It's a bird, it's a plane, it's my new blog... on Blogging!

So Today is the official launch of my new blog, The Zen Of Blogging, uh... Blog!



It's all about how blogging doesn't have to be superheroic. It can be fun. Useful. Manageable. And yes, even Zen.

I'd love for you to click on over and check it out.

Thanks!

Namaste (the light in me recognizes and acknowledges the light in you),
Lee

Dream Boy - A Gay Teen Novel

By Jim Grimsley

Nathan's a high school sophomore.

His Dad's abusive, his Mom's almost not there.

But there's this guy next door - Roy.

Roy is a senior. And he might just be... Nathan's dream boy.


Add your review of "dream boy" in comments!

Qualities Of Light - A Lesbian Teen Novel

By Mary Carroll Moore


Molly has to rescue her family after an accident puts her younger brother in a coma.

And in the middle of it all, Zoe comes into her life... and the teenage girls fall in love.


"Qualities of Light" was nominated for both a PEN/Faulkner Award and Lambda Literary Award. Add your review of the novel in comments!

Eric Diaz puts together The Top 10 Most Important Gay (GLBTQ) Moments In Comic Book History!

Who's the #1 Comic Book Queer?

Batwoman!



And my personal favorite Gay Superheroes, the Teen Young Avengers Hulkling and Wiccan (aren't they a cute couple?)




You've got to check out this incredible list of the top 10 Most Important Gay Moments in Comic Book History by Eric Diaz.

List of The 10 Most Important Gay Moments in Comic Book History on Ranker

And really, check out this frame from an old Batman comic!



Now THAT'S Gay!

So cool! Thank you Eric, for putting this list together. I can't wait to read them all.

Enjoy everybody!

Namaste,
Lee

No Lesbians At Prom: Constance McMillen Wanted To Take Her Girlfriend to the Prom. Her High School CANCELLED the Prom rather than let her do it.

Constance is 18. And she was brave enough to stand up to her school's 'all dates must be of the opposite gender' prom rule and ask to bring her girlfriend. Oh, and she wanted to wear a tuxedo rather than a dress.

The school said no.

Constance got in touch with the ACLU, and with the threat of a lawsuit on their hands, instead of allowing the two girls to attend the prom together, the Itawamba Agricultural High School in Mississippi CANCELED the entire prom. For everyone.

And now, kids are going up to Constance and telling her she ruined their senior year.

But it's not Constance who is at fault.

The school is acting childishly in order to defend their discrimination, and their move not only acts to alienate two GLBTQ teens from the overall school community, but has forced Constance to be the adult. She has to stand up for her right to attend her High School prom with the date of her choice. To be Real about who she is and who she loves. And I applaud her for that.

The school's excuse? The controversy has become a "distraction" to the educational process.
But what they're missing is that this is a TEACHABLE moment. And right now, I think the school needs to hear our voices. Because what they have done isn't okay. And they need to learn that.

Wanna take action?

You can sign this petition over at change.org

Wanna do more? How about organizing your GSA to write a joint letter to the school board members, the superintendent, and the principal? Or write them yourself. (Think about what you're trying to accomplish in the letter. Are you trying to change minds or express anger? What outcome would you hope your letter accomplishes?)

Board Members

Eddie Hood, a082315@allstate.com

Jack Nichols, jnichols@itawamba.k12.ms.us

Harold Martin, hmartin@itawamba.k12.ms.us

Clara Brown, cbrown@network-one.come

Tony Wallace, twallace@nexband.com


Superintendent

tmcneece@itawamba.k12.ms.us


Principal

Trae Wiygul, twiygul@itawamba.k12.ms.us

Now when the school initially said they hoped some private party steps in and hosts the prom, that made me think they had a plan in place to have the prom at a private venue, hosted by some parents, that would allow them to discriminate against Constance and prevent her from attending with her girlfriend, since it would be a private event.

But interestingly enough, the opposite has happened, and a businessman in New Orleans has offered to host a GLBTQ-friendly prom for everyone (including Constance and her girlfriend) at one of his hotels.


It will be interesting to see what ultimately happens with the lawsuit, and where and if their Prom happens. But you know what makes me hopeful?

What Constance said when asked about how hard this has been:

"The fact that this will help people later on, that's what's helping me to go on."

And it will.

Go, Constance! Go!

Namaste,
Lee

I'm a 'Volunteer In The Spotlight!' SCBWI's Los Angeles Newsletter, Kite Tales, Features Me & My Schmooze Co-Coordinator Rita Crayon Huang!

It's on page 30 of the Spring 2010 issue of Kite Tales! (You can download the pdf here!)



Volunteering as the Society of Children's Books Writers and Illustrators Los Angeles Westside Writers Schmooze Co-Coordinator has been - and continues to be - a wonderful experience.

My thanks to Rilla Jaggia and everyone at Kite Tales for the honor, and of course to my wonderful co-honoree (and friend), Rita!

Oh, and if you want to check out what we've been up to for the last 14 months, check out our schmooze blog posts here!

Namaste,
Lee

Tillmon County Fire

By Pamela Ehrenberg

There's been a fire.

Who set it? And why?

Eight Teens tell the story, each with their own chapter.

The clues line up, criss cross, and come undone as the hate crime goes to trial, and it turns out that a frustrated adoptee, a gay teen, a big-city kid wishing he were back in New York, a pregnant store clerk and a boy with autism are all at the heart of what happened to cause the "Tillmon County Fire."


Add your review of "Tillmon County Fire" in comments!

The Los Angeles Public Library Crisis - And what you can do to help!

Young Adult Librarian and Librarians' Guild Representative Henry Gambill was kind enough to talk to me yesterday about what's at stake in the current budget crisis facing LA... and how our Library system is on the edge of disaster!




Help us save the library. Time is of the essence - the city council meeting discussing this is happening on Tuesday March 16, and the mayor submits his budget on March 20th. That's not much time to change the library's dismal future.

Click here to the Save The Library website and make your voice heard!

Thanks, everyone.

Namaste,
Lee

Tomorrow, Wendy: A Love Story

By Shelley Stoehr

Cary's boyfriend Danny doesn't know what she's thinking.

Or what she's feeling for Wendy, this girl with bright green hair and a hard-candy sadness in her eyes.

So Cary tries to drown it all out with sex and drugs. Cause after all, Wendy...is the twin sister of Cary's boyfriend!


Add your review of "Tomorrow, Wendy" in comments!

Dads! The 3 Secrets To Reading With Your Daughters

As part of Share a Story - Shape a Future's carnival, my initial plan was to interview my first grade daughter about reading with her, and what it meant to her. And while I thought that would be super-cute, with mentions of cuddle time and all, it wouldn’t necessarily address the three big issues I’ve had to face about being a father who reads with his daughter. So dispensing with cute, here’s the important stuff you need to know:

1. You Gotta Get Over Your Sparkle-Fairy-Pixie-Dust-Pink-Glitter Allergy

Okay, I may be a gay man, but I admit it: I don’t particularly gravitate towards reading “girly” books. Sparkles on the cover do NOT draw me in. I like adventure stories, fantasy, sci fi, spy novels, James Bond, and the heroism of regular kids... I would never choose to read the chapter book series my daughter really grooves on. Like the SERIES of seven books about these two young girls helping seven fairies collect seven magic feathers for a magic rooster so he can better control the weather in a magic fairy land...

But my kid LOVES those books with a passion. So I get over it – and like a real man, I read them to her.

2. Repetition feels Safe for kids because they know what to expect. Repetition feels Safe for kids because they know what to expect. Repetition makes me want to zzzzzzz.

Kids love hearing stories again. And again. And really, for good ones that hit the right emotional notes for them, they could request it on an endless loop. Here’s where it’s important to not be a doormat. Or as I recently said, “No, Papi can’t read Charlotte’s Web again right now. Daddy and I spent the entire day reading it to you the first time. Go choose a different – shorter – book.”

But when you’re reading Pinkalicious for the Nth time, you have to find a way to get past the boredom of repetition and make it fun for you, too. Challenge yourself to do different voices and accents for the dialog. Track which parts of the story your kid responds to. As a writer, I sometimes focus on story structure, on point of view, on the mechanics of how the story is being told. We have one Disney version of Cinderella that’s told in third person omniscient (where we know and see everything, like the mice and birds planning the surprise of fixing up Cinderella’s dress), and another told in third person limited (where we only know what Cinderella herself knows, and the mice and birds’ work on her dress is a surprise.) They’re both based on the same movie, but the differences are really interesting. The other four versions of Cinderella on our bookshelves all have different takes, and it’s, well... fun to compare them. (Did you know there was a Jewish shtetl version of Cinderella? There is - it's "Raisel's Riddle," by Erica Silverman.) Having another level to analyze helps me stay alert and interested. But still, I’m only human and I need some variety.

3. Reading is the doorway to a Shared experience with your kid. Don’t just read it TO her. Experience it WITH her.

Here’s the biggest secret about reading with your child: It’s not just about you reading the sentences aloud and both of you following the story, getting to the words “The End” and then running off to do other things. It’s about following the story together. Pausing to talk about what just happened. Explaining words that need explaining. Guessing what’s going to happen next. Debating what a character’s better choice might have been. Spinning different outcomes and possibilities.

Kid: Why does there need to be a villain?
Me: It would be a very short, rather boring story otherwise, wouldn’t it?

Kid: Why is it “Ah-men” and not “Ah-women?”
Me: You’re right, we should call it “Ah-women.”
Kid: No, Papi. We should call it “Ah-people.”

Kid: Are you going to cry again at the end of Charlotte’s Web?
Me: Yes, Probably. (Damn thing gets me every time!)

It’s the shared experience that’s so amazing.

I was surprised that one of the best reading experiences I’ve enjoyed with my daughter in the last year has been listening to audio books during our commute time in the car. We’ve been on a huge Ramona Quimby jag, listening over and over to the same stories, but we stop the audio a lot to discuss what’s going on. My daughter jumps in to talk, and my hand hits the off button. We chat about the plot point or the decision Ramona made to not confront her teacher. And then, when my daughter’s ready, she tells me “Okay Papi, you can start the book again.”

And I vary it. When Ramona’s sister Beezus’ haircut drama for the third time around was too much, the audio book got returned and I checked out something different from the library. The Magic Tree House series of chapter books are time traveling adventures, with lots to talk about – they’re good to read and/or listen to together. In fact, many chapters end with little cliff-hangers, and it’s fun to both go “dah-dah-dahhhhh!” together.

We go to the library a LOT. My daughter chooses a pile of books, and so do I. She grabs the sparkly ones, and I pick up books like Princess Knight, about a girl who becomes a champion in her own way. It helps keep my Sparkle-Fairy-Pixie-Dust-Pink-Glitter Allergy under control. It also ensures variety. And they have a load of audio books there for kids that we choose together. (Though I do need to get better about returning them on time!)

As part of her homework right now, my first grader has to read 20 minutes a day, and she reads out loud to us. We’ve made a point to have her do her reading in the morning before school, and my husband and I read to her in the evenings. Reading has been a big part of her childhood forever, and it’s kicking in – she’s so excited about reading by herself.

But I’m hoping she’ll let us continue to read to her for many years to come. And when she finally feels too big to snuggle on the couch and share a book, I’ll still try to read the book she’s reading at the same time she does. And maybe we can even listen to Twilight in the car together. And yes, I’ll have to get over the sparkly-in-the-sunlight vampire thing. Because there are a few things I’d like to talk with her about: like how Edward treats Bella, and what makes a relationship healthy... or not.

Reading with my daughter. It’s a sparkly, repetitive, sparkly, repetitive, critically important shared experience... and it’s pretty darn wonderful.



Here are the books I mentioned above:

1. Rainbow Magic: The Weather Fairies series, by Daisy Meadows
2. Charlotte’s Web by E. B. White, illustrated by Garth Williams
3. Pinkalicious by Victoria Kann and Elizabeth Kann
4. Cinderella versions:
Walt Disney’s Cinderella, Adapted by Lisa Ann Marsoli, 1994 (3rd person omniscient)
Disney Princess Once Upon A Princess, Stories translated from the Disney Libri series by Carin McLain, 2006 (3rd person limited)
Raisel’s Riddle by Erica Silverman, illustrated by Susan Gaber (the Jewish shtetl Cinderella)
Cinderella by Barbara McClintock (Classic, based on the Perrault version)
Walt Disney’s Cinderella A Magnificent Mouse Pop-Up, by Elle D. Risco, illustrated by Mario Cortes and Inman Art (Silly pop-up fun, very much about the mice)
The Book of Princesses, stories retold by Anita Ganeri, illustrated by Anna Marsh (A basic version)
5. Ramona Quimby series by Beverly Cleary
6. Magic Tree House series by Mary Pope Osborne
7. Twilight by Stephanie Meyer