Month: February 2022

Happy Posts On Social Media Can Backfire on You , too, More On Florida's Don't Say Gay Bill, Ryan Field Gay Romance

Happy Fake Posts on Social Media Can Backfire on You, Too

Right now there’s a war going on in Ukraine. Russia…Putin…invaded Ukraine without being provoked and the Ukrainian people are fighting for their lives, their freedom, and their dignity. My mom was a full-blooded Ukrainian. My maternal great-grandparents were born and raised in Ukraine. So I know I’m a little biased. But the rest of the world seems to be in agreement that what Russia has done to Ukraine is one of the most criminal war acts since World War II.

With that said, there are many people posting support all over social media. From celebrities to authors, there’s been an outpouring of support for the Ukrainian people. One celeb is raising money for refugees and she’s using her platform to do wonderful things. She’s raised millions so far. You can see that most people really care deeply about what’s happening right now.

And then you have the D-list celebrities who are still clawing and fighting for attention on social media. They’re posting shirtless selfies, those ridiculous duckface selfies, and one I know is even posting his happy fun time trip to Mexico. It’s as if nothing else is happening in the rest of the world. And you know what? These people come off looking stupid. It’s really not selfishness. It’s idiocy. They just don’t have the intellect to know any better, and as a result, their posts and Tweets backfire big time. Not only do we think they are dumb, but we also lose respect for them. And to a certain extent, without even realizing it we cancel them because it’s not possible to take them seriously.

So be thoughtful about what you post on social media, especially when there’s a world event happening. Those fake-happy, fake feel-good posts just might backfire on you if there’s a deadly war going on.

More On Florida’s Don’t Say Gay Bill

As much as I wish this don’t say gay bill wasn’t a reality, it’s at least good to see so much support coming out against the bill. Clearly, there’s also plenty of support for the bill, too. But at least we’re still fighting for our equality, as we have been for the last 60 years. And we do have a lot more allies now.

This is a good piece from Vanity Fair.

Governor Ron DeSantis, who signaled his support for the legislation earlier this month, saying it’s “entirely inappropriate” for teachers to talk with students about gender identity.

Here’s the link. And there you have it. That’s Florida. And sadly, it’s not the only state. There are a lot of dumb people out there who still believe that even the most G-rated LGBTQIA content is “adult material.”

On Amazon

Stepbrothers in the Attic

Reader Reviews: This is the first of its kind not only a gay retelling of Flowers in the Attic but the first of any kind of retelling of any of the V.C. Andrews books. Usually, two fears strike for fans of any book that is going to get a new twist.

Amazon E-book or Paperback

The Wizard of Pride

The Straight Pride Parade

Don’t Be Afraid of Virginia’s Woolf

Once Upon a Castle by Ryan Field

A Different Kind of Southern Love Story

What readers are saying about “Uncertainty”

Amazon

“A wonderful story that I loved. The characters were well developed and strong. Gus: A sweet young man. Doing something for all the wrong reasons. Craig: his boyfriend, he’ll go along with anything Gus say. Henry: Gus father a no nonsense man, who’s husband died last year. I enjoyed this story.”

What readers said about “Altered Parts”
“Best Gay Novel In Years. This story will stay with you and you will feel you know every character and the beauty of their home in the mountains of North Carolina.”
In paperback or e-book. #gayromance #Wednesday

Altered Parts

How to Spot a Bad Gay Ally, Ryan Field Gay Romance Books

How to Spot a Bad Gay Ally

The other day another gay author posted something about an initiative he started for gay southern writers. That alone bothered me. All gay writers need help, not just those in the south. I’m also sick of all that southern crap because they usually ignore the real history of the south in the US. This is also a gay writer who tends to romanticize the south, which I’m not too fond of either.

But this time this gay author posted a video with a woman and I commented very nicely about how nice it was to see him include a lesbian in this initiative. Well, he replied that the woman wasn’t a lesbian. She was a straight woman commenting on LGBTQIA fiction. He also made a point of letting me know how important straight allies really are. And I agree that straight allies are nice to have, but keep it in perspective. Some straight allies can really be trouble. And this article talks about how that can happen.

There are many things about this article I like, and here’s one.

I can understand the desire to feel included in a community that you support but to fulfill that desire by marginalizing that very community is selfish in the extreme and only serves to perpetuate the mistreatment and inequality that you may very well be fighting against.

Here’s more. The issue I always find with straight allies is that most are still so deeply rooted in their own straight privilege they often treat gay people differently than they would treat other straight people. And when do we finally reach that point where we don’t need allies? When do we finally reach the point of full equality, and that means full quality with our allies, too?

I also think a good deal of this is generational. I’m a middle-aged gay man and I tend to think a little differently than older gay men. I’m not so willing to accept things like cultural appropriation anymore.

With that said the article also mentions that there are some excellent gay allies, too.

Stepbrothers in the Attic

On Amazon

Amazon E-book or Paperback

The Wizard of Pride

The Straight Pride Parade

Don’t Be Afraid of Virginia’s Woolf

Once Upon a Castle by Ryan Field

A Different Kind of Southern Love Story

What readers are saying about “Uncertainty”

Amazon

“A wonderful story that I loved. The characters were well developed and strong. Gus: A sweet young man. Doing something for all the wrong reasons. Craig: his boyfriend, he’ll go along with anything Gus say. Henry: Gus father a no nonsense man, who’s husband died last year. I enjoyed this story.”

What readers said about “Altered Parts”
“Best Gay Novel In Years. This story will stay with you and you will feel you know every character and the beauty of their home in the mountains of North Carolina.”
In paperback or e-book. #gayromance #Wednesday

Altered Parts

Backward Florida House Passes Don't Say Gay Bill, Ryan Field Books

Backward Florida House Passes Don’t Say Gay Bill

Here’s more about what’s happening in Florida with the Don’t Say Gay Bill. State Rep., Joe Harding, introduced the measure and there’s a photo of him at the link below. In short, they passed a bill in Florida that will silence LGBTQ kids from speaking about sexual orientation or gender identity. In doing so, they’ve plunged us right back into the 1950s.

Speaking to legislators on the House floor, Rep. Joe Harding, the Republican who introduced the bill, said the measure is about “empowering parents” and improving the quality of life for the state’s children.

Here’s the link to more. These people are really stupid. I don’t see how silencing gay kids will empower them as parents. Gay kids are harmless. I’m sure some of these morons have gay kids, too. We…gay people…know who we are when we’re kids. Most of us figure it out at very young ages. And then we go through years of faking being straight just to survive in the schools and to protect ourselves from vicious straights like these Florida people. This bill is going to backfire on these idiots. The kids are going to rise up against them eventually. And these dumb people in Florida will not go down in history well.

Stepbrothers in the Attic

On Amazon

Amazon E-book or Paperback

The Wizard of Pride

The Straight Pride Parade

Don’t Be Afraid of Virginia’s Woolf

Once Upon a Castle by Ryan Field

A Different Kind of Southern Love Story

What readers are saying about “Uncertainty”

Amazon

“A wonderful story that I loved. The characters were well developed and strong. Gus: A sweet young man. Doing something for all the wrong reasons. Craig: his boyfriend, he’ll go along with anything Gus say. Henry: Gus father a no nonsense man, who’s husband died last year. I enjoyed this story.”

What readers said about “Altered Parts”
“Best Gay Novel In Years. This story will stay with you and you will feel you know every character and the beauty of their home in the mountains of North Carolina.”
In paperback or e-book. #gayromance #Wednesday

Altered Parts

Putin Invades Ukraine, Staten Island's Homophobic St. Patrick's Gay Parade, Ryan Field Books

Putin Invades Ukraine

I may or may not have mentioned that on my maternal side everyone is Ukrainian. My mom was full Ukrainian and her grandparents were all born in what was then referred to as “The Ukraine.” As a small child, I remember the oldest living relatives who had come to the US from the Ukraine. I remember the old stories about Ukrainian culture and traditions. Ukraine is a country with peaceful people and they don’t start wars. So what that filthy Putin is doing right now is unforgiveable and I hope the world steps in to stop him.

The people living in the Ukrainian capital of Kiev are now fleeing the city.

An exodus appears to be underway in the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv after Russian forces bombarded the country Thursday. Traffic data and videos circulating on social media platforms seem to confirm people are fleeing the city as full-scale invasion fears soar.

Here’s the rest. I’ve also read that protests have erupted all over Moscow in support of Ukraine.

Staten Island’s Homophobic St. Patrick’s Day Parade

Once again, the homophobes who organize the Staten Island St. Patrick’s Day Parade are not including LGBTQ groups this year. Yes, it’s hard to believe in this day and age that this kind of backward straight privilege still exists in the word.

A few local politicians will be boycotting the event as a result of this homophobia, including NYC mayor, Eric Adams.

“We are still hopeful that the organizers of the Staten Island St. Patrick’s Day Parade will see the need for inclusion in our celebrations of cultural heritage and allow members of the LGBTQ+ community to participate,” Fabien Levy, a spokesman for Mr. Adams, said on Wednesday. “Until that time, the mayor will not participate in the parade.”

Here’s more. It seems as if we hear the same thing every year about Staten Island.

Stepbrothers in the Attic

On Amazon

Amazon E-book or Paperback

The Wizard of Pride

The Straight Pride Parade

Don’t Be Afraid of Virginia’s Woolf

Once Upon a Castle by Ryan Field

A Different Kind of Southern Love Story

What readers are saying about “Uncertainty”

Amazon

“A wonderful story that I loved. The characters were well developed and strong. Gus: A sweet young man. Doing something for all the wrong reasons. Craig: his boyfriend, he’ll go along with anything Gus say. Henry: Gus father a no nonsense man, who’s husband died last year. I enjoyed this story.”

What readers said about “Altered Parts”
“Best Gay Novel In Years. This story will stay with you and you will feel you know every character and the beauty of their home in the mountains of North Carolina.”
In paperback or e-book. #gayromance #Wednesday

Altered Parts

New York Mayor Eric Adams Appoints Officials with Anti-Gay Histories, Ryan Field Gay Romance Novels

New York Mayor Eric Adams Appoints Officials with Anti-Gay Histories

Even though it’s a really bad move for Eric Adams to make, I’m really not surprised about this one. It’s something that straights do all the time and they mostly fly under the proverbial radar for it. You see, when you are so deeply rooted in straight privilege you don’t have the capacity to understand the magnitude of appointing officials with anti-gay histories. You can’t feel the hurt and disappointment. Eric has appointed these people without apology.

Adams hired former City Council Member Fernando Cabrera as a faith adviser, and former mayoral candidate Erick Salgado as an assistant commissioner for immigrant affairs, to an outcry from LGBTQ advocates. “I spoke with a number of those leaders and shared my thoughts, and I stated ‘I respect your thoughts, but I’m going to do what’s best for the city of New York,’” he said Tuesday.

Here’s more. According to this article, Cabrera even went so far as to praise the awful country of Uganda just as it was about to put forth a law that criminalized gay men in the worst ways possible.

Pro-gay advocates are not letting this one disappear quickly. The backlash is strong and fierce and Adams doesn’t seem to be backing down. Once again, I’m not surprised. This is what straights will do.

Stepbrothers in the Attic

On Amazon

Amazon E-book or Paperback

The Wizard of Pride

The Straight Pride Parade

Don’t Be Afraid of Virginia’s Woolf

Once Upon a Castle by Ryan Field

A Different Kind of Southern Love Story

What readers are saying about “Uncertainty”

Amazon

“A wonderful story that I loved. The characters were well developed and strong. Gus: A sweet young man. Doing something for all the wrong reasons. Craig: his boyfriend, he’ll go along with anything Gus say. Henry: Gus father a no nonsense man, who’s husband died last year. I enjoyed this story.”

What readers said about “Altered Parts”
“Best Gay Novel In Years. This story will stay with you and you will feel you know every character and the beauty of their home in the mountains of North Carolina.”
In paperback or e-book. #gayromance #Wednesday

Altered Parts

Florida’s Don’t Say Gay Bill’s New Amendment Would Out Students, Ryan Field Books

Florida’s Don’t Say Gay Bill’s New Amendment Would Out Students

Here’s more about the don’t say gay bill in Florida. There’s a new amendment to the bill that would force gay kids to tell their parents within a certain amount of time. Which is the same as outing them. And any gay person knows that you never out another gay person.

As written, the amendment does not specify how the mental, emotional, and physical well-being of the student would be protected, in cases where previously the proposed bill had found it possible for them to experience abuse, neglect, or abandonment as a result of their LGBTQ+.

Here’s more

Stepbrothers in the Attic

On Amazon

Amazon E-book or Paperback

The Wizard of Pride

The Straight Pride Parade

Don’t Be Afraid of Virginia’s Woolf

Once Upon a Castle by Ryan Field

A Different Kind of Southern Love Story

What readers are saying about “Uncertainty”

Amazon

“A wonderful story that I loved. The characters were well developed and strong. Gus: A sweet young man. Doing something for all the wrong reasons. Craig: his boyfriend, he’ll go along with anything Gus say. Henry: Gus father a no nonsense man, who’s husband died last year. I enjoyed this story.”

What readers said about “Altered Parts”
“Best Gay Novel In Years. This story will stay with you and you will feel you know every character and the beauty of their home in the mountains of North Carolina.”
In paperback or e-book. #gayromance #Wednesday

Altered Parts

Chuck James an Openly Gay Agent in Hollywood Talks about How Vicious it Was, Intersectionality Within the LGBTQ+ Community At ICM, Ryan Field Gay Romance

Chuck James an Openly Gay Agent in Hollywood Talks about How Vicious it Was

Chuck James started out in Hollywood as an assistant back in the 90s. He talks about how vicious it was and how biased it was with regard to anyone who was different. I know how bad things were in the 90s with publishing, from my own first-hand experience as an openly gay man. No one in mainstream publishing wanted us, and only a handful of literary agents handled “gay-lesbian” writing. I was lucky enough to find gay publishers to work with. And that led me to work with Lori Perkins, a literary agent, and publisher who has always been more than willing to work with all marginalized groups. And I really do mean I got lucky. I worked hard for it, but working hard doesn’t always mean you’ll get anywhere if you’re gay.

But ascending the entertainment industry as a gay man was no crystal staircase for James. In his 20s, out to friends and eventually family members, he quickly realized being open at work wasn’t an option: “It was definitely at a time that it was not advantageous whatsoever to be…let’s say different,” he shares.

Here’s more. The article goes on to say that James is trying to make a difference now so that it’s not as bad for the next generation of openly LGBTQ+ people. He’s doing this with an initiative called, LGBTQ+ InQlusion. There’s a lot more and it’s a great piece to help you learn more about what it’s still like in Hollywood. Sadly, in many ways, it’s still that way in mainstream publishing, too. Not a day goes by when I don’t feel the discrimination and the cultural appropriation just within the gay romance genre.

Intersectionality Within the LGBTQ+ Community At ICM

This is a link to the ICM website and it’s an extension of the article above. I was curious about LGBTQ+ InQlusion and I wanted to learn more about it. Sure enough, the ICM Website goes into more detail. And they’ve been discussing intersectionality within the LGBTQ+ community. I think it’s important to learn because many times I see gay men who don’t even know they’re being discriminated against. And when you try to point this out to them, they get angry. We’ve all been conditioned a certain way, and now it’s time to change that.

Intersectionality, as defined by the Merriam Webster dictionary, is the complex and cumulative way in which the effects of multiple forms of discrimination – such as racism, sexism, and classism – combine, overlap, or intersect, especially in the experiences of marginalized individuals or groups.

Here’s a link. I believe that passive-aggressive discrimination is a huge issue nowadays, too. But you can read a lot more about all of this at the ICM website, which I believe is excellent.

Stepbrothers in the Attic

On Amazon

Amazon E-book or Paperback

The Wizard of Pride

The Straight Pride Parade

Don’t Be Afraid of Virginia’s Woolf

Once Upon a Castle by Ryan Field

A Different Kind of Southern Love Story

What readers are saying about “Uncertainty”

Amazon

“A wonderful story that I loved. The characters were well developed and strong. Gus: A sweet young man. Doing something for all the wrong reasons. Craig: his boyfriend, he’ll go along with anything Gus say. Henry: Gus father a no nonsense man, who’s husband died last year. I enjoyed this story.”

What readers said about “Altered Parts”
“Best Gay Novel In Years. This story will stay with you and you will feel you know every character and the beauty of their home in the mountains of North Carolina.”
In paperback or e-book. #gayromance #Wednesday

Altered Parts

Some Whacky Teen Accused of Trying to Kill Gay Neighbor, Ryan Field Books

Some Whacky Teen Accused of Trying to Kill Gay Neighbor

According to this article, a teen in Illinois allegedly broke into his 60 year old neighbor’s home and tried to kill him because he’s gay. The kid actually broke into the house, someone reported a broken window, and when the police arrived they found the victim on the floor with lacerations. The victim was in bed at the time.

The teen began hitting the victim on his face, head and body with a pipe wrench saying “you’re gay,” “you’re evil,” and “I’m going to kill you” a number of times, the man told police.

Here’s more. The teen was arrested and is being held on a one million dollar bond. I hope there’s a follow-up to this one.

Stepbrothers in the Attic

On Amazon

Amazon E-book or Paperback

The Wizard of Pride

The Straight Pride Parade

Don’t Be Afraid of Virginia’s Woolf

Once Upon a Castle by Ryan Field

A Different Kind of Southern Love Story

What readers are saying about “Uncertainty”

Amazon

“A wonderful story that I loved. The characters were well developed and strong. Gus: A sweet young man. Doing something for all the wrong reasons. Craig: his boyfriend, he’ll go along with anything Gus say. Henry: Gus father a no nonsense man, who’s husband died last year. I enjoyed this story.”

What readers said about “Altered Parts”
“Best Gay Novel In Years. This story will stay with you and you will feel you know every character and the beauty of their home in the mountains of North Carolina.”
In paperback or e-book. #gayromance #Wednesday

Altered Parts

Other Homophobic States Besides Florida Want "Don't Say Gay" Bills, Ryan Field Gay Romance

Other Homophobic States Besides Florida Want “Don’t Say Gay” Bills

This is why we can never put down our guards. This is why we have to keep fighting the homophobic straights in this world. This article to which I’m linking claims there are other homophobic states that want bills like Florida’s “don’t say gay” bill.

Yet Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” bill is one part of a nationwide trend. There are 15 similar bills moving through state legislatures that restrict how textbooks and curriculums teach LGBTQ+ topics, who can be hired and what teachers are allowed to say around gender identity and sexual orientation.

Here’s more. Some are saying this is all political and I have no doubt they are correct. Governors like DeSantis in Florida will continue to pander to their homophobic base. And their homophobic base is not going to change.

The thing that really bothers me is that they keep saying “sexual orientation” when referring to gay people and sex is NOT what we are all about. There’s a lot more to gay people than sexuality.

On Amazon

Stepbrothers in the Attic

On Amazon

Amazon E-book or Paperback

The Wizard of Pride

The Straight Pride Parade

Don’t Be Afraid of Virginia’s Woolf

Once Upon a Castle by Ryan Field

A Different Kind of Southern Love Story

What readers are saying about “Uncertainty”

Amazon

“A wonderful story that I loved. The characters were well developed and strong. Gus: A sweet young man. Doing something for all the wrong reasons. Craig: his boyfriend, he’ll go along with anything Gus say. Henry: Gus father a no nonsense man, who’s husband died last year. I enjoyed this story.”

What readers said about “Altered Parts”
“Best Gay Novel In Years. This story will stay with you and you will feel you know every character and the beauty of their home in the mountains of North Carolina.”
In paperback or e-book. #gayromance #Wednesday

Altered Parts

Why "The Power of the Dog" Is NOT a Queer film, Recognizing Toxic Positivity

Why “The Power of the Dog” Is NOT a Queer film

I follow NBC Out on social media and I was surprised to see that they were sharing information about Oscar nominations for that awful movie, The Power of the Dog, and they were referring to it as a “Queer Film.”

It’s only a Queer film to straight people. But most gay men should know the difference. First, the film is a product of Jane Campion who is not a gay man. This is Campion’s interpretation of gay men on a ranch. And it’s not totally accurate. Campion portrays her allegedly gay characters as dark, dismal people, which is the typical stereotype that non-gay men use whenever they write about gay men. What’s most interesting is that Campion based the film on a book by Thomas Savage…a straight man married to the same woman for many years.

Of course, the word gay wasn’t used back then, but whenever I research the topic of gay men in the old west I find articles like this one…

The most surprising thing about homosexuality in the Old West is not that it was rare in the rugged, macho world of the cowboy, but that it was so common and so not a big deal.

Here’s more about this topic.

Here’s another link about gay men in the old west.

With that said, The Power of the Dog is truly not a Queer or a Gay film. It’s more of a self-indulgent long-drawn-out heteronormative mess that tries to be deep and meaningful but winds up amateurish.

I think what really bothers me the most is that once again non-gay men have hijacked gay content and taken gay culture as their own. And as long as we allow this to happen, it’s not going to stop.

Recognizing Toxic Positivity

I am a firm believer in the power of positivity. I really do believe in living my life that way. But there are limits and I think too many people out there these days aren’t aware of these limits. If you are able to recognize toxic positivity you can at least know how to deal with it. And there is so much of it going around on social media from some very insincere people.

Toxic positivity takes positive thinking to an overgeneralized extreme. This attitude doesn’t just stress the importance of optimism, it minimizes and denies any trace of human emotions that aren’t strictly happy or positive.

Here’s the rest. They go on to give some excellent examples of toxic positivity. It’s really an excellent piece.

On Amazon

Stepbrothers in the Attic

On Amazon

Amazon E-book or Paperback

The Wizard of Pride