I love historical fiction; however, I’ve encountered the occasional work in which it’s clear the author hasn’t done sufficient research before writing. Anachronisms are the biggest culprit in this regard, so today I thought I’d share four tips on conducting research for your historical novel.
For today’s topic, and my last post for 2017, I thought we could discuss some of our favourite LGBT writers from history. I know a huge number of my favourite writers from the past were LGBT. Many are the obvious, famous names such as Tennessee Williams, Oscar Wilde, Rimbaud, and Verlaine. Not to mention Marlowe and Shakespeare, if you go along with the suppositions about the two of them.
Obviously, when you are submitting a manuscript you will need to check the publisher’s requirements to ensure you have used the correct font type and size, the correct margins, and the correct paragraph style and line spacing. However, there are three other things for which you should also watch out, and which will make your editors love you.
The LGBT community has gone through many changes over the years and one aspect of that is its evolving lexicon. I thought it would be interesting to discuss this both as an historical subject and regarding the extent to which current LGBT authors incorporate slang terms into their writing. It is hard to tell how far back LGBT slang goes. Certainly the eighteenth-century molly subculture had its own lexicon, with some terms borrowed from thieves cant. No doubt the nineteenth century then adapted this to suit its own purposes as the decades passed. However, it’s in the twentieth century and … Read more
Today I am wearing my editor hat and talking to the QSF authors out there (although readers may also find the discussion of interest). The topic I would like to discuss is the issue of epithets. This is something I see from authors across genres; however, it tends to be prevalent in LGBT fiction, no doubt because authors are trying to accommodate for the fact that they often have two leads of the same gender, between whom they need to differentiate.
Perhaps some of you are thinking, “What’s an epithet?”
Today I thought it would be interesting to discuss our QUILTBAG literary influences. If you’re a writer, this could be authors who inspire you or have influenced your writing. For readers, why not share some of the authors who introduced you to QUILTBAG fiction and/or who keep you coming back for more?
Trickster gods occur in many cultures and often demonstrate a certain gender and/or sexual fluidity. For today’s post I will concentrate on one: Norse trickster Loki.
Loki practices forms of magic which, in Norse culture, mark him as effeminate. He’s also a gender-bending shapeshifter, as demonstrated in the following tale….
We hear a lot about the male gaze in the arts, but what about the female gaze, especially when it comes to MM fiction?
It is no secret that women make up a high percentage of gay romance writers and readers. I, myself, number among them. The question I thought I’d raise today is what influence this prevalence of women has upon the genre. Does it even affect it at all?
In his 1993 essay “There’s something queer here” Alexander Doty stated that queer erotics were “already part of culture’s erotic centre” (Hollows, Hutching & Jancovich, 2000, pg 339) when he discussed queer readings of films. More than twenty years on, and with gay rights movements slowly gaining ground around the world, to what extent does this statement still hold true? I believe that these readings have become more mainstream. No longer merely the purview of cultural critics, they are readily embraced by an audience happy to celebrate diversity. In a previous column I discussed the role of fan fiction in … Read more
Apologies for being a day late with my post. I thought I’d already scheduled this one ahead of time, but clearly I was thinking of last month’s post instead. Oops. Anyway, without further ado….
It’s summer here in Australia, and with the weather hotting up, it seemed a good time to talk about writing sex scenes. Plus, it conveniently ties in with one of our recent discussions. Below I’ll outline the four points to keep in mind to ensure your climax goes off with a bang.