But I digress. I'm writing a fantastical story set in the real world, where you DO have Puerto Ricans, and Asians, and gay people in a specific cultural setting.
Since I begin with a set of characters as individuals somehow inhabiting this tale together, I don't start out by telling the audience where their sexual preferences lie because more often than not, it's not important to the plot, or not important in chapter one. I never thought of the impact this would have on the story.
Some of the comments I got were regarding Lincoln Guelcher's seemingly random appearance. And once I stepped out of the story and took a look at that, the Dan-Link connection did seem a little strange. Dan, for all we know at the time a 20-something slacker, somehow has this direct connection to a Private Investigator in his mid-30's.
For an instant I flailed, trying to come up with some explanation, something in both men's past that would have caused them to meet.
Then I came to my senses and looked back at the very first inklings I had of this story. I took a look at my own life and what elements of that I drew into the story. I'm not as young as Dan, but in my own circle - mind you, not my inner circle, but certainly within my circle - are men 10 to 20 years older than me whom I only met because we're all gay. And we run into each other at different parties hosted by other gay men. Do I talk to them outside of these parties? Not really. Could I? Sure. And if my best friend were in trouble and I knew one of them may somehow be able to help my best friend, I would call them up in a heartbeat. It's the same with any subculture, even fandom.
So, I have a choice to make. Leave it in the air, play with the reader's expectations and let them suspect Link for a few chapters, or put it all out in the open from the start. I don't even have to make this decision right away. It's simple enough I can retcon it later. I just thought it was interesting how something I took for granted was odd to some.
Attention to detail, I has it. Sometimes. LOL
