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Did someone say it’s Spider-Man Day?

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I wish lesbians were as easy to find in real life as they are on tumblr

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They find their way onto the lush purples and reds of the Persian rugs on the floor, Henry’s head in Alex’s lap and Bea on a pouf, plucking away at a weird little instrument she tells Alex is called an autoharp. Bea pulls over a tiny table and sets out crackers and a little chunk of soft cheese and takes away the brandy bottle.

Commission done for Elodie!

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Born from this:

And I changed the colours to fit the description in the book

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little bit of a long read but I find this puts into words exactly how I feel about queer representation and reader interpretation, many people see characters as queercoded even if it's not explicitly said and to be honest I think they're right a lot of the time but then again they're not right, but they're not wrong, characters are allowed to have ambiguous identities and I think authors shouldn't always fill in those gaps for people, especially when it comes to queer representation, it's not enough to simply say "___ is bi" but show no evidence of them being interested in more than one gender, especially when the only relationships or feelings that have been shown are towards the opposite sex. Representation comes from being seen and being displayed, you can't call it bisexual representation if they've never explicitly shown bisexuality and I think it's a really important thing to state. You can't just say that a character is queer to get "representation points" or the like, representation comes from being seen and being displayed. I'm actually really glad that this is how Cassandra Clare answered this question

Heronstairs

*This post is old but I want to say that it is relevant to all discussions of diversity in my books that is not on-page. If it’s not in the books, that doesn’t mean it’s impossible, or that your headcanon is wrong or it couldn’t happen. But it does mean I feel uncomfortable stating it as a fact because I don’t deserve credit for representation that is not unquestionably present in the text.

About Will and Jem…

Dear Cassie,

  Thanks again for your response to my question about Tessa! I originally wrote this the day after Heronstairs day, but with CoHF and TBC, I know you’ve been super busy! 

  I have a question regarding two big players in the Shadowhunter ‘verse: Will and Jem. Yesterday a lot of people were posting about them due to the date (November 10th) and it got me thinking.

  How are we as readers meant to interpret their relationship? After CP2, you posted about the relationships between  Tessa, Will, and Jem and said “At no point do Will and Jem discuss their need for a chaperon, lest they give in to irresistible temptation and sully the senses out of each other.”

  Online, however, there is a lot of discussion about it in terms of a relationship including romantic love. They are talked about as the third love story of TID, the third side of the triangle. 

  Platonic friendship is wonderful and I think their relationship is great no matter what, but I also think there is something inherently different though about how something “could be canon. the evidence is there” with a queer vs hetero relationship. (Harry and Hermione are probably the biggest example I can think of this, with huge numbers of people viewing it as friendship and a very large number seeing romantic love. Their relationship is meant to be seen as friendship, more like family. They even spell it out in the last book!) It’s more of a representation issue. If Harry and Hermione don’t have those feelings, there are still plenty of other straight couples in HP.

  So, as Will and Jem, are your creations, what are your thoughts on all of this? Are readers meant to understand that Jem and Will are bi of some sort (romantic and or sexual)? Is it part of the goals of writing about a not typically portrayed love triangle? Are the love interests of the protagonist queer? How would you define their relationship? 

  -K

P.S. I really enjoy all of your posts regarding representation in fiction, as someone who isn’t straight.

 Hi! Thank you first for your kind words about my posts.

When you’re dealing with representation, and reader interpretation, you’re always dealing with tricky business. I incredibly appreciate the imagination of my readers. I also know my word is not the last word on what happens in my books: no book follows every moment in the lives of its characters. What happens in the liminal spaces — the time before Jem and Will met Tessa for instance — very much belongs to the reader.

I feel uncomfortable telling readers what they’re “meant to understand.” I want them to feel like their reads are valid. There are readings I disagree with (like that Will and Jem would have been better off if they’d never met Tessa, that Tessa doesn’t really love Will/doesn’t really love Jem, etc) but that doesn’t mean they’re not meaningful for the readers who interpret the story that way.

Jem and Will have an incredibly intense relationship. They also live in a time/place where friendships and relationships between men were romanticized, and were spoken of in incredibly romantic and flowery language. I think they often speak to and about each other in a way modern readers interpret as romantic because it sounds romantic. The Victorian Romantic Friendship Reader describes the era as a time when “when men could openly express an unashamed, unselfconscious, all-consuming love for members of their own sex.” Tennyson, as far as we know (okay, there’s some debate) was straight, but wrote a long elegy on the death of his friend Arthur Hallam in which he calls him “all I love,” “him I loved, and love / For ever,” and “my lost desire.” (The poem is “In Memoriam", which shows up a lot, not coincidentally, in Clockwork Princess.)

Will and Jem definitely have a romantic friendship, and I do think the love triangle is a true triangle in the sense that Jem and Tessa love each other, Will and Tessa love each other, and Will and Jem love each other. Is their love canonically a sexual love? Here is where this is is a tricky issue because these are two distinct moral goods at play here.

 It’s very important to me that I not be given credit for representation that is not explicit in my books. I believe we are at a time when books can show characters who are not heterosexual, and those books can be published (though of course there are still many obstacles for diverse books and pressure on creators not to create diverse works, which makes it even more clear that we have a responsibility to do so.) Therefore queer coding, or later saying “Of course So-and-So was an LGBTQ character, or of course there are LGBTQ characters in my work but we never heard about them in the work and they never had any relationships and nothing would clue you in on their identity…” is not sufficient. There are gay couples in the Shadowhunters ‘verse where their sexuality is explicit on the page: there is no question with Magnus and Woolsey that they are bi and gay; there is no question in TMI about Alec and Magnus, or Aline and Helen, or any question in the Bane Chronicles that Magnus is bisexual and in relationships with men and women. That’s part of why I, along with Maureen and Sarah, wanted to write the Bane Chronicles so much–to have Magnus front and center. He deserves to be, and LGBTQ readers deserve such a protagonist. But I also think they deserve better than queer coding and hints at sexuality that isn’t hetero — that stuff should be on the page, and if it isn’t — if it’s your “headcanon” as a writer — then that’s great, but that isn’t per se representation.

 That said, I strongly believe readers should have the freedom to interpret works as they will, without a creator looking over their shoulders: There are liminal spaces in my books which are designed for readers’ imaginations to fill in. No two readers ever read quite the same book. I don’t want to take away any possible interpretations from readers: it would feel like robbing them of enjoyment I believe they should have and depriving my work of some layers. The author’s dead, and to an extent I want to be considered dead–as long as nobody comes and pops me off this mortal coil when I’m eating a yoghurt so they can enjoy my books more. I don’t ever want to get in the way of my readers enjoying my work the way they want to. 

So I hope you understand when I say: I can’t entirely answer that question. Do I mind Heronstairs? Not at all. I am totally 100% behind those who ship it. (Ship and let ship, I say.) Do I think Heronstairs makes total sense within the framework of the narrative of Infernal Devices? Yes, it does. Nothing contradicts it. Do I think Will and Jem are bisexual representation? No, and I shouldn’t get any credit for them being so. Does that mean they’re not bi? No. Does that mean they are bi? No. It means you get to decide now.

(Hopefully we can all agree they are adorable?)

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Hey! I was planning on watching good omens, but some people were calling queerbait on it. I honestly don’t care if it is or not, but what’s your opinion on the show?

Is it queerbaiting to have multiple characters who are explicitly non-binary? Is it queerbaiting to have a character occupy the bodies of both a man and a woman, and have their friend remark only positively to the change of outfit? Is it queerbaiting to have another actor play his character as both a woman and a man over time, and have no other characters bat an eye, and have the show take this example of A Man In A Dress completely seriously, without any trace of mockery? Is it queerbaiting for that actor's wardrobe to be outfitted with elements of woman's clothing even while the character is presenting "male"?

Is it queerbaiting to have a pair of characters who are dealing with the fallout and continuing threats of a complete rejection from their families for not complying with a set of rules they cannot personally abide by for reasons of both personality and choice? Is it queerbaiting to explore someone coping with that rejection, or someone realizing they can handle that rejection when they have something else worth fighting for?

Is it queerbaiting to have a pair of torn, complex characters who are On Watch for the simple act of associating with each other? Is it queerbaiting for these two to be at once hesitant and desperate to call each other their friend? Is it queerbaiting for their happy ending to be the two of them out to an extremely fancy dinner, in public, while a love song plays?

Do the characters played by David Tennant and Michael Sheen(&Miranda Richardson) kiss?

The answer to all of these questions is No, but it's that last one that people trip over when they fail to deploy any critical thinking. Or, frankly, observation skills. Queerness of gender aside, it's also ignoring, y'know, nonsexual forms of intimacy. As a gay asexual, I have to say I would love a happy ending out to an extremely fancy dinner, in public, while a love song plays, and my long term companion fondly watches me tuck in.

But apparently two characters who are immensely queer in gender, gender presentation, and their relation to Christianity/conservative families, finally being able to comfortably meet each other in the middle with undisguised affection and without fear, cannot be anything but "queerbaiting" because they don't kiss. Fuck that. Even if you view it only as friendship (which I personally don't), queer friendship is still revolutionary, especially up front and center.

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Okay so full transparency I haven't actually finished this yet... But I only have about 100 or so pages left so have my pre ending feels. I love this book so far, both Ben and Arthur are so cute and I love both boys. I relate a lot to Arthur cause he's so shy and he moves a lot quicker cause he falls faster and harder than most, the little freak outs he has if he's said something wrong or if he thinks he's messing things up are adorable and hit very close to home 😅😅. Now that I'm on break from school I will be finishing this and hopefully a few others on my tbr list so stay tuned for a few more posts hopefully soon.

Pride stack coming soon by the way!! Over the next few days I'll post my pride stack photos :D

#queerbooks #ya #lgbtqbooks #lgbtreads #lgbtq #romance #gay #gay books #booknerd #booklover #book blog #pride #pride month

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Alex and Henry, December 31st 2019

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The Heartstopper Gang!❤️

Charlie, Nick, Tara, Darcy, Elle and Tao from Heartstopper by Alice Oseman.

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‘I’m going to be the first.’ He took my palm and held it to his. ‘Swear it.’

Achilles and Patroclus from The Song Of Achilles by Madeline Miller

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just posted my first fic to ao3! it would mean a lot if you could go check it out

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OUT NOW!

During the last months we have all been working hard for it and now it’s finally here: The Pride Month Special!!

Please share it, please show love for the many creators in our community who made this possible, please ignore all the hate of she-who-must-not-be-named but be proud of who you are! Help those in need and create understanding for diversity, which is not something to be afraid of, but something wonderful that enriches our world in so many different ways. Each of us is special and unique and beautiful just like these characters we love so much. It’s nothing to be ashamed of, but what’s worth sharing!  

❤️🧡💛💚💙💜

So we hope you celebrate the next weeks as much as you can and that our zine adds a piece to it. We hope it touches you, makes you laugh, and maybe cry, but hopefully from happiness!!

Happy Pride Month & Lots Of Love!

And special thank you to all our amazing participants: 

@tardisgrump , @notmycatsname , @faabyy21 , Katnip , ErithanArt , @sunflower-swan , @meekinthedraw , Dirt, Rem, @vaindumbass , @dduucckk , @padmoonyfoot , Aurelia, Bandsarelife109 , @here-is-thegreatmoon , Anne, @girlwithacrown , Lyra , @queerstorystop , LJ Merritt & @evax3

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“And you are good. Most things are awful most of the time, but you’re good.”

Starting off pride month with Alex and Henry from Red, White and Royal Blue! I’ll be drawing more canon queer characters from books (and shows) this month! 💗

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Them... just... them 😔❤️

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(x)

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how much scarier would a frog be if it ran instead of hopped .. u just hear plat plat plat plat coming towards u and u look down and it’s a frog going at full speed

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Next week our Zine will be published!!

If you haven’t saved yourself a copy yet, you can do so by following this link! We would also like to take this opportunity to introduce some of our contributors! Without you all this wouldn’t be possible. ❤️

And last but not least: The Snakes - Part 1

LJ Merritt is definitely the champion of entries. You’ll find five different pieces from them in our zine, including all the Marauders, Lily & Sirius, Lily & Remus, and even more. We are very grateful to have them back for a second time.

Social media: 4eyesBarbie (instagram, twitter & ao3)

@queerstorystop not only contributed a beautiful story about our two favorite husbands but also two matching drawings of Sirius and Remus. It will melt your heart, big promise!

Social media: nompsaysnope (instagram & ao3), queerstorystop (tumblr)

@girlwithacrown is actually a Slytherpuff but fortunately for us, didn’t insist on it! You may all know her from her incredible DTIYS challenges and for this zine she has come up with something very special: a crossword puzzle, can you imagine? Definitely not something you want to miss!!

Social Media: wolfstars_ (instagram), girlwithacrown (tumblr & ao3)