Finalists Announced for the 22nd Annual Lambda Literary Awards

Dear Friends,



The news you've been waiting for: after four months of reading, deliberating, and consulting, 87 dedicated (and eye-weary) judges, assessing 462 LGBT-interest titles nominated by almost 200 publishers and authors, have selected 113 finalists in 23 categories.



"This has been a record year for queer books," said the 2009 Lambda Awards Administrator, Richard Labonté, who has been associated with the Lammys since their inception in 1989 as a judge and consultant. "The number of titles nominated and the number of publishers represented is in both cases about 10 per cent higher than last year."



And, for the first time, the single catchall Bisexual category - after reaching a threshold of 10 nominated titles in both fiction and nonfiction - has matured into two distinct categories, Bisexual Fiction and Bisexual Nonfiction.



"In a year of challenge and change for writers and publishers - and for the Foundation - the hundreds of books submitted for nomination illustrate the continuing dynamism of our literature," said Lambda Foundation Board President Katherine V. Forrest. "This year's Lambda Literary Award Finalists and the quality of their work speak eloquently to the richness and range of our literature."



Reflecting the impact of self-publishing and publish-on-demand technology, more titles from non-traditional sources than ever were nominated, and several were selected as finalists, said Labonté. In addition, the Lammy contenders for 2009 continue the tradition of celebrating the best of both our community's specifically queer presses, and books from academic and more mainstream publishers.



Winners will be announced at the 22nd Annual Awards, May 27 in New York at the School of Visual Arts Theater, 333 West 23rd Street. Click here for tickets and information.



"To our finalists, I'm proud of your extraordinary talent and hard work," said Lambda Executive Director Tony Valenzuela. "I hope to see you all at the Awards. And to all the readers out there wondering what LGBT books to buy next, take a look at this stellar list of nominees - or check out the new reviews that are being posted on the revised and expanded lambdaliterary.org web site - and go shopping! Support our authors and publishers: they are to be congratulated."



Richard Labonté

2009 Lambda Awards Administrator





Tony Valenzuela

Executive Director









Lambda Literary Awards Finalists






LGBT Anthologies



Gay American Autobiography: Writings from Whitman to Sedaris, edited by David Bergman (University of Wisconsin Press)
Moral Panics, Sex Panics: Fear and the Fight Over Sexual Rights, edited by Gilbert Herdt (NYU Press)
My Diva: 65 Gay Men on the Women Who Inspire Them, edited by Michael Montlack (University of Wisconsin Press)
Portland Queer: Tales of the Rose City, edited by Ariel Gore (Lit Star Press)
Smash the Church, Smash the State! The Early Years of Gay Liberation, edited by Tommi Avicolli Mecca (City Lights)




LGBT Children's/Young Adult




Ash, by Malinda Lo (Little, Brown)
How Beautiful the Ordinary, edited by Michael Cart (HarperCollins)
In Mike We Trust, by P.E. Ryan (HarperCollins)
Sprout, by Dale Peck (Bloomsbury USA)
The Vast Fields of Ordinary, by Nick Burd (Penguin Books)
LGBT Drama

The Beebo Brinker Chronicles, by Kate Moira Ryan & Linda S. Chapman (Dramatists Play Service)
The Collected Plays Of Mart Crowley, by Mart Crowley (Alyson Books)
Revenge of the Women's Studies Professor, by Bonnie L. Morris (Indiana University Press)


LGBT Nonfiction



The Golden Age of Gay Fiction, edited by Drewey Wayne Gunn (MLR Press)
The Greeks and Greek Love, by James Davidson (Random House)
I Am Your Sister: Collected and Unpublished Writings of Audre Lorde, edited by Rudolph P. Byrd, Johnnetta Betsch Cole & Beverly Guy-Sheftall (Oxford University Press)
Ties That Bind: Familial Homophobia and Its Consequences, by Sarah Schulman (The New Press)
Unfriendly Fire:How the Gay Ban Undermines the Military and Weakens America, by Nathaniel Frank (St. Martin's Press)


LGBT SF/Fantasy/Horror

Centuries Ago and Very Fast, by Rebecca Ore (Aqueduct Press)
Fist of the Spider Woman, by Amber Dawn (Arsenal Pulp Press)
In the Closet, Under the Bed, by Lee Thomas (Dark Scribe Press)
Palimpsest, by Catherynne M. Valenta (Bantam/Spectra Books)
Pumpkin Teeth, by Tom Cardamone (Lethe Press)


LGBT Studies



Metropolitan Lovers: The Homosexuality of Cities, by Julie Abraham (University of Minnesota Press)
Moving Politics: Emotion and ACT UP's Fight Against AIDS, by Deborah B. Gould (University of Chicago Press)
The Queer Child, or Growing Sideways in the Twentieth Century, by Kathryn Bond Stockton (Duke University Press)
The Resurrection of the Body: Pier Paolo Pasolini from Saint Paul to Sade, by Armando Maggi (University of Chicago Press)
The Straight State: Sexuality and Citizenship in Twentieth Century America, by Margot Canaday (Princeton University Press)


Bisexual Fiction



Arusha, by J.E. Knowles (Spinsters Ink)
Holy Communion, by Mykola Dementiuk (Synergy Press)
The Janeid, by Bobbie Geary (The Graeae Press)
Love You Two, by Maria Pallotta-Chiarolli (Random House Australia)
Torn, by Amber Lehman (Closet Case Press)


Bisexual Nonfiction



Byron in Love: A Short Daring Life, by Edna O'Brien (W. W. Norton)
Cheever: A Life, by Blake Bailey (Alfred A. Knopf)
Leaving India: My Family's Journey From Five Villages to Five Continents, by Minal Hajratwala (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt)
Map, by Audrey Beth Stein (Lulu.com)
Vincente Minnelli: Hollywood's Dark Dreamer, by Emanuel Levy (St. Martin's Press)


Transgender

Bharat Jiva, by Kari Edwards (Litmus Press)
Lynnee Breedlove's One Freak Show, by Lynn Breedlove (Manic D Press)
The Nearest Exit May Be Behind You, by S Bear Bergman (Arsenal Pulp Press)
Transmigration, by Joy Ladin (Sheep Meadow Press)
Troglodyte Rose, by Adam Lowe (Cadaverine Publications)


Lesbian Debut Fiction



The Creamsickle, by Rhiannon Argo (Spinsters Ink)
The Bigness of the World, by Lori Ostlund (University of Georgia Press)
Land Beyond Maps, by Maida Tilchen (Savvy Press)
More of This World or Maybe Another, by Barb Johnson (HarperCollins)
Verge, by Z Egloff (Bywater Books)




Gay Debut Fiction

Blue Boy, by Rakesh Satyal (Kensington Books)
God Says No, by James Hannaham (McSweeneys)
Pop Salvation, by Lance Reynald (HarperCollins)
Shaming the Devil: Collected Short Stories, by G. Winston James (Top Pen Press)
Sugarless, by James Magruder (University of Wisconsin Press)


Lesbian Erotica



Flesh and Bone, by Ronica Black (Bold Strokes Books)
Lesbian Cowboys, edited by Sacchi Green & Rakelle Valencia (Cleis Press)
Punishment with Kisses, by Diane Anderson-Minshall (Bold Strokes Books)
Where the Girls Are, by D.L. King (Cleis Press)
Women of the Bite, by Cecelia Tan (Alyson Books)


Gay Erotica

Rough Trade: Dangerous Gay Erotica, edited by Todd Gregory (Bold Strokes Books)
Impossible Princess, by Kevin Killian (City Lights)
I Like It Like That: True Tales of Gay Desire, edited by Richard Labonté & Lawrence Schimel (Arsenal Pulp Press)
The Low Road, by James Lear (Cleis Press)
Eight Inches, by Sean Wolfe (Kensington Books)




Lesbian Fiction

Dismantled, by Jennifer McMahon (HarperCollins)
A Field Guide to Deception, by Jill Malone (Bywater Books)
Forgetting the Alamo, Or, Blood Memory, by Emma Pérez (University of Texas Press)
Risk, by Elena Dykewomon (Bywater Books)
This One's Going to Last Forever, by Nairne Holtz (Insomniac Press)


Gay Fiction



Lake Overturn, by Vestal McIntyre (HarperCollins)
The River In Winter, by Matt Dean (Queens English Productions)
Said and Done, by James Morrison (Black Lawrence Press)
Salvation Army, by Abdellah Taia (Semiotext(e))
Silverlake, by Peter Gadol (Tyrus Books)


Lesbian Memoir/Biography

Called Back: My Reply to Cancer, My Return to Life, by Mary Cappello (Alyson Books)
Mean Little deaf Queer, by Terry Galloway (Beacon Press)
My Red Blood: A Memoir of Growing Up Communist, Coming Onto the Greenwich Village Folk Scene, and Coming Out in the Feminist Movement, by Alix Dobkin (Alyson Books)
Likewise: The High School Comic Chronicles of Ariel Schrag, by Ariel Schrag (Simon & Schuster/Touchstone Fireside)
The Talented Miss Highsmith: The Secret Life and Serious Art of Patricia Highsmith, by Joan Schenkar (St. Martin's Press)


Gay Memoir/Biography

Ardent Spirits: Leaving Home, Coming Back, by Reynolds Price (Scribner Books)
City Boy: My Life in New York During the 1960's and 70's, by Edmund White (Bloomsbury USA)
Deflowered: My Life in Pansy Division, by Jon Ginoli (Cleis Press)
Once You Go Back, by Douglas A. Martin (Seven Stories Press)
The Pure Lover: A Memoir of Grief, by David Plante (Beacon Press)


Lesbian Mystery

Command of Silence, by Paulette Callen (Spinsters Ink)
Death of a Dying Man, by J.M. Redmann (Bold Strokes Books)
From Hell to Breakfast, by Joan Opyr (Blue Feather Books)
The Mirror and the Mask, by Ellen Hart (St. Martin's/Minotaur)
Toasted, by Josie Gordon (Bella Books)


Gay Mystery

All Lost Things, by Josh Aterovis (P.D. Publishing)
The Killer of Orchids, by Ralph Ashworth (State Street Press)
Murder in the Garden District, by Greg Herren (Alyson Books)
Straight Lies, by Rob Byrnes (Kensington Books)
What We Remember, by Michael Thomas Ford (Kensington Books)


Lesbian Poetry

Bird Eating Bird, by Kristin Naca (HarperCollins)
Gospel: Poems, by Samiya Bashir (Red Bone Press)
Names, by Marilyn Hacker (W.W. Norton)
Stars of the Night Commute, by Ana Bozicevic (Tarpaulin Sky Press)
Zero at the Bone, by Stacie Cassarino (New Issues Poetry & Prose)


Gay Poetry



Breakfast with Thom Gunn, by Randall Mann (University of Chicago Press)
The Brother Swimming Beneath Me, by Brent Goodman (Black Lawrence Press)
The First Risk, by Charles Jensen (Lethe Press)
Sweet Core Orchard, by Benjamin S. Grossberg (University of Tampa Press)
What the Right Hand Knows, by Tom Healy (Four Way Books)


Lesbian Romance

It Should Be a Crime, by Carsen Taite (Bold Strokes Books)
No Rules of Engagement, by Tracey Richardson (Bella Books)
The Sublime and Spirited Voyage of Original Sin, by Colette Moody (Bold Strokes Books)
Stepping Stone, by Karin Kallmaker (Bella Books)
Worth Every Step, by KG MacGregor (Bella Books)


Gay Romance



Drama Queers!, by Frank Anthony Polito (Kensington Books)
A Keen Edge, by H. Leigh Aubrey (iUniverse)
The Rest of Our Lives, by Dan Stone (Lethe Press)
Time After Time, by J.P. Bowie (MLR Press)
Transgressions, by Erastes (Running Press)

Lambda Literary Foundation Launches Literary Website

By Jason Boog on Mar 01, 2010 12:23 PM

Today the Lambda Literary Foundation launched a literary website and
community for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgendered readers and
authors--Lambda Literary.

The website was built in six weeks by an international team of
designers living in New York, Los Angeles, and British Columbia. It
will publish new material, interviews, stories, reviews, and aggregate
links from around the literary Internets. The site opened with a
variety of content, including Is There, or Should There Be, Such a
Thing as 'Trans Lit?'" by Cheryl Morgan and a new column about "news
and noteworthy tidbits from the LGBT writing and publishing community"
by John Morgan Wilson.

The entire release follows after the jump. Lambda Literary Foundation
board member Nicola Griffith had this statement: "We're here; we're
queer; we read. And on March 1st, we'll be even more visible to the
world and to each other ... We're a community that loves books. We
need books. All kinds of books: yaoi and high lit, graphic novels and
celebrity tell-alls, heart-wrenching memoir and YA fantasy. We read to
save our lives. We write, we edit. We publish, distribute, review,
sell, advertise, lend, and buy. And Lambda Literary will now be home
for the whole of the brilliantly diverse community that creates and
supports our literature."

Originally posted on Media Bistro.

Get BOUND

BOUND, a new lesbian magazine is about to hit the global market this December.

The new glossy touts itself as the “world's first international magazine for lesbians and women with a connection to the gay and lesbian community” aims to delight queer women with the spice of life with the tagline "Different culture, same lifestyle". Inspired by the success of Sex and the City and The L Word, Australian-based Avalon Media, publishers of LOTL, a long running gay and lesbian magazine, believe there is a market for BOUND.

Editors plan an “innovative” glossy magazine focused on women who have “broad horizons regarding lifestyle, travel, culture and sexuality” with global content driven by a unique pool of contributors from around the world including Europe, North America, South Africa, the Indian subcontinent, South East Asia, South America, Australia and New Zealand.

BOUND will offer in-depth features, celebrity interviews, travel editorial, fashion spreads and previews of the latest lifestyle essentials. The publication will be available on newsstands and through subscription.

Lesbian magazine in Beijing raided by police

by News Editor

Les Plus (http://www.lesplus.org), a magazine published by a group of lesbians in Beijing, had their distribution outlet - the Beijing LGBT Centre - raided and copies of the magazine confiscated by the police last week, says report.

Xtra, a Canadian gay newspaper, quoted Les Plus publishers Eva, Tatou and Gogo (all pseudonyms), who were attending a human rights gathering in Copenhagen, Denmark - following the main Outgames human rights conference, as saying that the magazine's distribution centre was raided while they were away.

[Caption]

The lesbian-oriented magazine which has been in publication since 2005 is said to contain political commentary alongside articles and news of LGBT interest. The magazine has operated underground since then as all media (both digital and print) require a license which is known to only be granted to state-owned companies.

Two other civil rights groups Yirenping (益仁平), a group that advocates on behalf of people infected with hepatitis B and Gongmeng ((公盟) (or Open Constitution Initiative), described by the New York Times as "the country’s pre-eminent legal rights center" have also been raided in recent weeks. Gongmeng has been shut down and its founder Xu Zhiyong, has not been heard from since being taken into police custody on Jul 29. At Yirenping, officials confiscated stacks of literature which they claimed had been printed without official permission.

China will mark the 60th anniversary of the Communist Revolution and the founding of the People's Republic of China on October 1.

Courtesy of Frieda: http://www.fridae.com/newsfeatures/2009/08/12/8770.lesbian-magazine-in-beijing-raided-by-police 12 Aug 2009

New York Gay Newspaper Suspends Publication

By JENNIFER 8. LEE

The New York Blade, one of the two major gay and lesbian newspapers in New York City, has laid off its editor in chief and suspended publication, the chief executive of its publishing company said on Wednesday.

“Everyone was let go, but the people on The Blade know that they may come back if The Blade is coming back,” said the executive, Matthew Bank, of HX Media, which was formed in 2005 by the merger of The Blade and HX Magazine.

The moves came on Tuesday after HX was sold to undisclosed buyers. The Blade, a biweekly paper with a free circulation of 22,000, was left with an uncertain future.

“It doesn’t have an issue scheduled until a week from Friday.” Mr. Bank said. “There are a lot of things that can happen between now and then.”

The decision to suspend publication comes at a particularly active period for journalism concerned with gay issues: the 40th anniversary of the Stonewall riots and the gay pride parade on Sunday, the proposed same-sex marriage bill in the State Senate and discontent over the Obama administration’s performance on gay-rights issues.

“It is an incredibly exciting time for gay journalism,” said Kat Long, who had been editor in chief of The Blade since February. “It’s important that gay papers are around to document it.”

Paul Schindler, editor in chief of Gay City News, the rival New York City gay newspaper, said The Blade had “made good contributions over the years.”

While a minority owner in HX Media has gone into receivership, Mr. Bank said that had little to do with the decision to sell the magazine.

Instead, he pointed to the advertising climate: “The economy and the future of print media being more difficult was definitely weighing on us.”

The Blade’s recent gay pride issue had been a relatively slim 28 pages.

“Gay pride is to gay publications what Christmas is to retail,” Mr. Schindler said. “When I pick up The Blade and it’s in 28 pages, then this is a business that is in serious problems.”

Published by the New York Times, July 2, 2009

NLGJA Announces Michael Tune as New Managing Director

Tune to lead premier LGBT journalist group beginning May 4, 2009

Washington, D.C. – Today the National Lesbian & Gay Journalists Association (NLGJA) announced that Michael Tune has assumed its top staff post and will oversee its efforts to support newsroom diversity and ensure fair and accurate coverage of LGBT issues. As managing director, he will also lead NLGJA’s flagship programs, including its annual convention, scheduled to take place in Montreal in September.

“The nation’s journalists face unprecedented challenges and opportunities in their careers, and we’re excited to have Michael’s energy and experience behind finding new and innovative ways of supporting and promoting LGBT journalists,” said NLGJA National President David Steinberg. “In addition, with LGBT issues such as same-sex marriage equality so much in the news today, LGBT journalists play a unique role in ensuring fair and accurate coverage, both in their reporting and by educating their colleagues in the newsroom.”

Tune comes to the NLGJA from Appleseed, a nonprofit network of public interest justice centers, where he was a member of the senior staff, overseeing finance, human resources, and operations. Michael served during a great period of growth for Appleseed, while revenues rose from $1 million to $2.5 million in three years’ time. He has been active in the city’s nonprofit world for the past eight years.

Founded in 1990, NLGJA is the leading professional organization for LGBT journalists with 22 chapters nationwide, as well as members around the globe. Tune takes over from David Barre, who has led the organization since 2007.

“NLGJA is on the front lines, accomplishing its vital mission of fair and accurate news coverage every day – a cause I am proud to join in advancing. Each day we will ask ourselves, ‘How do we make the greatest impact?’” added Mr. Tune. “We will maintain and build strong programs and resources, from our convention to tools on new and social media. In so doing, NLGJA will move the country toward fairer news coverage and more diverse newsrooms, all while helping LGBT journalists thrive in a changing world.”

NLGJA will host its 2009 National Convention and 6th Annual LGBT Media Summit in Montreal on September 10-13. Information is available at: http://nlgja.org/convention/

About the National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association:

NLGJA is an organization of journalists, media professionals, educators and students working from within the news industry to foster fair and accurate coverage of LGBT issues. NLGJA opposes all forms of workplace bias and provides professional development to its members. For more information, visit www.nlgja.org.

Media Contact: David Steinberg, 510-708-7004 or president@nlgja.org

Amazon blames ‘glitch’ for labeling gay lit as porn

By The Associated Press
04.13.2009 8:51am EDT

(New York City) A “glitch” on Amazon.com has caused the sales rank to be removed from gay- and/or lesbian-themed books by James Baldwin, Gore Vidal and others.

“There was a glitch in our systems and it’s being fixed,” Amazon’s director of corporate communications, Patty Smith, said in an e-mail Sunday.

As of Sunday night, books without rankings included Baldwin’s “Giovanni’s Room,” Vidal’s “The City and the Pillar” and Jeanette Winterson’s “Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit.” The removals prompted furious remarks on Facebook, Twitter and elsewhere online.

Craig Seymour, author of the gay memoir “All I Could Bare,” wrote on his blog Sunday that his sales rank was dropped in February, then restored nearly four weeks later, after he was told by Amazon that his book had been “classified as an Adult product.”