels, I would like to help broaden human understanding. Maybe a part of me wants to say it’s okay.
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I agree, Q Mc K, the man in pic 5 is absolutely gorgeous, but to me he is a seriously sexy looking man, well photographed, who to me looks Very hairy & also stunningly beautiful.
All these beautiful men are ‘mature’ & look great, to me increasing body hair with age is an integral part of the wonderful masculinity thing. Yum.
I so love this site for it’s celebration of the Male form, regardless of the age of the beautiful person. {hmm, there are a good selection/range of Females too – which is dead right, IMO, we people are beautiful]
It’s almost impossible I think to not love the look of young Male bodies, and an aspect of boys & boyish looking young Men, part of their beauty is a lack of body hair.
Diversity is wonderful too, so young/old & hairy, is a Male reality for that individual.
So sorry M, i couldn’t ans the survey cos, tho for sure (for Eg) a older Man can look stunning shaved, typically I like a ‘look’ that reveals the full masculinity & inner beauty of the bloke being photographed, or ‘makes sense’, is sympathetic to their awesome masculine qualities, as they are (age shape etc). (same for Females too)
And to be honest an aspect about ‘shaving’ or artificial hairlessness that makes me feel a bit queezey, is blurring the line between under age boys & potential partners/ consenting adults.
I fall into the gap between some hair and really hairy–in terms of my own preferences. I believe that a man should have hair on his body, but not to the extent of being mistaken for some wild animal. The view shown in the fifth picture above–the reclining headless torso–drives me wild. That, to me, is the perfect amount of hair on a man’s body! Thanks for sharing all these wonderful images.
Let’s hear it for hair! Love it.