Sunday, May 31, 2009

Dear Roxie,

I've been thinking about you this weekend. Knowing where you are headed, I wanted to post you a few words before your journey. I'm no Mitch Albom, though we hail from the same city, but thought this might be useful to you as you entire the next phase.

When you get to heaven (which we all know is assured), you can look up my sister, Lara. I'm a little unclear about the heaven thing in general, and more particularly if people in heaven are at the age when they died or if they go back to some super special age in their life. If they are at the age when they died, there will be lots of oldsters there, which you may enjoy, but when you need a break, look for Lara. In addition to being young and fun, she likes small dogs so will have lots of treats and time for rubbing your ears and belly.

Look for the Jew part of heaven. You'll know you're there because everyone will say, I don't really believe in any of this, but you look swell, Sol. Or something like that. Roxie, this may not appeal to you, but well, this is my advice to you and you're under no obligation to take it. If you could though, look up Maimonides. Hang out with him for a spell. I think it would be fascinating. And find the four matriarchs. How does Sarah spend her days? Did she get into gambling? That's my bet. Leah? Rachel? Rebecca? They been there a long time, and I wonder how they are using their days.

Visit Virginia. She'll also be sympathetic to dogs. You've read her biography of the Brownings' spaniel, I suspect. I imagine she spends her days surrounded by sunshine and flowers with ample silence and good food service. Table scraps will definitely come your way if you find Virginia.

Look for Gertrude and Alice. Gertrude will probably interrogate you thoroughly then either embrace you with further demands or dismiss you. The latter might be better. Hang out with Alice in the kitchen or during early mornings when she's typing. Unless she's dropped that task and hired in a young chippie to translate Gertrude's late night scrawls into text.

The fact of the matter is there are scads of lesbians and lesbian couples who can provide hours of entertainment for you and keep you in the environment to which you've become accustomed. Look for Rosa and Nathalie (or maybe she prefers to hang out with Anne?), Renee, Natalie, Muriel, May, Audre, Pat, and May. Elizabeth will probably be a grump, but she might share a little nip of alcohol for an afternoon nap.

You can look beyond the lesbos, too. I've always wanted to have a nice long chat with Bayard and James. Or a cocktail conversation with Pierre Louys (he may be fascinating, but I wouldn't commit to more until after I had a brief chitty-chat. Oh, and the scientists! Marie, Irene, Lise. Meet them all.

Roxie, you're going to have so much fun. I want to encourage you to relax and enjoy and, at least for the first few days, don't look back. There will be many missing you and mourning your sudden absence.

Friday, May 29, 2009

21st Lambda Literary Award Winners

BOOKS PUBLISHED IN 2008




BISEXUAL

  • Open, Jenny Block, Seal Press

TRANSGENDER



  • Intersex (For Lack of a Better Word), Thea Hillman, Manic D Press

LGBT ANTHOLOGIES



  • Our Caribbean, edited by Thomas Glave, Duke University Press

LGBT CHILDRENS/YOUNG ADULT



  • Out of the Pocket, Bill Konigsberg, Dutton

LGBT DRAMA



  • The Second Coming of Joan of Arc, Carolyn Gage, Outskirts Press

LGBT NONFICTION



  • Loving The Difficult, Jane Rule, Hedgerow Press

LGBT SCI-FI/FANTASY/HORROR



  • Turnskin, Nicole Kimberling, Blind Eye Books

LGBT STUDIES



  • Criminal Intimacy: Prison and the Uneven History of Modern American Sexuality, Regina Kunzel, The University of Chicago Press

LESBIAN DEBUT FICTION



  • The Bruise, Magdalena Zurawski, Fiction Collective Two/University of Alabama Press

LESBIAN EROTICA



  • In Deep Waters 2: Cruising the Strip, Radclyffe and Karen Kallmaker, Bold Strokes Books

LESBIAN FICTION (a tie!)



  • The Sealed Letter, Emma Donoghue, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

  • All the Pretty Girls, Chandra Mayor, Conundrum Press

LESBIAN MEMOIR/BIOGRAPHY



  • Sex Talks to Girls, Maureen Seaton, University of 
Arkansas Press

LESBIAN MYSTERY



  • Whacked, Josie Gordon, Bella Books

LESBIAN POETRY



  • love belongs to those who do the feeling, Judy Grahn, Red Hen Press

LESBIAN ROMANCE



  • The Kiss That Counted, Karin Kallmaker, Bella Books

GAY DEBUT FICTION



  • Finlater, Shawn Ruff, Quote Editions

GAY EROTICA



  • Best Gay Erotica 2009, Richard Labonte & James Lear, Cleis Press

GAY FICTION



  • We Disappear, Scott Heim, HarperCollins

GAY MEMOIR/BIOGRAPHY



  • Edward Carpenter:  A Life of Liberty and Love, Sheila Rowbotham, Verso Books

GAY MYSTERY



  • First You Fall, Scott Sherman, Alyson Books

GAY POETRY  (a tie!)



  • Fire to Fire, Mark Doty, HarperCollins

  • Now You're the Enemy, James Allen Hall, University of Arkansas Press

GAY ROMANCE



  • Got 'til it's Gone, Larry Duplechan, Arsenal Pulp Press

Tuesday, May 12, 2009

Lesbian Poetics: Imagining, Envisioning and Documenting Multi-Racial and Multi-Cultural Communities

This is my class presentation today for my final class in the Women’s Studies Core series. It’s been a great year-long series and I’m excited about the presentation - and the longer paper which I’ll wrap up this week. You can read the paper here:

http://idisk.me.com/julierenszer/public/LesbianPoeticsMulti.doc

and see the powerpoint here:

http://idisk.me.com/julierenszer/public/602present.ppt

Saturday, May 09, 2009

Finalists for the 21st Annual Lambda Literary Awards

Results will be announced on May 28th.

The Lambda Literary Awards seek to recognize excellence in the field of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender literature. Each year, over 80 judges -- writers, booksellers, librarians, journalists -- assess the entries in more than 20 categories.

This year, 105 finalists representing 72 publishers are competing for awards in 22 categories.

NOTE: Finalists will be contacted about tickets through their publisher, or may send an email to awards@lambdaliterary.org.


BISEXUAL

* Open, Jenny Block, Seal Press
* Sexual Fluidity: Understanding Women's Love & Desire,
Lisa M. Diamond, Harvard University Press
* The Bishop's Daughter, Honor Moore, W.W. Norton
* Kinsey Zero Through Sixty: Bisexual Perspectives on Kinsey, Ron Jackson Suresha, Taylor & Francis Journals
* Rimbaud, Edmund White, Atlas & Company


TRANSGENDER

* 10,000 Dresses, Marcus Ewert & Rex Ray, Seven Stories Press
* Intersex (For Lack of a Better Word), Thea Hillman, Manic D Press
* Two Truths and a Lie, Scott Schofield, Homofactus Press
* Boy with Flowers, Ely Shipley, Barrow Street Press
* Transgender History, Susan Stryker, Seal Press


LGBT ANTHOLOGIES

* A Casulty of War: Gay Short Fiction, Peter Burton, Arcadia Books
* Live Through This, edited by Sabrina Chapadjiev, Seven Stories Press
* Love, West Hollywood, edited by Chris Freeman and James J. Berg, Alyson
* Our Caribbean, edited by Thomas Glave, Duke University Press
* Big Trips: More Good Gay Travel Writing, edited by Raphael Kadushin, University of Wisconsin Press

e
LGBT CHILDRENS/YOUNG ADULT

* Hit the Road, Manny: A Manny Files Novel, Christian Burch, Simon and Schuster
* Out of the Pocket, Bill Konigsberg, Dutton
* How They Met & Other Stories, David Levithan, Knopf Children's Books
* Mousetraps, Pat Schmatz, Carolrhoda Books
* What They Always Tell Us, Martin Wilson, Random House Children's Books
* Love & Lies: Marisol's Story, Ellen Wittlinger, Simon and Schuster


LGBT DRAMA

* Phi Alpha Gamma, Dan Bernitt, Sawyer House
* Radical Acts: Collected Political Plays, Martin Duberman, The New Press
* The Second Coming of Joan of Arc, Carolyn Gage, Outskirts Press
* Two Truths and a Lie, Scott Schofield, Homofactus Press
* Vile Affections, Vanda, Original Works Publishing


LGBT NONFICTION

* Me as Her Again, Nancy Agabian, Aunt Lute Books
* If I Could Write This in Fire, Michelle Cliff, Univ of Minnesota Press
* Dishonorable Passions: Sodomy Laws in America 1861-2003, William N. Eskridge Jr, Penguin Group
* Beyond (Straight & Gay) Marriage, Nancy Polikoff, Beacon Press
* Loving The Difficult, Jane Rule, Hedgerow Press
* Drifting Toward Love, Kai Wright, Beacon Press


LGBT SCI-FI/FANTASY/HORROR

* The Archer's Heart, Astrid Amara, Blind Eye Books
* The Magician and the Fool, Barth Anderson, Bantam Del Rey
* Wilde Stories 2008, Steve Berman, Lethe Press
* Sea, Swallow Me and Other Stories, Craig Gidney, Lethe Press
* Turnskin, Nicole Kimberling, Blind Eye Books


LGBT STUDIES

* Tomboys: A Literary & Cultural History, Michelle Ann Abate, Temple University Press
* The Dividends of Dissent: How Conflict and Culture Work in Lesbian and Gay Marches on Washington, Amin Ghaziani, The University of Chicago Press
* Criminal Intimacy: Prison and the Uneven History of Modern American Sexuality, Regina Kunzel, The University of Chicago Press
* Political Manhood: Red Bloods, Mollycoddles, & & the Politics of Progressive Reform, Kevin P. Murphy, Columbia University Press
* Screening Sex, Linda Williams, Duke University Press


LESBIAN DEBUT FICTION

* Red Audrey & the Roping, Jill Malone, Bywater Books
* Passing for Black, Linda Villarosa, Kensington
* Closer to Fine, Meri Weiss, Kensington
* Love Does Not Make Me Gentle or Kind, Chavisa Woods, Fly by Night Press
* The Bruise, Magdalena Zurawski, Fiction Collective Two/University of Alabama Press


LESBIAN EROTICA

* Lipstick on Her Collar, Sacchi Green and Rakelle Valencia, Pretty Things Press
* Periphery: Erotic Lesbian Futures, Lynne Jamneck, Lethe Press
* In Deep Waters 2: Cruising the Strip, Radclyffe and Karen Kallmaker, Bold Strokes Books


LESBIAN FICTION

* The Slow Fix, Ivan E. Coyole, Arsenal Pulp Press
* The Sealed Letter, Emma Donoghue, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
* Map of Ireland, Stephanie Grant, Scribner
* All the Pretty Girls, Chandra Mayor, Conundrum Press
* Breaking Spirit Bridge, Ruth Perkinson, Spinsters Ink


LESBIAN MEMOIR/BIOGRAPHY

* Wrestling with the Angel of Democracy, Susan Griffin,
Shambhala Publications
* Intersex (For Lack of a Better Word), Thea Hillman, Manic D Press
* Sex Variant Woman, Joanne Passet, Da Capo
* Sex Talks to Girls: A Memoir, Maureen Seaton, University of Wisconsin Press
* Case of a Lifetime, Abbe Smith, Palgrave Macmillan


LESBIAN MYSTERY

* Blind Faith, Diane and Jacob Anderson-Minshall, Bold Strokes Books
* Whacked, Josie Gordon, Bella Books
* Sweet Poison, Ellen Hart, St. Martin's Press
* Losers Weepers, Jessica Thomas, Bella Books
* Calling the Dead, Ali Vali, Bold Strokes Books


LESBIAN POETRY

* Interpretive Work, Elizabeth Bradfield, Arktoi / Red Hen Press
* Kissing Dead Girls, Daphne Gottlieb, Soft Skull Press
* love belongs to those who do the feeling, Judy Grahn, Red Hen Press
* Same Life, Maureen N. McLane, Farrar, Straus and Giroux
* Two Minutes of Light, Nancy K. Pearson, Perugia Press


LESBIAN ROMANCE

* Finding Home, Georgia Beers, Bold Strokes Books
* A Pirate's Heart, Catherine Friend, Bold Strokes Books
* The Kiss That Counted, Karin Kallmaker, Bella Books
* Hotel Liaison, JLee Meyer, Bold Strokes Books
* The Lonely Hearts Club, Radclyffe, Bold Strokes Books


GAY DEBUT FICTION

* Shuck, Daniel Allen Cox, Arsenal Pulp Press
* Light Fell, Evan Fallenberg, Soho Press
* The Screwed-Up Life of Charlie The Second, Drew Ferguson, Kensington
* The Steve Machine, Mike Hoolboom, Coach House Books
* Finlater, Shawn Ruff, Quote Editions


GAY EROTICA

* Best Gay Erotica 2009, Richard Labonte & James Lear, Cleis Press
* The Secret Tunnel, James Lear, Cleis Press
* Hard Working Men, William Maltese, Victor J. Banis, Jardonn Smith, & J.P. Bowie, MLR Press


GAY FICTION

* Stray Dog Winter, David Francis, Macadam/Cage Publishing
* The Torturer's Wife, Thomas Glave, City Light Publishers
* We Disappear, Scott Heim, Harper Perennial
* The Conversion, Joseph Olshan, St. Martin’s Press
* The Boomerang Kid, Jay Quinn, Alyson


GAY MEMOIR/BIOGRAPHY

* Bringing Him Home, Aaron Cooper, Late August Press
* Swish, Joel Derfner, Broadway Books
* Assisted Loving, Bob Morris, Harper
* Edward Carpenter: A Life of Liberty and Love, Sheila Rowbotham, Verso Books
* King of Shadows, Aaron Shurin, City Lights Publishers


GAY MYSTERY

* The Fisher Boy, Stephen Anable, Poisoned Pen Press
* Sundowner Ubuntu, Anthony Bidulka, Insomniac Press
* Mahu Fire, Neil Plakcy, Alyson Books
* First You Fall, Scott Sherman, Alyson Books
* Spider Season, John Morgan Wilson, St. Martin's Press


GAY POETRY

* Want, Rick Barot, Sarabande Press
* Please, Jericho Brown, New Issues
* Fire to Fire, Mark Doty, Harper
* Now You're the Enemy, James Allen Hall, Univ. of Arkansas Press
* My Vocabulary Did This to Me: The Collected Poetry of Jack Spicer, Jack Spicer, edited by Peter Gizzi & Kevin Killian, Wesleyan University Press


GAY ROMANCE

* Mexican Heat, Laura Baumbach & Josh Lanyon, MLR Press
* Got 'til it's Gone, Larry Duplechan, Arsenal Pulp Press
* The Protector, N.L. Gassert, Seventh Window Publications



Judging criteria: The two equally important criteria for judging a submission are 1) the LGBT content and 2) the quality of writing.

LGBT content is a combination of factors: LGBT characters, events that influence LGBT lives and/or have meaning to the LGBT community; LGBT stories that haven’t been told; or traditional LGBT material that is handled in a unique and fresh way.

Quality of the writing. If a work is beautifully written but has little LGBT content, then it may not deserve to become a finalist. If a work has substantial LGBT content but is poorly written (e.g., clichéd, inadequate characterization or other substandard craft), then it may not deserve to become a finalist. These awards seek to honor both talent and content, not just one or the other.

For the genre categories (Mystery, Romance, Erotica, Science Fiction, etc.), the quality of the writing should also fulfill the expectations of the genre. When assessing a mystery, consider how the mystery stands in relation to its genre: a) is it traditional, b) does it challenge the conventions of a mystery in a new and interesting way, or c) is it not really a mystery but a novel with a few mysterious elements?

Publishing Triangle and Ferro-Grumley Announce Award Winners

From: http://www.publishingtriangle.org/2009awards.asp

The judges had to make some hard choices among a strong field of submissions, but a very worthy group of finalists has emerged for this year's Publishing Triangle and Ferro-Grumley Awards. These awards are for books published in the United States or Canada in 2008. Here are the winners and the other finalists.
FINALISTS

Randy Shilts Award for Gay Nonfiction
WINNER! Kai Wright, Drifting Toward Love (Beacon Press)
Linas Alsenas, Gay America (Amulet Books / Abrams)
Bob Morris, Assisted Loving (Harper)

Judy Grahn Award for Lesbian Nonfiction
WINNER! Andrea Weiss, In the Shadow of the Magic Mountain (University of Chicago Press)
Regina Kunzel, Criminal Intimacy (University of Chicago Press)
Nancy D. Polikoff, Beyond (Straight and Gay) Marriage (Beacon Press)

The Edmund White Award for Debut Fiction
WINNER! Evan Fallenberg, Light Fell (Soho Press)
Alistair McCartney, The End of the World Book (University of Wisconsin Press)
Shawn Stewart Ruff, Finlater (Quote Editions)

Audre Lorde Award for Lesbian Poetry
WINNER! Elizabeth Bradfield, Interpretive Work (Red Hen Press)
Maureen McLane, Same Life (Farrar Straus Giroux)
Elaine Sexton, Causeway (New Issues)

The Thom Gunn Award for Gay Poetry
WINNER! Ely Shipley, Boy with Flowers (Barrow Street Press)
Jericho Brown, Please (New Issues)
Mark Doty, Fire to Fire (Harper)

The Ferro-Grumley Awards for LGBT Fiction
WINNER! Alison Bechdel, The Essential Dykes to Watch Out For (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt)
David Ebershoff, The 19th Wife (Random House)
Andrew Sean Greer, The Story of a Marriage (Farrar Straus Giroux)
Blair Mastbaum, Us Ones in Between (Running Press)
Benjamin Taylor, The Book of Getting Even (Steerforth)
Ellen Wittlinger, Love & Lies (Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers)

Also awarded:
The Publishing Triangle Leadership Award: Carole DeSanti
The Bill Whitehead Award for Lifetime Achievement: Martin Duberman
The winners for these awards were announced at our annual awards ceremony, held at the New School in Greenwich Village, New York, on Thursday, May 7, 2009.

For a complete list of past Triangle Award winners, visit our awards page. There you will also find information about special privileges that Publishing Triangle members have in nominating books and authors for these literary awards.