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Boogieman in Lavender

Jeff Baker—Boogieman In Lavender

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Troy, Kansas - Jeff Baker

          Troy, Kansas, looking northwest August 21, 2017 about 1:06p.m. Moon’s shadow approaching. (Photo by Jeff Baker) Driving to Troy, Kansas to Wait for the Moon By Jeff Baker Here is my account of traveling to see the total solar eclipse last month. (Note: All times Central Daylight.) August 21, 2017, 6:45 a.m. Wichita, Kansas: Heading out, patch of blue sky in east. Clouds otherwise. Sprinkling. 7:58 a.m.: Mild traffic. Cloudy. Tantalizing glimpse of blue sky—may be clearer up north. Saw orange sunrise. Am at truck stop outside Emporia, Kansas. About 1/3 of the way. 9:00 … Read more

My Favorite Horror Story – Jeff Baker, Boogieman In Lavender

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Jeff Baker

Back in 2000, Mike Baker (no relation) and Martin Greenberg edited an anthology called “My Favorite Horror Story.” The setup was simple: several horror writers (Stephen King, Harlan Ellison, F. Paul Wilson) were asked to pick a favorite horror story and tell why they picked it. Chosen authors included Robert Bloch, Phillip K. Dick and Japanese master Edogawa Rampo. This anthology appeared before the recent big boom in LGBT-themed genre fiction, so I could select a story for the anthology (if asked, nobody has.) So, which LGBT-themed horror story would I pick as my favorite for an anthology? The story … Read more

Boogieman In Lavender: Working In The Slush Factory

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Jeff Baker

This is for writers and more importantly, for those people who want to be writers. There is an inescapable reality to anyone who writes and puts their work out into the market. That part is simply; it might not sell. A lot of times, on average, it will not sell. At least not at first. Every writer deals with rejection. Usually in a form letter or e-mail, sometimes with a more personal mention of your work; maybe even encouragement (“Please let us see more of your work.”) or criticism. (“Way too wordy.”) This is all part of the writer’s life, … Read more

Boogieman In Lavender Review: Heiresses of Russ

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Jeff Baker

The story was that some people had learned to read again.—-line from “The Tip of the Tongue” by Felicia Davin. That most conventional of female archetypes, the bride, figures in several of the unconventional stories in “Heiresses of Russ,” the 2016 edition of the best Lesbian speculative fiction of the year, edited by A. M. Dellamonica and Steve Berman and published by Lethe Press. Leading off is the first of several award nominees, (Nebula nominee, shortlisted for the Hugo and Tiptree awards) “Grandmother-Nai-Leylit’s Cloth of Winds,” by Rose Lemberg. A story of gender fluidity, magic and deepnames where men and … Read more

Jeff Baker: Boogieman In Lavender: “Oh, The Horror!”

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horror - pixabay

Call it dread, terror, fright or the heebie-jeebies, all beings know fear. The universality of this emotion may partly explain the popularity of the genre, a popularity that stretches back way before Stephen king or Clive Barker. Even before Mary Shelley’s “Frankenstein” over 200 years ago. Back maybe to the days of caves and early Man huddled in groups around a fire listening to tales that thrill. LGBT readers (and viewers) are no strangers to the appeal of fear. One might immediately assume we have a special set of fears; being outed. Public stigma and discrimination from being out. The … Read more

Jeff Baker: Boogieman in Lavender – Sleator and Selden; of Genies and Singularities

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Jeff Baker

We are out there. We are not always obvious. In the days before the 21st Century’s sometimes grudging acceptance of LGBT YA authors, such authors labored largely in the closet, their works publicly known while their orientation was not. Two authors whose works have recently crossed my desk again are William Sleator and George Selden. Both names are probably jogging a bygone memory or two. Both had at least one familiar hit; Sleator with “Interstellar Pig,” and Selden with “The Cricket in Times Square.” And both men had definite LGBT connections. I’ll start with Sleator (pronounced “Slater.”) I first encountered … Read more

Jeff Baker, Boogieman in Lavender; “For Identification Purposes.”

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Jeff Baker

Here’s the big question in writing LGBT fiction; what makes a story “gay?” Gay characters? Gay themes? And how does an author identify a character as gay? This has, I realize, been talked about before. Two obvious ways are number one, the “coming out” story, which as a literary device has been done to death and is somewhat out of fashion right now. Number two; simply have your main character make out/hop in the sack with a same sex character. This sometimes takes the whole thing into the realm of erotica, something I don’t write very well at all. Then … Read more

Review: “Transcendent” – Boogieman In Lavender

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Transcendent

“Transcendent,” edited by K.M. Szpara, is the latest “Best Of” collection from Lethe Press. The question arises, would there be enough Transgender-related speculative fiction for a full anthology, let alone an annual series? The answer, judging from the fifteen stories assembled here, is “yes.” The stories display a surprising variety, never straying from Trans characters, (some not obvious) or themes. Transformation is an obvious recurring motif in the stories but when it occurs, it is often in subtle and startlingly different, and entertaining ways. “The Librarian’s Dilemma,” by E. Saxey, features a group “seeding” an archive, The Hairad Collection, which … Read more

Jeff Baker – Boogieman In Lavender: Queering Old Stories

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Jeff Baker

Gaying The Story Up; or “Keep It Light, Keep It Bright, Keep It Gay.”   by Jeff Baker               I’ve done it. At least I’ve tried it. Taking a story I’ve written and making it appealing to an LGBT market by inserting a gay theme or character or making a character gay. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t.             There was a riff on the superhero genre I wrote about ten years ago. Couldn’t sell it, and then I saw a market for an LGBT-themed anthology. So, I tweaked the story a little, made one of the characters in the … Read more

Jeff Baker—Boogieman In Lavender

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                                         Wilde Stories 2016                                                 By Jeff Baker               Science fiction, magical realism, fantasy and plain old horror. All are on display in the 2016 edition of Wilde Stories, editor Steve Berman’s annual “best of the year” collection devoted to gay speculative fiction.             “Imaginary Boys” by Paul Magrs is one of several stories in Wilde Stories with a young adult protagonist. In this case David, raised by a single working mother, dealing with homophobia and with a visitor from Somewhere Else thrown into the mix. The story is both touching and funny with laughs coming from the least-likely … Read more