M/M vs Gay Fiction, Again

I rarely ever post on this topic anymore because, frankly, in the past ten years I’ve seen it all, read it all, and even experienced it all. I even had one author approach me on social media and tell me that another author he met at a conference claimed that I didn’t support straight women writing gay fiction, and she had a few more words about me. I didn’t even know who she was. Yes, it always gets back sooner or later. I’ve since blocked her from all social media accounts simply because I want nothing to do with people who spread that kind of gossip at writer’s conferences. 

Of course nothing could be farther from the truth, and if you search this blog and go back at least five years you’ll see more than a few posts where I mention that I not only support women writing M/M, I encourage them. Look at it this way. If I didn’t support them would I have gone through the trouble and the expense to indie publish The Women Who Love to Love Gay Romance, an anthology with all women authors, whom I paid out of my own pocket? But more important, I write new adult hetero fiction with a pen name, and I’ll be doing this a lot more in the future, because I love that genre. I’m doing the same thing straight women writing gay fiction are doing. So it just wouldn’t make sense to claim that I don’t support all writers writing whatever they want to write…and I mean that across the board in any genre.

So when I come across blog posts like this one and I share them, it’s because I’m actually surprised that this conversation is still happening after all these years. Personally, I recused myself from this discussion a while ago.

Here’s an excerpt:

Actually, I read a review of a book by Kade Boehme that dealt with this as well and the gay reviewer called it a perfect example of why women shouldn’t write about gay men, because the whole thing was a ridiculous concept and so on. Not only did his review show that he did not read the whole book, he also did not seem to realize that Kade is actually a male, gay author.

You can read the rest here. I have absolutely no idea who Kade Boehme is and I have no idea who actually authored this piece. But I believe the author, “Marc,” is a reader/reviewer for a web site that reviews M/M romance. There are a few interesting comments at the bottom, too.

Maggie Gallagher on Conversion Therapy

I think Gallagher is the founder of The National Organization of Marriage…NOM. She recently made a few comments about how she finds conversion therapy amusing.

“Apparently, you can change your racial identity, but if you do, you are lying. You can dress up as a woman on the cover of Vanity Fair, and everyone must believe you are in fact female. But when it comes to sexual orientation, even the attempt to change your identity or behavior must be viewed as an imposition against the laws of nature, if not nature’s God.”

It looks as if Maggie Gallagher needs to do a little work on herself. She knows she’s getting attention with statements like this and people like her love the attention.

You can read the rest here. 

Don’t miss the comments. The only thing I wish people wouldn’t do in comments like these is fat-shame. It’s just not a cool thing to do, not even to Maggie Gallagher.

Jackie Mason Slams Gays

It seems as if old comedians just can’t understand anything about LGBT people and equal rights. In the past year several comedians…including Bette Midler and Jerry Seinfeld…have made homophobic comments that just don’t work anymore and they didn’t even realize they were doing it. I don’t think it’s because you can’t tell gay jokes anymore. I think it’s because you can’t tell gay jokes like you told them in 1970. After all, Ellen seems to be doing okay and she’s still getting more laughs than most people out there.

“Before, you couldn’t pick on homosexuals because it was bad taste,” said the shuttered laff factory, “because homosexuals were a persecuted minority. Now, it’s exactly the opposite. Homosexuals can attack and abuse you. And people who are in favor of same-sex marriage could abuse you, but you can’t say a word against same-sex marriage.”

Bet you ten to one he still has a flip top phone.

You can read the rest here. 

I also read something interesting in a print magazine I can’t link to. Jerry Seinfeld is claiming he won’t perform at colleges anymore because they don’t “get” his humor. Could it be that Seinfeld, the straight white man coming from a place of huge privilege, doesn’t get the reason why those without his power didn’t laugh at his jokes?

It’s not about gay jokes. It’s about telling clever gay jokes. There’s a difference. 

Cher’s Oh So Brilliant On Twitter

I’ve probably mentioned before that I’ve never, ever understood the Cher gay icon thing. I just don’t get it. And yes, I swear on everything scared I’m a gay man. However, Cher does give bold Tweet and she obviously resonates with *some* gay men, so that’s something.

I’m not quoting any of them here because I don’t believe in getting political here on this blog. I think someone, somewhere, should at least try to remain objective in a world where there doesn’t seem to be any objectivity left anymore.

But you can read them all here, and there are comments you seriously don’t want to miss.

The only problem I have here is that once again, a huge segment of the gay male community is dismissed, bullied, and attacked for what they believe…this time by Cher and other gay men. 

You might find this interesting, too. It’s a piece from CNN about Cher allegedly firing dancers for reporting alleged sexual assault…and racism. I haven’t seen any updates on this, or much about it in any of the gay presses. It’s probably still in litigation. If anyone has an update, please share it with me.

While the complaint alleges racial discrimination by Cher, accusing her of hiring a white, blonde dancer over a more qualified African American, the lawsuit centers on California’s whistleblower law that protects employees who are fired for reporting illegal activity.

If you don’t trust CNN, you can do a simple search and read more about this in other reputable places. 

Here’s one from “black youth project” an excellent place I frequent often because I trust it completely.

Three black backup dancers filed a lawsuit against Cher on Thursday claiming they were wrongfully fired from her current tour. The trio also alleges the singer engaged in racial discrimination after rejecting another black dancer from joining her onstage.

Then there’s this…

A lawyer for the dancers said that such claims have been made by dancers on Cher’s tour for more than a decade.