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 WRITERS Today’s writer topic comes from QSFer Alicia Nordwell: In honor of National Tech Day – artificial wombs: How would an artificial womb change the ‘humanity’ of the babies grown this way? What might genetic manipulation might lead to in terms of more than purifying the DNA for characteristics? What might be done with “abandoned” genetic materials that are used to create babies? Who would they belong to? What are their legal rights from conception or would they lack of human interaction during gestation make them more prone to be viewed as a product? Today we peer into the … Read more
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.
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
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
A star of The Walking Dead has come out as gay. Daniel Newman, who has also appeared in The Vampire Diaries and Sex and the City, has addressed fans in a touching video message after deciding to be open about his sexuality after being mistaken as straight by a young LGBTI person. He had been volunteering at a homeless shelter for queer youth and was asked why he wasn’t out in public when he ‘could reach so many people’. ‘It hit me like a gut-punch,’ Newman said. ‘It felt like someone had knocked the wind out of me. I realized … Read more
Hi all and Happy Friday! This week is Transgender Awareness Week, November 14-20. Instead of me talking about this, I want to signal boost The Trans Fiction Week blog project that Matthew Metzger spearheaded. The blogs this week focused on inclusion, on non-binary issues as writers, and on getting writers past that “can’t” mentality one often hears from cis-gendered writers. Some of the wonderful and informative blogs include: Beyond Punctuation: Editing Diverse Content Safe Spaces, and Safety Writing from the Closet (a non-binary writer’s view) Gun Control (a cis-gender writer’s view on the importance of inclusion) If it’s Cis, It … Read more
Gay actor George Takei is among the 2016 California Hall of Fame inductees, the second time a member of the LGBT community has been granted such an honor during Governor Jerry Brown’s current term. Brown and his wife, Anne Gust Brown, along with the California Museum, announced the 10th class of inductees in a news release issued today (Monday, October 3). “I am a proud second generation Californian, humbled to be honored by a state singular in its beauty, diversity and dynamism,” stated Takei, famous for his role as Lieutenant Sulu in the science fiction series Star Trek and a … Read more
Wonder Woman might be now officially queer, but fans have known this for a very long time. DC Comics writer Greg Rucka confirmed Diana Prince has had relationships with men and women. He also revealed how her homeland, an island of only Amazon woman, is a ‘queer culture’. But if you look back from the decades, even in 1941, Diana was very clearly intended to be an LGBTI icon (and is arguably pretty kinky). By Joe Morgan – Full Story at Gay Star News
FOR READERS Today’s reader topic comes from QSFer K.S. Madden: After reading a lot of the recent responses, I’d love to see you do a question post sometime about the surge in interest in seeing more asexual characters. I was at Readercon in Boston a few months ago and there was a panel there as well stating the need for more asexual protagonists in mainstream scifi/fantasy. I’m curious what people want to see. Asexual characters in romantic relationships? Or asexual characters just having adventures and being free of relationships? Or is this partly a desire to see more friendship fic, … Read more