also here is a whole website that not only has a shit ton of adventures and such but lets you search for any item or npc or whatever and see their stats and info at your fingertips
"Where were transmascs during Stonewall?" Across the street throwing lit mattresses at cops and chanting "gay rights, gay rights, gay rights!" from the windows of the Women's House of Detention, asshole.
Thank you! Stormé DeLarverie does not deserve to be erased like that! He famously told people to use whatever pronouns made others most comfortable, but was clearly masc-presenting, so you (general) can pull his transmasc representation from my cold dead hands. Click on the link. Learn about one of the transmasc/butch icons who started the Stonewall fight right alongside Martha P Johnson and Silvia Rivera and stop erasing us!
this is very important history, but I will also say that anyone trying to use "but your flavor of queer wasn't represented at Stonewall" as a Gotcha should be punched in the face
Never forget that the physicians and "detransitioners" they bring to speak against trans healthcare are paid enormous sums to give false testimonies. They're not legitimate sources and shouldn't stop you from living your best life (source).
The creator of the lesbian flag, Emily Gwen, is currently unhoused and struggling financially while suffering to chronic and mental illness.
I have already contributed to her Kofi, and now I ask you to help, especially if you have ever used the lesbian flag. Even if you can't donate, I urge you to share her Kofi around to reach more audiences
Created in 1931 as a short and somewhat irregular ranking, The New York Times Best Seller list has become the leading report on what American readers are currently consuming. If a book makes the list, that basically means it managed to break into the literary mainstream sphere, with all the glory that such a thing can bring.
The list is also a simple way to identify the rise of certain trends and genres. And since there doesn’t seem to be a comprehensive examination of this when it comes to gay literature, I decided to take it upon myself to produce something like that.
This is the first part of a series of posts that attempt to track the slow rise of gay fiction in the American imaginary. My criteria for selecting the works was the presence of a gay/non-straight male protagonist, since that's the niche I specialize in. This means that negative characterizations can also be found here — although I would say that the vast majority of the books featured in these posts at least try to be sympathetic to homosexuals.
Only two pre-World War II novels managed to meet the criteria, which shows how any assertive textual instance of homosexuality could be highly controversial at that time. The publication of the first Kinsey report (Sexual Behavior in the Human Male, in 1948) and the advent of war clearly brought a loosening of norms and some new perspectives on the matter, as shown by the sudden boom of titles — some of which would eventually become classics. War creates many homosocial spaces, after all.
Serenade (1938) by James M. Cain
A formerly gay opera singer falls in love with a female Mexican prostitute, which leads to all sorts of shenanigans: that's the basic premise of the wacky and controversial Serenade. The way Cain develops many of the novel's themes can certainly be considered dated by our modern standards: for example, he bases his characterization of the protagonist on a pseudoscientific theory of the time, which claimed that homosexual singers were artistically deficient (!).
Cain's debut novel, The Postman Always Rings Twice (1934), was instantly hailed as an American classic, which probably explains why he was able to get away with such a risqué plot in his follow-up work. Although Serenade sold moderately well, it fell short of the author's and his publisher's expectations. A film adaptation loosely based on the novel was released in 1956, without any trace of the original story's homosexual themes.
The Lost Weekend (1944) by Charles Jackson
Largely inspired by the author's own experiences, The Lost Weekend is a sorrowful tale about five days in the life of an alcoholic writer named Don Birnam. Birnam is described as a "crypto-homosexual": flashbacks show his lifelong struggle with same-sex attraction, one of the main factors that led him to addiction. The novel became a big success, selling over half a million copies in the first five years after its release.
Much like what happened with Serenade, The Lost Weekend’s classic film adaptation — which won the 1946 Academy Award for Best Picture — eliminates any mention of homosexuality.
Brideshead Revisited (1945) by Evelyn Waugh
This overview of the rapidly declining world of the British aristocracy proved so popular with American readers that it even surprised Waugh himself. The description of the relationship between Charles Ryder and Sebastian Flyte comes very close to being explicitly homosexual, but even then, there’s Anthony Blanche’s open flamboyance to make the whole thing clear.
The newly expanded best seller list made it easier for Brideshead Revisited to make a very solid 25-week run. MGM toyed with the idea of a film adaptation in the late 1940s, but ultimately Waugh decided it wasn't worth the trouble.
The Fall of Valor (1946) by Charles Jackson
After the success of The Lost Weekend, Jackson decided to go even further with his sad homosexual narratives: The Fall of Valor is a story about a closeted middle-class man in a loveless marriage and his infatuation with a handsome Marine.
It is surprising how little is said about this title, considering it's probably the earliest example of an actual "gay novel" to appear on the best seller list. Its success is truly remarkable and probably made it easier for other explicitly gay-themed books to be published.
Knock on Any Door (1947) by Willard Motley
Knock on Any Door follows the life of young Italian hoodlum Nick Romano as he struggles to survive on the streets of Chicago. By 1950, the novel had already sold 350,000 copies.
To make money, Nick allows himself to be picked up by “phonies” (i.e., homosexual men) and even befriends one of them. As usual, its 1949 film adaptation removed these kinds of details.
The Sling and the Arrow (1947) by Stuart Engstrand
Perhaps the clearest example of negative characterization found in this entire research, The Sling and the Arrow serves more as a cautionary tale than a plea for tolerance: It is as if Engstrand tried to instill every fatalistic stereotype — not just gay ones, but also some about transgender people — into the protagonist, another closeted middle-class man. The novel’s sensationalist approach gave it enough visibility to achieve best seller status.
The Gallery (1947) by John Horne Burns
The Gallery is the debut novel by Burns, a World War II army officer. It consists of 17 interconnected stories about life in Allied-occupied North Africa and Naples, featuring multiple characters. Three of these stories — "Momma," "The Leaf," and "Queen Penicillin" — feature gay soldiers.
Although the novel wasn’t a phenomenal success with the general public, it was lauded by critics and ended up being a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize, which gave it some longevity. By September 1953, its paperback edition had sold nearly half a million copies.
The City and the Pillar (1948) by Gore Vidal
The City and the Pillar wasn't only a literary breakthrough but also the explosive entrance of one of the most prominent and controversial mid-century intellectuals of the United States. While the mere presence of a sexually active homosexual protagonist was shocking in itself, what is truly remarkable here is the introduction of a comprehensive depiction of the gay subculture to a broad audience — perhaps for the first time ever. The novel sold nearly 30,000 copies in a three-year period.
Vidal took some flak over the title — while The City and the Pillar made its best seller list, The New York Times refused to advertise the novel — but, as had become his wont, he simply brushed it off and moved on. His high-profile presence meant that the American media simply could no longer ignore the existence of homosexuality.
Other Voices, Other Rooms (1948) by Truman Capote
Just a week after The City and the Pillar debuted, another breakthrough hit the best seller list: a coming-of-age story about a lonely, effeminate Southern boy inspired by Capote’s own life, Other Voices, Other Rooms had a very similar run to Pillar. And like Vidal, Capote also became a public figure and is now considered one of the founders of the New Journalism style.
The first edition of Other Voices, Other Rooms reportedly sold 26,000 copies. 20th Century Fox bought the rights to the novel before it even hit the shelves, but a film adaptation was never made.
