Gay & Lesbian

Outwrite Bookstore & Coffeehouse, a GLBT bookstore in Atlanta, was recently targeted by anti-gay protestors. On several consecutive Saturdays, approximately 20 protestors stood in front of the store carrying signs and a bullhorn. In response, a smaller counter-demonstration also gathered outside. Customers, neighboring businesses, and other community members have shown an "outpouring" of support, said Outwrite owner Philip Rafshoon.

In a press release issued immediately following BookExpo America and its own festive literary awards celebration, the Lambda Literary Foundation Board of Trustees announced dramatic changes regarding the future of the nonprofit organization devoted to the recognition and promotion of gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) writing.

The Publishing Triangle has created a list of the "100 Best Lesbian and Gay Nonfiction Books" and made the list available to booksellers, librarians, and the public on its Web site at www.publishingtriangle.org/. The association, which works to create support for lesbian and gay people in the publishing industry, compiled the list to broaden the audience for lesbian and gay literature and to promote discussion among all readers, no matter what their orientation.

While the Ides of March didn't turn out so great for Julius Caesar, this past March 15 did augur well for seasoned bookseller Lyle Starkloff, who opened Query Booksellers, a new gay and lesbian bookstore in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Starkloff has already seen considerable increase in traffic and business from the gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgendered (GLBT) community in the Twin Cities, as well as from the straight-but-not-narrow contingent, particularly since Query carries many categories outside gay and lesbian literature.

Carol Seajay, former bookseller and publisher of the now defunct Feminist Bookstore News, launched a newsletter in September titled Books to Watch Out For. Available in two editions -- The Lesbian Edition and The Gay Men's Edition -- the e-newsletter, also available in print, features book reviews, industry happenings, and other book news for readers interested in gay, lesbian, and feminist literature.

The Lambda Literary Foundation will announce the winners of the 16th Annual Lambda Literary Awards, or "Lammies," honoring a diverse range of distinguished voices in lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgendered (GLBT) publishing, at what promises to be a festive and lively ceremony at the Chicago Mart Plaza on Thursday, June 3, 2004, in conjunction with BookExpo America.

Hard-boiled noir, taboo lesbian romances, radical science fiction, and other forms of pulp fiction written by women can be found in a new series called Femmes Fatales: Women Write Pulp, which was recently launched by The Feminist Press at the City University of New York.

The Lambda Literary Foundation has announced the winners of the 15th Annual Lambda Literary Awards, or "Lammies," which honor "the best and the brightest" in lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgendered publishing. The awards were presented at a gala banquet and awards ceremony at the Millennium Biltmore Hotel in Los Angeles on May 29 in conjunction with BookExpo America.