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Announcement: Circuits & Slippers Anthology

Circuits & Slippers

QSFer Jaylee James edited a new sci fi fairy tale anthology: A collection of retold fairy tales with a science fiction twist. Rapunzel is a soldier, the last remaining member of the human race, locked in a zoological tower on an alien planet. Doctor Belle must remain in quarantine with a powerful politician who has contracted a beastly disease. Jack sells his arm for a chance up the Stalk, the space elevator he hopes will take him to his fortune. These twenty stories will take you across the galaxy, exploring new technology alongside aliens and cyborgs, princes and evil stepmothers, … Read more

What I Read When I Was Young

Dancers of Arun

FOR READERS Today’s reader topic comes from QSFer John Allenson: “Reading queerfic you read when you were young. Does it still hold up?” Hmmm… for me, there was so little out there at the time, at least that I was aware of or could find. I read “The Dancers of Arun” by Elizabeth A. Lynn, which was the first thing I ever read that contained a (in retrospect) tame sex scene, but geez… And then there was Larque on the Wing, which helped spark my interest in magical realism. But I haven’t read them since – I probably should! So … Read more

For Readers: Queering Iconic Sci Fi

Kirk Spock Gay

FOR READERS Today’s reader topic comes from QSFer Justine Bonczek: Queering iconic sci fi – a fun literary exercise? A political message? Simple fanfiction or something more? Writers: This is a reader chat – you are welcome to join it, but please do not reference your own works directly. Thanks! Join the chat

For Readers: Metaphorically Queer

X-Men

For Readers: Today’s reader topic comes from QSFer Andrew Kelley: I know that there are several Sci-fi movies and books that weren’t specifically LGBT themes and didn’t even make mention of any LGBT issues that I strongly identified with and really moved me. Even though I don’t think the author/director/screenwriter meant it to be an analogy it still could have been. Are there movies/ books that others felt this way about as well? Writers: This is a reader chat – you are welcome to join it, but please do not reference your own works directly. Thanks! Join the chat

For Writers: Bisexual Erasure

Bisexuals

Today’s writer topic comes from QSFer Brian Cherry: Gay for you, bisexual erasure and gay romance with only one or no actual gay or bi character in the relationship. We have a long history of trying to make things black or white in our society – we like people to fit into either/or boxes. Even in the LGBTIQA community, this has been a problem. This has manifested itself in various ways over the years, many of them affecting our bisexual friends. For instance, for a long time, many gay men who fought hard to be open and proud about their … Read more

For Readers: Queer Action Heroes

hero - pixabay

Today’s reader topic comes from QSFer Hank T. Cannon: Who are your favorite LGBTQIA action heroes? Not necessarily spec-fic. What do you like about them? How do they satisfy action hero tropes? Are they “gay” enough, or does it not matter, because they’re blowing things up? Writers: This is a reader chat – you are welcome to join it, but please do not reference your own works directly. Thanks! Join the chat

For Writers: Taboo?

Taboo

Today’s writer topic comes from QSFer Brian Cherry: Forty years ago, it was taboo to even write about gay love, let alone anything LGBTIQA… Twenty years ago, it was taboo to write about being transgender. Ten years ago, it was taboo to write about being non binary or intersex. So according to you, what is taboo or controversial to write about in queer fiction now? And should it be? Join the chat

Announcement: Out for a Hero Anthology

Out For A Hero

Storm Moon Press has a new queer superhero anthology out: It’s not easy being a superhero. Sometimes it’s even harder when you’re super and queer. In Out for a Hero, LGBTQ heroes find themselves in tight spaces, moral quandaries, and sometimes heated romance. In The Integrals, Kaveri, the daughter of two super dads, struggles to conceal her possibly criminal crush. But when Morning Glory clashes with her parents’ team, she has to decide how to work with her own developing powers to save the day, and her girl. Sparks highlights the complications of an after-hours club where both superheroes and … Read more

For Writers: Do LGBTIQ Characters Make a Fantasy “Gay”?

Gay Fantasy

Today’s writer topic comes from QSFer Amos Cassidy: Why can’t we have LGBTIQ storylines and characters in “mainstream” fantasy? Until recently we categorised our fiction as Dark Urban fantasy, but its becoming clearer and clearer that we may be swimming in the wrong pool. Does having LGBTIQ main characters as part of your fantasy cast automatically make your fiction queer sci fi? And if so is it better to just leave the “mainstream” pond behind completely? Join the chat