Labeling Lesbian Fiction Debate

Barb: "What I find joy in is being asked to respond to the question 'where do we categorize books written by lesbian authors'!?! That you respect gays and lesbians enough to ask in an open forum, is grand! It wasn't long ago that people avoided, ignored and in some cases actively silenced opinions like mine. I would say that illuminating truth, love, openness, wholeness and spirit in confident, powerful and yet caring ways, are the more important issues here. Or a simpler way of saying it is: keep bringing out into the open great, riveting stories, based on all women's views and experiences of life and reality, and make them easily available everywhere and anywhere!"

Will: "Here's the thing, I think it's kind of silly... However, I know some people like to have things categorized so they can find stories with "their people" in them. Be it romance, fantasy, mystery, etc. I'd rather read a book because it's a good story than because it's got gay characters in it. I can't tell you how many times I've read or watched a 'gay' movie and it SUCKED. It wasn't even something I would have picked up if it had been based with gay characters but because the other lesbians I know were touting it, I picked it up and wound up hating it.

It's like this rule that we have to like what our people do. Meh.

I think it's a silly thing but something that society does. And like I said, I think it has a time and place. However, if I were publishing a novel, and it had gay characters in it, I wouldn't want to publish it with a 'gay publisher', so to speak. I'd want to throw it out there in with the rest and hope it floats. I wouldn't want to be set up from the get-go on the outside."

Kat: "My 2 cents... I don't think the category is needed. If you area the type of person who likes a good mystery, why should it matter if the main character is lesbian, gay, or straight? It may make the book all the more interesting to those who are not of that sexual orientation, yet, it may also make those who are, more interested also... therefore, hiking up sales. Also, I think that if the book was categorized, it could go the other way... it may make straight people shy away from buying the book, and lesbians and gays could feel exploited, or used. If I was the author, I wouldn't want my book categorized as a "lesbian or gay mystery"... I'd just want it billed a mystery. Cuz thats what it is. Period. :)

DeeDee: "But then again, I always appreciate a 'Women's History' or 'Women's Studies' section -- it makes it so much easier to find the biographies & authors I want... Wouldn't sections like this for fiction help to identify stories as well? I know it's not the same thing as fiction, but in a world where time is key, & I was looking for a story with characters that were 'like me' or whatever reason I had for wanting such a theme...

I mean let's face it, if you wanted a lesbian romance & you went to the romance section, how many spines would you need to trace your fingers over, how many book-backs would you need to read until you found just one?"

Barb: "It used to be that women wrote the books for women that men wanted us to read. Keep us focused on reading romances and we'll stay out of the boardrooms! Well, no duh, women are more than just sex objects. Women are capable of combining nurturance and getting the job done without giving up who they are, in fact: this is who they are! Men can learn to get the job done and be loving as well! Lesbian women aren't really men in disguise, they are women first who haven't always had the choice whether to stay home and raise the kids or work. They've had to find a way to take care of themselves. Frightening to some of us, I know. And I think gay men could perhaps teach straight men a thing or two about love. Is it possible that in becoming less of a needy 'half' and more 'whole' each of us is better prepared to enjoy the authentic, intimate relationships we say we desire? Can we be a "we" within our differences? Is it possible that gays and lesbians exist because they are part and parcel of healing life's problems as we know them? These are some of the more transcendant images or meta-messages that need to be dialogued about and integrated into the American psyche."

If you had a book published, and the story was 'lesbian' in theme, would you want it to be marketed as such, or just like any other book in it's genre ~ if it was a 'romance' with other romances only, if it was 'sci-fi' only with 'sci-fi' books, or would you then aim for 'the lesbian & gay market?'

Will: "Personally, I'd want my book published and shelved along with the other fiction. I'd be more than happy to run around and advertise my work and mention that yes, there are lesbian characters but that no, it's not a LESBIAN book.

I think sometimes we over-gayify (new word!) things. It's a story that has a lesbian in it or it's a story ABOUT a lesbian. I think it comes down to what the writer was trying to do. Is the main character dealing with strictly lesbian themed issues or are they issues EVERYONE can relate to?

The only example I can think of is Written on the Body. The speaker is neither male or female - at least, the author never tells you. I wouldn't expect to EVER find that under "GAY/LESBIAN" because it's really whatever the reader puts into it, you know? It's just a story about love and loss.

Personally, I think it kind of lessens the writer to be shelved according to the gender/sexuality of their main characters."

Gaëlle: "I think the classification of a book really depends on the book contents. Take David Sedaris, for example... he’s gay, and he has some gay themes, but he has a greater appeal than just to gay people. He’s not usually in the gay and lesbian section. If ia book is specifically geared towards gay and lesbian people it should, of course, be in that section. If it straddles the line... I think it could be in either fiction or gay and lesbian. Katherine V Forrest is a lesbian mystery writer and is almost always in the gay and lesbian section rather than just fiction or mystery. Maybe they take into consideration the author’s intest and concerns (or the publishers)...?"

DeeDee: "Given the status of large booksellers, the odds of anyone there actually knowing more about the book than what the publisher has stamped as a category or section on the back is highly unlikely...

From a marketing point of view, knowing that even small specialized booksellers who are searching for specific works, themes etc have difficult times, I'd think you'd want it noted somehow -- if not on the book like 'Lookie, it's got lesbian content!' you'd at least want promotional materials for booksellers (& buyers) so they would know how to sell it. Which means much more than shelving it... and this gives many bookstores, esp large ones, *way* too much credit. The bottom line is, do you want these books to be found?"

Gaëlle: "If it were my book, I probably wouldn’t care too much. Most of my writing would be more focused on a general audience rather than gay and lesbian, though... and it’s nice to think that gay and lesbian authors wouldn’t be segregated from straight authors.

All that said, I must offer the opinion that most gay and lesbian specific books are so terrible…with very few exceptions."

Debbie: "This is odd, my very favorite series of books of all time has a gay wizard as the main character... Mercedes Lackey's Valdemar Series, the very first three. I even named a cat after him (the wizard). And one of my top favorite fiction books of all time is also has a gay protagonist, and also a gay author... Gael Baudino's Gossamer Axe. The Baudino novel is kinda fantasy and rock n roll, so I loved it, still do, still read it.

But I bought them because they were in the sci fi/fantasy genre that I prefer to read, not cause anyone was or wasn't gay or straight."

DeeDee: "Ok, but if you *were* looking for a story that represented you, your lifestyle, as a lesbian... How are you going to find that needle in a haystack? Hell, at the large chains, I can hardly find a straight fiction book I like as I wander around & around the fiction section... Which is why I do most of my book shopping online now...

But what if you needed to find yourself at a store?"

Barb: "As you know, U.S. society is quite polarized these days (or so the media would have us believe!). I do know that so many lesbians (and allies) are still hiding out, disempowered and not sensing enough support to be free enough to become all they desire to be. And that includes lesbian executives and leaders, those who've achieved uncommon success in their careers, but who are still suffering inside (and perhaps not doing their best work) because they are not being truthful about who they are at work fearing they have "much to lose" as well as the lesbian employee, entrepreneur or creative who wants to bring more of herself to her work, but fears handling the challenges this will bring. Having visible stories of strong lesbian characters, who are in charge of their romantic and work lives, offering lesbian women a mirror, is tremendous."

DeeDee: "Just like with the "Women's Interest" sections!"

Let's say you are looking for a 'good mystery' but it's a gift for a friend, who *is* lesbian. Would having the book in a 'lesbian section' be helpful? I mean the book *is* in the mystery section, but it's also in the 'lesbian fiction' section. If there was a 'lesbian fiction' section, wouldn't it be easier to find it there? From a marketing point of view, it seems that 'both' is a good idea... *However* by virtue of a 'lesbian section' are we implying that 'everything else' is 'straight?'

Kat: "Number One, if I were to buy a book for a lesbian girlfriend, I'd buy a book that she likes. Be it a mystery, a romance etc. I necessarily would not look in the 'lesbian/gay' section of the store. Sure, it would it make it easier, but I'm trying to find a book that she'd like, not one that has lesbian characters in it.

Number Two, regarding the 'implying everything else is straight' issue -- YES! I think that is how the general public feels. I think some would think that if its in the lesbian/gay section that what all the books are about... in other sections, the books are geared toward the straight folk.

Number Three, I guess I don't look at a person's sexual orientation all that much. To me, it's their choice, and I don't let that enter into whether I like the person or not... I see them as just that... A PERSON... a HUMAN BEING... not a lesbian, a dyke, a homosexual etc..."

Debbie: "Would my gay friend think I was implying that he or she only would wanna read books about gay people? That's kinda constricting, isn't it??"

Will: "Yes, a straight friend would probably opt for the 'lesbian mystery' for, say, me, over the regular old mystery. Why? I think it's just human nature. But like I said before, all that's gay is not gold - some of it's down right shit. And it's important, I think, to the youth of this country. I mean let's say little Susie wants to read about lesbians because she's having thoughts. So she picks up a book that just HAPPENS to have a lesbian character in it. It's easier for her to do that with the 'regular' books than to step into the "GAY/LESBIAN" territory in a book store.

And don't get me started on the GAY/LESBIAN section at the bookstore. Has anyone else noticed it gets smaller everytime you go in and it moves around? Or is that just here in the buckle of the Bible Belt?"

So, what's the bottom line here?

Barb: "As far as how to categorize books, it's a paradox for you, really, meaning one you'll probably never quite be able to analyze completely (or at least, without many focus groups), so don't waste your time. I understand the confusion and the wanting to not "step on anyone's toes" and the need to give certain, traditionally discounted or hidden topics, voice. My solution is that it's simple: You need to include all of these concerns, or facets, here - find ways to get these tales in front of the closeted lesbian, the out and proud lesbian, the so-called 'un-enlightened,' the straight ally or "ally-to-be," the gay male, to name just a few. You definitely MUST include separate categories for lesbian mysteries, lesbian sci-fi, etc. as well as putting these titles under general mystery, sci-fi, women's mystery, sci-fi, multi-cultural or diversity labels, etc. It's not a question of either/or, it's a question of either/and. As for how good a book is, let the reader (gay, straight, black, white, whatever) decide. My advice is that you put these books in as many categories as you can justify!"

DeeDee: "As a marketing person, I'd say we need 'the good lesbian mystery book' in *both* the mystery section & the gay/lesbian mystery (or fiction) section. But then, as a marketer, I'd *always* want a book getting double the exposure! lol"

As always, I thank the Sex Kittens for their candor, and many thanks to Barb Elgin, aka Coach Sappho, of Coach Sappho's 'Creating a Life I Love' Club (THE place for lesbian women and allies who are creating lives they love!)