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Columnists

Jeff Baker: Boogieman In Lavender. Lou Rand’s “The Gay Detective.”

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Lou Rand’s “The Gay Detective” by Jeff Baker Bay City…Early Nineteen-Sixties…Fog rolling in across the bay…the famous bridge…you know which city this is supposed to be. Bars that are clandestine rendezvous for furtive meetings between men in back rooms…bodies found in the darkness. Not warm, welcoming bodies but Gay men, murdered. No suspects. Few clues. One looks like murder-suicide. It isn’t Into this foggy mess steps Francis “Frank” Morley, detective for hire. The classic private eye with a dingy office, a loyal secretary and a hulking mass of muscle for an assistant. And Morley is as openly Gay as you … Read more

Night Of the Living Queers; On Beyond Cisgender VII – Boogieman in Lavender

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This is the seventh (wow!) installment of our “On Beyond Cisgender” feature, where we look at books for YA readers (whether written for them or not!) It was initially inspired by a Facebook post from A. M. Leibowitz lamenting the lack of LGBT, non-cisgender, non POC books for High School readers several years ago. There aren’t a lot of good original anthologies aimed at LGBT YA audiences out there, and this one is appropriate for the season. —–jeff Just in time for Halloween, Wednesday Books has published “Night Of the Living Queers,” a YA anthology edited by Shelly Page and … Read more

U=(N/T)M*G: Debris

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Earth surrounded by debris.

The announcement of the mission extension for the ISS gives me mixed feelings. I mean, I love the Station. Wrote about it here a few times. Hell, wrote a whole trilogy on board the “little” thing. I’m such a nerd about it that I’ve got the Haynes manual. It’s a thing I plow through regularly. I’m pretty concerned about it though. Not the drama over Russia’s will they, won’t they attitude in regards to continuing with the Station’s mission. I always knew they’d keep on with the ISS. I’m talking about all the little bits and bobs of debris up … Read more

Jeff Baker, Boogieman in Lavender: A Visit to XY Bar, Or My Glimpse of 2023

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A Visit to XY Bar or My Glimpse Of 2023 by Jeff Baker A month ago I did something I haven’t done in a couple of decades. I went to a gay bar at night when the joint was jumping. Let me explain. The last few months I’ve gone out to a few times to places where I can casually socialize. (I’ve missed having somebody around to talk too.) A nice little coffeehouse, the Public Library in the afternoon (which are also good places to write!) and a couple of Gay bars. Also in the afternoon when there aren’t a … Read more

U=N/T(M*G): Paper

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Black book with the word productivity on the front in gold letters.

I’ve started writing a new book! So stoked. It’s been a hot minute since I’ve been able to really write anything and I have really missed it. It’s a spy romance and it has a whole lot, but I’m not here to talk about all that today. Sorta. See, the love interest has a paper productivity planner. He’s an assistant to the protagonist, kind of, and most assistants have some type of journal or planner they use to keep track of their boss’ schedule. More or less. And, of course, it got me thinking. I use a planner my own … Read more

U=N/T(M*G): Core

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Planet in the light of the Galactic Core.

Once every couple of years, I get the wild hair to reread C. S. Friedman’s Coldfire trilogy. I love this story, no lie. It’s one of the best I’ve ever read and has some of the most complex characters I’ve ever seen. And the premise is amazing. In fact, it’s the premise that brings up this post. See, Coldfire trilogy is set on a planet called Erna close to the Galactic Core. Humans came and settled it a long time before the story starts (though you see pieces of what happened to the original settlers at the start of various … Read more

Jeff Baker; Boogieman In Lavender; “Facing the Blank Page.”

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Facing the Blank Page by Jeff Baker Oh Hell! It’s August! I spent most of last month writing “June” on my checks and now it’s August and I have a column due. What to write? What to write? What to write? Damn. Blank page. Damn! Review a book I’m reading? I haven’t read a book lately. Write about what I’ve been doing? Let’s see; sitting around, typing, watching TV, going to the store, drinking beer. Nope. Not enough word count. What time is it now? Damn! Later than when I started. Closer to the thirteenth. I could write about deadlines. … Read more