#ums feedback

[asynca]

So I bought Under My Skin yesterday because it comes up as suggested in my Amazon account and I have to say it's been at least 10 years since I read a book so fast and honestly the modern slice of life setting isn't a genre I normally read. Anywho, I spent an entire day reading it and stayed up ridiculously late and then today I bought the sequel and finished it in an evening. I'm not sure where I was going with this other than I absolutely loved them and I cant wait for your next book.

:D!

I’m so happy you enjoyed them so much! Apologies for the lost sleep. Very much appreciate you dropping me a note to let me know how much you enjoyed my books, it’s always wonderful to hear it <3<3

[asynca]

speaking of your books... Bree just outed Min in front of Cecilia. (like my millionth re-read... So I remember what's coming up) ;_;

JUST FOCUS ON THE UPCOMING PITCH HEIST

[asynca]

Finally got to the climax (teehee) on my re-read of UMS, and even knowing what was coming the feels still hit my like a freight train. The line about Min taking off a dress "for the last time" had me fuckin sobbing on my kindle.I love Min and I love this book so so so much.

:D!

I’m so glad the climax is still so impactful for you! I fucking sobbed while I was writing it - every time, every re-read - and I still cry reading it these days, too. It makes me so happy to hear that it touches other folks!

[asynca]

i keep meaning to tell you this now that i'm basically mostly out as nonbinary but UMS was one of the first books i read where i rlly thought "oh dang i relate to this character" and it helped me so much in accepting and feeling good about my gender so thank you so much asy!!! i'm so excited for bone to pick!!!!!!

:D! I’m so glad I was able to smooth the way out for you! It makes me super happy knowing I’ve helped folks by sharing Min’s story <3

[asynca]

Hi! I finished reading your book "Under My Skin" and I absolutely adored it. It was an occasionally tough read as it hit a bit close to home at times but it was still SO GOOD. I want to give everyone in it a hug. I was just wondering -- do you have plans to write another book anytime soon??? (I already got Flesh and Blood, planning on buying Solve for I at some point, and I just KNOW by the time I'm done all of them I'm going to be wanting more.)

I’m glad you enjoyed Under My Skin, and I appreciate you dropping me a note to say you did!

Yes, I do have plans to write more books - I can’t be too specific about my timeframes for them just yet. I’m taking it easy at the moment. In the meantime, I hope you enjoy my other two books, and there’s a few pieces of free original fiction here you might also like. There’s also a few one-shots in the UMS-verse here. 

[asynca]

1/2 So, I read a lot of wlw books, and something that frequently disappoints me is that the male characters are usually one-dimensional or just nonexistent. I wanted to thank you for writing good male secondary characters in your Under My Skin trilogy. I adore Henry. Even though we are well aware of how unhappy and uncomfortable Min is in their relationship, he is still a good guy and it's nice to see his side of the story. He also continues being a good guy after the breakup...

2/2 He continues to help Min and be her friend, and he later helps Bree and Gemma. I also love Sarah's boyfriend (gotta look up his name again as soon as my Kindle charges). Even though I was rooting for Gemma and Sarah to get together for the first part of Solve for I, we can see that Sarah and her boyfriend have a genuinely loving relationship. He's good to Min too, even though as a blue collar, rural guy he's had no previous experience with gender issues. Sorry gushing! Thanks for writing!

‘Rob’ is the name of Sarah’s boyfriend :3

Thank you so much for saying this! I, too, hate that many of the men in lesbian novels (or queer novels for women in general) tend to be villains or 2D. In the UMS-verse, I wanted to present the men as as varied and complex as everyone else. It would have been SUPER easy for Min to leave Henry if he was bad, too - but he’s not. And that’s how life is, isn’t it? Sometimes we have to let down really nice people because it’s the right thing for us to do for ourselves. And it’s hard. 

Also, I really reject the idea that wlw relationships are somehow superior (again, something I see in lesbian communities). As much as I understand it’s a subversion of ‘lesbian relationships aren’t real’ and a reaction to the invalidation of wlw relationships, it also means bisexual women get shit on a lot for what’s seen as ‘settling’ for a man. Like. No. 

So yeah. I wanted to present a variety of healthy and unhealthy relationships in the UMS-verse, and I wanted to have some really solid, really likeable male characters. 

I’m so glad you liked them! I love Henry and Rob. They both have such warm hearts <3

[asynca]

Ive been seeing a lot of therapists and doctors as I prepare to separate from the military (ugh, finallyyyyy) and now that Im out as trans since its on all my medical stuff, I keep getting the pronouns question and Im so happy you wrote Min to say "Just dont do anything to make people look twice at me" Because thats my go-to line. I still look obviously male but I like 'she' but I dont want people to wonder whats going on when people she me in public lol So thank you :]]]

Congratulations on escaping the army! XD

You’re welcome re: Under My Skin, Flesh & Blood and Min! I deliberately didn’t make Min a ‘they’ because I rarely see books about non-binary people that discuss the fact that ‘they’ doesn’t work for everyone. Pronouns are really hard when you’re not binary and transitioning to another binary gender (or when you don’t pass and/or aren’t out to everyone!). I want to explore the discomfort and confusion of not fitting perfectly into any gender box, including the ‘they’ box. 

I’m glad I’m managed to also give people tools for how to manage their own genders if they find themselves in a similar situation to Min! :D

Good luck, and I love hearing happy parts of transition stories!

[asynca]

@Asynca Hey Asy, no question, just wanted to say that I loved Under My Skin and Flesh and Blood, it's really made me think about stuff that I knew existed but had never really thought much about, and your fantastic writing and story is a huge part of that. I imagine you must get some amount of hate (because people suck), and that thought just made me want to chip in that this random mid 20s straight dude from Scotland loved your work and had it really get to them!

:D!!

It’s really exciting when people who aren’t in the books’ demographic enjoy them anyway! I’m glad they got you thinking about things - and I hope when you come across this stuff in real life you’ll have a better understanding and be more compassionate than you otherwise would have been! :D

Thanks for the lovely note! :D