Harrison's Word

[aes31]

Honestly had no doubts you'd stick the landing but DAMN. Please keep us updated if you post other stories! You're a fabulous writer! And having a consolidated version would be nice so I can do what I'm sure will be many rereads, but if that's too time consuming then I totally understand - I'll happily keep reading on here!

 

[aes31]

Okay, everyone - that's the last chapter of Harrison's Word! It was a long one (over 11k words/40 pages, which is roughly a tenth of the entire story LOL), and I hope you all liked it! A lot of things happened that I had always planned to have happen, but a lot of things were also surprises to me as I was writing them and I'm gonna yap about them a little below because it's 4:00 am for me and I'm a little tired/delirious but also super excited because I've never actually finished a novel before in full! I'm glad it was this one - the stakes were super low even though I was writing it while sharing it, and I have you guys to thank for that!

Like I said a few weeks ago, this story was always an Erotica before it was a Romance, so the group scene was always going to be the big finish, and it was tricky to get there but I'm happy with how it did. Hopefully there's enough evidence on the page as to why Harrison was the one to initiate it, and hopefully you all think it makes sense for his character. I also hope that Blake and Cole's sudden reappearance after being off-page so long wasn't too jarring. I tried to drop some hints about what they've been up to while Harrison and Andy were being incredibly dramatic.

Harrison's big naked love confession to Andy was also planned when I realized I wanted to have them end up together, but it was originally going to be in Andy's POV. I hope it wasn't too confusing seeing Andy's final freak out from Harrison's perspective and not Andy's, but I felt it was important to do so I could emphasize the end of the story being the profession of love and the acceptance of their relationship, rather than Andy's mental state. I also didn't want Andy to feel too dependent on Harrison's love and acceptance for him, as that isn't necessarily the healthiest thing. Andy still has to work on that, and Harrison will be by his side while he does it - but that was never the story.

Andy's mental health/mental state was not planned. It actually got pieced together when I was reading people's comments and responses to some of the chapters and his character, specifically comments about how he wasn't even being honest with himself in his own narration and the desire for Andy to have someone to talk to about the things that bothered him. Despite the bullying in high school, Andy's parents were always accepting of him so he had a pretty good acceptance over his sexuality and that was never something I wanted him to struggle with, but he was always a lonely person. While he said he was okay with it, I still think that kind of things eats away at a person, and so I thought about how that would manifest in someone like Andy. His struggles with self-harm and his own guilt and shame would compound with his feelings for Harrison, and though it was implied he'd seen a therapist in the past, I think those sorts of things are life-long battles and are as likely to resurface as they are to disappear completely. My own experience with mental health has proven as such, so I wanted that to be true for Andy as well.

Speaking of his mental health, I didn't want to use it as a shield or an excuse for his actions, but I hope it conveys some complexity to his character and might explain why he did what he did. (To put that plainly, the Harrison/Logan at New Year's thing was Andy taking control in the one way he had been able to before.) People aren't black and white, and I wanted Andy to be a person first and foremost - not just a character. I think it's valid to still feel that what he did was wrong, but change comes from the inside and I think no one knows that better than Andy. Another thing on this, Harrison was never going to view what Andy did as malicious; he's just not that person. But I know that doesn't mean what Andy did wasn't still wrong. This is a piece of fiction, and while it takes place in the setting of a world like ours, it is ultimately a little different, so I hope no one is too hung up on that. It's obviously still fair if you are, however, and this is one of the things I'll be looking into in a potential second draft. Conflict creates a story, but I never want it to drive readers away.

Logan! He was definitely the most complex side character, and that wasn't my intention, but as the story continued and he was going to have an active part in it, I felt it was unrealistic for him to literally and figuratively just be a dick. Didn't have much of a plan when it came to Logan's sexuality (and Blake's and Cole's) but it's something I explored a little. I've had a few people ask about other stories, and while I'll be working mainly on the fantasy project I mentioned, I'd like to do a sequel story for Logan! If it wasn't obvious through the little details I was mentioning, it'd be focusing on him and the Gio character. As a little teaser, I think I want it to be about Logan developing a relationship with Gio as they make porn and coming to terms with his sexuality and his life in general. Harrison got with the program quickly, but Logan is gonna have a lot internalized homophobia to work through, and I think it's only going to be even more challenging for him as he does so alongside Gio's character. Don't have much on Gio, but I think I like the idea of him being an MSU football player, just for the added test of forcing Logan to rifle through his negative feelings towards his athletic career not going the way he wanted it to and some toxic masculinity. I'm annoyingly dramatic about plotting and planning, so I already have a title I like: 'Logan's Law' - but who knows! Everything could change. I'll probably make a new thread for this if/when I start posting, and I'll be sure to update you guys about that!

I'm gonna do an Epilogue, mainly to wrap up some loose ends and give a glimpse into where Harrison and Andy are at when we see them next. Haven't started it yet, but I probably will the second I post this LOL. I've always enjoyed a fluff-centric epilogue, so that's what it will consists. Gonna tease Logan's story and address some Andy mental health stuff and have some fun with it. That will probably be out in a week or so.

Okay! Started this 45 minutes ago! Jesus Christ - I don't ever shut up! Hope you guys liked the ending and thank you all so much for sticking around and supporting the story!

WAIT - one last thing. Someone mentioned wanting a consolidated version of Harrison's Word to read and I was wondering if there would be a collective interest in that? I would happily put it together and make it accessible somewhere, outside of here. Not sure how specifically but I can look into it, and I'd also go back through and fix some small grammar mistakes and clerical errors. Let me know!

Looking back at this after finishing the story I will say one of the things I do appreciate is the complexity of the characters - while I was certainly uncomfortable with the direction Andy was heading in I didn't necessarily think it was that out of character, and like you said I never got the feeling that Harrison held any of it against him. All that's a testament to your writing and characterization of these boys (even Logan and the other side characters), which is probably why I've gotten so invested in the story! I also definitely think that if I can get all this from what you've written then it'd be very interesting to see where you take it/clarify some of it on a second draft, though I understand if that's not something you end up sharing on here! I know some writers here end up putting out newsletters or Patreons with their work or updates on their work, so if you ever do that I for one would love to know about it! Thanks for posting the story though, I haven't waited for updates like this in AGES, and it's genuinely been a blast.

 

[Username0]

That was really well written, you gave yourself a pretty hard topic/backstory so super impressed. Insanely hot too

 

[Allintoday]

Thank you Jacob for writing this. You took us all on a journey and I'm glad i came along. You are a talented writer and look forward to more from you.

 

[Larperman]

OH MY GODDDDDD THIS STORY MAN

 

[Larperman]

I don't even know where to begin but I loved every minute of it. A lot of the story really spoke to me and my personal life, it actually got me to shed a few tears at some points. The focus on Andrew's mental health was incredibly respectful and well thought, and it finally gave him that little push that made me not want to beat him with a hammer anymore (also great to see him get better and not fully shut himself off!). Harrison is great, too. He's every gay guy's dream, yes, but his character also manages to go beyond that, and I can't appreciate that enough! His arc was one of my favorite parts of the whole story.

And the side characters, oh my god???? Cassidy is still the best, as always. Cole I got the feeling wasn't one of your favorites but I liked the hints of where he's at now, and also a small answer to what's going on with his relationship with Blake! Which, speaking of, GOD is Blake a heart throb. I'm right there with Cassidy when it comes to that. Rooting for both of them to get together. Joseph is there too, I guess. He's one of the less developed characters, but he seems like a really nice dude.

But I can absolutely say that reading that Logan might be getting a solo story with Gio made me squeal like a high school girl. He's been one of, if not my favorite character and I'm happy to know we'll be getting more of him.

The epilogue had me smiling like an idiot the whole time, getting to see all of them so happy felt earned. Big fan of the parallels you drew with the initial closet incident. The erotica also went insane, holy shit. The group scene was amazing, and kind of reminded me of a few other stories on this site.

Just, overall, I loved the journey the story took everyone here on. The characters, the readers, and the author, too. Amazing job

 

[JacobMillerStories]

Hey everyone, I've been looking into a way to get a consolidated version available to those who want it, while also considering my own goal of self-publishing down the road, and I think I have a solution! Just wanted to explain my thoughts about that so I could be transparent with everyone instead of just slapping a link in here and calling it a day. (Also, I'm kind of a yapper if you haven't picked up on it yet LOL. These posts just help me commit to a thought.)

Patreon seems to be the best option (It was what I was originally considering before I decided to post here) but because Harrison's Word is an erotic story, anything I post on Patreon would have to have a paywall around it due to their Terms of Service. I don't want people to have to pay for it now, especially if I'm going to try and self-publish it as an eBook later down the line, but since it would be paid content it actually gets around a few other issues I'm being forced to take into consideration.

Self-Publishing through Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) is probably the path I'd take. It's the one self-publishing service I know the most about, as it's tied directly with Amazon and Kindle Unlimited and I've use those before as a consumer BUT there are a lot of rules I'd have to follow in order to get a book out there. One of those would be deleting any online access of the story for at least 90 days, which means I would have to eventually nuke this thread or get it taken down (at least temporarily) to comply with that window. This waiting period would be easily handled on Patreon, as I'm able to pause my account and purchases, etc.

There are a few other benefits to Patreon as well! It's usually a membership service, meaning recurring payments (I'm not a fan of this) but I can also sell an entire collection of posts for a set price, which complies with the Terms of Service and means no one would have to subscribe for a month and then lose access to the story when that expired. I may even be able to attack a PDF/ePub file of the story in that collection, so you could keep it if/when I paused the Patreon for that self-publishing window, but I'd still need to look into that. Patreon also allows me to edit posts, so if there are more mistakes I can continue to fix them when I notice them.

This is where I'm leaning, and I just wanted to communicate that as transparently as possible. I know other authors/writers, specifically a few on LPSG go the Patreon route, but I don't want it to be a constant monthly payment. If money is involved, I want whoever is willing to spend theirs to only spend it once. It's not the same as owning an eBook or a physical copy, but I figure it's also better than nothing in the time being!

Okay, that's all! I really do need to learn to shut up (or at least condense my thoughts LOL). If anyone has any other suggestions or thoughts on the Patreon idea let me know! Thanks as always!

 

[FrederikOBri82]

I would absolutely love a full story!

 

[JacobMillerStories]

Hey, everyone! I've gone ahead and set up the Patreon where you can purchase a consolidated version of Harrison's Word. I've yet to go through and edit grammar mistakes, but those will update even if you purchase and I plan to go through and do that soon! (Taking a little break from the story to work on other things as a little reward for finishing the first draft, but I'll be coming back to it eventually.) Feel free to click the link above, or search "Jacob Miller" on Patreon!

If you plan on purchasing Harrison's Word please do so on a mobile browser or on a desktop. Purchasing on iOS (Apple App Store Version of Patreon) adds an additional fee, but as far as I'm aware it is the only format that does this. If the price isn't $5, don't do it and try another way! Wanted to make you guys aware so no one spends more than they have to!

On that note, you do not need to be a member to purchase. The story should be available under the Shop or Collections Tab of the page, and you should be able to see that for free. Becoming a member does not currently have any additional content, and I don't plan to do anything with that, but I needed to make a paid tier in order to make the page. Subscribing to that will only help with self-publishing costs down the road, and is purely voluntary - I am not asking anyone to, though support is always welcome! If interest is big, I might consider doing a short story/one-shot of some side character stuff or even just a big author's note of decision for Harrison's Word and what inspired what, that sort of thing. A behind the scenes, if you will. But again, this is not something that's out right now; a paid tier was simply a requirement to launch the page.

I've started Logan's Law, and I'm liking it! Logan's head is funny to write in and Gio is developing quite a personality. Trying to keep the tone of this one light, but Logan and Gio's backgrounds are fighting for a bit of a grittier story. My goal is to make them have fun and not conjure too much emotional weight behind their actions and words, but it's not looking like it will be rainbows and kittens for them, either. Probably won't start posting it on LPSG until I'm halfway done with it, but I'll update here when that happens. I'm going to start a new thread, and then will eventually have the consolidated version available on Patreon as well!

As always, THANKS!!!