Bent-Con

A Celebration that recognizes Contribution, Diversity & Inclusivity of LGBTQ, Our Allies and Everyone who wants to join the Bent-Con Pop-Culture & Geekdom festivities!

[rosygl0w]

Gay men love underwear. We hoard it like dragons. Gay men are dragons.

[thebentcon-blog]

Are you a gay dragon ?

[sexedplus]

(version 3, published March 2015)

Follow sexedplus or visit sexedplus.com for more like this!

[alexxdz]

GO WATCH A MOVIE

[guitarbeard]

Next up on Worth Reading: The other team should just fucking let me win when I play baseball. 

[maxofs2d]

well this isn’t necessarily a bad point. there are games with great stories and really awful shoehorned fighting sequences. then you also have handicapped/disabled gamers who don’t necessarily have the dexterity to finish a game but would still like to be able to.

optional “cakewalk” modes aren’t that bad of an idea.

[tatsunokovscapcom-deactivated20]

aren’t you the guy who got permabanned off an entire community you used to moderate because no one liked you and you eventually tried to DDoS it

[sinbadism]

what if i want to just see the story of the game and dont want to actually play it? like??

as it is i would never pay for a bioshock game or a fallout game but i am very interested in the story. so i just watch youtube videos of it. they could get money from me if they sold the skip combat mode

[lesbianmooncolony-deactivated20]

i’m a games developer and an avid gamer and i really really think games should let you skip combat

[dropkicks]

honestly one of my favourite things about la noire was when you failed a sequence twice the game was like “yo do you just wanna skip this bit?” the gaming industry/community has a huge problem with accessibility tbh. like, thank god for standardised control schemes (although bring back full customisation jfc not enough games have that anymore) but fights require time, literacy in both that type of gaming & in the individual game, you need to be able to navigate the system which can be anywhere from slightly difficult to hellish for people with visual/audio processing disorders. and tbh sometimes you just wanna enjoy the story and not get stressed the hell out doing the sAME FIGHT 700 times. it’s why i always put a game on easy/casual when I’m replaying unless i’m specifically going for difficulty based achievements. not to mention SO MANY GAMES have either poorly designed battles or fights that have been shoved in for no reason other than to pad out the game (dxhr & da2 come to mind immediately) that sometimes it’d honestly improve the gameplay to just skip them altogether

[thebentcon-blog]

Interesting points. There should be options that are more inclusive.

[officialgaygeeks]

Blue Ranger http://ift.tt/1K6kvCs

[superdames]

MUCH LOVE to the folks at Fantom Comics shop in Washington, DC, for taking a chance on JILL TRENT, SCIENCE SLEUTH #1!

Sold out!!!

(You can still order the book any time, print & digital, directly from us at www.superdamescomics.com.) 

[perplexingly]

LGBTQ+ Fantasy Book Rec List

Few notes: All books redirect to goodreads page. My focus is on high/heroic/historic/mythological fantasy, any other genres are stated in the brackets.  Please, add books and notes at will but remember to include only these in where either the protagonist or an important side character belongs to LGBTQ+. (I also have a list here, which I’m going to update every time someone adds another book to this list)

GAY/BI MALE CHARACTERS

Rain Wild Chronicles (part of Realm of the Elderlings series), Robin Hobb

The Books of Outremer, Chaz Brenchley

The Song of Achilles, Madeline Miller

The Tale of the Five Omnibus, Diane Duane

The Last Herald Mage series (part of Valdemar series), Mercedes Lackey

Nightrunner series, Lynn Flewelling

The Steel Remains (part of A Land Fit fot Heroes series), Richard K. Morgan

The Wode Series, J. Tullos Hennig

Mordred, Bastard Son, Douglas Clegg

The Knights of Camelot series, Sarah Luddington

The Mortal Instruments, Cassie Clare

Kirith Kirin, Jim Grimsley

The Fire’s Stone, Tanya Huff

Shadowdance, Robin Wayne Bailey (trigger warning for rape)

Doctrine of Labyrinths series, Sarah Monette

Swordspoint & The Privilege of the Sword & The Fall of the Kings (part of Riverside world), Ellen Kushner

Iskryne World Series, Sarah Monette

Torsere Series, Annabelle Jacobs

Captive Prince Series, C.S. Pacat

The Harmatia Cycle, Madeleine Emily Vaughan

Micah Grey series, Laura Lam (a bisexual intersex afab male protagonist)

Gay Knights And Horny Heroes: Tales from the Court of King Arthur, Michael Gouda (very nsfw in a very ridiculous setting. Also spoiler: everyone is gay and horny)

[steampunk] Havemercy series, Jaida Jones, Danielle Bennett

[steampunk] A Book of Tongues (Hexslinger series), Gemma Files

[steampunk] The God Eaters, Jesse Hajicek

[steampunk] Lord of the White Hell, Ginn Hale

[urban fantasy] Rifter Series, Ginn Hale

[urban fantasy] Autobiography of Red, Anne Carson

[urban fantasy] The Vampire Chronicles, Anne Rice

[sf] Bas-Lag Trilogy, China Miéville

[sf] Warchild series, Karin Lowachee

[dystopian sf] Mind Fuck, Manna Francis

LESBIAN/BI FEMALE CHARACTERS

Good Lesbian Books - it’s worth checking this site; it’s a guide to lesbian books, with books neatly organized into genres and themes

Circle of Magic, Tamora Pierce

Huntress & Ash, Malinda Lo

The Steel Remains, Richard K. Morgan

Chronicles of Tornor, Elizabeth A. Lynn

When Women Were Warriors series, Catherine M. Wilson

The Saga of the Renunciates & Thendara House (from Darkover series), Marion Zimmer Bradley

Lythande, Marion Zimmer Bradley

Elemental Logic series, Laurie J. Marks

Banshee’s Honor, Shaylynn Rose

Kushiel’s Legacy series, Jacqueline Carey

Wolfcry (part of The Kiesha’ra series), Amelia Atwater-Rhode

The Dark Wife, Sarah Diemer

The Witch Sea, Sarah Diemer (for free! The link leads to the download page)

Sappho’s Fables: Lesbian Fairy Tales series, Elora Bishop and Jennifer Diemer

Queen’s Champion: The Legend of Lancelot Retold, Cris Newport

Celaeno series, Jane Fletcher

Green Universe, Jay Lake

Sing the Four Quarters (part of Quarter series), Tanya Huff

Fires of the Faithful (part of Eliana’s Song), Naomi Kritzer

Dragon Age: The Masked Empire (part of Dragon Age series), Patrick Weekes

Nantuket Trilogy, S.M. Stirling

By the Sword, Mercedes Lackey

Sword of the Guardian, Merry Shannon

[urban fantasy] Underdogs, Geonn Cannonn

[urban fantasy] The Drowning Girl, Caitlín R. Kiernan

[urban fantasy] Gossamer Axe, Mass Market

[urban fantasy] The Red Tree, Caitlín R. Kiernan

[urban fantasy] The Cirlce, Mats Strandberg and Sara Bergmark Elfgren

[urban fantasy] Modern Faerie Tales, Holly Black

[sf] Ascension, Jacqueline Koyanagi

[sf] Jacob’s Ladder series, Elizabeth Bear

[sf] Santa Olivia series, Jacqueline Carey

[sf] Ammonite & Slow River, Nicola Griffith

[sf] The Telling, Ursula Le Guin

[sf] Dreamships, Melissa Scott

[sf] The Stone Gods, Jeanette Winterson

[sf] Adaptation series, Malinda Lo

[dystopian] The Holdfast Chronicles, Suzy McKee Charnas

OTHER SEXUALITY

Vows and Honor series (part of Valdemar series), Mercedes Lackey (asexual female protagonist. Trigger warning for rape as a background story!)

The Fire’s Stone, Tanya Huff (one of protagonists is an asexual mage princess)

Banner of the Damned, Sherwood Smith (asexual female protagonist)

The Deed of Paksenarrion (part of Paksenarrion series), Elizabeth Moon (protagonist may be read as asexual, she certainly isn’t interested in anyone)

[sf] Jacob’s Ladder series, Elizabeth Bear (asexual lesbian protagonist)

[sf] short stories: A Fisherman of the Inland Sea (in A Fisherman of the Inland Sea) , Mountain Ways, Unchosen Love (both from The Birthday of the World and Other Stories) , Ursula Le Guin (polyamorous marriages - between two men and two women)

GENDER NON-BINARY & TRANSGENDER CHARACTERS

Farseer Trilogy & Tawny Man Trilogy & Fitz and The Fool Trilogy (part of Realm of the Elderlings series), Robin Hobb (gender non-binary major character)

Eon series, Alison Goodman (one of side characters is trans woman)

Bloodhound (part of YA series Beka Cooper), Tamora Pierce (features a trans woman)

The Bone Palace (part of The Necromancer Chronicles), Amanda Downum (major trans female character)

A Story of the First History series, Mary Gentle (gender non-binary protagonsit)

Children of the Triad series, Laurie J. Marks (one of the species, Aeyrie, is genderless, referred to with gender-neutral pronouns Id, Ids and Idre)

Micah Grey series, Laura Lam (a bisexual intersex afab male protagonist)

Tamír Triad, Lynn Flewelling (Princess Tamir is born female, but to protect them they are magically transformed into male and raised as a boy. Later in the books they are transformed into female again)

[urban fantasy] The Drowning Girl, Caitlín R. Kiernan (main character is in a relationship with her transgender girlfriend)

[dystopia] The Butterfly and the Flame, Dana De Young (trans female protagonist)

[dystopia] Bone Dance, Emma Bull (agender protagonist)

[sf] The Collection: Short Fiction from the Transgender Vanguard (an anthology of transgender narratives)

[sf] Vorkosigan Saga, Lois McMaster Bujold (major intersex character, trigger warning? for referring to them with “it” pronouns)

[sf] The Left Hand of Darkness (part of Hainish Cycle), Ursula Le Guin (intersex society)

[sf] 2312, Kim Stanley Robinson (very broad range of gender and sexual identity)

[sf] Imajica, Clive Barker (one of characters is an interdimensional traveler whose body can shift between sexes)

[post-apocalyptic] Wraeththu series, Storm Constantine (intersex society)

[thebentcon-blog]

Totally awesome list!

[sonseulsoleil]

god bless the today show

[2brokegeeks]

Hey broke geeks! We don’t know anyone in Virginia, so pretty please help us spread the word that we’ll be there for the Skyline Independent Film Festival and we are doing a live taping on Friday! The profits are going to be donated to the Humane Society, plus we’d love to see any fellow geeks there. :)

It was also recommended to RSVP in advance if you can!

Here’s more info: Mia Hasn’t Seen Sh*t LIVE: Independence Day!

[thebentcon-blog]

For anyone in Virginia...

[youngestweasley-deactivated2017]

“Whether you come back by page or by the big screen, Hogwarts will always be there to welcome you home.” (X)

[thebentcon-blog]

Can one get enough HP?

[elishaalexzander]

I feel like much of the world is in a social war over what gender is and is not.

I don’t feel that its my place to tell someone else what gender is. I believe that gender identity is something that an individual has to figure out for themselves. The being said, based on my personal experience with understanding my own gender identity, I can tell you what gender is not.

Gender is not the same as your sexuality. Gender does not have to define your sexuality. Gender and sexuality are two different subjects.

Gender has nothing to do with your genitalia. Gender is not defined by a doctor, despite what’s on your birth certificate. Gender identity is more of spectrum of variable options, instead of a binary with only two options.

Gender Identity & Gender Expression are not the same thing. Gender identity is part of the mental and emotional understanding of yourself. Gender expression is your style, how you’re most comfortable presenting to the outside world.

It is my belief that somewhere through out history, things like gender identity, gender expression, genitalia & sexuality somehow got all wrapped up into one single category called gender. However, it is also my belief that the people in this world are changing. Growing into a much more colorful way of thinking and understanding.

I hope the day will come when the majority will know gender to be a personal understanding of ones self, instead of an outward understanding of everyone else.

Xoxo -Elliott Alexzander

[infinipede]

“I don’t feel that its my place to tell someone else what gender is.” 

frame this quote and stick it everywhere on tumblr and in the entire world

[thebentcon-blog]

*standing ovation*

[jelff-deactivated20190504]

AT LAST, the full comic! I won the comics competition at UniCon with it :) they gave me a fancy award made of glass

[wilwheaton]

[hugsandstuff]

I’m a theater, art, AND robotics kid, so of COURSE I designed a prom dress with led lights in it and made it from scratch with my mom.

[thebentcon-blog]

Creative. The cosplay possibilities!...

[thebentcon-blog]

BENT-CON needs to expand its social awareness, support and capital to further it's vision and mission to reach global levels. We want to continue to grow the community that is BENT-CON by nurturing and inspiring a culture which recognizes that inclusivity and diversity matters. Your direct support will help us continue to showcase and express work from artists, writers, creators, publishers, directors, actors and producers that create works with a distinct LGBT/Queer voice and presence as well as openly LGBT/Queer contributors and our allies -- be they mainstream or underground; BENT-CON is committed to these creative expressions having as much a resonance and impact as any other celebration of pop-culture and geekdom. BENT-CON is ultimately about celebrating inclusivity and diversity where everyone matters. Please go check out GoFundMe page.

[thebentcon-blog]

Are you interested in hosting or moderating a panel in November?

[steampunktendencies]

“The Order 1886 PS 4 Controller”

Dr. Leslie Aromo

[thebentcon-blog]

Steampunk? Yes or no?

[sandvvich-surprise-deactivated2]

I really love the skeletal look

[xaldien]

The Hex Girls were the bomb diggity.

[thebentcon-blog]

Indeed!