The author of one of my favorite blogs, Band of Thebes, was troubled earlier this year when Washington Post critic Dennis Drabelle responded to a reader's question about new gay fiction by saying “Not many of these are being published anymore, mostly, I think, because the great gay storyline — coming out — isn't such a big deal anymore and has been done to death.”
Band of Thebes' response was to ask many of the established and up and coming authors of gay and lesbian fiction for their own recommendations in regards to the best new LGBT books of 2009. Books which, according to Drabelle, aren't being published all that much any more.
Of course, the publishing industry doesn't make it easy for people to find out about new LGBT works. As Band of Thebes notes,
"Terrific as these titles are, many will be unknown to you. The problems facing all good readers looking for their next great book — shrinking review space, vanishing book sections, disappearing independent bookstores, smaller orders from chain stores, fewer literary titles from mainstream publishers, and limited publicity budgets at small presses — are tripled for anyone seeking lgbt storylines. Traditional media outlets ignore far too many of these books, and publishers often omit gay content from jacket copy for fear of alienating the larger straight audience."
There was quite a response, 56 writers in total, and I was thrilled not only to have so many new books to add to my must read list, but also to find out what many of my own favorite writers- David Leavitt, Stephen McCauley, and Jamie O'Neill to just name a few- had to say.
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