Taking Chances, by E. L. Van Hine and L.H. Nicoll

[Jeff Wrangler]

Their relationship is, for the most part, based upon Ennis being the top and Ellery being the bottom, with mild dominance and submission elements to it.  I say "mild" because a true Dom/sub relationship doesn't general permit for switching, and Ennis has gradually become more and more interested in bottoming and oral sex.  However, I don't personally see this as a departure from Annie Proulx's story since Ennis topped rather aggressively in her story on their first sexual encounter, and I merely extrapolated from that, and from Ennis's other aggressive tendencies.

However, they do not carry this mild dom/sub aspet into other parts of their relationship.

Lousie,

Hallelujah and thank you for that explanation of top/bottom and dom/sub! Elsewhere I've tried to explain that till my fingers were sore from typing, and some people just don't get it. I hope coming from you, they will.

Jeff

[louisev]

It has been rather widely discussed that my fic went into the far reaches of kinkiness.  However, in the "kinks lists" I have seen in my travels, the Laramie Saga shows quite a mild form of dom/sub roleplaying (completely for fun and pleasure), and toy play (completely optional to their 'normal' sex lives.)

[Jeff Wrangler]

Now here is a very good example of kinky.

Kinky? Hell, in my crowd that's practically vanilla. 

Good writing of what it is, though.

J.

[louisev]

Jeff, that is exactly my point:  for gay men who are out... it IS practically vanilla.  For people still trembling on the verge or still in the closet, it is wild, titillating, and mega-kinky.  I opted for mild, consent-based bondage and play, because to me this is about as far as Ennis would go with his natural dominance.

[Bigheart]

Jeff, that is exactly my point:  for gay men who are out... it IS practically vanilla.  For people still trembling on the verge or still in the closet, it is wild, titillating, and mega-kinky.  I opted for mild, consent-based bondage and play, because to me this is about as far as Ennis would go with his natural dominance.

Well, it's very HOT to me but certainly not mega-kinky!!

[MadLori]

Well, the response to my big revie2w seems to have been mostly positive.  A few (anon, of course) naysayers, but I expected that.

I just don't understand most of their mindset.  Then again, I don't understand homophobia, either.  Nor do I understand most conservative viewpoints.  I don't have to respect their opinions...just their right to have them.

And if anyone thinks that a few slipknots and a ping-pong paddle are super-kinky, they're ridiculously sheltered.

[MaineWriter]

And if anyone thinks that a few slipknots and a ping-pong paddle are super-kinky, they're ridiculously sheltered.

Thank you for saying that. And may I add, this is not an exclusive domain of gay men?

L

[louisev]

I agree, Lori.  I was very cautious about what "kinks" I thought Ennis could or would do with an experienced partner urging him on, and I have had a LOT of requests for "more" and there is, to me, a line one must drawn with respect to Ennis's adventurousness.  And yet, the thing that has captured the most attention, I would have thought, would be the hunt for Jack's killer and his motives for killing him... but in fact, what has gotten the most controversial attention is the "kinkiness factor," and accusations that I portrayed Ennis's new relationship as a kink-laden pornfest.  In actuality, I extrapolated with some care a potential I saw in the rough-and-tumble wrestling from Annie Proulx's original story.  If the boys got a little too forceful with one another, Ennis could easily have tied Jack with his lariat and, already aroused, mounted him with his arms tied.  And that is what I depicted as the seed for Ellery to open the door for Ennis to expressing some of his natural dominance in the bedroom.

You very graciously pointed out in your review how so much of what I extrapolated had its roots in the original story, and I am glad you did that, because to me, authenticity is extremely important.  Of all of the fan fictions I have myself read, I am one of the few who actually adopted most of Annie's dialect usage in its original form.  (I added a few so it would sound a little more dialectical, like 'yer' and 'ya', where Annie always uses the normal 'your' and 'you'), but all the others are as Annie wrote them, no single quotations.  Because I was striving for authenticity.  And of all the criticism I have seen of the Laramie Saga, the accusation of a lack of authenticity is what hurts most - because I did try, and hard.  I have never seen any of the popular AU fics criticized for a lack of authentic dialect, and that is one of the chief reasons I can't read so many of them: because they are larded with some dialect I don't recognize and which to me is unreadable - including the narrative!  That isn't how Annie Proulx wrote... at all.

[opinionista]

You know, a lot of people engage in dom/sub sexual relationship and they don't even notice it. This is especially true in heterosexual relationships. One needs not to spank, hit or tie down one's partner to behave like a dom. Ordering your partner around, deciding when the sexual act is taking place and when is not, disregarding your partner's whishes or sexual needs while demanding yours to be taken care of, is to behave like a dom as well. Ennis and Ellery don't do that, that's why I think their spanking in bed it's just a game they play. Those are my 2 cents anyway. 

[louisev]

I just wished to add that I have already received LJ comments from a new reader who is barrelling through "Taking Chances" with breathtaking speed, leaving comments, and is very very pleased with your recommendation, Lori!

It's the "Lori Effect" in action!