Monthly Theme 1: Entries & Winner

Reviewsday NewsdayJune 2023: Reviews that celebrate LGBTQ PridePhoto by Hugo Ruiz on Unsplash

The Reviewsday Tuesday Monthly Theme for June 2023 was “Pride.” Reviewers were asked to submit entries that celebrate the LGBTQ+ community for the opportunity to win a small cash prize.

I was beyond thrilled to read the creative ways that the prompt was interpreted by all of our fabulous entrants. The quality, diversity, and creativity of these writers made it very difficult to choose a winning story, but choose I must!

The winner will be announced at the bottom of this post, but first, let’s review all the wonderful entries. I hope you’ll join me in reading, clapping for, and commenting on the other entries in the contest, organized below by type of review.

(Note: I’ve included my own Pride-themed stories in this wrap-up, but don’t worry, I didn’t consider myself in the running for the prize! Can you imagine?)

Personal Topics

One of the prompts on the contest guidelines included the idea to write a review of an experience, a facet of your identity, or another type of “personal” review. These entries did not disappoint on that front:

“Growing Up Gay in the U.S. of A.” by Tovah Rainsong

Growing up Gay in the U.S. of A.

“My First Pride Parade” by Willow Dickerson

My First Pride Parade

“Growing Up Gay in the U.S. of A. (Part 2)” by Tovah Rainsong

Growing Up Gay in the U.S. of A. Part 2

Book and Movie Reviews

Book and movie reviews are a staple at Reviewsday Tuesday! Here are the entries that reviewed queer books and movies:

Junker Seven reviewed by Margherita Reads

[ book review ] Junker Seven by Olive J. Kelley

Under the Whispering Door reviewed by Casey Lawrence

His Death Was Their Beginning

Mind Platter reviewed by Rabiawahid

Mind Platter by Najwa Zebian

If You’ll Have Me reviewed by Margherita Reads

[ book review ] If You’ll Have Me by Eunnie

Ammonite reviewed by Casey Lawrence

Ammonite (2020), Queering History

Dirty Little Secret reviewed by Margherita Reads

[ book review ] Dirty Little Secret by Fern V. Bedek

Other Reviews

Here at Reviewsday Tuesday, we are open to reviews of all kinds. That means that not everything will be able to fit nicely in a category, which is why we have this lovely “Other” section.

“10 Worst Pride Campaigns” reviewed by Casey Lawrence

10 Worst Pride Campaigns

“Gender Inclusivity in Pickleball” by Tovah Rainsong

Gender Inclusivity in Pickleball — the Fastest Growing Sport in the USA

“In Support of They” by Willow Dickerson

In Support of They

“The Queer Art of Storytelling” by Tovah Rainsong

The Art of Queer Storytelling

🏆❤️🧡💛💚💙💜 🏆 The Winner 🏆 ❤️🧡💛💚💙💜🏆

It was very difficult to decide who to award the prize to after reading all these wonderful stories. So many of them were deeply personal, and you can tell the authors put their whole hearts into them.

Pride Month is more than just a celebration of queer identities. The first Pride was a riot, and it has always been political — not a party but a protest. The LGBTQ+ community has fought hard for decriminalization, marriage equality, bodily autonomy, reproductive rights, privacy, equal healthcare access, adoption/parental rights, and reducing stigma and violence against members of the community. The winning story really evokes the meaning of Pride by reminding us of a time when queerness was not a thing one could be proud of, but instead a family’s “dirty secret.”

WINNER: “Growing Up Gay in the U.S. of A.” by Tovah Rainsong

Growing up Gay in the U.S. of A.

This was the very first review submitted to the Monthly Theme contest, and it set an incredibly high bar for other entries. Every time I read a story, in my head I was comparing it to this one. This is exactly the sort of story I was hoping this theme would inspire, and I am so excited to be able to offer the prize to a very deserving winner.

Congratulations Tovah! Reach out to me in a private note with your PayPal address to arrange payment.

❤️🧡💛💚💙💜❤️🧡💛💚💙💜❤️🧡💛💚💙💜❤️🧡💛💚💙💜

Thank you to everyone who participated in this month’s Monthly Theme contest! I would have liked to have seen even more entries, but I am very happy with the quality of the ones that were submitted.

Thank you also to all of our loyal readers and writers who made this contest possible. Whether you’ve submitted one review or a dozen, I appreciate each and every one of my writers, so let’s take a moment to thank all the writers for Reviewsday Tuesday:

Grace Mary Power ❤️ JamieWrites 🧡 Willow Dickerson 💛 Andrew Pretzel 💚 Ann Ogochukwu 💙 Barney Abramson 💜 Chidera G. Marizu ❤️ David Perlmutter 🧡 Denise Lance 💛 Elin Melaas 💚 Coriander Wolfgang Rainbeaux 💙 Jenna Franzese 💜 Julia A. Keirns ❤️ Ken Yie 🧡 Madelaine Bell 💛 Margherita Reads 💚 Molly Willett 💙 petrichor 💜 Molly Miller ❤️ Prtorcangabe 🧡 Rabiawahid 💛 Sally Morem 💚 Sanchari Pait 💙 Tovah Rainsong 💜 S. G. S. Abel ❤️ Sruthi Korlakunta 🧡 Walter Bowne 💛 Transylvanian 💚 Yalım 💙 Heather Lawrence 💜 Kenny Minker ❤️ Greenland Genealogy 🧡

If you have suggestions for future Monthly Theme topics, please leave them in the comments of this post.

To stay up-to-date on Reviewsday Tuesday news, including contest announcements, subscribe to our newsletter, Reviewsday Newsday! There’s still time to enter the July Monthly Theme contest.

Reviewsday Tuesday Monthly Theme: July 2023

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Monthly Theme 1: Entries & Winner was originally published in Reviewsday Tuesday on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.