Along with fellow m/m romance writers Kiernan Kelly and Kayelle Allen, I’ll be at Gay Days at Disney World this year, with books for sale, chapbooks to give away, promo items with pictures of yummy men (and beasts), and just generally enjoying the vibe of Gay Days. It’s always a scene, always fun, and always upbeat.

Selling romance to gay men can be a challenge sometimes. I remember one year a guy said, “Gay romance? It must be fiction.” Which made us laugh but then feel kinda sad. Everyone *wants* romance in their lives, and some of us only get it on paper it appears.

Along with Animal Attraction 2 and Rough Cut, I’ll have lots of titles from Cleis Press available including Best Gay Romance 2009, Surfer Boys, and a couple of the Best Lesbian Erotica series. After all, women want romance and sex too.

Please do stop by our booth and say hi if you’ll be there!

Got a lovely “yes” email today from Vincent, the editor of the Gay City Health Project charity anthology. They picked “Not to Forget” as one of the stories for the book, and it’s always a thrill to get an acceptance! Woo hoo!

The Gay City Health Project “is a multicultural gay men’s health organization and the premiere provider of HIV and STD testing in King County. Our mission is to promote gay and bisexual men’s health and prevent HIV transmission by building community, fostering communication and nurturing self-esteem.” The book is being sold to raise funds for this non-profit. They’re here: http://www.gaycity.org/

I’m looking forward to seeing the book and hope that it does well for the organization. From my limited experience, most folks are really kind about supporting books like this. The Coming Together series, spearheaded by Alessia Brio and Phaze, is a stellar example of the ways writers, editors, and artists donate their talents and resources to help all kinds of folks. Torquere Press has donated over $3,000 to the Lambda Legal Fund to help fight for gay marriage from their marriage Sips collections.

In other news, alas, I’m not going to be able to make it to Saints & Sinners. Trite to blame the economy I know, but it’s the truth; I just can’t justify the expense this year. In the face of publisher payment slowdowns and working around a part-time job, it’s not feasible. It’s a terrific conference though, and if you get the chance to attend, if only for one day of classes and panels, it’s worth it.

I am, however, definitely going to Gay Days at Disney next month with Kiernan Kelly and Kayelle Allen. That I’m also looking forward to. In fact, that reminds me, I need to put together some more chapbooks to give away…

Well, Gay Days is always an adventure, and this year was no exception. Between giant, inflatable penises, the diva-esque stylings of the Parliment House stars, and the outrageous posing of Ace and Poseidon, the models Kiernan used for body painting, the weekend was a scream. Despite the heat in the hall, folks were kind and interested in our work. Kiernan gave away an awesome gift basket and I gave away a 3-pack of my books. Congratulations, J.R.!

Thanks also to: Jerry, John(1), Melissa, Charlie, Anthony, Paco, Jeff, Rick, John(2), Toland, Kevin, boy, and Bob for supporting writers and giving my stories a chance. I hope you do enjoy them, in every sense of the word.

Whew. Tired now. Exhilarated but tired.

I’m shutting down the comp and getting packed up and ready to hit the road for Gay Days! I had a poster made of the book cover and it’s… yowsa. Seriously life-sized and the model looks… yowsa. I think it’ll attract a lot of attention.

If you’ll be attending, please do stop by the 18+ room (!) and say hello. My sale book list includes Rough Cut, of course, Best Gay Romance, Hot Cops, Truckers, and Country Boys. Kiernan Kelly and I are sharing a table, giving away mini-CDs, chapbooks, postcards, bookmarks, and candy and we’ll have eye-candy. Ahem.