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Literature
& Writing
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A
History of Gay Literature : The Male Tradition by Gregory
Woods

The very idea of a unique tradition of
gay-male writing began relatively recently. Early in the 20th
century, homosexual writers began to write more honestly. Yet
writers, both gay and straight, have written about the experience
of homosexuality since ancient times. In his encyclopedic
overview, Gregory Woods has knitted together a transhistorical and
transcultural history--a tradition--of gay-male writing over the
centuries. Using a broad but readily applicable definition of gay
literature that includes works by openly gay men, works in which
homosexual activity occurs, and works that manifest a gay
"sensibility," Woods manages to move us from Homer to
David Leavitt, from Arabic poets of the classical age to
contemporary South African poetry, from closeted Victorian memoirs
to AIDS literature. By its nature, A History of Gay Literature
lacks the specificity of critique that illuminates individual
work, but this approach is more than compensated for by the book's
ability to locate and discuss amazing similarities of experience
and expression throughout history and culture. Highly intelligent,
jauntily written, and endlessly informative, A History of Gay
Literature is an impressive addition to contemporary gay
scholarship.
The "male tradition" that British
scholar and poet Gregory Woods identifies in A History of Gay
Literature is perhaps most notable for its breadth.
Appearances are made by all the authors one might expect--Plato,
Marcel
Proust, Oscar
Wilde, Christopher
Isherwood, and so on--but Woods makes a substantial effort to
do more than replicate the standard "gay canon" that has
been iterated ad infinitum.
Woods reminds readers who have placed all their
faith in gay literature upon "literary fiction" that
gayness has been expressed more in verse than in prose and by
"lowbrow" authors such as Clive
Barker. By giving prominent attention to non-Western authors
and to representations of homosexuality by authors who were not
gay or bisexual males, he convincingly elevates gay literature
from the products of a marginal subculture to an international
body of work intimately connected to the literary mainstream.

Half
Moon -- New Fiction from Leigh G. Banks
... In a corner of this baronial hall was a
place called Montellimare. Their's was a table full of dreams. A
corner that everybody gravitated to, even though they didn't know
it.
That corner of the room was a
square like a handkerchief of snow. Tall, leaning and
unpredictably unsteady, buildings, ladders of lights and curtains,
surrounded it. These were almost all whorehouses.
In that white square dwelt a
Chiquita of a boy. He had the handsomeness of David but he had
honed it, deliberately, with abuse. He was a god whose eyes moved
all the time seeking approval. His skin was olive, like a Pole,
and his hair was slicked back like a Spaniard. His mouth was a
ring of fire. even his shoulders moved from the hip. He was maybe
thirty years old but he could have been fifteen.
He was sex at the flick of a
switchblade. He had the kind of body anybody would have killed to
touch...
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Click
HERE to read "Eyebook!" -- an excerpt from Leigh
G. Banks' recently completed novel, Half Moon. |
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Blithe House Quarterly is a site for gay short
fiction, an online literary magazine featuring a diversity of new
short stories by emerging and established gay, lesbian, bisexual
and transgendered authors.
"...the central publishing arm of new queer
fiction" - OUT Magazine : GLAAD Media Award nominee, 2000
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A site for the copyright community of creators
and users, here you will find all key publications, application
forms for copyright registration, links to the copyright law, news
of the Copyright Office (including congressional testimony and
press releases), latest regulations, a link to online copyright
records cataloged since 1978, and much more.
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The First Amendment to the United States
Constitution guarantees all individuals the right to express their
ideas without governmental interference, and to read and listen to
the ideas of others. The Freedom to Read Foundation was
established to promote and defend this right; to foster libraries
and institutions wherein every individual’s First Amendment
freedoms are fulfilled; and to support the right of libraries to
include in their collections and make available any work which
they may legally acquire.
American Library Association
50 E. Huron Street
Chicago, IL 60611
312 280 4227
(800) 545-2433, ext. 4226
ftrf@ala.org
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Gay,
Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgendered Round Table
The Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgendered
Round Table provides a forum for the discussion of the
responsibilities of libraries in relation to the important
problems of social change which face institutions and librarians;
provides for exchange of information among all ALA units about
library activities with the goal of increasing understanding of
current social problems; acts as a stimulus to the Association and
its various units in making libraries more responsive to current
social needs; presents programs, arranges exhibits, and carries
out other appropriate activities.
American Library Association
50 East Huron Street
Chicago, IL 60611
312 280 6780
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Lambda Literary Foundation
The Lambda Literary Foundation in a non-profit
organization supporting gay and lesbian literature. We publish the
Lambda Book Report, a monthly book review journal, and The
James White Review, a gay men's literary quarterly.
P O Box 73910
Washington, DC 20056-3910
202 462 7924
202 462 5264 (fax)
llf@lambdalit.org
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The extensive services and resources of the
Library of Congress are available to institutions, businesses, and
you. Learn how to access the Library's global collections covering
all languages, topics, and types of material. Doing research? Use
the services and tools created by expert staff to help meet your
needs.
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National Lesbian & Gay Journalist Association
NLGJA works within the news industry to foster
fair and accurate coverage of lesbian and gay issues and opposes
newsroom bias against gays and lesbians and all other
minorities. NLGJA provides networking opportunities for
lesbian and gay journalists, media professionals and communication
/ journalism students on local, national and international levels.
2120 L Street, NW, Suite 840
Washington, DC 20037
202 588 9888
202 588 1818 (fax)
nlgja@aol.com
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Since 1921, when it was founded in London by
John Galsworthy, to foster understanding among men and women of
letters in all countries, PEN has endured as the only worldwide
organization of literary writers. It has grown to include Centers
on six continents--with a total membership of more than
10,000--which sponsor International PEN Congresses held at least
once a year.
Gay & Lesbian Committee
PEN American Center
568 Broadway
New York, NY 10012-3225
212 334 1660
212 334 2181 (fax)
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Publishing Triangle
The association of lesbians and gay men in publishing
17 East 47th Street, Third Floor
New York, NY 10017
212 588 8867
chair@publishingtriangle.org
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Edith Bellamy
Sophisticated and curiously delicate transgender fiction by well known author. The transsexual fiction site for
transvestites and the transgendered.
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White Crane Journal is published quarterly as a forum for
dicussion and analysis of themes in gay men's spirituality.
White Crane is edited by Toby Johnson. White Crane Journal is
available by subscription ($14/yr) or for sale in gay
bookstores across the country.
P O Box 1018
Conifer, CO 80433-1018
editor@whitecranejournal.com
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