CHUMA SPIRIT Magazine

Mr. Ponytail ...

As I watched him prepare to shoot up on the bathroom floor, I felt a mix of fear, horror, fascination and arousal. He didn’t tie that rubber thingy around his arm like I’d seen Diana Ross do in Lady Sings the Blues. Then again, this was no movie. “You’re beautiful,” I said. “So fuckin’ beautiful. Anyone ever tell you that?” His eyes cut up to me and sparkled; his thuggish craftiness faded. He could have been a wholesome, doe-eyed Norman Rockwell painting. “Yeah," he smiled, displaying teeth surprisingly white. “Sometimes.” He wasn’t a junkie anymore, just a beautiful young man sitting on the floor next to my toilet. Or maybe a handsome leading man, playing the hell out of his junkie role: Wardrobe had done a great job of making him disheveled, and make-up was on point too, giving him that hollow, hungry look. But as our eyes locked, I saw the real José. I wanted to bend down and kiss those lips, stroke that angular cheekbone. I wanted to peel that dirty oversized shirt from his lanky frame, massage him with lavender oil; wanted to loosen that ponytail, so I could brush his black mane until it gleamed like it was meant to. And then his hair could hang wild, savage, and tickle my flesh as I held him close, kissed him, made love to him, again and again. “Why you wanna watch this shit, pa?” “I don’t know,” I responded. He was so young, so classically handsome. I heard myself saying, “With your looks, you could be . . . do anything you want. Why this?” His innocence faded, the cameras stopped and the leading man stormed off the set. He slapped his arm like a baby’s butt and said, “Same reason you wanna watch.” ~~

excerpt from Dancing with the Devil Available 02.26.09 Press Release www.ChumaSpiritEBooks.com

Dancing With The Devil by Taylor Siluwé

By CHRISTOPHER HICKS-MARSHALL a.k.a. CHUMA

I am so excited to share that CHUMA SPIRIT eBooks is about to release Taylor Siluwé's short story collection entitled Dancing With The Devil on February 26th. Taylor is an exceptional writer, who deflty uses erotica to craft a meaningful message around homophobia, religion, loneliness, and love. This is certainly a book to be lauded. Let's all support Taylor . . . especially after he stayed up all night into this morning creating his YouTube promotional video for his book.

Below is the synopsis:

The phrase ‘Dancing with the Devil’ evokes images of fiery rituals where witches and demons cavort under the cold moonlight. But that’s science fiction. That’s the sort of craziness that led to innocent people being burned at the stake. In real life however, the expression does mean cavorting with dark forces -- just ones inside our own heads.

Centered around a single protagonist, from Breeding Season where we spy a high school crush gone wild, through Beneath Paradise where sex and salvation’s all-out war leaves a young friendship on the battlefield, to the cautionary tales Pretty Young Gangsters, Dancing With The Devil and When Romeo Wakes, each of which peep into the darkest part of obsession’s needy heart.

This collection of stories deals with those sometimes sexy, sometimes darkly disturbing moments when our inner Devils come out and dance.

Dancing With The Devil can be purchased at ChumaSpiritEBooks.com on Thursday, February 26, 2009.

As Valentine's Day approaches: Rashawn Brazell ~ We Refuse to Forget!

From the first annual memorial march in '06 We marched. We chanted. We cried. Still, years went by -- four now -- and despite being featured on America's Most Wanted several times, the monster who dismembered 19-year-old Rashawn Brazell on or around Valentine's Day is still free. This man is still celebrating his birthday, Christmas, sitting down to dinner with his family on Thanksgiving, and possibly even bouncing babies on his knee. Desire Brazell used to bounce baby Rashawn too, but now she just needs to know who murdered her son. As Valentine's Day approaches, again, with still no justice, its up to us to light a fire under this case. Lots of things have happened this year we never thought we'd see -- like the election of Obama. Let's focus on re-igniting this cold case now with the knowledge we can accomplish the seemingly impossible -- for Rashawn, to give his mother, Desire Brazell some peace and closure, and for all those who need to know that Black Gay Lives do matter. Let's get Justice for Rashawn, at last. ~~

Love you, Wilson ... but

The Noah's Arc alum is one of my favorite OUT & PROUD actors -- His latest screen turn is in He's Just Not That Into You. Well... Dixon Gaines over at Queerty writes a hilariously scathing review of the flick and its portrayal and perpetuation of gay stereotypes. I haven't seen the flick, and after this review I'll wait to catch in on Netflix, but it seems that the Sex & The City spawned flick isn't showing a true appreciation for our big ol' gay dollars. Love you, Wilson. And all my embattled OUT performers of color more than I can say. Although its not your fault Boo, I'll have to catch this one later. We have to draw the line somewhere. How long can we be snippy sex-crazed caricatures with one hand, while asking for normalcy and respect with the other? ~~

On a Noah's Arc note: Black Gay Movie up for NAACP Image Awards This year could be yet another historic flashpoint for gay, black and black-gay entertainment should Noah’s Arc: Jumping The Broom manage to grab either Best Independent Motion Picture and Outstanding Writing for a Motion Picture that it is nominated for during the live telecast on the FOX Network Thursday, February 12, 2009. Mark your calendars.