The Backlot Gay Book Forum discussion

Similar to the the post about overused MM Romance tropes, I thought it would be fun to share some of the overused or corny lines found on MM romance.

Here's one I just came across and made me want to create this post:

To give some context, this line is usually used as one of the guys is about to have an orgasm: "Let go baby, I will be here to catch you."

I have seen this line in so many books I now roll my eyes when I see it. I would like the writers to put in their characters shoes and think if they would say something like that to their partner too.

Ha! Good idea Mercedes. I'll keep my eyes open for some to add here.

The one line or phrase I never want to read again? (Warning, racy!)

"Weeping prick."

I can't believe I am reading books written in the current age where this is being used without irony.

OK, that, and I want to ban the use of the word "laved." Have you used it Chris? I know I haven't. And dancing tongues. Blerg.

Ulysses wrote: "OK, that, and I want to ban the use of the word "laved." Have you used it Chris? I know I haven't. And dancing tongues. Blerg."

I don't think I've used laved. And I usually go with fencing over dancing. but then, I hate describing kissing.

And then there is also (and this may be a real meme) the guy who looks at his lover and thinks either "Mine!" or, even more chunks-blowing, "My man!"

Every time I read "My man!" I immediately imagine Fanny Brice in a French Apache outfit singing against a Parisian backdrop. *Spitting several times to get taste of "mine"/"my man" out of mouth.*

This is not usually said out loud by a character (I hope!) but I crack up at the whole 'hard enough to cut glass/pound nails' business.

Chris wrote: "The one line or phrase I never want to read again? (Warning, racy!)

"Weeping prick."

I can't believe I am reading books written in the current age where this is being used without irony."

Weeping prick? - Was someone mean to it?

Not a phrase, but a word---"keening." I've seen it used much too often during sex scenes!

Ha ha ha... you know, frankly, I've never been THAT noisy. Probably never approached "keening" level... then there's whimpering...

Octobercountry wrote: "Not a phrase, but a word---"keening." I've seen it used much too often during sex scenes!"

The use of this word always make me wonder exactly how these keening sounds actually sound, lol.

I read another one yesterday: "weeping c*ck" is that not as annoying as "weeping prick" or is the weeping that makes it annoying?

Hmmm, what would be a better choice than "weeping"? How about "oozing"..... ugh, no, that is NOT very appealing, is it?!

Oh, and there's the fact that dudes nowadays seem always to "smirk." When did "smirk" become anything less than fairly pejorative? I seem to remember "grinning," smiling," even "beaming." But "smirk?" (I'm hazarding it began around the same time everyone started saying "nye-ther" instead of "nee-ther", or began pronouncing the "t" in "often." *Gritting teeth over those little faux pas.

"denim prison"

Toned - as in anything corporal. Really, when did that become a thing? Gym-bunny jargon.

I dislike when an author uses the word p*nis, it takes me out of the moment and is totally unsexy. They should ban that word from mm books, or any romance for that matter!

*beep* penis *beep*

Teetee wrote: "I dislike when an author uses the word p*nis, it takes me out of the moment and is totally unsexy. They should ban that word from mm books, or any romance for that matter!"

This reminds me that I don't like the use of the word "sex" as a synonym of their genitals (men or women). I had seen the use of that word more on MF but have seen it in at least two MM stories I have read (ugh!). Same with the use of the word "shaft" don't see it a lot in MM, thank goodness.

Ulysses wrote: "*beep* penis *beep*"

Oh! Ulysses, you went there! Oh dear...*blush*

Jax wrote: "This is not usually said out loud by a character (I hope!) but I crack up at the whole 'hard enough to cut glass/pound nails' business."

You hit the nail right on the head with this one Jax. (Sorry, I can't help myself.)

Every time I read that "hard enough to pound nails" line I think "Ouch! Wouldn't that hurt... a lot?" That's terrible imagery.

Great forum topic - I guess I'm not the only person who frequently comes across lines that make me groan.

My beloved partner once wrote a story wherein he tried to make it as awful as possible. He invented a term that made me laugh and go "ew" all at once--"cock snot." Seriously. not good imagery, but brilliant in a parody!

Only problem is now we are seeing that term come up in adult stories as an actual descriptive phrase.

One expression/action I am beginning to tire of is the 'eye roll'. I dont know anyone in real life that even does that all that often. I see it a lot in the cut and run series by Abigail Roux, and Megan Derr seems to be fond of it too...

Teetee wrote: "One expression/avtion I am beginning to tire of is the 'eye roll'. I dont know anyone in real life that even does that all that often"

Really? I roll my eyes on an almost daily basis. But then again, I work for the state of New York.

Liz wrote: "Teetee wrote: "One expression/avtion I am beginning to tire of is the 'eye roll'. I dont know anyone in real life that even does that all that often"

Really? I roll my eyes on an almost daily basi..."

I constantly roll my eyes too, and I don't even have an excuse. The bad part is that it's so ingrained, I do it even in front of people where it would be better to keep a poker face (like my boss). Oops!

[Insert name] chewed his lip.

Swear to God, there's so much lip-chewing going on in certain books, the characters must end up missing half their faces. Like zombies.

K.Z. wrote: "[Insert name] chewed his lip.

Swear to God, there's so much lip-chewing going on in certain books, the characters must end up missing half their faces. Like zombies."

*raises hand* Guilty. *shameface* I find the expression adorable. But I did realize my characters were turning into obsessive self-cannibals and I have tried to limit the about of gnawing they do.

One expression i dont quite get is 'mouthing' something. Like if you're mouthing a nipple per se, are you giving it little kisses or are you tracing the contours with your mouth? I read that a lot but the context isnt always the same. I want to say to these authors 'i do not think that word means what you think it means...'

I came across this one, again, yesterday:

I need/want/love "him with every fiber of my being."

Andrew Grey is a repeat offender on this one, but I've noticed other writers use it as well. Not only do I find the phase to be overused, but every time I read it, I end up pondering if we human beings are made of fiber or not.

Lust/need/want - the fabric of our lives... Really?

Chris wrote: "K.Z. wrote: "[Insert name] chewed his lip.

Swear to God, there's so much lip-chewing going on in certain books, the characters must end up missing half their faces. Like zombies."

*raises hand* G..."

I think "lip chewing" goes hand-in-hand with downcast eyes and the biting (not chewing) of the (always sensual) lower lip. I think it's supposed to show sexual interest, but always makes me think they want me to offer Blistex.

Octobercountry wrote: "Hmmm, what would be a better choice than "weeping"? How about "oozing"..... ugh, no, that is NOT very appealing, is it?!"

Sorry, but I've use drooling, however, only in one book, and this particular member has a mind of its own. Even has a name... "It"

K.Z. wrote: "[Insert name] chewed his lip.

Swear to God, there's so much lip-chewing going on in certain books, the characters must end up missing half their faces. Like zombies."

I rarely do that to my characters!!! I don't use it for sexual tension anyway. I will use it in a coy way now and then but only on certain characters and only two or three times in 80 to 100K.

Similar to lip chewing is 'lip biting' when the look is supposed to be coy, but it calls to mind the same thing-chapstick! And it doesnt make me think sexy, it makes me think of a teenager trying to be cute...

A recent book had one MC simpering several times through the book and each time, my mind constructed a vision of the male protagonist doing so on a settee behind a hand-held fan. I just don't know if men 'simper' and even if they did, would an alternative descriptive term be better utilised - a 'wry' or 'small deprecating' smile perhaps?

This is somewhat overused but the issue I have with it is that I have a hard time picturing the action. I am talking about: "he looked at X from under his lashes"

I just can't picture the action and making it come out looking good. I mean how do you do this without looking weird?

Another one I have seen is "he looked at X from under/or through his bangs." This is mostly because I have not met very many men who wear bangs.

@Mercedes! Yes!! I actually was thinking about mentioning that one myself! I've read a couple books lately that had that 'looked at him under his lashes' move. I actually tried to do it myself because i had a hard time imagining it and i couldnt see a darn thing! Guess my lashes arent long enough... :(

Just read a sex scene that outdid itself with overused images. It contained: a "Need you. Now." that was growled (naturally), a proud erection (is there any other kind), a hole that flinched (um, okay), releasing from a BJ with a pop (check), a "Mine." when one partner attempted to take himself in hand (double check), and this sexy gem: his [member] "still embedded within his rectum" (um, no). This goes on for pages and pages, all while their lives are in danger of course. Delightful.

Jax wrote:"still embedded within his rectum" ...

Oh that sounds so sexy. LOL.

Jax, this is too funny.

Here's something I've been wondering about and this forum seems a good place to ask. In many many novels, I've read something like "when we shook hands, he held my hand a little longer than necessary." I'd call it an overused line, but I'm wondering if that's actually something really done in the LGBT community. Is this a real signal that a man is gay and interested?

I've been thinking a lot about these recently. My Top 5 pet peeves are:

Long hair on a main character - seriously, when was long hair last fashionable amongst gay guys? Do writers never watch any porn? Take a wander to their nearest gay bar? Or do any kind of research that shows the current stylings of modern men (straight or gay).
It doubly pissed me off if the long hair character is then a total bottom.

"Mine" - this gets used a lot. Let me just be clear, if anyone ever said that to me to indicate that I was with them they'd very quickly find out that I wasn't theirs. Its so possessive and not in a nice way.

"Bolt of electricity" at a touch. Really? You spark when you touch people? You need to buy some rubber soled shoes. There has to be a better way to indicate attraction.

"Alpha" men - not all men are alpha, beta, or anything else along those lines. Some of us are just normal people. Well normal-ish. I'm not fond of the whole alpha/beta attraction.

Which brings me to my biggest peeve of all. Total Top/Bottom. The whole top/bottom notion is very American in nature and while there are people who do only behave in those tropes its not that unusual to find men who quite like to try different things with their lovers. Particularly in the early stages of a relationship when they are all keen and getting to know each other.

whenever i see 'weeping c**k' (or shaft, or d**k, or prick, or flesh hammer), i always want to pat its little head and say, "there, there. it's okay. do you need a tissue? no, you're not small. come on, let's do something to take your mind off it until you feel better."

everyone's got their peeves and turn ons. these sort of lists usually make me paranoid in my own writing, and writing 'rules' have become a bane for me. really, it depends on how good the writer is. but yeah, there are those phrases that make my eyes twitch (which is also a cliche).

@allan: the total top/bottom doesn't bug me much because i know guys who are really into one or the other. i like a more balanced relationship in novels, but sometimes that's who the characters are.

the 'bolt of electricity'. i have never felt this unless the other person was dragging their feet on the carpet.

stephenie 'god damn it' meyer popularized 'the smirk', and we've all been paying for that sin since. a smirk is a superior, condescending, unpleasant expression and should be used as such. the only thing that made me 'smirk' when reading those books was the unintentional homoeroticism.

'smell of musk' or 'musky smell' is starting to get on my nerves. like 'lave', the first few times were fine, but when i see musk all the bloody time, i start to think these guys are really elk in heat wearing human suits. deer piss only smells good to other deer!

cat wrote: "whenever i see 'weeping c**k' (or shaft, or d**k, or prick, or flesh hammer)"

I have never read a book using "flesh hammer" but I like it! ;-P

Smith wrote: "It gets even uglier if I see a long-haired loon as the book cover art."

funny you say that about covers because I was "just" looking at a cover where the guy had really long hair actually. It didn't look great.

M/M-talk, meaning leaving out the pronouns: "need you", "want you" and so on.

Overuse of names as if some intelligent thinking, pronouns and a few choice epitaphs couldn't get you there in a much better way.

Always whimpering, simpering and breathy bottoms who get aggressively taken by manly tops. Add "whining" and "keening", too. And the seme/uke dynamic (eww!).

Cock, fuck, bitch and whatever other vulgar terms currently much overused. Sometimes I feel as if every gay character written these days either has an IQ lower than his age, lives on skid row or never got a fragment of education. (Contrary to others here I quite like both "penis" and "member" depending on context and narrator)

Semen described as tasting better than the latest creation of a Master of the French Nouvelle Cuisine.

I agree on both the always bottom/top thing, and also regarding the stupidity of painting sociopaths and people with a personality disorder heroes (alphas) instead of at least antagonists.

That somehow every gay man into BDSM is into Leather and severe TPE-style D/s. As if pansexual BDSM didn't exist, nor the many other shades of BDSM play.

On the other hand...

I like long-haired MCs and know enough gay and bisexual men who have long hair. They aren't necessarily bottoms though.

"you have no idea how good that feels"

The following doesn't quite fit the theme of this thread, but I found it amusing, so...

I just came across a site that notes how very often the same models are shown on romance book covers---in many cases the same photos are used over and over and over again. There are pages of information here, showing the variations; I got a kick out of looking through all the designs. The "Misadventures in Stock Photography" begins here:
http://www.stumblingoverchaos.com/arc...