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History & Alternate History

ANNOUNCEMENT: A Rainbow Bridge, by Erin O’Quinn

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A Rainbow Bridge

QSFer Erin O’Quinn has a new MM fantasy/time travel book out: Step back for a moment to September 30, 1788. At eight o’clock on the following morning, a man is to be hanged for the crime of burglary. The culprit, well known in the annals of Edinburgh history, is Deacon William Brodie. He’s so well known that there are at least two popular tourist spots on Edinburgh’s Royal Mile dedicated to his memory. He was also the model for Stevenson’s immortal novella Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. History says he died on the gallows on October 1, 1788. But what … Read more

Out of the Past – LGBTQ Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror in the 1970s

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Hello! Welcome to the second installment of my series of columns on the history of LGBTQ science fiction, fantasy and horror. As I noted in my previous post, things had begun to improve slightly for SF/F/H readers looking for more positive portrayals of LGBT characters and complex perspectives on sexuality and gender in the late 1950s and throughout the 1960s. That trend accelerated after the events of June of 1969 when the police raided a gay bar called the Stonewall Inn in New York City. The raid triggered several days of rioting by bar patrons and other LGBT people. These … Read more

ANNOUNCEMENT: Patron, by C.B. Lewis

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Patron

QSFer C.B. Lewis has a new alternate history MM tale out: Theodore Wentworth, who possesses little more than a sharp and well-educated mind, is trying to solicit a sponsor for his studies of Greek antiquity by performing recitations at gatherings of collectors. Desperate for luck and better skills in oratory, in jest, he places a coin at the feet of a statue of Hermes. It seems like coincidence when his fortune turns and a gentleman calling himself Alexander becomes his benefactor. Despite his friend John teasing him about it, Theodore continues to offer tokens to Hermes and sinks himself into … Read more

ANNOUNCEMENT: Mr. Felcher’s Grand Emporium, by Eric Alan Westfall

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Mr. Felcher's Grand Emporium

QSFer Eric Alan Westfall has a new MM Historical Fantasy book out: It’s 1882 in Another England, where being a buggerer is still legal but in the reign of Her Most Stuffy and Moral Majesty, Victoria, being a friend of Edward’s (gay) is not the done thing. She disapproves. The Ton disapproves. What are our hapless heroes—Reginald, Lord Smythe, and Harold, Lord Fotherby—to do? At twenty-nine, they’re spares with no duties to ensure continuation of the family name, and their wealth precludes jobs. The manly fun of Tonnish men—sports, drinking, gambling, partying—isn’t much fun. Neither is the wenching requirement, which … Read more

Out of the Past – LGBTQ Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Before 1970

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Welcome! Out of the Past will be a regular column discussing the history of LGBTQ+ science fiction, fantasy and horror literature from the earliest years of the genre to the more recent present (many thanks to Queer Sci-Fi for hosting me and to Scott for suggesting it). While portrayals of lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender (LGBT) characters didn’t become relatively common in science fiction, fantasy or horror until after the early successes of the Gay Liberation Movement in the 1970s, that didn’t mean that there was “no there there, ” to borrow a phrase from Gertrude Stein. Of course, most … Read more

ANNOUNCEMENT: The Rake, The Rogue and the Roué, by Eric Alan Westfall

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The Rake, The Rogue and the Roué

QSFer Eric Alan Westfall has a new alternate history MM book out: It’s an alternate history England. When the monarchy was restored in 1660, Charles II rewarded the lovers who saved his life at the Battle of Worcester by repealing not only the death penalty for sodomy, but the laws themselves. It’s now 1815, and our first hero, British blond and blue-eyed rake, Peregrine, Viscount Somerville, has two problems. First, he’s having glorious sex with our second hero, Rory, the brawny, red-headed, hairy Scottish rogue who’s Master of Strathairn. Second, he’s having glorious sex with our third hero, the languid … Read more

For Writers: Using Queer History

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castro History

We have so much history, a lot of it buried and only lately coming to light. It can be a springboard for so many things, including alternative history, sci fi, even paranormal or fantasy explorations of our collective past. So have you ever used real queer history in your stories in any way? How might you go about it in the future? Join the chat

Queer Fantasy Roots: Enough About M-Preg, How About Female Impregnation?

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Since I gave some time in my first column to medieval literary examples of male pregnancy, how about some equal time for the ladies? Are there any examples in myth or literature of women getting other women pregnant? Pre-modern understandings of how pregnancy works allowed for some interesting possibilities, either in fantastic literature, or pseudo-medical writing. For example, the Greek philosopher Pythagoras (and his followers, well into the 17th century) postulated that sperm contained a tiny fully-formed homunculus that was nourished within a woman’s womb but that derived entirely from the father. This “preformationism” theory of pregnancy had its female … Read more

Announcement: Mother of Souls, by Heather Rose Jones

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Mother of Souls

QSFer Heather Rose Jones has a new FF fantasy book out: All her life, Serafina Talarico has searched in vain for a place where she and her mystical talents belong. She never found it in Rome—the city of her birth—where her family’s Ethiopian origins marked them as immigrants. After traveling halfway across Europe to study with Alpennia’s Royal Thaumaturgist, her hopes of finding a home among Margerit Sovitre’s circle of scholars are dashed, for Serafina can perceive, but not evoke, the mystical forces of the Mysteries of the Saints and even Margerit can’t awaken her talents. When Serafina takes lodgings … Read more

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

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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