Earth Calling Writers

(XX and 0)

By way of making it up to me that she wrote a fabulously good FAWC winning story which I couldn't review on here, patientlee has kindly offered me an Earth Day story which does have safe sex. I am very lazy these days, however I do bestir myself sometimes on behalf of you who scan these reviews. I took a stroll into the writers' chat board to ask for some more stories to pass round the campfire on the Earth Day theme. 

I got a bit more than I bargained for with Ogg's elephants! (In spite of his assurances, I still think they could've made the effort to find some sort of Jumbo protection. His was an Exceedingly Good Kipling pastiche, and I was tempted but I decided not to ruin my reputation by allowing unsafe elephant sex to rampage in these pages.) I have survived the wild jungle with Ogg, camping out with a book club, getting wet - uh, while canoeing!, and have returned, picking the leaves out of my hair, with this fine crop of stories for you to pore over as you toast some marshmallows. 

Here are one lesbian and three heterosexual stories for your delectation. Ogg's is the 0 sex - good clean fun with a ribbon round the box.


patientlee's story is smokin' and funny, and a strong Earth Day entrant. The story's about two college students. Our handsome hero is about to start postgrad and has gone back to a summer job in a garden centre, his protagonist is a feisty young lady who is not about to allow her family to fetishize her virginity. Milkweed and Gossamer may sound airy-fairy; it's actually a down-to-earth (in more senses than one, ho ho) and witty tale with a feminist twist which plays up our assumptions beautifully. The story doesn't just rely on being set in gardens for its Earth Day theme, it draws in butterfly conservation adroitly as a key component. Several comments are begging for another installment of this unconventional romance - yes, do it! LOL.

pacifist91w offers a good follow-on to Milkweed and Gossamer with a story about two young women who recently graduated from college and are in their first 'real' jobs. The Power of the Wind is also a proper Earth Day celebration, with lots of detail worked well in about the politics of the energy industry.  Plus, part of the story revolves around one character gently bringing the other character back in touch with the natural world, as well as in touch (ho ho) with sexy fun. Like Milkweed and Gossamer, Chris and Gwen take things more slowly - well, slow for an erotic story. The sex is sweet and explicit. I like the parallel delicately drawn between Chris getting back into the beauties of sex and intimacy and her getting back in touch with natural beauties. The characters are appealing and unconventional, as befits a lesbian romance, and I hope they also get another installment.

I had to go back a few years for some more stories. (The effort I make for you guys, really - pass that emergency bar of chocolate, and DO IT NOW!). I am delighted to review a PennLady on here, as I have been meaning to go and check out her oeuvre for a while. In Lost in the Woods, the lady members of a book club go for a combined camping trip, and to lend a hand cleaning up litter left by other careless campers in a park. PennLady spices up this sexy and romantic tale with a bossy and bitchy book club doyenne and an 'insatiable' witty pal for her heroine. I don't think I'll be giving it away if I let you know - the heroine finally gets a man who has taken the boy scout motto 'be prepared' to heart. He makes sure he's ready for action even in the depths of the woods, carrying a condom in his wallet. I was especially entranced, given that this is an Earth Day story, by how he tidied it up after himself. A man who clears up after himself can come on my blog any day! Er ... as it were.

Having eschewed the 'satiable Elephant's child story (all elephants in it well over the age of 18 of course), I managed to pick up another Oggbashan which has just a hint of Brideshead about it: Ancient Liberties. I do adore Ogg's writing. He is the only person I know who writes smut about local politics. Well, dearly beloved, local councils are responsible for all kinds of things which are reely reely important, like education and road maintenance and, of course, waste disposal and care of the parks and green spaces. I sometimes think about becoming a councilor myself, cuz I think national politics is probably all posture while local councils is where it all acksherly happens.

Not only is there some meticulously researched background detail on the politics of the City of London, the story also supports another favourite Ogg theme: one person can make a difference. Well, in this case two people - one of whom flashes leg, and both of them are very well-connected. I love how Ogg understands that one person can make a difference, but usually only if they are rich and/or upper class. Sex is not explicitly detailed in this entertaining story to the same level as what it means to be a City of London freeman, however Ogg assures us that sex only happens most properly after the wedding and I am sure it all happened with a good Trojan or Fetherlite (wink).