While the most talked about topic in the world of queer books is censorship and bans, there’s a quiet truth to the matter that reveals the strength of the authors and the commitment of the readers. Queer titles that will be released in 2023 are full of joy and resistance. Industry professionals say the industry is only becoming more ambitious.
Natalie Edwards, a Trellis Literary Management literary agent, said that “we’re moving into more queer joy while not shying away form the difficulties of being queer.” “There are many more perspectives on the spectrum than we’re hearing.”
Edwards stated that whether queerness is central to the story or interwoven into it, there was once a “sense that queerness had been palatable and safe” in order to have widespread success. But writers are pushing the limits and readers are responding. The sales have exploded.
According to a report by The NPD Group, LGBTQ fiction sales soared in the U.S. in 2021. They surpassed 5 million units in 2021, more than doubling previous year’s sales. The report revealed that these titles saw the greatest gains, despite being targeted by book banning efforts.
According to market research firm Grand View Research the overall book market is expected to grow in 2023. Queer bibliophiles predict a greater variety of queer stories for readers this year.
Marisa Crane’s speculative novel “I Keep My Exoskeletons To Myself”, published by Catapult hits shelves on Tuesday. This story, which centers on a queer mother raising her daughter under surveillance state conditions, has been called “Dept.” of Speculation” meets “Black Mirror.” Crane’s debut novel has been named in most-anticipated-books lists by Goodreads, Independent Book Review and Lambda Literary, among others.
Mira, a HarperCollins imprint, will release the novel “Daughters of Nantucket” in March. Edwards’ literary agency woven a queer narrative into this historical fiction title. It tells the story of three women who lived on Nantucket, Massachusetts, in 1846. The story includes astronomy, whaling, and a huge fire that forces the characters to make life-altering choices.
In May, Jenny Fran Davis releases the highly anticipated “Dykette” book. This debut novel, published by Henry Holt and Co. and cited by Edwards as one she looks forward to reading is about a woman’s 10-day journey with her partner and two queer couples. It’s a story promising “a complex web of infatuation and jealousy” and “a spiral of destructive rage.” Davis’ debut novel has been named in most-anticipated-books lists by BuzzFeed, Literary Hub and Electric Literature, among others.
Catapult Book Group’s editorial director Dan Smetanka said that he has three imprints, Catapult Press, Counterpoint Press, and Soft Skull Press, all dedicated to supporting and finding LGBTQ voices.
He said, “The rubrics for any writer or project are the same: Who are they, what are their words, how are they saying them, and what does it add?” Smetanka, who is a veteran of the book industry, stated that the queer books he sees today have “an ambition now that’s appropriate for the times.”
Smetanka, like many publishers, sees book bans or censorship efforts in a call for action against something that “has not place in our society.”
He said, “I hope writers see that and want to address it immediately. Publishers feel renewed vigor to push back into that space.”
Two other queer titles debuting this year from Catapult are Amelia Possanza’s “Lesbian Love Story,” which combines memoir with real-life love stories of women across several generations, and Ruth Madievsky’s “All-Night Pharmacy,” described as a Rachel Kushner-meets-David-Lynch “fever dream of an LA novel about a young woman who commits a drunken act of violence just before her sister vanishes without a trace.”
Nonbinary and trans writers have had their books censored just as celebrated. According to an April report by the American Library Association, “Gender Queer”, an illustrated memoir by Maia Kobabe, was the most challenging book in 2021. The Top 10 Most Frequently Challenged Books in 2021 list by the ALA also includes George M. Johnson’s memoir, “All Boys Aren’t Blue,” which was No. 3. Susan Kuklin’s book “Beyond Magenta : Transgender Teens Talk Out” was No. 10.
Some trans publishers have had to consider the future of books written by trans or nonbinary authors, and how community-based publishing can help them.
“You can never predict how the political situation or how the backlash will turn out. What happens when the money runs out? “What happens if our books aren’t selling or the books that we want to write don’t sell?” asked Casey Plett (co-founder and publisher of the feminist newspaper LittlePuss Press).
Plett and Cat Fitzpatrick, her co-founder, have a different perspective than most publishers. They are more involved in the writing process that is expected of them. They follow the tradition of small presses and queer zines, where books gain popularity and visibility through word-of mouth.
Plett stated that Plett and Plett feel committed to running their own show.
LittlePuss is currently working on two short stories collections by Anton Solomonik, and Emily Zhou, both trans authors.
Plett stated, “I think that we feel that from the perspective of trans editors we had, we felt we were right people to take on these books and bring them into this world.”
Although she couldn’t guarantee these books would be available this year, she shared the following: Alison Rumfitt “Tell me I’m Worthless,” a queer horror title published in Tor Nightfire by Macmillan; Hazel Jane Plante “Any Other City,” which is a fictional memoir with two sides that debuts in April from Arsenal Pulp Press . The A side tells one story, while the B side tells another; and a collection written by Alice Stoehr and will be self-published in the fall.
Suzi F. Garcia is a non-profit that promotes LGBTQ authors and books. She has been thinking about a queer future and what the next steps are for queer books.
She stated that writers are looking to “balance telling important stories with asking the question, ‘What is a queer futur?’ This includes love and joy. Can they coexist?
Garcia stated that there are many ways to answer this question. She pointed to Black on Black, which is a collection essays on racial tension written by Daniel Black (novelist and scholar). She described the book as having “a queer core” and a feeling of hope, while discussing important issues for LGBTQ and Black communities.
Garcia stated that she reads a lot of queer poetry. This “can have a lot more themes of trauma and joy.” She shared three titles that she is looking forward to: “Have you Been Long Enough At Table” a debut collection of poetry by Leslie Sainz, the child of Cuban exiles; Catherine Chen‘s “Beautiful Machine Woman Language”, a collection with “a lovely delicateness that kind of poems by Kweku Abimbola collection of poems that “groove and remix and moderner African language to rejoice in liberation’s struggles and victories and spiritual practice to celebrate in liberation’s triumphs and to enjoy in the struggle and to be aweku abimbola a spiritual practice to rejoice in the efforts and to celebrate the world’s and to be a newer African language to a spiritual practice to a a a a to a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a s a s a s s and s s a s s s s s s s s s s s s s s s es s s s s s s s s s s s s s s to s s s s s s s s s s s s s s ps to s s s s s s s s s s s s s -to s s s s s s s s to s s s s to s s to s to s to s to s to s to s to s to s to s to s s to s to s to s to s to s to s to s to to s to s to s to s to s to rejoice in s to s to s to s to s to s to
Garcia stated that we will be re-entering the world in 2023 as we continue to consider how the pandemic affected our lives, and how we can re-enter it as individuals and communities. These themes will play an important role in the upcoming titles, Garcia said.
Garcia stated that “Finding safety and community, joy, and love in the community is a big part of how we get over the trauma and pain that comes along with being marginalized communities,” Garcia said. “We all find different ways to do things.”
