Jeff Baker – Page 10 – Queer Sci Fi

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Boogieman In Lavender Review: Heiresses of Russ

June 13, 2017June 12, 2017 by 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!”

May 13, 2017May 12, 2017 by Jeff Baker

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

April 13, 2017April 13, 2017 by 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.”

March 14, 2017March 13, 2017 by 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

February 13, 2017February 12, 2017 by Jeff Baker

“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

January 13, 2017January 12, 2017 by 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

December 12, 2016 by Jeff Baker

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

Jeff Baker—Boogieman in Lavender; “Armageddon or Not.”

November 13, 2016November 13, 2016 by Jeff Baker

Author’s Note: I had planned to run a review in this monthly space, but recent events seemed to call for something else. The review is saved for next time, and Happy Thanksgiving!—-Jeff. Armageddon or Not by Jeff Baker I’ve been a political observer for much of my adult life, and actually a performing political satirist (think Mark Russell) for a little of it and so I think I can speak with a little authority on the recent and not entirely unjustified anxiety over the results of the recent election. We don’t know yet what the world will be … Read more

Jeff Baker–Boogieman In Lavender

October 13, 2016 by Jeff Baker

Queer 101 By Jeff Baker When I was scoping out markets for LGBT-themed science-fiction/Fantasy/Horror (1) short-stories (2) about five years ago, I decided to do my research. Not just into markets but into what sort of fiction of this type had been written and was being written today. The “had been” is important; there have been complaints that today are readers who gush over “Twilight” who have never heard of “Dark Shadows.” So here are some, not all, of the books I perused (3) while I was figuring out exactly … Read more

Jeff Baker—Boogieman In Lavender

September 13, 2016September 12, 2016 by Jeff Baker

The View From Worldcon, or Down On The Swanwick River by Jeff Baker A stack of autographed books and a head full of memories. Those are the souvenirs from a few days at MidAmeriCon II, the World Science Fiction Convention, held in Kansas City, MO August 17 through 21, 2016. We got there Thursday the 18th in time for me to drive over to the Crown Center (the vast convention facility where the convention was being held) and see it all for myself. I had been to Bouchercon (the Mystery Writers of America Convention) in Cleveland in 2012 so I … Read more