LGBT+ Folk in Fantasy Lit-Greetings!

[AJ Dodge]

(edited post)

Hello there!
I just joined SFFWorld and I wanted to introduce myself before I start exploring the forums and community and whatnot.

Here is my website:
ajdodgecreations.com
And feel free to add me on Twitter.

I'm a fantasy/specfic writer who is interested in alternative characters in fantastical stories. It's been sort of a logic-failure to me in my reading of the fantasy genre how complex magical systems, exotic unearthly creatures, and characters returning from the grave is easily accepted in modern fantasy lit, yet lesbian, gay, bisexual, etc. characters are so rare.

So my stories are for fantasy buffs who need a little gay in their day But of course, straight readers are welcome to open themselves up to a new world. My work isn't ever explicitly sexual, so no fear for the squeamish. I would really love to talk to some other LGBT writers/readers of the fantasy genre, so say hi I promise I don't bite!

 

[Contrarius]

Hey there --

I don't check this area of the forum very often, so I didn't see your post til just now.

I'm rather surprised that you're having trouble finding LGBT characters in modern sff. In fact, several of the leading Hugo and Nebula contenders this year feature or at least include LGBT individuals. Nonetheless, exposure is a Good Thing, so hello to the forums! I'm not LGBT myself, but I'm familiar with both the field of mm romance and with LGBT characters in "mainstream" sff, and I'd be happy to give you some pointers to LGBT-inclusive books if you'd like.

 

[AJ Dodge]

Hiya!
I am relatively new to the fantasy genre, only a few years in, so I still have a lot of research and reading to do, but I rarely come across a story during my internet perusings that have a gay character in them. I have since discovered a good list of books featuring LGBT characters that I plan to read. To me, though, it has more to do with how the author writes them than simply having the representation there.

I'd be happy to hear any recommendations you have, though! I'm always looking for good stuff to read.

 

[Contrarius]

Okay, first, there's a bit of a chasm between what's seen as "mainstream" lit with LGBT characters, and what's seen as "mm" or "gay" lit/romance with LGBT characters. There's some overlap between the two, but people who read mainstream sff are usually unlikely to have come across the mm subgrouping.

Just considering this year's Hugo hopefuls (both sf and f), here are some with LGBT characters:

--Seveneves by Neal Stephenson -- two of the seven "Seven Eves" are lesbians.
--Ancillary Mercy by Anne Leckie -- the whole trilogy plays with gender by erasing it. So not LGBT as such, but nonheteronormative.
--The Fifth Season by NK Jemisin -- the two main characters spend some time in an mmf relationship.
--The Traitor Baru Cormorant by Seth Dickinson -- the main character's parents are in an mmf relationship at the beginning of the book, and she is lesbian herself.
--Karen Memory by Elizabeth Bear -- the main character is lesbian and in a relationship, and a prominent secondary character is transgender. I believe there are other LGBT characters as well, but it's been a while since I read this one.
--The Grace of Kings by Ken Liu -- the homosexuality of a minor character is mentioned in passing, without condemnation (a main character is giving him relationship advice)
--The Aeronaut's Windlass by Jim Butcher -- a secondary character is gay and in a relationship
--Gentleman Jole and the Red Queen by Lois McMaster Bujold (not so much a Hugo contender, but published 2015) -- it is revealed that the two main characters

Spoiler

have been in a long-term mmf arrangement that they considered a three-way marriage until the death of their third, at which time they went their separate ways. Over the course of the book they become involved with each other again in an mf relationship.

One of my personal favorites, not from this year -- the Land Fit for Heroes books, starting with The Steel Remains, by Richard Morgan. Two of the three main characters are LGBT.

That should get you started with just a few prominent recent books in the mainstream. If I get time later, I'll post a few from the more specialized mm lit.

 

[AJ Dodge]

Thanks! A few of those books are on my list. I will be looking into them. I'm not necessarily interested in m/m specifically, I do enjoy a good m/m love story but I tend to be more interested in women's stories.

It makes sense that SFF would be a genre where LGBT characters are becoming more prominent. It will be interesting to see if any of those books win the Hugo award! To be honest, I'm not very educated on fantasy because I actually started writing it before I started reading it. I tend to ready only a select few fantasy books I come across despite that I love the genre as a whole.

But, that is why I've joined this forum, hoping to expand my knowledge. Thanks again for the recommendations.