Tour Stop, Guest Post & Giveaway: Y Negative by Kelly Haworth

Hi guys! I’m Kelly Haworth here with my debut release Y NEGATIVE. At various stops on this book tour, I’ll be sharing with you what it’s like to live in Ember’s world: where mascs rule and a guy’s gotta fight for his right to live and love freely. Posts will range from what the difference between a masc and an andro is, to what on earth a guy does for fun in a dystopia. Hope you come along for this in-depth look. You’ll also have a chance to win a $20 Riptide voucher!

Please follow the tour to check out all the stops.

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Guys Just Wanna Have Fun – Entertainment in Y Negative

This post is going to be a lot less technical than some of my last ones.  I want to share some of the things my boys like to do for fun, and I’ll be including a deleted scene as well.

I really wanted Ember’s world to have a similar feel to our own in terms of entertainment, but with twists and quirks that allude to the information gap that’s occurred from rebuilding society.

First of all, the music – it’s mostly electronica, not just because I giggled when imagining the clubs to be a blast from the early 2000s, but because there’s not much in terms of old-world instruments remaining, especially not in popular music.  There’s also a slew of boy-bands and the occasional ballad, but again all with an electronica bent.

The boys enjoy going to the clubs, especially younger andros.  It’s the best place to meet other andros and hang out, or hook up—something that Ember’s no stranger to.  The clubs are also hot places to exchange and do drugs, most commonly a powder called J-seven that’s snorted.  These guys don’t have any alcohol (who would waste water on that?) so no bars at these kinds of clubs.  Instead you’ll find sprawling dance floors and lots of little rooms for rent for “private parties,” though I bet we can all figure what really goes down in there.

Though mascs dress up in tight pants and flashy shirts (not too different from our world), andros add a whole different element to their club game—face paint. So not only do andros get to express their wild or creative sides, but the paints are sweet and strongly flavored, making licking off your boy’s paint to be the start of the fun part of the evening. And you’d think it’s an easy way for guys to tell whether a person is andro or masc in the flashing atmosphere of the club, but Ember’s tried going without face paint—mascs can still tell.

And then there’s movies and TV shows. I call these televids, and when the guys are tired after a hard day’s work, you can find them flopped on the couch watching a vid. Their movies tend to try to capitalize on the limited knowledge of the old world. Here’s a deleted scene with a great example:

“Can I pick the televid tonight?” Heath asked the silence of chewing food and humming computers. The others voiced approval. “Prey.”

Kacy groaned. “We watched that twice last season, it creeps me out watching it out here!”

Jess laughed.

“That isn’t my fault, I like that vid,” Heath argued. “You know it’s just special effects.”

“What is it about?” I attempted.

“It’s a thriller,” Heath answered. “About some guys who travel up north, past Sioux. Almost to the snow.” Kacy shivered. I didn’t blame him. “They find some creatures out there, in the forests.” Heath chuckled, and leaned back in his seat. “And I’ll let the vid tell you the rest.”

“Some director flipped through an encyclopedia from the old world and made a vid about a tiger or bear or something?” I asked.

“Pretty much,” Jess said.

When they started the televid, I watched from my usual vantage point of the table. I soon lost interest and kept tabs on it intermittently.

“This is a rite of passage,” a character said, his blonde hair longer than usual.   His jacket’s collar was ripped off, as was the fashion a few years ago. “A way to prove that you’re a man. We’re gonna go out there, explore the land. Not come back until it tells us who we are.”

His fellows grunted in affirmation. I rolled my eyes.

When various allegiances and romances began forming and breaking among the travelers, I became uncomfortable enough to move to my room. But I kept my door open a crack, and when the plot advanced enough for Kacy to randomly screech, I was amused.

Oh, Ember. You never did like the romances. I probably shouldn’t tell you that you’re in one, huh?

Thanks for stopping by the tour! Hope to catch you on a future post.

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Title: Y Negative by Kelly Haworth
Publisher: Riptide Publishing
Genre: M/M, Dystopian, Sci-Fi, Post-Apocalyptic, Futuristic, Romance
Length: 327 pages/Word Count: 83,200

Summary:

In the last surviving cities of a ruined world, the concept of “woman” has been forgotten to history. Those unfortunate enough to lack a Y chromosome live as second-class citizens in a world dominated by mascs.

Ember is Y negative. He is scorned, bullied, abused by every masc he encounters, at work and at the gym. Not even his Y negative roommate cuts him any slack. He wants so desperately to be accepted as a masc that he’d rather buy black market testosterone than food. Something’s gotta give—he needs a change in his life, but has no idea how to find it.

Jess is a masc with a passion for studying the recovery of their devastated world. His boyfriend is pressuring him for more commitment, and his father expects him to take over the family business. He can’t wait to get away from civilization for his seasonal research out in the wild.

When Jess offers Ember a job, their lives collide in the isolated wasteland, and their initial attraction turns into a relationship that horrifies those around them. Soon their struggle to stay together and to be who they are turns into a fight for their lives.

Add to Goodreads.

Purchase Link: Riptide Publishing

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Author Bio

Kelly Haworth grew up in San Francisco and has been reading science fiction and fantasy classics since she was a kid. She developed way too active an imagination as a result, thus, she started writing. Being genderfluid and pansexual, she loves to write LGBTQ+ characters in genres such as science fiction with diverse aliens, and urban fantasies with shifters and fire sorcerers. With degrees in both genetics and psychology, she works as a project manager at a genetics lab. When not working or writing, she can be found wrangling her toddler, working on cosplay, or curled up on the couch with a good TV show or a good book.

Author Links: Website * Facebook * Twitter * Goodreads

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Giveaway

To celebrate the release of Y Negative, Kelly is giving away $20 in Riptide Publishing credit! Your first comment at each stop on this tour enters you in the drawing. Entries close at midnight, Eastern time, on November 21, 2015. Contest is NOT restricted to U.S. Entries. Follow the tour for more opportunities to enter the giveaway! Don’t forget to leave your email or method of contact in your comment so Riptide can reach you if you win!