This is going to be a quick diary, and I apologize for the lack of substance. This month has been a whirlwind, as I'm in the throes of dissertation research, so all I'm going to do in this diary is announce the reboot of the LGBT Literature series here at Readers & Book Lovers and issue a call for writers. Next month, there will be substance, I promise!
As you might remember, the LGBT Literature series used to post on alternate Tuesday mornings, and there was a wealth of awesome content about LGBT-related books, from classic gay fiction to academic LGBT history. When I was asked to take over as series editor, I was hesitant at first because frankly, I have very little knowledge of what most people think when they hear "LGBT literature" (think: Giovanni's Room). I'm a Ph.D. candidate studying, in part, LGBT history, and the vast majority of the LGBT books I'm familiar with are written by academic historians and freelance scholars. I have a passing knowledge of many of the classic titles, but I did not come of age reading them, and my wheelhouse is historical and contemporary nonfiction.
But is that not LGBT literature? Of course it is. Many of us LGBT people have turned to books, whether they are classics like Giovanni's Room or contemporary nonfiction such as Michelangelo Signorile's Queer in America or, in my case, LGBT history books like John D'Emilio's Sexual Politics, Sexual Communities. For many of us, books were something of a lifeline. I came out as gay in college, and my own coming to terms with my sexual identity owes a great deal to my study of LGBT history, of which I'd previously known nothing. I realized that, had I known about my community's history of shared struggle, I might not have spent so many countless hours thinking I was alone and that I had no future because of my sexuality. It was, in large part, what made me decide to go to grad school and study the history I'm studying now so that I can continue to tell the stories about our past that so helped me. Books have been a wonderful thing for LGBT people, and that is what this series has always been about.
So I'm going to keep the definition of "LGBT literature" broad. If it is a book that is related to the LGBT experience, it is LGBT literature, and it belongs in this series. And we want you to tell us about it!
Which brings me to my next point: I need writers! As I said, I am in the middle of my dissertation research stage. This semester is going to be awful for me. You have my word that this series will be posted every time with something substantive, even if I have to post it. But I sure would appreciate help, especially in the next few months. You do not need to be an academic, a Ph.D. candidate, an LGBT literature buff, or even LGBT to write for this series. You do not need to provide a scholarly critical analysis. You aren't limited to writing about only one book. You aren't even necessarily limited to writing about a specific book at all, if you have a topic germane to broader LGBT literature in mind. The point is that, if you have something to say about LGBT literature, I want you to feel welcome to say it in this series. Leave a comment or send me a Kosmail, and we'll work something out. Please don't feel that you have nothing to say. If LGBT literature has impacted you at all, your thoughts are worth sharing here in LGBT Literature. If nobody else contributes, I'm afraid this series will turn into LGBT Historical Literature!
As for our schedule, we will now be posting monthly, on the last Sunday of every month at 7:30 PM EST. So mark it on your calendars and make a point to stop by. I'm sure we're going to have good stuff here. I'm really looking forward to continuing to bring LGBT literature to Daily Kos!
Readers & Book Lovers Series Schedule: