Me Time
The Merry and BUSY Month of May
Friends laugh at me because I told them I'd be retiring after I left my job in 2022, but in fact I'm consulting and am busier than ever. So I guess I've put off actually retiring.
But even though I'm busy, I'm reading up a storm, on track to reach my 100 books read in 2023 goal. (We'll see if I make it.).
Some of the best I've read so far this year: The Delicate Things We Make by Milena McKay.
Future Wife by Nicole Pyland
Heroine of Her Own Life by Constance Emmett
The entire Cantor Gold series by Ann Aptaker beginning with Criminal Gold
Cool for the Summer by Dahlia Adler
Jenny and I spent a wonderful Mother's Day with our grandkids and their parents. One entertaining moment was Jenny asking each girl what she wanted to be when she grew up: Naomi (8) - a rock climber who is paid to test out new rocks for other climbers
Natalie (6) - a dog sitter
Nina (3) - a butterfly
I hear butterflies make good money!
Marathon reading of Urvashi Vaid’s ‘Virtual Equality’
I was incredibly honored to take part in this event and read a passage from Urvashi's book.
Sapphic Lit and Other Book Stuff
Alison Bechdel’s Legendary Comic Dykes to Watch Out For Comes to Audible With All-Star Cast
The new Audible version of the beloved comics includes the voices of Carrie Brownstein (Portlandia), Roberta Colindrez (A League of Their Own), Roxane Gay (New York Times-bestselling author of Bad Feminist) Jenn Colella (Broadway’s Come from Away), and Jane Lynch (Glee).
Best Submission Resources for Writers (Updated Monthly)
Someone out there thinks you are a great writer and wants to publish your work. So let's find them.
Tennessee Williams & New Orleans Literary Festival Submission Manager
The mission of the SASFest Writing Contest is to promote and publish new work by LGBTQ+ writers.
Fun, Layered Queer Romance About Pop Stars Falling in Love
Congrats to Sapphic lit author Rachel Lacey on this feature in Autostraddle.
Like a good pop song, this book is fluff at first glance, and surprisingly deeper when you look closer. It’s a fascinating look at aging in pop music and the stress of fame on someone’s life, a tender portrayal of coming out later in life
Revisiting Radclyffe Hall's The Well of Loneliness, 95 years on
one writer explores the seminal work of lesbian fiction for the very first time
(2) 10 Substacks to Try - by Zina Gomez-Liss
About the craft and business of writing, but also just some great writers and content.
How to Make Productive Use of ChatGPT: Q&A with Elisa Lorello | Jane Friedman
her new book The AI Author Assistant: How to Use Chat GPT to Optimize Your Writing Progress and Income While Retaining Your Human Touch
Jessica Chastain on Why She Declined to Sign Fan's Evelyn Hugo Novel
"I've been asked multiple times by fans, to sign books that I'm not attached to contractually," wrote Chastain, 46. "Because it feels wrong, and like I'm taking credit for someone else's work, I'll say I can't sign because I'm not doing it. That doesn't mean I've read a bad script."
Kids Need Queer Books - Highlights Foundation
BOOKS THAT DEPICT QUEERNESS ACROSS THE WIDE SPECTRUM OF EVERYDAY LIFE, ARE CRUCIAL FOR ALL KIDS.
Penguin Random House, Florida parents sue school district over book bans
In addition to the publishing house, PEN America, a nonprofit group that advocates for free expression in literature, five authors whose books have been removed from the district, and two parents whose children go to school in the district filed the suit against the Escambia County School District and the Escambia County School Board in Pensacola, Florida.
Romance novelist Nora Roberts denounces ‘shocking’ Florida book removals | The Hill
Eight of her books were removed from school library shelves in Martin County, Fla., following a complaint.
These authors’ books are some of the most challenged in the US. They’re speaking out | The Independent
The ALA, which has tracked book challenges in libraries and schools, reported a record number of demands to censor library books and other materials last year. There were 1,269 such demands in 2022, according to the association – almost twice the number recorded in 2021, when there were 729.
LGBTQIA+ Titles Dominate Top 10 Most Challenged Books List in Year of Record Censorship Attempts - Mombian
“the vast majority were written by or about members of the LGBTQIA+ community or by and about Black people, Indigenous people, and people of color.”
The Official SCBWI Blog: What Courage Looks Like: Maggie Tokuda-Hall Calls Out Scholastic's Offer To License Her Picture Book "Love in the Library" But Only If Maggie Would Edit Out the Reference to Racism in the Author's Note
he story of her grandparents meeting and falling in love while imprisoned in the US Internment Camps during WWII -- Love in the Library is beautifully told, and the author's note puts it in the context of America's historic and current racism
News You Can Use
Pitch to Production - FilmFreeway
Christin Baker strives to support upcoming filmmakers and writers who want to make content for our community. She is looking for Holiday RomComp pitches (and then a script).
Florida’s Top LGBTQ+ Organization Issued a Travel “Advisory Warning” for the State | Them
In what the organization is calling an “extraordinary step,” Equality Florida has issued a formal travel advisory warning, instructing anyone who is planning to visit or move to the state to consider the “risks posed to… health, safety, and freedom.”
Lesbian Playwright Paula Vogel Slams Florida School for Banning Play
Renowned creative Paula Vogel is standing in solidarity with students in the Jacksonville area who want to put on her play Indecent.
20 Asian-American Queer Women You Need To Know | GO Magazine
May is a month-long celebration of Americans who are of Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander Heritage, many of whom have enriched and greatly influenced LGBTQ+ culture. Here are 20+ of the AAPI queer and trans women who continue to change our world for the better.
JFK's Lesbian Granddaughter Looks to Welcome Baby: Sources
This is all that matters! 65-year-old Caroline, currently U.S. ambassador to Australia, is said to be thrilled to become a grandmother for the second time
Hannah Gadsby Talks ‘Queer Joy’ and Calling Out Netflix – Rolling Stone
The comedian says their new stand-up hour Something Special is “a political statement” because it’s about “a queer person expressing joy on stage”
Cara Delevingne, Noémie Merlant to star in film about the loves of Patricia Highsmith - Queer Forty
Cara Delevingne (Carnival Row) and Noémie Merlant (Tar, Portrait Of A Lady On Fire) and Shailene Woodley (Big Little Lies), are set to star in a genre biopic of Highsmith. Happily and fittingly, the film is being produced by Killer Films, who brought us the meticulous and lauded Carol.
The best signs of the WGA picket line : NPR
Among the signs were jokes about the artificial intelligence service ChatGPT, the wealth of studio executives and many, many references to the HBO hit Succession. Here are some of our favorites:
Brittney Griner's Teammates Rate Her Queer Red Carpet Fashion
the Mercury asked players to rate BG’s red carpet looks. The video is so sweet and funny and, like, where else in the world are you going to get people truly and wholly fawning over a Black masc athlete and her wife as bourgeoning fashion icons?
Lesbians in menopause…or how sexy is gray hair? -
I have always been very liberated about my sexuality and my body. But during menopause, this became even more pronounced. It’s as if my mind is telling me, “You’ve got nothing to lose now. Let’s get the party started!”
Inside South Korea’s 4B Movement Where Women Live Without Men
Lesbians are playing a major role in South Korea’s radical political and lifestyle movement known as “4B,” an anti-patriarchy movement that denounces marriage, having children, dating, or having sexual relations with men. It is an ideological and lifestyle-oriented movement against South Korea’s socially constructed femininity and beauty standards and those who practice 4B often live together in cooperative households and participate in women-only activities.
Helpful Tools
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