Murder on San Carmelitas

Zine
Title:	Murder on San Carmelitas
Publisher:	Amapola Press & In Person Press
Editor:
Author(s):	Lynna Bright
Cover Artist(s):	Lynna Bright (first edition), Suzan Lovett (second edition)
Illustrator(s):	Suzan Lovett of both editions
Date(s):	1986, June 1996
Medium:	print
Size:
Genre:	slash
Fandom:	Starsky and Hutch
Language:	English
External Links:	available online as an eBook and in other formats
Click here for related articles on Fanlore.

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Murder on San Carmelitas is a slash Starsky and Hutch novella written by Lynna Bright and edited by April Valentine.

The first edition contains 127 pages. It has a cover by the author and twenty black and white interior illos by Suzan Lovett. Art samples are included on Fanlore with the publisher's permission.

It was reprinted ten years later as Murder on San Carmelitas: Special 10th Year Anniversary Edition. The second edition's text is unchanged. This reissue has a color cover by Suzan Lovett, as well as the addition of eighteen of the original color counterparts to the black and white art. This issue contains 145 pages.

In 2013, the zine was posted online at the Starsky & Hutch Archive as an eBook in multiple formats.

This story was discussed and excerpted in Textual Poachers.

Story Tropes

• Posing as gay lovers
• First Time
• Bed Sharing

Desert Island Fic

This zine was a frequent choice for fans' desert island fics, a term for their favorites.

1993: Sandy Hereld, listed her five favorite Starsky/Hutch zines and of of them was: "Murder on San Carmelitas (of course)."

2002: From a fan: "I buy lots of zines. Many I read, then resell. But the ones I keep are the ones that are special to me in many fandoms. In this fandom, I won't part with Distant Shores, Murder on San Carmelitas, The Fix (all of them), It's Love, Cap'n, Nightlight 1 & 2, all my Charlotte Frost zines....and lots more."

2003: From a fan: "In zines, "Distant Shores" (Martha), "Private Agendas" (Charlotte Frost) and "Murder on San Carmelitas" (Lynna Bright) traditionally top my list."

Editorial from the First Edition

cover of original issue, Lynna Bright

Just as the television series 'Starsky and Hutch' was described as a love story, so is Murder on San Carmelitas. The tenderness and passion that fills these pages is a representation of that love at its best, the kind of Starsky and Hutch we can all appreciate -- two strong men whose caring and partnership has grown into the most powerful force in their lives. A partnership is a kind of marriage, and within these pages, a true partnership of word and picture has evolved. Artist Suzan Lovett has taken the ambiance and beauty of Lynna's world and presented it in all its lush detail. San Carmelitas is a world apart, and in that way it resembles our world of fandom. Both are microcosms of a larger society with their concepts of loyalty and love, their own ideals of perfection. Starsky and Hutch leave the island changed forever. We shared the time spent there with them and emerge richer for the experience." -- April Valentine

Editorial from the Second Edition

cover of ten year anniversary special, Suzan Lovett: "The Island of San Carmelitas"

It was with the above sentiments that I introduced MURDER ON SAN CARMELITAS ten years ago. I can hardly believe that so much time has passed already. Fandom has changed in many ways and yet it still remains the same. Some still debate the veracity of a sexual relationship between Starsky and Hutch, some still think "plot" means who-dun-it. But thanks to cable television, a whole new legion of fans has emerged who appreciate the very special relationship of these two timeless characters. It is with great joy therefore that I re-introduce this story... It would have been impossible to reproduce the art in color ten years ago, or at least impossibly costly. Other than those most closely associated with the production of the zine, the only people who saw the original color renditions of the art were at ZebraCon in '86, or those who visited those who purchased individual pieces. However, color photographs were taken while the art was all together and it is those photos which were used to print the art here. Any differences or exactness that do not emerge are due to those photos and the limitations of current xerox equipment. I was blessed this time with a careful, professional printer who did everything possible to retain the beauty of Suzan's illos so as to marry them once again with the beautiful words written by Lynna. And Suzan graciously agreed to create an all-new color cover to go with this special edition. Please take note, two of the illos were originally done in black and white and of course remain that way in this new production of the zine. -- April Valentine

Notes from the Online Version

"Murder on San Carmelitas by Lynna Bright was originally published as a stand-alone paper zine in 1986 by April Valentine's Amapola Press. It was one of the most popular and enduring works of fiction available to the fandom in the pre-internet print zine era, and reflects the time in which it was created. Written prior to 1986, the story takes place in 1982, 36 months after Gunther's assassination attempt on Starsky. MoSC creates a fictional island off the coast of California called San Carmelitas owned and populated primarily by gay men. Starsky and Hutch have to go undercover as a gay couple on this island to catch a serial killer. However, the crime plot wasn't what made MoSC such a significant fannish work. What made this story so important to fans of its era was the way the writer portrayed the depth of the emotional conflict between Starsky and Hutch as their assignment forces these two straight men to have to deal with their conflicting feelings about gays, their role in the undercover, and the change in their relationship since Starsky's shooting. -- Flamingo

Chapters

• Daniel Corliz (1)
• Tim (6)
• Vespers (11)
• Hell Week (22)
• The Mysteries (30)
• Entr'acte (65)
• Une Semaine De Bonte (66)
• The Minotaur (101)
• Eleusis (121)
• Epilogue (127)

Gallery: A Sample of the Extensive Art from the First Edition

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  A fan in 2010 said: "I am love with scene on page 23. Only Starsky can wear that and make it look good ... and Hutch is drooling. Ahhh!"

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  one of the two pieces that doesn't have a color counterpart in the reissue

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  one of the two pieces that doesn't have a color counterpart in the reissue

Gallery: A Sample of the Extensive Art from the Second Edition

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The Editor's Comments 2000 on Context and Style

In 2000, Flamingo, the zine's editor, joined in a discussion on ThePits regarding whether or not Starsky & Hutch authors had had a tendency to "play favorites" with the two main characters of the show.

Flamingo, responding directly to this comment by a fan at ThePits: "In my first wave of SH fannishness ten years ago I read a lot of stories with clear author favoritism. Hutch was gorgeous and smart and Starsky was frequently pathetic, or at best, worshipful.", wrote:

Regarding the "favorite member of a slash pair" who is overly dominant in a story, which is what I think you were trying to represent, there is also a term for that. It is called "author intrusion" when the needs of the story are sacrificed completely so that author can put in her favorite character doing her favorite things regardless of what the story needs. One of the most consistent perpetuators of this writing problem is Lynna Bright, who is considered probably the finest writer in all of SH and whose writing is breathtakingly beautiful. Hutch was her favorite and Starsky was frequently given a lesser status in her stories, his scenes truncated or not represented at all, the plot often sacrificed so that Hutch could do something great. I noticed every single time this happened -- because I've read every story of hers over a dozen times. Even committing this type of writers "sin" this woman's work is so superlative, I'm more than happy to let her do whatever she wants. I only wish I had her command of the language.

Flamingo also wrote:

It is certainly easy enough to be swept away by Lynna's writing. I certainly have and continue to be every time I pick up one of her splendid works. Her lyricism and use of language may never be matched in fandom.

You might be very interested to know that in the early days of SH fandom, which was pre-net of course, most of the fans had a lot of contact with each other by phone, letters, letterzines, and personal contact (and the occassional con). Zines were few and far between and no one took fanfic for granted because there just wasn't that much of it. So there was always a lot of discussion among fans as they got together to watch eps. I've been told that because there were such strong relationships among the fans, especially among fan writers, it wasn't unusual for them to come to certain "agreements" over character traits. (These days, with the net, most of us work alone in our houses and only find out how others feel about characterization after we've written something and posted it.) Most of the fans perceived Starsky as this loveable child-like teddy bear (a characterization that dismays me) and Hutch as a more aloof, better-educated, blond god of a man. But of course, they encouraged each other in seeing these traits. So the fiction frequently reflects the discussions and agreements they had about these characters. I've been told by several of these original fans that my Starsky is "different" -- because I was never part of these mutual agreements and made my own decisions about Starsky, as most net fans do today.

If some of you have not read Lynna's work, I would discourage you from reading any further so as not spoil the wonder and delight of discovering this fine writer completely on your own. You will not be sorry, I promise you. Her stuff is *wonderful.* Many fans disagree on what is or is not a good story, but I have never heard anyone say they disliked Lynna's work, that it wasn't a wonderful read.

S P O I L E R

S P A C E

By Lynna's own admission, she didn't give a damn about her plots, she only used it to get the guys together, and once they were together, it was everything she could do to sustain enough interest in the plot to conclude it in any acceptable way. In her story Winter, she essentially destroys the world to get the guys together (now, that's what I call ambition!) and once she does, the plot just kind of withers away. Not that any of us cared. In her best known and best loved work, Murder on San Carmelitas, once the guys are together, the plot nearly disappears until she dredges it up in one last gasp, races through it, concludes it abruptly and ends the book. Not that any of us cared. ;-) And in her last work, Place in the Sun, she could not maintain interest in the plot enough to conclude the story, much to our loss. Being able to read Lynna's writing was valuable enough where things like inadequate plotting or pacing or even endings seemed irrelevant. We just wanted to read it. I was bowled over by the quality of her writing when I first discovered it, and I am still captivated by it whenever I reread any of her work, and I do so frequently.

But, Lynna was very guilty of author intrustion in every story she ever wrote. (Just because a writer is really good, doesn't mean they don't have flaws.) While Lynna never portrayed Starsky as a simple character, and gave him plenty of accord in the course of the plot of a story, he was not her favorite and it is blatantly obvious. In Murder on San Carmelitas, which is the most obvious display of this, she portrays Starsky very much as he was on the show -- a man comfortable in his maleness, very hetero, very strong willed, not a dummy, and not a wimp. He is clearly a man who loves women and who is incredibly uncomfortable among gay men and with homosexuality in general. The thought of two men having sexual relationships makes him incredibly uncomfortable, and this is stipulated by Lynna many times in the book. This is *her* portrayal of him, it is consistent, and it jibes with canon.

However, the *minute* he decides he is in love with the great god Hutch (and to Lynna, Hutch was a golden god, and every passage of her work confirms this) he throws ALL his previous apprehensions away and never looks back. Dazzled by love, Starsky, previously repelled by homosexual relationships, blithely suggests to Hutch that Hutch fuck *him*. "You can fuck me if you want." This is completely out of character for the character Lynna had established. It brought me, and many other Starsky fans, to a screeching halt in the middle of a captivating read. This happened way too fast for the character *she* had established. Hutch is hesitant, but Starsky is ready to go, right then! And when they do do it, Hutch is such a magnificent lover that Starsky, a complete virgin at this sex act who was repelled by it just the day before and who is now having this sex act with a very large male, has NO PHYSICAL PROBLEMS WITH THE ACT, loves every second of it, it is the finest experience of his entire life, and he has now found his calling in life. Why does this happen? Because that is how Lynna felt about Hutch. He is a 10 inch golden god, a love machine, how could anyone not crave to have this man in their body? Craving someone, loving someone enough to surrender to them is one thing, being able to easily physically accommodate them is a whole other story.

Also, read over MOSC and you will see that when Hutch is in a dominent position sexually, we are given a beautiful, lyrical sex scene. When *Starsky* is in the dominent sexual position we are only *told* about the scene afterward, we do not see it, we do not experience it. We are in the scene until it is about to occur, and then the door is shut in our face. Starsky doesn't top Hutch until the very last scene and is it a beautiful, lyrical scene -- no, it is difficult, not lyrical at all, and we're fortunate it's successful at all. Hutch is simply too manly to accept this thing easily.

Lynna had no interest in depicting love scenes where Hutch submitted to Starsky, it simply didn't interest her -- which is why her ommission and prediliction to prefer Hutch is author intrusion. Yet she respected the partnership and wanted it to be equal, so she tells us these scenes occur, to keep the relationship on an even keel, but she didn't want to write them. It makes her stories unbalanced and for many Starsky fans unsatisfying in that aspect. In her serialized, excellent AU (which had a lot more plot than some of her other stories), we are never shown a love scene where Starsky is dominent, even though it is critical to the plot. An element of that plot was that the Hutch character has been sexually abused as a child and is terrified of being the recipient of the act, and the Strarsky character lovingly seduces him out of his fear and shows him how beautiful it can be -- but we are never *shown* this important scene, we are just told about it in a few tossed off sentences.

Now, in spite of this, Lynna's wonderful writing is more than worth reading. I recommend her work to anyone who wants to see wonderful use of language, lyricism in writing, and just get swept up in the romance. It is the best of the best of fanfic. But it's not perfect. Not from a purely writing standard, and especially if you're a Starsky fan.

Riffs and Parodies

The zine was well-known enough to inspire other fans to comment upon it in their own fanworks. In fact, a fan in 2003 wrote: "Also, I'd say any story that Paula Smith has parodied would have a good chance at being considered a classic!"

Some examples:

• Murder on San Carmelappolis, short fic by Ima Fool from Tell Me Something I Don't Know #3 (1987)
• Murmur on San Carmelapples, a parody con skit by by Paula Smith and Jody Lynn Nye, first performed at ZebraCon (1988)

Reactions and Reviews

1986

I've looked forward to this zine for a long time and am totally delighted with the results. Lynna has a gift for showing us a deep, warm relationship; Suzanne's artwork is softly breathtaking as usual; and [April Valentine] has put it all together with near perfection. I spotted no typos and only a couple of recurring grammar glitches, and the layout is done with obvious love and care. The story held my attention all the way. I even cared about the secondary characters although the emphasis was firmly where we want it — with S&H and their love. It's hard to pick favorite illustrations when they're all so loving and beautiful, but the hug on p. 118 is so intense that it electrifies me, and the tenderly erotic love scene on p. 90 is also extra special. What a pleasure to curl up with a brand new S&H story, beautiful both verbally and visually, to warm our hearts all winter.

Lynna, Suzan and [April Valentine]: Congratulations on San Carmelitas. It was a pleasure to read in all aspects. Visually, emotionally, aesthetically — loved the typeface (oh, envy, envy), and the illos. A beautiful zine all the way around.

1987

OK, I'll join the fray on the subject of lack of plot in "/", since I'm in that camp too. Yes, [name redacted], you have a valid point: "It isn't wrong that the plot of the story be whether or not the characters go to bed with each other." Guess we should have been a tad more specific. The thing is, I've already read that particular plot about these particular characters more times and in more variations than I care to contemplate. So when I say I want plot, I mean something besides that. Maybe they could join the police department and become detectives and solve crimes or something ... Seriously, when I read fan fiction it's because I liked the original series and want more of that. And I've often found fan writers do a better job of zeroing in on what was good about a series than the commercial series-related book authors. That was certainly true with S&H! But the series was about two working cops who had a very special partnership, and not an endless series of graphic sexual escapades. I too have read Murder on San Carmelitas and I'm sorry to say I was very disappointed in it. The description of the setting was beautifully done, I felt I could "see" this island. But then I suddenly found myself with the uncanny feeling that I'd somehow blundered into a pornographic, gay Harlequin, and that's what most of the story was a mixture of graphic sex and syrupy romance… How many Harlequins would you say a person has to read before she's entitled to conclude she doesn't care for them? And not at an average cost of $10-15 each, either! Actually I have read quite a few S/H zines, some bought and some borrowed. I liked the first one, No Pants... because it was something new and different to me then, tho even so the stories were developing a noticeable sameness before I finished the zine. I don't say all ‘/’ lacks plot, but too much of it does. I guess my basic rule of thumb would be, if you took out the sex scenes, how much story would you have left?

I’m sorry you didn’t enjoy Murder on San Carmelitas – I found it to be a masterful combination of police and personal plotting. The love element is present in all its nuances — achingly tender and joyful, romantic (not syrupy), sexy - as well as painfully apprehensive and full of that uncertainty of discovery. And all of this is intertwined with a believable crime plotline. Starsky and Hutch are in character throughout and beautifully depicted in Suzan's illos.

Murder on San Carmelitas' is a half-good erotic story. The plot and the characters of Starsky and Hutch are superbly realistic and believable throughout, as long as the story deals with their growing love and intimate discovery of each other. When the story turns outward, to the public reason for their being on the island, to Starsky and Hutch as police detectives, and to the murder mystery promised at the beginning, the story falls flat on its face. S&H's neglect of their job is not dealt with realistically or logically, they are little more than spectators at the wrap up of the murder case, and ostensible clues or breaks, like the photography session, go nowhere. That is simply bad writing. In an excellent erotic story, such as "A Place to Hide," by the same author, all the promised plot — including the sex — is delivered well and completely, and no incidents or themes dangle unsupported.

To begin with, there are a couple of misunderstandings I'd like to clear up. You seem to be under the impression that I am totally and adamantly opposed to the whole concept of "/," and that that was why I didn't care for Murder on San Carmelitas. 'T'ain't necessarily so. As I've said in previous letters, I am willing to accept the "/" view on an alternate universe basis, though I regret to see what I consider alternate supplanting the original universe shown in the series. However, my problem with MoSC was not the orientation of the sex in it, but the sheer overwhelming quantity. I assure you I would have been equally disappointed in an "&" story in which they spent that high a percentage of the time EMF (Engaged in Meaningful Fornication, to paraphrase Dani)..."Why did you order this zine?" you asked. Fair question. I'll try to answer it. Early last year, when I first came into this fandom, [April Valentine] and I exchanged a few letters. We were discussing S/H because at that time I hadn't read any, though I had read and enjoyed a few novels with gay love elements. most notably, Marion Zimmer Bradley's The Catch Trap, which is still one of ay all-time favorite books. But there was a heck of a lot else going on in that story besides the love theme. Anyway, [April] said in a letter that MoSC was going to be "...a complete detective story besides a love story." No, no, no, I am not saying that [April] deliberately misled me, merely that we obviously have differing perceptions of what constitutes "a complete detective story." ... I'm afraid I was expecting something more of that nature from MoSC. My mistake, obviously.

And poor Barb F, After I read Pam's letter at the end of the l/z, I kept going back over Barb's letter trying to find where she said that she didn't like Murder because it was "/'. I think she was referring to the "graphic sex" and 'syrupy romance," not the fact that it was "/". I, too, read the zine, and while I have come to expect a lot of graphic sex in most any '/" story, I think that it might have been handled better if it had stuck strictly to the relationship aspect. For example, how about if Starsky and Hutch are becoming aware of this new sexual awareness between then and they take some time off to go to this island and sort themselves out? Why put in this police case as an unnecessary plot device? And several people have written in and raved about the zine, so it certainly can't be all bad, but it's sort of unfair, Pam, to cone down on people who write in with opposing viewpoints. And remenber Barb had praised other "/' stories, specifically "Risk" from Niqhtlight, saying, (to Linda McGee and [April Valentine]), 'Thanks, guys, that, what I was looking for." And just as with any movie, a good, healthy conflict of opinions by critics can do wonders for promoting a product. Oh, please take a look at the ad in the back of #7, too, and see if it states anywhere that Murder is "/". We just assume from the excerpt that it is, but technically, it could just be a story about two heterosexual cops and the problems that they encounter in trying to go undercover on a gay island paradise. Of course, I knew better ...

Having been inspired by Smith's fine essay last issue , I've decided to talk about a zine, Murder on San Carmelitas. Murder was a much heralded and long-awaited project dealing with an adult theme. I had high hopes for it. I was, however, somewhat disappointed after reading it. Murder's premise is an "if only" fantasy, with this I have no problem. But, I'm afraid, the 'if only" carried over into aspects of "if only the author had been in less of a hurry to create another rocks off story;" "if only the author had been less afraid to get to the bare bones of characterization;" "if only the editing had been a little tighter." Murder masquerades as a cross between Fantasy Island and The Joy of Gay Sex; it just isn't sure what it is.

Some of the writing is very, very good. The plot itself is quite original. But, the neither/nor expression of the storyline, neither a true mystery nor a realistic rocks off event, ultimately leaves the reader dissatisfied. Some of my favorite parts were the Starskyisms peppered throughout. The knock-knock joke bit really would have made a charming scene. The "greased pole up the kazoo" comment was priceless, and, the dancing with Hutch in chapter 5 was really fun. The sexual tension was interesting, but rather confusing. The Hutch/Don is only useful in terms of contrivance. It just doesn't work for me at all. Some of the worst stuff is the physcial description, Hutch's private part possible being the worst. I just had to laugh at inappropriate tiles at some of these things. "Hutch prickled with excitement, thighs shaking." Prickly heat? "Starsky's body quivered, sought cut and found him..." Magnetic personality? And, my favorite, "Starsky lay awake, face to the ceiling, staring at the bright, watery reflection from the pool." All I can picture from this is Starsky nose flat against the ceiling, staring into the bottom of a swimming pool on the floor above. Picky, picky, picky, I know. But, I actually read these things word for word when I bother at all; I don't thumb through until I get to the "good parts." I felt a reluctance on the author's part throughout most of the zine to actually give us anything. And, this holding back, made for a very controlled story. Even the sex was controlled, in that the letting go is basically anti-climatic (no pun intended), Murder appears to be a heartfelt attempt to create a romantic interlude. And, perhaps it night have worked better as a purely honeymoon Pocono-type story and not as a crime drama in drag. What bothered me the most was that where the story could have really gotten dangerous, steady, torrid, and memorable (the photo session), the author backs off. What if that photo session had gotten really out of hand? What if S/H had had to get it on because their lives were in danger? It would have been a different scene, granted, and probably a different story entirely. But, it would have been extremely hot, sinister, and adult, aspects of tonality that Murder sadly lacks. The art was quite remarkable. Starsky was rather on the slender side, however. I recall him as being a bit more substantial. The overall appearance of the zine was clean, readable and nicely done.

Despite these reservations on my part, I would say that it is a pretty good read. It's just that those "if only" problems kept Murder from being a truly great zine.

1992

The undercover operation bears a particular importance... the characters are asked to shed their normal identities, to assume a mask which not only justifies but actively requires otherwise prohibited forms of intimacy. In Lynna Bright's 'Murder on San Carmelitas,' Starsky and Hutch must pose as gay lovers when they infiltrate an island inhabited primarily wealthy homosexuals; their operation requires them to share a bed, to publicly display their affections, even to pose together for erotic photographs, while any slip would make them vulnerable to discovery by the organized crime boss they are staling. This masquerade awakens feelings both men have repressed and forces a reconsideration of their relationship. 'Pretending to be Starsky's lover these weeks had enabled him to experience his partner in some -- to say the least -- novel ways. He'd rediscovered, by way of some crazy back door, what it means to be someone's lover. Problem was, that somewhere along the line, the feelings he'd been pretending to feel had become... possible, had become pleasures. The farce he and Starsky had to perform daily was becoming the one real thing in his life.

1993

The first zine that jumps to mind is the very first one I ever read, MURDER ON SAN CARMELITAS. Beautiful, with excellent writing, but most fandom writers are very good. lt was such a wonderful intro to the world of fanzines I could scarcely put it down.

If you haven't read Murder on San Carmelitas, you still don't understand the term 'erotic literature' as anything but an oxymoron. If you have read this and didn't feel anything, there may be a variety of reasons... I am not a S&H fan! The series never intrigued me, the plots were lousy, most of the acting did not live up to the plotting, and David Soul and Michael Glaser just didn't do anything for me as cops or buddies. I like Jack Webb and Henry Morgan a lot better than these guys, honest! But as Lou Abbot once said, 'I don't give a damn!' Get out the ScotchGuard (tm) and read the book. KY is optional (maybe).

One of the few S/H zines I really liked (Murder on San Carmelitas) has the two of them going to a small, exclusive gay island off of the California coast, kind of Fire Island West, looking for a drug dealer/murderer.

Hutch's realization that he wants Starsky (after they've had to kiss and sleep next to each other for a few days) is really nicely handled, and Starsky's way of dealing with it, I thought was both realistic and romantic. Nice stuff.

Highly recommended.

Stories into episodes? Starsky & Hutch: "Murder on San Carmelitas". Again, good relationship stuff along with an interesting cop story in an unusual location.

1994

MURDER ON SAN CAMALITAS is a very good read (my mother's favorite, actually)

1995

... the concept of reversing the power and “control” in a sexual penetration isn’t new, is it? I seem to remember lovely pieces of “Murder in San Carmelitos” [sic] which was published in 1986, where being fucked represented being the one in control... well, actually, being Starsky represented being the one in control, now that I think of it!

1996

My initial reaction is, "been there, done that". Sonny and Martin go undercover at a gay resort and have to pretend to be lovers. If you want to see this done better, read the S/H novel "Murder on San Carmelitas"...

1997

As much as I love "Murder on San Carmelitas", [it] runs parallel to an anti-kink of mine, the Two Guys Walk Into a Bar story: X & Y (as an example, not chromosomes) have to be undercover in a gay bar or are waiting for an informant in one and suddenly Realise Their Feelings. Somehow, I never thought of ordering a beer as being much of a life altering experience. But I guess it depends on how many of them you order.

Of course, I think this is more of an anti-kink for me because it's such a cliche anymore.

1998

Agggghhhhhhhhhhhh . . . Hutch's mustache. I do know there are people who prefer the longer-haired, mustachioed Hutch, but give me the short haired, buff, clean-shaven Hutch any day. It's almost like night and day, the way I feel about him with or without the extra hair.

The one thing that drove me crazy about Lynna Bright's *wonderful* S/H novel, "Murder on San Carmelitas," was that Hutch was long haired and wearing a mustache. And Suzan Lovett's otherwise beautiful pictures showed it, too.

Thank goodness Lynna had him shave it off in the final chapter of the story. ;-)

2002

I came to Starsky and Hutch, because I have always loved them. And I read everything I can get on them, but I have to admit that a lot of the stories are too gentle, kind, loving and not enough of a conflict either between them or within them generated in the story *for my tastes*.

That's not to say the stories themselves are not well done. They are. There is much time, talent and love lavished on S/H fanfiction. That doesn't even say I think I could do better. I don't. I haven't. And not sure I can.

For example, quite some few here love 'Murder on San Carmelitas'. Uhm.  <blush>, I thought it was written well, plotted well, illustrated beautifully and only hit one of my buttons for one paragraph. For the emotional payoff I got from reading it, it could have been any mainstream mystery novel. 

I like possessive, jealous Starsky. I wanted more. But it's not in that story. I had to force myself through the story from page to page. So, overall, I'd have to say, I am glad I read 'Murder' because it *is* well-written S/H fic and it is a classic, but no, I am not one of the fans who 'liked' it and when I needed $$$ desperately to [personal life info redacted], it is one of the first fanzines I sold.  <hangs head>

2003

I am also developing a very strong pet peeve about first time stories where there is a build-up -- whether it is a long build-up, or a quick build-up -- and then like lightening out of the blue the guys (one or both of them) suddenly experience *Attraction* -- and, of course, even though there is no precedent for it at all, he (or they) instantly recognizes the *Attraction* for what it is. Doesn't anyone ever write stories anymore where the attraction is not recognized right away *as* attraction? Where one or both of the guys *feel* it long before they know what it is? Where maybe they even blunder in blindly, without being sure what their own motives are? Joseph Campbell met his wife because she was a student in a class he was teaching; he said that for a long time he noticed feeling sort of hopped up in that class, but it took him a number of weeks to figure out the source of it. Because, of course, he didn't *expect* to be feeling this sort of energy while in the classroom, and neither would Starsky or Hutch expect to be feeling a romantic buzz when with the other.  It seems to me that they could reasonably be expected to mis-attribute it for a long time before figuring it out. Even in a well written, novel-length story like Murder on San Carmelitas there is a time when they are not attracted, and then suddenly Hutch IS attracted -- and right away he is able to put the right name to his feelings -- and there is no protracted period of "figuring it out" for Hutch. Only for Starsky. I'd rather see them BOTH go through the awkwardness of figuring it out. In fact, Murder could easily have been twice the page count, with a long, long section inserted where the guys are both enjoying the *pretense* of being lovers without either one of them being able to put a correct explanation to why they are having so much fun, and I would have been a happy reader. But it seems to me that stories routinely skip right past the best part -- the burgeoning awareness -- the prior assumptions being messed-with part.

[...]

As a writer I like to play around with the grey areas -- the false starts, the uncertainties, the awkward vulnerabilities of not being sure how you're feeling while you're feeling it. As a reader I find that, almost invariably, the author I'm reading has skipped right past the part of the story that interested me most. The part I would have dwelled on, if I had been writing it. For instance the example I gave about Murder on San Carmelitas, that's the best example I can think of. Man, if I had been the one writing that there would have been whole chapters of S&H playing at being lovers, putting on a show for other people *and each other* -- which is to say, pretending to outsiders that they *were* lovers, and pretending to each other (and themselves) that they were not. That sort of thing fascinates me. But instead, boom! One moment Hutch is making Starsky nervous by something as simple as holding his hand at a party (for show), and the next page, practically, Hutch is having this whole self-image crisis, and admitting to himself that he's got sexual feelings for Starsky, and before you know it he's questioning his whole sexuality, and there's just never any time to enjoy the thrill before it all gets very serious.   It's not that I'm into denial fic, or anything like that. And I do definitely wish for their relationship to be consummated. But it's just that I feel like one of the very best things about slash is the potential to slow it all down, so to speak, and examine all the elements of a *seduction* -- of being swept off your feet or stepping off the edge of the world. In RL these things always seem to happen so fast, in one sense. There's never any time to see what it all means. So from that perspective I guess I am complaining because S/H slash is *too* realistic. But in another sense, RL often blunders along with emotions getting ahead of understanding. I want to see S&H do that more.

I agree about MOSC -- even Starsky's conversion comes a too easily, too quickly. I love this story and reread it often, but I think it does represent the writer's need to get the guys in bed at the sacrifice of the novel's construction. In fairness, I think that's why a lot of us, speaking for myself, do write slash, to experience that moment of physical connectedness. If we rush it it may be partly because we do get that extended foreplay in the show and we're now too hot to slow things down, but also because real life holds us all back so much, I think it's a natural rebellion. Are we there yet? When I first conceived of the "If Love Is Real" series, my original plan was to keep them in a state of suspended desire for the run of the series. Four years of unresolved sexual tension. That was the plan. I blew that on page 20 of the first story. I couldn't help it!! They made me do it!

There's a novel by L. Bright called "Murder on San Carmelitas" that, to me is very lop-sided... Starsky starts out with a huge problem with the idea of m/m sex, then by the end he seems to magically become a happy, life-long bottom boy.

(Also, there were other problems I had with that story. If S&H are new to the relationship, and Starsky has *HUGE* misgivings about having anal sex at all, it doesn't make any sense to me that he would be the first to bottom. It sounds ass-backwards. <g> Really, if Hutch wanted to share that with Starsky, to show that it was okay and wouldn't mean he was any less than a man, then why didn't *he* volunteer to be bottom first? That would have felt more like Hutch to me, and it would have kept Starsky in character longer in the story.)

The author's writing is *really* beautiful, but for me her clear preference for Hutch bother's me at times. There is one scene at the end where Starsky

• finally* tops, but it doesn't really go well. As some one later pointed

out to me, once Starsky gets Hutch's cock, he can't get enough of it, but Hutch is too much of a _real man_ to be able to let another man do that to him. So when he and Starsky try it at the last minute, it's not really a good experience, and it's hurried through, as if the author couldn't stand to write it.

As I said, the author writes beautifully, but the author's clear preference in topping/bottoming threw me off.

[...]

"Obvious favorite" stories just don't work for me, and they work even less when the favorite is given 'top spot' in sex, so to speak, because of power issues.

Oh my goodness, How could I forget Murder on San Carmelitas by Lynna Bright (Starsky & Hutch) also with beautiful artwork by Suzan Lovett (who needs a shrine built in her honor). Most wonderful first time story.

2004

I loved the "Slash Library" that the con hosted. What a lovely idea! Share your slash with each other for the duration. Find a bedtime story. And of course, I did. I'd heard of the S/H zine "Murder on San Carmelita." Classic, and all that. Well, I can now affirm that it's well worth the read. The premise is not unfamiliar to me now (I've read a number of "go undercover as gay and discover we're gay" stories), but it worked for me here. The descriptions of their deepening relationship (double entendre intended) are lovely.

I dove into this one with both feet, really anticipating a wonderful read from all the comments I had heard and I was not disappointed in any way. Lynna Bright is a lyrical writer with an almost poetic way with words. Like a few people were discussing earlier, she describes the scene with such detail that I can picture the room where they're staying, and the hotel lobby and bar where Hutch meets the young man. (Probably because I've been in some of those old Mexican styled hotels).

There's a feeling of isolation and separation between Starsky and Hutch at the beginning. Hutch seems slightly depressed, still shellshocked from the shooting which was either 18 months ago or twice that. One of the minor quibbles I have with this story is that several times she has continuity errors in her own timeline.

So, the assignment to the island is a God's send for the two of them, in a strange way. It forces them to spend quality time together and talk. San Carmelitas is kind of an enchanted place, and despite the fact that there is an ugly undercurrent to the place, it's a special place where dreams come true.

The first half was my favorite, with Starsky very uncomfortable with his role, yet trying to play along and Hutch becoming more and more convinced of his own infatuation. He tries to deny it, knowing Starsky would be unwilling, but it is as inevitable as the sea. Their slow turning towards each other, Starsky's journey to understanding and acceptance is what the story is all about. His reactions seem very real in the face of a partner he's known for so long who is suddenly acting in a very different way. But out in the sun and wind, the truth can't be ignored, not when they're surrounded with sex acts everywhere. I liked the part where both partners have to 'relieve' themselves in different rooms because they're so aroused and frustrated by the constant visual show they are forced to watch.

Being the h/c fan that I am, I loved the scene with Starsky in peril, but it was resolved far too quickly for me. He's drugged and unable to resist, but luckily saved in the nick of time. So why isn't he more freaked out about that? I wanted a little more discussion or at the very least, Starsky's thoughts on the incident. But he seems to accept it as something that would happen on this island--he was practically expecting it to happen--so now that it has, he can relax.

I have to admit, while I was happy with their final joining, the plot and investigation into the murder seemed perfunctory. Had to have a reason to get them on the island! And the denouement is just a wrap up for the bad guys to be either arrested or shot so that Starsky and Hutch can get back to what has become much more important to them. And that shows. I'd have liked a little more about the investigation or the getting back to L.A./B.C and what happens next rather than straight back to romance. But that is just a small objection to what is otherwise a lovely, dreamy story seeing your best friend as something totally new.

2005

So, the one I didn't like (to be kind) was Murder on San Carmelitas. The thing I remember most is the really poor resolution of the case, and that the author used very strange vocabulary throughout that were correct by definition but obscure and odd, and every one threw me out of the story. Another thing was that she had Starsky reading Princess Daisy, and I think that's the story that had Hutch's bad back the result of a skiing accident, and that totally whacked me hard right out of the fiction. I really don't like it when authors do that. I don't think it's funny or cute or clever. I just get thrown out by it, and lose the SH universe.

I didn't buy the lead up to the discovery of their love.

I thought the whole gay island thing was a very thin plot device just to get them sleeping in the same bed and.

It's been about 6 months or more since I read it and I don't remember the details, and I have no wish to reread it, but there were many things more about it that I didn't like at all. I was hugely disappointed, and nearly shocked at how many people think it's so good. I've heard people say it's nearly perfect, that it everything they could want. And it makes me think, wow, I can't compete with that, then, because there's no way in heck I'd write a story that thin and that poorly rendered. I think I could have coped with the thin plot if the writing style had been less fussy and overthought, and if the author had looked up how to use punctuation properly.

I also thought the art was very poorly rendered, and just barely even looked like the guys, but the heads were way to big, the perspectives were way off, and in general just turned me off.

I thought the sex scenes were the only part worth reading, but even they weren't fresh or unusual.

If I had spent money on that zine, I'd have been disgusted. I could barely read it and only did because of all the hype. I kept thinking the good stuff would show up but it never did.

2006

Deeply flawed, but wonderful. She sets up this huge premise about going undercover as gay lovers on a resort island to crack a snuff film industry, and then promptly forgets her plot as soon as she gets them to the island. She jumps much too abruptly from "just friends" to sexual attraction (and does include some elements of gayfic), and almost totally fails to capitalize on the set-up of her story, but still.......I love it anyway. I love the location, the heart in the sex scenes, the images of lounging by the pool, etc, the *very* sexy hand-holding. And it's a classic. So. And also I love Suzan Lovett's lavish illos.

I can assure you that the S/H fans ate this story up with a spoon. It's not one of my favorites, mostly because it awkwardly brings one part of the story to a screeching halt (cop plot) to start telling another (slash plot) but that's not a problem for any other S/H fan I've ever known who read it, then or now. And Lynna does have a lovely lyrical writing style.

2013

"MoSC was one of the most popular and enduring works of fiction available to the fandom in the pre-internet print zine era, and reflects the time in which it was created. Written prior to 1986, the story takes place in 1982, 36 months after Gunther's assassination attempt on Starsky. It was also prior to the general public's knowledge of the AIDS epidemic, which would soon become a dominating factor in the gay community. The novel reflects some of the attitudes prevalent in the late 70's and early 80's regarding gay culture, lifestyles, and relationships, as well as common attitudes found in straight male-dominated work environments at that time. (In fact, the first print shop that agreed to produce the novel threatened to destroy all the art once they had it in hand because it was "pornographic".)

The novel uses what was already a stock slash plotline: ostensibly straight detective partners go undercover in a gay bar, and in the course of the case must confront their unresolved feelings toward each other. But MoSC ramps up this story line by drawing on gay gathering places like Fire Island to create a fictional island off the coast of California called San Carmelitas owned and populated primarily by gay men. Starsky and Hutch have to go undercover as a gay couple on this island to catch a serial killer who uses snuff films to murder his victims.

However, the crime plot wasn't what made MoSC such a significant fannish work. What made this story so important to fans of its era was the way the writer portrayed the depth of the emotional conflict between Starsky and Hutch as their assignment forces these two straight men to have to deal with their conflicting feelings about gays, their role in the undercover, and the change in their relationship since Starsky's shooting."

I had heard so much about this story that I thought I was going to be disappointed by actually reading it but I was wrong. I loved it. From start to finish it was a rollercoaster ride and so true to the characters that I fell in love with. I now understand why so much has been said about it in the fandom and thanks to Flamingo and the girls for all their hard work.

I am so glad that this fine piece of fiction has finally made it to the web for everyone's pleasure. Thank you to Lynna Bright for her captivating story and for those who painstakingly reproduced it for the web. I have enjoyed the story very much.

I still have the 1996 version of this novel, and read the first edition in the late 80s, when was probably about 18 years old. I didn't understand it really, but I did understand the love in it, and the artwork is goreous. S/H fandom has been part of all of my adult life. It has helped shape how I think about my relationships and what partnership in life really means.

I feel SH (with or without the slash) can potentially teach us how to respect one another in friendship and lasting relationships. They show us that loyalty, trust and human mistakes are all parts of that package. Standing together.

2018

One of the most well known first time stories -- Murder on San Carmelitas by Lynna Bright was originally published as a stand-alone paper zine in 1986 by April Valentine's Amapola Press. It was one of the most popular and enduring works of fiction available to the fandom in the pre-internet print zine era, and reflects the time in which it was created. Written prior to 1986, the story takes place in 1982, 36 months after Gunther's assassination attempt on Starsky. MoSC creates a fictional island off the coast of California called San Carmelitas owned and populated primarily by gay men. Starsky and Hutch have to go undercover as a gay couple on this island to catch a serial killer.

Unknown Date

The great S/H classic. You know that fanfic cliché in which the boys have to go undercover as a gay couple? This is the zine that started all of that. (But unlike the many that followed, this one was well written, despite the preposterous story line.) Chock full of angst, smut, and great illos, this is what people mean when they talk about "old-school slash."

References

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