Are some stories more important than others?
In January of 2016 publishing company Lee & Low Books performed a survey to scrutinise diversity in present day American publishing. The numbers, if not inherently surprising, tell an important story. According to the study, 78 % of people working in the publishing industry identify as women, 79 % as white, 88 % as heterosexual, and an overwhelming 92 % as not differently abled. And while more and more publishing companies like them have a focus on diversity, both in their hiring process and catalogue, there is still a long way to go.
The numbers tell more than one story. They illustrate how some things have changed. The fact that women make out the majority underlines a tremendous development over the last decades. Looking at lists of LGBTQ books from 2016 you finds publishers of all kinds — big and small, niche and mainstream. Be that as it may, the consistent element of overlooking, whether actively or passively, stories from specific minorities is still obvious. While the numbers from Lee & Low Books regard employees in the publishing industry, the results ultimately mirror what and who gets published. This censuring by overlooking has gone on for far too long, and it is time we got over it.
A preliminary dive into the history of homotextuality (homosexuality in text) effectively shows how the western, straight and predominantly male society has shaped literature by and about LGBTQ people. It is clear how heteronormative society has consequently “straight washed” literature and the industry around it. This trend pervades our history and large parts of modern society, and showcases how structures have, and can change when stories from all aspects of society are allowed to be told.
First stop, ancient Greece. Sappho, a mononymous woman so badass, she even has a sexuality named because of her. Hailing from the Greek island of Lesbos around 600 BCE, Sappho wrote passionate love poetry directed towards other women. And although straight Christians in the years after loved her work, they did not love the idea of the greatest classical female poet being a lesbian. For over a thousand years, Sappho’s poetry was wilfully mistranslated by male interpreters who replaced the female pronouns with male ones. Though not typically famous for his LGBTQ support, John Donne was the first in centuries to re-translate Sappho’s poetry using the feminine pronouns in his work from 1590. Unfortunately censure struck again, and the result was never published, and Sappho’s poetry was largely “straight-washed” until the end of the 19th century.
For those less interested in ancient poetry and LGBTQ history might now ask, “So what?” The censuring or altering of Sappho’s poetry might seem irrelevant to modern day society. However, the way heteronormative societies ignored and modified the contents of literature to fit the societies’ standards did not end with the secularization of modern western society. At the end of the 19th century, homosexuality was popularly believed to be a personality “disorder” scientifically and legally, resulting in perhaps one the most famous sexuality trials of the time of Oscar Wilde. While Wilde’s homosexuality was linked to his persona rather than his writing, his example would serve as a warning for authors for generations to come.
Famed for his novels exploring the hypocrisy in society and class difference, E. M. Forster’s less famous book, Maurice, follows the typical romance pattern of his books with one major difference: a gay main character. The book was largely inspired by Forster’s own secret love life, unknown until after his death. The story of young Maurice finding, losing, and finding true love again is moving enough in itself, but it is the poignant afterword written by Forster that is heartrending. He was “determined that in fiction anyway two men should fall in love and remain in it for the ever and ever that fiction allows”. Forster chose a happy ending, even though it meant that his book could not be published as it was illegal to write positively about the illegal acts. Fearing prosecution and the ruination of his literary career, the book remained unpublished until 1971, two years after Forster’s passing.
The long list of censured writings, imprisoned authors, and works generally banished from mainstream culture serve to illustrate two things. Firstly, certain stories and lives have been blanked out, erased from the history of man. Secondly, things have changed for the better. So many have risked their lives to tell their stories. The first Lamda Literary Awards in 1988 recognised LGBTQ voices, making these authorships better known and more widespread. The more literary credibility and commercial success LGBTQ authors and books have, the wider their reach becomes. And although the number of LGBTQ “friendly” or exclusive publishers is steadily increasing, true equality in publishing has not be reached until LGBTQ is no longer just a genre, but simply literature.
Less than a year and a half ago, Facebook was covered in rainbows and messages of pride when the United State’s Supreme Court finally ruled in favour of equal marriage. However,2016, seems to be ending on a very different note. It seems impossible to not mention the recent US elections, which has members of the LGBTQ community fearing for the future of their community and their basic human rights. At a time like this, it is important to look at what has already been achieved and use it as motivation to keep pushing for further progress.
An important aspect of this involves writing and publishing stories that need to be told, about the past, present or future. While the previously discussed numbers in publishing might seem discouraging, they are not set, forever facts. And Hannah Ehrlih, director of marketing and publicity for Lee & Low said that readers can “vote with your dollars”. At Publishizer, we believe in voting with your writing, voting with your story, voting with your presence.
As Brenda Knight from Cleis Press beautifully said, “Queer is not a brand or a product; it is a beautiful chorus of voices, louder and prouder than ever before.” Publishizer hopes to facilitate an arena for these voices, to help amplify them and present them to the publishing industry. Our wish is, be it in fiction or real life, that everyone can find love and acceptance. Through the world’s first LGBTQ book proposal contest starting in January 2017, Publishizer aims to do our part to get more diverse books and authors out, and to help tell the stories that need to be told.
So, in conclusion: Stories that have been systematically changed, challenged, and censured, are just as relevant as others, but because they were allowed their place in the world, it is so much more important for us to help find the space for them to be displayed and heard.
Learn more about Publishizer’s LGBTQ Book Proposal Contest here:
