Welcome to the 2013 Hop AgainstHomophobia and Transphobia! More than three hundred authors,
publishers and reviewers of LGBTQ-themed literature are joining this
event, which runs from today until the 27th of May. With
our blog posts, comments and giveaways, we're celebrating
International Day against Homophobia and Transphobia (May 17th). Our
goal – to make as many people as possible aware of homophobia's
costs, and to encourage them to honor, not fear, sexual diversity.
Last year's event focused only on M/M
issues. This year we've expanded the scope to include all
orientations under the LGBTQ umbrella, since lesbians, bisexuals and
transexuals suffer from the same types of discrimination and
harassment as gay men.
Our message is the same, though. We are humans first - gay, lesbian, bisexual, straight or queer second. And every human being deserves the same rights, the same freedoms, the same respect. When we condemn or oppress another individual because of his or her orientation, we are not only wronging that individual, but diminishing our own humanity.
Authors of LGBTQ-themed books have a big role to play in reducing homophobia, I believe. When a reader becomes emotionally involved with a LGBTQ character, he or she begins to realize that we're all far more alike than we are different. The greater visibility of gay and lesbian characters in literature and in media, especially characters who don't follow the stereotypes, has led to a greater acceptance of different sexual orientations, and a relaxation (at least in Western countries) of some of the legal and social barriers to equal rights. We authors feed this trend. I'm quite certain that the many women who read M/M romance have played a role in the recent advances in marriage equality, for instance. Slowly but steadily, we're helping to chip away at the old attitudes.
Our message is the same, though. We are humans first - gay, lesbian, bisexual, straight or queer second. And every human being deserves the same rights, the same freedoms, the same respect. When we condemn or oppress another individual because of his or her orientation, we are not only wronging that individual, but diminishing our own humanity.
Authors of LGBTQ-themed books have a big role to play in reducing homophobia, I believe. When a reader becomes emotionally involved with a LGBTQ character, he or she begins to realize that we're all far more alike than we are different. The greater visibility of gay and lesbian characters in literature and in media, especially characters who don't follow the stereotypes, has led to a greater acceptance of different sexual orientations, and a relaxation (at least in Western countries) of some of the legal and social barriers to equal rights. We authors feed this trend. I'm quite certain that the many women who read M/M romance have played a role in the recent advances in marriage equality, for instance. Slowly but steadily, we're helping to chip away at the old attitudes.
I'm personally thrilled by the more
inclusive definition in this year's hop. I write not only M/M erotica and erotic romance
but also lesbian and bisexual stories. I've written a couple of
transexual secondary characters as well, and a tale featuring a
transexual heroine is simmering on my mental back-burner. I also have
a story idea I hope to develop, a science fiction love affair between
a woman and a hermaphrodite. You might say that I write all the
colors of the rainbow.
I'll step into controversial territory
now, though, by saying that I sometimes find LGBTQ readers and
writers less tolerant of diversity than I'd expect. Some M/M readers
refuse to read anything else. I've had fans who love my gay books
tell me that lesbian content is “icky”. Meanwhile, some F/F
authors not only restrict themselves exclusively to tales about women
with women, but also protest that a male could never write convincing
lesbian fiction. I've had gay erotic romance rejected by M/M review
sites because it incorporated half a page of heterosexual
interaction.
Please! Isn't this a kind of reverse
discrimination? In fact the guidelines for this hop exclude M/F
authors. This actually bothers me a bit. Can't an author who focuses
on straight relationships contribute to the effort to erase
homophobia? Don't we need all the help we can get to fight bullying
and secure equal rights for everyone, regardless of their sexual
orientation?
Anyway, my personal preference is to
mix things up in my fiction. My most recent release, Rajasthani
Moon, is primarily a M/F/M title, but it includes a bit
of lesbian sex – first of all, because that fit the story, and
second, because I personally found it arousing. I hesitated before
adding this scene, worrying about alienating some readers. I may pay
for this indulgence in lower sales. But ultimately, it was the right
thing to do and I'll stand by my decision.
All the colors of the rainbow, to me,
means the freedom to explore one's sexual preferences, whatever
direction they might lead, without fear of being ostracized or
otherwise punished. And for me, at least, sexual orientation is
relative and variable. I'm attracted to individuals, not to a
particular gender, and that's the way I write, too.
What do you think about this issue?
Leave me a comment, with your email address. On the 28th,
I'll draw three winners. One will win a copy of my F/F romance
Velvet. One will win a copy of the M/M anthology Gaymes,
which includes my story Crossed
Hearts. And in honor of the third winner, I'll make a $10
contribution to the Lambda Legal Defense Fund:
http://www.lambdalegal.org/
I hope you'll visit at least some of
the other participants in the Hop, too. You'll find links to all
their posts below.
