HB Kurtzwilde recently discussed the ongoing story Sea Of Glass with it's author AJ Wilde.  The story can be found at the Liminal Ink Live Journal Community:  http://community.livejournal.com/liminal_ink/profile

HB: How did the idea of Liminality influence the writing of this story?

AJW: I wanted to write a story which examined the concept of conscious choice of gender.  Human life begins as a dual-sexed being, and the selection is made in utero. We never have the chance to explore the "other".  I wanted to explore the premise "what if we had until the onset of adulthood to make a conscious choice about gender?" For those who feel they walk a line between one gender and the other, this may strike a few chords. If we were able to experience each to the full, would we make the right choice?  Or is it our nature never to be satisfied?

HB: Does this story fit in with your previous work, or is it a new experiment for you?

AJW: This is a new venture into the realm of sci-fi/fantasy. I wanted to do something which was in my heart, but yet quite distinct from anything I have previously published.

HB: Tell us a little about your writing method...

AJW: I don't have one. Ha ha, no. What I really mean is, I have no plan. I write entirely by the seat of my pants, intuitively, instinctively. Some folks call this "stream of consciousness". That sounds too high-fallutin' to me, so I prefer to say that I write by feel, you know - groping my way along in the semi-dark, with only the vague sensation of a storyline and characters whispering in my ear to guide me. Wait! That's a metaphor! How did that happen?! You see, that's how I write ... ;O

HB: How long have you been writing?

AJW: Since I was four, man. Oh, you mean professionally? I wrote my first Harlequin novel when I was twenty. Needless to say, it was rejected. My first publication came in Internet Year 1.1, 1995.

HB: What are your favorite genres? Why?

AJW: My favorite genre to write is contemporary, but with a twist. This could play out either as a supernatural event, or a time-shifting experience i.e. past life recall. Lately, I'm itching to venture into the vampire genre.

HB: How has the Internet changed writing?

AJW: I think it has created a wealth of opportunities, but also pitfalls. Writers have to be very careful when choosing a publisher, and readers need to learn to discriminate between good writing and bad. There is a lot of bad writing out there - but there is also a vast pool of extraordinary original talent, a lot of which would never have seen the light of day except for the Internet.

HB: How did you create these characters?

AJW: Uh. *scratches head* Dude, they were already there, just waiting for me to hear their voices. This is their story.

HB: Do you know how long the story will be when it is completed?

AJW: I have no idea really, but I'm figuring on around 80,000 words.

HB: Who influenced you to become a writer?

AJW: My Dad, my English teacher, and Virginia Woolf.

HB: Is there anything you do, other than writing, that helps you be a better writer?

AJW: Living. Reading. Loving. Hurting. Being.

Just one of the boys: from my earliest memories, that's how people have described me. 

I remember playing cars with the boys on my street.  By the time I was nine, I had the best toy car collection on the block.  The pride of my collection was a James Bond 007 Aston Martin, complete with bulletproof windshield, tire slashers and revolving license plate. 

Inheriting my cousin's Action Man knocked all my Barbies into a cocked hat.  He had the "winter whites" kit, with a white balaclava and snowshoes.  I was beside myself.  Oh, and Barbie?  She got a crewcut.  Demi Moore would have been proud.

I remember my Dad, one Christmas.  It was after dinner, and I was expected to go into the kitchen with ‘the women' to wash dishes and gossip and make noises like a neurotic chicken while picking apart the latest episode of Dynasty.  As if I ever watched soaps.  I'd sooner grind thumbtacks into my eyes.  My mother tracked me down in the living room where I was lurking, hoping to avoid my fate.  "You should be helping in the kitchen," she said, like it was written in the Bible.  Maybe it is, for all I know.  I turned big, brown eyes on my father, who was getting ready for the annual saunter to the pub with all the other male members of my family.  He looked me over - my eighteen-year-old self, in habitual torn jeans, t-shirt, ratty sneakers and a chain fastening my wallet to my belt. 

"Nah," he said, thoughtfully, lighting his pipe and winking at me through the curls of blue smoke.  "She doesn't have to do that.  She's one of the boys." 

The look on my mother's face was priceless.  A spike of joy ripped through my chest as I grinned at my Dad. We turned and walked out of that drab little room that tried and tried so hard to contain us.  It had failed.  Off we went to the pub:  my Dad, my uncle, my three male cousins, and me.  Bliss.

Nothing much has changed.  I still go to the pub and leave my dishes in the sink.  I drink beer out of the bottle.  I don't wear skirts, heels or makeup.  I don't own a purse.  I wouldn't be seen dead in pink.  My fingernails are short and naked.  I don't watch soaps, don't cry at movies, and I certainly don't iron.  I walk like a man, and kiss like a man.  I can change a tire by myself.  I can load and fire a shotgun (and yes, I have a permit for that).

But in spite of all this, I'm still a girl.  I'm not butch or frumpy.  I have long hair.  I wear my boi-style with a female touch.  I notice and appreciate hot guys (and my partner?  Heck, he's the hottest guy of them all ... !)  Speaking of guys:  I love ‘em.  My best friends in life have always been male.  They're straightforward, sometimes brutally honest, and they don't gossip.  They don't witter on and on about lipgloss or cookware for half an hour without taking a breath.  They're beautiful and sexy and smart and funny and sweet and loyal and kind and strong and faithful and steadfast.  They are my heroes, and if the measure of my admiration is a lifelong identification as just one of the boys, then I'm happy to buck convention and resist the kitchen sink for as long as I can. 

N.B.  A.J. Wilde is a multi-published author of homoerotic romance.  Currently published with Torquere Press, A.J. writes contemporary, historical and fantasy, always with a bit of a dramatic twist.  From contemporary short stories to historical novellas, you will always find plenty of drama, action and hot guys in A.J.'s work. A.J.'s characters include undercover cops, personal trainers and maverick lawyers to name just a few. If you're looking for an engaging drama, a tear-jerker romance or just a naughty romp, A.J. Wilde will not disappoint. A.J.'s published work to date has been m/m, but she is venturing into f/f very soon.

Originally from England, now residing in Canada, A.J. identifies with Pierre Trudeau as ‘a citizen of the world'.  Check out A.J.'s series of novellas about the experiences of a young man on a journey of self-discovery, entitled Soul Journeys, parts 1 and 2 of which are out at Torquere Press.