Steve Berman's Blog, page 13

mroctober @ 2010-11-04T11:50:00

I've been slowly amassing both stories and illustrations for a forthcoming collection of my YA queer-themed work. Hopefully it will release next year in the fall.

A review on SH

A really interesting review about Subtle Bodies on Strange Horizons

So, on a whim...

I'll be haunting the edges of WFC.

Best Gay Stories 2010

Closets are for dandy clothes but not for gay essays or fiction. In the newest edition of Best Gay Stories, editor Steve Berman has selected confessions and stories that range from in scope from "S" - sensational - to "XL" - extra-liberating: a personal remembrance of the Stonewall Riots; a tale of awkward first love; the allure of Tadzio for not only Gustav von Aschenbach but every reader of Thomas Mann; the wisdom of Auntie Mame serving as one man's banner, among other explorations of our community's desires and heartaches and wants. The labels on these stories are designer, the stitching strong, and the fit, you will find, is perfect.

Saving for that Good Night

Since It Doesn't Get Better any more, I have secured the help of Mortimer:



His goal is to save for my forthcoming burial. While I have a plot already, I don't have coffin, a suit that fits any more, etc.

Ahh, if only Carousel was a reality.

Intro to BGS

"It gets better." That phrase, thanks to Dan Savage, is being used to bolster the spirits of gay youth. I have started to wonder if life, as an adult, a gay man of mature years, similarly improves.

Perhaps the question should be asked both before and after reading this anthology.

In many ways, authors struggle with that rudimentary question whenever they write a story. Does it get better for the characters involved? We no longer live in an era when society expects gay characters on the page to lead tormented lives and suffer brutal deaths or abandonment because they are morally wanting. No, these days a gay man might find companionship or love or—dare I even say it?—hope by a story's end.

But fiction is, by its very nature, a lie. So are we deceiving ourselves, seeking only to escape the real world, which remains a brutal place? Homophobia and beatings and injustice are blogged about every day. In fact, more words are spent on the Internet (and its antediluvian precursor, the newspaper) describing the pains of gay men than seem to be written extolling the virtues of being queer. Some readers may well turn the last page of a heartwarming tale only to find the sentiment fading fast as the vicissitudes of the news sink in.

That is why I also include, in addition to fiction, essays in Best Gay Stories. Essays are not falsifications but, rather, sincere attempts to bridge the gap between author and reader. And yet they are stories still, anecdotes and vignettes that, when best written, reach us with as much wonder and emotion as a beloved fairy tale. Essays about idols and crushes and authors who paved the way for all of us who dream and aspire.

So you have truths--the essays--and lies--the fiction. Truth and lies. Gay men have long been familiar with both, have needed both to survive in the modern world. Don't be afraid to immerse yourself in either. The lies, clever bits of whimsy and imagination and deceit, will fill you with a range of emotions as a proper lover should. And the truths will be mentors and confidants.

It gets better. For some of the characters in this anthology, that is true. For others...they remain lost, but I hope you will see their plight as it will resonate with you. Not as cautionary tales or moral punishments but as glimpses into the darker corners of life. If there is no struggle, there is no accomplishment. No blue ribbon or Best Gay Stories.

I don't know if real life for mature men gets better with age like certain wine. I'll ask you to be kind and lie to me. Or be daring and offer the truth. What I do know is, as a reader of gay fiction, I find that every year more than a dozen writers will produce something so important that my life changes a little bit for the better after I reach the last page.

Steve Berman
2010

This will be the last year I'll be editing Best Gay Stories. 2011 and 2012 will be edited by Peter Dube.

I'm out of Pristiq. I should have gone to CVS last night and refilled the prescription but I've noticed of late that my moods have gone from content with mild disappointment but functional to dismayed at everything with some functionality. Is that worth $35? Not that I have it to spare. I suppose, too, I should be taking my Crestor and my Xanax and (oh, I wish, I wish) Ambien, but they are all too expense and the goal of Crestor seems to be opposite my goals (healthy arteries = extended lifespan).

Welcome to Autumn. Back int he day I thought I was a fantasy writer I created my own Zodiac. There was a sign of the Owl, the time of year when spirits were closed and could be engaged. Real life is so disappointing.

Tomorrow is early Halloween

Tomorrow I should find a box containing my latest scheme - the first in a line of gay greeting cards. This one is for Halloween and shows two handsome fellows watching television while a monster teddy bear comes at them. I would show you the card but my website has been down for several days. I don't know why. I don't know how to fix it. But does it matter? How many people were even bothering to visit it?

Anyway, I have always thought the usual offerings of gay-themed greeting cards were dull or so focused on muscle-bound white guys. Where were the gay men of color? The bears? The fun?

We'll see if this is an idiotic idea or not. I hope to have a large line of cards for Halloween and Valentines Day and other holidays and events.

Yesterday was Coming Out Day. I didn't do anything for the holiday. I'm always torn about gay events... I often struggle with self-loathing issues. I don't regularly attend any event that features large quantities of gay men and those I do, such as Saints & Sinners or Gaylaxicon, leave me filled with pain and regret. I'm not always proud - the gay community is a false construct and filled with many bigots and prejudice as any other. These are reinforced "values" and undermine the confidence of so many men and women. I don't look in the mirror any more unless I absolutely have to -- and most days my physical appearance reflects this. Every day I retreat more and more into my apartment and despite feeling safe there, I am filled with sadness that I cannot be social.

My friend Holly told me I had mellowed. No, she's wrong. I have given up. Even the thought of an Internet hook-up, something innocuous in this modern day and age, is too much to concieve... or follow-through.

All those kids that committed suicide. I understand their pain and their despair. I do. I struggle with it every day. And that's the most frightening thing. Because, despite all the claims that "It Gets Better," for some of us, it doesn't because our worst foes are Inside.

Spirit Day

Originally posted by neo_prodigy at Spirit Day 


It’s been decided. On October 20th, 2010, we will wear purple in honor of the 6 gay boys who committed suicide in recent weeks/months due to homophobic abuse in their homes at at their schools. Purple represents Spirit on the LGBTQ flag and that’s exactly what we’d like all of you to have with you: spirit. Please know that times will get better and that you will meet people who will love you and respect you for who you are, no matter your sexuality. Please wear purple on October 20th. Tell your friends, family, co-workers, neighbors and schools.

RIP Tyler Clementi, Seth Walsh (top)
RIP Justin Aaberg, Raymond Chase (middle)
RIP Asher Brown and Billy Lucas. (bottom)

REBLOG to spread a message of love, unity and peace.