#boyfight

Now that Boyfight is complete on Wattpad, I’d like to do a question and answer post of frequently asked questions about the story. If you’d like to ask a question, hit ASK on my blog or go here: http://morrisondauthor.tumblr.com/ask For this, I will turn on the anonymous function for a week for those who do not have Tumblr accounts.

If you haven’t read it, the link to the story is here: https://www.wattpad.com/story/90072810-boyfight

This is the Q&A post for Boyfight. Hope I answer most of your questions with this!

Warning: May contain possible spoilers

Q: What made you write a story about a curious boxer?

A: I wrote Boyfight because I wanted to first write something different than my other stories, and second show what can happen if a black masculine man decides to define his masculinity on his own terms and not on society’s terms. Underneath everything going on in Khalil’s life is his unending need to define who he is as a man. Him being curious and then later identifying as bisexual openly is evidence that he’s not going to hide behind a fake wall of machismo and hypermasculinity. I titled it Boyfight not only because it’s a story about a boxer, but because it’s a story about his fight to define himself against what society deems as the perfect man.

Q: Will there be more parts to the story? A sequel or spin-off?

A: I’m really happy that so many people enjoyed the story and I’m grateful for all the feedback; however, I’ve been saying that this story---like Balancing Acts---is a standalone story that will not have a sequel or spin-off or any other kind of continuation. I’ll have more standalone stories just like I will be adding to the Demi’s Way universe. So, no there will not be a sequel or spin-off from this story.

Q: Why did it end so quickly?

A: There are two reasons for why I didn’t go to 20 chapters or beyond 20 chapters. The first is because I needed to wrap the story up and move on due to other projects I have planned for Wattpad and for Tumblr. The second is because I’d planned on the story just being about Khalil coming around full-circle to accepting the unknowns about his life so once I got to that point, the story was going to end regardless. I feel like I accomplished that in the 18 chapters. As for the side stories involving the secondary characters, the heart of the story is not about them so I feel that leaving their unknowns unanswered isn’t going to distract from what the story is about. I left it up to the readers to determine if Leo would beat his cancer or if Shawn would be open with his sexuality or if Malik will continue to stay away from a life of crime.

Q: What made you get more sexual with this Wattpad story than your others?

A: I actually thought about it for a while before going ahead with it. I put the disclaimer at the beginning saying this story would contain graphic sex scenes so readers would have to be following me in case Wattpad made those chapters private. Surprisingly, Wattpad left me alone this time LOL. With Demi’s Way, they made chapter 19 private automatically when I posted it. So once I saw they weren’t going to make my sex chapters private, I went ahead and pushed it further and further. I did my best to approach Khalil’s sexuality with more reality than I typically do in my stories. He shows reluctance to do certain things at first and at other times he’s eager to do things and Jamari is the one to say, “I don’t think you’re ready for that.” There are some men who have only had heterosexual experiences that are curious and never act on it. I wanted to show what can happen when one of those men decide to indeed act on it and then what further happens when they decided to own that change without shame.

Q: Why did you make Khalil vers?

A: There’s only one reason why I made Khalil versatile: it was already a part of his curiosity LOL. Early on, Khalil admits to readers that he has a thing for feminine guys but he never explored it. I didn’t put it in the story, but I believe his attraction to feminine guys is slightly because he wanted to be vers but not with someone aggressive that would pin him down and take it. He wanted someone who was also used to bottoming but also willing to top in case he wanted to be the bottom. Jamari was perfect because he wasn’t highly aggressive and he was willing to do things at Khalil’s pace.

Q: How did you come up with the Jamari character?

A: Jamari is Khalil’s guide to accepting himself. When I was brainstorming and outlining this story, I’d always wanted Jamari to be the moral compass of the story and the one person in Khalil’s life that brought no drama. I didn’t intend on him becoming some perfect angel in the story and I’d hope the readers didn’t see him as that. No one is perfect. I did want it to come off as Jamari is the one person that could ease Khalil into accepting and loving himself. His sex-positive attitude and laidback personality was perfect for a curious guy like Khalil. He came into Khalil’s life at the right moment and the way they met was romantic to me. I reread that chapter all the time LOL.

Q: Why did you also make Shawn curious?

A: I made the Shawn character curious to show how common it is for guys and their friends to be curious when neither knows about the other. I also did it so Khalil would have something to bond with Shawn over because he already had so much to bond with Malik over. Shawn didn’t grow up on the streets and in group homes the way Khalil and Malik did. With him being curious, he finally shared something deep with Khalil. They’re not attracted to each other in any way, but they share that curiosity and it strengthens their friendship and loyalty to one another.

Q: What’s next for Khalil and Jamari?

A: That’s up to the readers. Their relationship is solid by the end of the story but that doesn’t mean problems won’t arise. We know they’re preparing to move-in together so that’s proof that they’re getting more serious. Everyone knows about Khalil’s bisexuality and his relationship with Jamari by the end of the story so that wouldn’t cause problems. Of course they’re going to have to deal with bigotry and Khalil will be challenged by other boxers due to homophobia in the boxing world, but they’re ready for those challenges. I think the readers can visualize what the future has in store for those two.

Q: What was your favorite part of the story?

A: I have multiple favorite parts but I can narrow it down to two. When Khalil and Malik are having their discussion about how they grew up and Khalil reminds him of how difficult it was to dress up at the group home knowing they wouldn’t get adopted because they were black boys; I cried like a baby. It breaks my heart every time I read that part. My second favorite is when Khalil and Amir have their back and forth in the parking lot outside of Khalil’s job. Amir makes his little snide comments and then he gets drop dead serious and reveals the pics of Khalil and Jamari, and Khalil realizes he has to fight this man. He also realizes in that moment that he loves Jamari so much that he can’t let some loser disrespect Jamari without that loser going unchecked. I have many other favorite parts but those two are always in my mind when I think about the story.

Q: What was your process for writing Boyfight?