Authors to Support

For the last week of Pride Month, here are a few LGBTQIA authors to support. I know some of them; others I've met at conventions. Many of these were mentioned a few years ago in my SF Authors A-Z series. To keep this short, I'm just going to post Amazon links. (Sorry, Alex; I know you like Apple! I'm not sure if some of the indie authors have wide distribution.)


Aviva Rothschild--the author of two Beatle fanfiction novels: With Strings Attached and The Keys Stand Alone.

Lauren Jankowski--author of The Shape Shifter Chronicles.

Mary Anne Mohanraj--Her work ranges from science fiction to erotica to short story collections. She also ran a Kickstarter for a Sri Lankan recipe book, but that's not yet published.

Catherine Lundoff--I'm still waiting for a sequel to her book Silver Moon, but she also has three short story collections available.

April Daniels--I enjoyed her duology about a transgender teen superheroine.

Ellen Kushner--Best known for her stories of Riverside.

Delia Sherman--Ellen's wife and author of Through a Brazen Mirror and several other books.

Nicola Griffith and Kelly Eskridge are another married pair of authors.

Lyda Morehouse writes award-winning science fiction.

I haven't read Laurie J. Mark's Elemental Logic series, but I hear it's very good.


I'm sure there are many more authors I could list, but I have to end my post here. Are there more LBGTQIA authors you would recommend? If so, please share in the comments.

Pride Month Reading

 With this being LGBTQIA Pride Month, I thought it would be a good time to discuss some of the books I've read that feature gay, lesbian, or other nonheteronormative characters. I'll also talk about my own characters in other posts this month.

The first book I read that featured a lesbian character was Gail Baudino's Gossamer Axe, which is about a harper's quest to free her lover from the fairy realm with her music. It was originally published in 1990 (which seems very long ago now, doesn't it?), and it made quite a sympathetic impression on me at the time. I still have my paperback, though I haven't reread it.

Another series I read long ago that includes gay/lesbian characters is the Heralds of Valdemar series by Mercedes Lackey, particularly the Last Herald-Mage Trilogy (Magic's Pawn, Magic's Promise, and Magic's Price.) The characters in these books are a bit stereotypical and ultimately suffer tragic fates. I haven't reread these in a long time, but they would probably feel more dated to me than Gossamer Axe.

There's no way I can list all the other books I've read that include gay, lesbian, bi, or transgender characters. There are some that emphasize romance/sex, while some of the more recent books I've read (such as The Raven Tower and Famous Men Who Never Lived) treat being transgender or lesbian as an almost ordinary way to describe a character. Gail Carriger's books feature a diverse cast. Swordspoint by Ellen Kushner also deserves mention, as does Dreadnought and Sovereign. 

Do you have any favorite books featuring gay/lesbian/bi/transgender/other characters? How do you feel their sexual orientation is handled? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments.