Andrew J. Peters's Blog, page 19
December 17, 2013
Save the Date: January 9th REZ Reading Series
I’m excited to be curating the January REZ Reading Series. I chose the theme of fantasy, and have put together a talented and diverse line-up of authors from the NYC-area.
The event is Thursday, January 9th 7:30 – 9:00 PM at Odradek’s Coffee House in Kew Gardens. It’s free and open to the public.
Here’s the list of readers, which is still in formation:
Andrew J. Peters (Curator) like retold stories with a subversive twist. His début novel The Seventh Pleiade, about the legend of Atlantis, was published in November 2013. He is the author of the paranormal e-novelette series Werecat. A former Lambda Literary Foundation Fellow, Andrew has written short fiction for many publications. He grew up in Buffalo, and lives in Kew Gardens with his husband Genaro and their cat Chloë. For more about Andrew: http://andrewjpeterswrites.com
Tim Fredrick was born in Pittsburgh, PA and currently lives in Elmhurst, Queens. He’s had stories published in Circa, Pif Magazine, Wilde, and Burningword, and has a story forthcoming in Em Dash Literary Magazine. He is also the founder and editor of Newtown Literary, a semi-annual literary magazine focusing on publishing the work of writers and poets in Queens. You can find out more information about Tim at his website timfredrick.com.
Daniel W. Kelly is the author of the erotic horror novels Combustion and No Place for Little Ones and the collections Closet Monsters: Zombied Out and Tales of Gothotica and Horny Devils. He is also the founder of the Facebook page Boys, Bears & Scares, dedicated to all things gay male horror. Daniel grew up and lives on Long Island. For more about Daniel: http://danielwkelly.com
Nora Olsen is the author of two science fiction novels for young adults, Swans & Klons and The End. She has a new young adult novel Frenemy of The People forthcoming in May 2014 from Bold Strokes Books. Her speculative fiction has also appeared in Collective Fallout magazine and the anthology Heiresses of Russ 2011. Born and raised in New York City, Nora now lives about sixty miles north in the Hudson Valley. For more about Nora: http://noraolsen.com
Charlie Vazquez is the author of the novels Buzz and Israel and Contraband, and the bilingual poetry collection Meditations/Meditaciones: Bronx/Salsa. He is the New York City coordinator for Puerto Rico’s “Festival de la Palabra” and is currently working on a series of stage-plays and a short story collection. His erotic poetry collaboration with San Juan-based writer David Caleb Acevedo, entitled Hustler Rave XXX, was published in March of 2013. He is the CCO of Editorial Trance, a new digital Latino publishing company. He was born and raised in the Bronx where he currently lives. For more about Charlie: http://firekingpress.wordpress.com
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December 15, 2013
My Favorite Books of 2013
It’s time for my annual lists, where I share my highly skewed reading and film-watching preferences. First up: books!
I read a total of twenty-four books this year, which is better than I did in 2012 (19 books).
I try to keep up with new releases in order to make this annual post somewhat relevant. I ended up doing better than previous years on that score as well. Half of the books I read this year were 2013 releases.
Here are the books I liked the best.
This was my very favorite book of the year. An engrossing mix of folklore and period fiction, Wecker’s The Golem and the Djinni brings to life, in palpable detail, the experience of Jewish and Arab immigrants in late 19th century New York City. This book definitely has appeal for Neil Gaiman fans, and also for anyone looking for a story inspired by Middle Eastern folk legends.
Far on the other side of the spectrum, David Zelman’s comic send-up to military politics and homophobia was a highly enjoyable, transgressive read. Even better, it’s been banned by Apple iBooks for “objectionable content.” The story and the illustrations are definitely adult material, but its hardly “objectionable” for any adult reader with a sense of humor, in my opinion.
As with The Golem and the Djinni above, I picked up this title while searching for books inspired by Middle Eastern folklore. I became a fast fan. This is the second book in “The Father of Locks” series, and it stands well on its own. Killeen has a madcap tone that goes off the rails for me at times, but the story’s unique mix of Arab-centered medieval history and gay/bisexual characters was a winning combination.
The Persian Boy has been called the best work of ancient world historical fiction (gay-themed or otherwise). It only took me thirty years to finally read it when it came out in e-book format this past fall. It’s long and epic and filled with interesting details about the life of Alexander the Great. Most of all, it was the beautiful evocative writing that I loved..
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November 25, 2013
Photos from the Book Launch Party
Many thanks to Bureau of General Services-Queer Division, and especially Greg Newton for hosting the book launch party for The Seventh Pleiade.
It was a great time!
My husband Genaro took a few shots during the night.
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November 18, 2013
ReLeAsE DaY!!!
Cue the music…
via YouTube
It’s the official release day for The Seventh Pleiade!!
Atlantis is besieged by violent storms, tremors, and a barbarian army. For sixteen-year old Aerander, it’s a calamitous backdrop to his Panegyris, where boys are feted for their passage to manhood.
Amid a secret web of romances among the celebrants, Aerander’s cousin Dam goes missing with two boys. With the kingdom in crisis, no one suspects the High Priest Zazamoukh though Aerander uncovers a conspiracy to barter boys for dark spiritual power. Aerander’s proof — an underground vault that disappears in the morning — brings shame on his family and suspicions of lunacy. The only way to regain his honor is to prove what really happened to the missing boys.
Tracking Dam leads Aerander on a terrifying and fantastical journey. He spots a star that hasn’t been seen for centuries. He uncovers a legend about an ancient race of men who hid below the earth. And traveling to an underground world, he learns about matters even more urgent than the missing boys. The world aboveground is changing, and he will have to clear a path for the kingdom’s survival.
Now available for purchase at Bold Strokes Books, Amazon, Barnes & Noble and IndieBound.
And, for New Yorkers, you can get an autographed copy of the book this Friday, November 22nd at the Official Release Party hosted by Bureau of General Services – Queer Division. It’s free and open to the public.
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November 11, 2013
The Seventh Pleiade Launch Party!
One of my favorite venues, the Bureau for General Services – Queer Division is hosting the release party for The Seventh Pleiade. Details:
Friday, November 22nd 8:30 – 10:30PM
BGSQD c/o CAGE
83A Hester Street, New York, NY 10002
Here’s the Facebook event page: https://www.facebook.com/events/252080211607191/?source=1
What you can expect: drinks, hors d’oeuvres, books, autographed copies for sale, music, and me with a big happy face. I am working on a party playlist and recently discovered this atmospheric track by Josh Grobman from the Troy soundtrack:
via YouTube
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November 3, 2013
2013 Bent-con Adds Qweirdos Panel
I’ll be speaking on a panel next Saturday, November 9th 5pm at Bent-con in Los Angeles, along with authors Diane Anderson-Mitchell, Jess Faraday, Daniel W. Kelly, and Felice Picano.
The title of our program is: Qweirdos! LGBT Voices for a Generation of Gay Geeks and Freaks.
I never considered myself a geek before, at least not with a capital G, until I got into researching Atlantis. Now that I can happily hold my own in conversations about the origins of Aquaman, the Bimini theory versus the Thera theory, and Lewis Spence’s concept of the Atlantean Culture Complex, I think I have qualified for that title.
Here’s a description of our program from the Bent-con website:
Forget circuit parties and lesbian golf events. The Qweirdo is a fresh gay subculture obsessed with comic conventions, the SyFy Network, Harry Potter, True Blood, and drag queen midnight movies. A panel of Bold Strokes Books authors considers why an LGBTQ community is emerging so strongly in genres usually dominated by straight geeks who can’t get dates, why general horror, sci-fi, and fantasy fiction aren’t enough and we need LGBTQ voices in the genres, finding our audience, and more.
Sound like your idea of a good time? Come join us, and while you’re at the con, stop by the Bold Strokes Books table to get an autographed copy of The Seventh Pleiade.
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October 31, 2013
The Number of LGBT YA Titles Increasing at a Turtle’s Pace According to Malinda Lo
This is a lazy blog post. It really is.
I basically just wanted to share a very sharp, well-reasoned analysis of the status of LGBT YA written by author Malinda Lo earlier this week (“LGBT Young Adult Books 2003-2013: A Decade of Slow But Steady Change”).
You might find the title to be a bit charitable after you read the article and see her pie charts and graphs. (Yay for Pie Charts and Graphs!) In an industry that publishes thousands of young adult books every year, on average only fifteen of those books portray LGBT teens and/or “LGBT issues” such as growing up with same-sex parents or bullying in school.
Yuck.
Anyway, as always, Lo is thoughtful and precise in her consideration of the dilemma. Part of that precision is focusing on big publishers only. The number of LGBT titles from small presses, or those self-published by authors, is very challenging to count and analyze. Including those titles could skew perceptions. It’s important that LGBT books are published, but it’s also important that they have a wide distribution so that they get to teen readers. That’s not to say that LGBT titles at big publishers are better. I like the way that Lo addresses this issue:
“In some ways, I see the largest YA publishers as analogous to the broadcast networks on television. Broadcast networks have historically had the widest reach, even though much quality programming happens these days on cable channels that have smaller distribution in the television marketplace. An analysis of the broadcast networks — or the major publishers — doesn’t negate the contributions that smaller networks (or publishers) can and do make, especially in representation of minorities, but I do think the major networks (and publishers) have a greater responsibility due to their greater reach.”
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October 23, 2013
Shifters and Weres at Paranormal Cravings
October is Shifters & Weres Month at ParanormalCravings.com. Surf over to check out book trailers, free reads, author interviews, character interviews, book giveaways and more.
I’ll be headed there myself this Friday, October 25th for a fun interview with Jackson Dowd, the main character from Werecat: The Rearing.
Yes Werecats!
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October 16, 2013
Are You Going to Bent-con?
I booked my flight to Los Angeles, and I’ll be packing up early release copies of The Seventh Pleiade to head to Bent-con 2013.
This will be my first time at a ‘con’ of any type, and I’m incredibly excited. While cons are known for comics and superhero fanaticism, this LGBT event will also feature authors and film-makers in the varied genres of fantasy, sci-fi and romance. And I’m told there’s a pool party with real, live, actual Mermen. 
If you will be passing through, please stop by Bold Strokes Books’ exhibition booth. I’ll be signing copies of The Seventh Pleiade and giving away swag.
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October 8, 2013
Postcard to Putin
A friend of mine, artist and author Stephen Mead brought to my attention this important campaign.
Postcard collage by Stephen Mead
You are probably aware of the vulnerable status of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people in Russia due in great part by the government enacting a law prohibiting the “promotion” of homosexuality. With the upcoming 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia, Russian officials even went so far as to warn international athletes that they will be banned from the games if there is evidence that they are spreading “gay propaganda.”
Some human rights activists have demanded that fair-minded countries pull out of the Sochi Olympics. Others have organized boycotts of Russian products like vodka. I think both of these strategies have their merits and their limitations, e.g. who really suffers from a boycott in a global economy?
Mead’s Postcard to Putin, which ties in with Change.org’s Love Letters to Russia campaign, is a straight forward approach to raising awareness of the government’s wrong-mindedness while putting pressure on Russia’s leaders. Whether or not the messages penetrate the hearts and minds of politicians, they give global visibility to the outrage so many of us feel. They’re also a great example of how anyone can be an activist.
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