WARNING!!!
This post is not intended for minors or who don’t like or approve the concept of man to man love. If you are one of these, you are warned of this content and must go or proceed to the next non-related man to man topic. The author (meaning me) will not be held liable for anything that may happen to you if you proceed. You have been warned.
Do not judge me people just because I admit I like man to man love stories. Everyone has their weird likes and dislikes. In my case, I am not ashamed to tell every I like this genre. If you don’t like what I’m saying, beat it for now.
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Just recently, my friend told me she found this collection of man to man love stories. Aghast the she didn’t told me earlier, I asked what kind of stories they were. They came in many forms and varieties, I couldn’t wait to get my hands on one. Of course, with her knowing that I am a yaoi fiction fan, she sent me one one titled “Handyman”.
For those who aren’t aware, yaoi is also known as Boy’s Love. It is a popular term for female-oriented fictional media that focuses on homoromantic male relationships. Often these are found in mainstream anime and manga works, sometimes as focal theme or as a form of parody in the form of yaoi ficion.
With me as a bona-fide anime fan, though I have passed that stage by now, yaoi fiction still holds a strong pull to its fans no matter how they get. Trust me, I’m a living proof of this. Tee hee hee!
Going back to “Handyman”, here is a short synopsis of the ebook shared to me:
High-powered stock trader. Simple handyman. Can they find common ground?
Will Spencer is a player with a reputation for using and discarding lovers as easily as he earns big money on Wall Street. Handsome, sexy and openly gay, he’s used to having whatever—and whoever—he wants at the snap of his fingers.
And what he wants now is his new handyman, Jack Crawford. But Jack is skittish. One lingering touch, one stolen kiss could send the older man into full retreat. Where Will might have quickly moved on to a more ready-and-willing partner, he unexpectedly finds himself wanting to go slow. With just a little coaxing, he’s sure he can show Jack how good it could be between them.
Jack, a recent widower, never thought of himself as gay. Frightened years ago by an erotic encounter with his best friend, he focused firmly on his marriage. Now that his bed is empty, however, those deep sexual longings are rising dangerously close to the surface.
Their connection is deep, instant, and one that Jack tries to ignore. Yet friendship grows into an erotic journey that must cross a divide of different generations, backgrounds and worlds.
The prize is the one thing neither is sure he can handle—true love.
Warning: Hot, delicious male/male erotic romance. Danger: Explicit m/m sex.
So what makes this genre so popular among females? I’m not sure either. I never did a detailed research on psychological or societal factors to produce a strong support on this fact. I can only presume the following reasons based on my personal opinion.
What yaoi fiction has a strong following:
1. Anything that is still considered ‘taboo’ in many societies can be an exciting thing to be seen by many. Yes, even if a lot of us already accept the gay community, there are still closed minded idiots who think otherwise.
2. There is something particularly appealing in seeing men love each other dearly, especially in a sexual way. If men find it particularly arousing to see two women ‘do it’, it’s the same thing for the women.
3. Mainstream anime and manga can have a pretty large following. Often, fans don’t get much of the action they want to happen between their fave characters, especially when it concerns pretty boys. With that in mind, fans will make it happen on their terms. :D
4. Man to man love is an open field of conversation for the extent of true love, which a lot of females will really find appealing. True love going over the boundaries of society’s norms is really romantic.
Whatever other reason there is a large following for yaoi fiction, I consider it an eye opener of our societies’ evolution. We have to learn to accept changes in our society and learn how to deal with it. Let us not close our minds to what is clearly obvious and please, do not judge females like me for liking this genre. I believe it is because of this stories we learn to be more open-minded and supportive of other people, despite what some society still considers taboo.
