Barbara Davies (born September 7)

Barbara Davies was born in Birmingham, England, twenty minutes after her twin sister. She grew up in the Midlands, managed to scrape a BA from York University, worked in computing in Surrey, then moved to Gloucestershire where she’s now a writer and a book reviewer for Starburst. Barbara published her first short story in 1994. Since then, more than forty of her stories have appeared in various genre magazines, including Marion Zimmer Bradley’s Fantasy Magazine, Khimairal Ink, Neo-Opsis, and nanobison, and in the anthologies Ideomancer Unbound, Crossings, and F/SF Volume 1. The readers of Kimota gave one of her stories their 1999 Best Story Award.

Bourn's Edge won a 2011 Rainbow Award as Best Lesbian Sci-fi/Fantasy and Best Lesbian Novel. Licensed to Spy won a 2013 Rainbow Award as Best LGBT Romantic Comedy.

Further Readings:

Bourn's Edge by Barbara Davies
Paperback: 224 pages
Publisher: Bedazzled Ink Publishing Company; 2 edition (August 13, 2013)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1939562171
ISBN-13: 978-1939562173
Amazon: Bourn's Edge
Amazon Kindle: Bourn's Edge

Following an attempt to kill her, librarian Cassie Lewis leaves the only life she's ever known and flees west into the mist-shrouded borderlands that lie between England and Wales. There, the sleepy, hillside village of Bourn's Edge provides a safe haven for her to regroup and decide what to do next, and reclusive local artist Tarian Brangwen provides an intriguing and welcome distraction. But Cassie soon makes a startling discovery that turns her world upside down. For deep in the heart of the adjacent Bourn Forest lies an entrance to Faerie, and the enigmatic Tarian is much more than she appears . . .

Licensed to Spy by Barbara Davies
Paperback: 318 pages
Publisher: Bedazzled Ink Publishing Company (January 28, 2013)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1934452971
ISBN-13: 978-1934452974
Amazon: Licensed to Spy
Amazon Kindle: Licensed to Spy

While the rest of the Canary Islands celebrates Carnaval, British secret agents Ashley Blade and Jemma Jacobs try to unravel a Libyan terrorist plot against the United States. If they don't succeed, it's goodbye to Boston and the U.S. eastern seaboard. Then the Libyan terrorists launch a new nefarious plot in Brazil, and Ash and Jemma scramble to save the world from a deadly sarin attack. Ash and Jemma finally return home to London for some much needed rest and relaxation. Unfortunately, where Ash and Jemma go, trouble is not far behind.

More Rainbow Awards at my website: elisarolle.com, Rainbow Awards/2011 & 2013

Jeff Adams & Will Knauss

Jeff Adams (born June 25, 1968) & Will Knauss (born November 4, 1972) met in September 1993 and married on September 7, 1997. Jeff Adams's first novel was released in September 2013: Hat Trick is a story he has loved working on for nearly more than six years. Will Knauss is a writer of Cool Cinema Trash and he is working on a novel and various short story projects. (Picture: Jeff Adams & Will Knauss)

"We met for the first time in September 1993. Jeff had been in California for barely three months and had been encouraged by a co-worker to get involved in community theatre. The first thing was to usher several performances of Jesus Christ Superstar. The next was to have a walk-on in Lettice and Lovage. This is where we first encountered each other as Will was the light board operator.

After that there were many “hellos” and “nice to see you agains” at theatre events over the next two years.

In March 1995 we got cast together in It Runs in The Family. Jeff played a ditzy doctor and Will played a rebellious 20-something in this farce set in a hospital. We quickly discovered we had lots in common: a love of ABBA, movies, 70s television and more.

Will took it upon himself to find out more about Jeff by asking our mutual friend, Clint, for details.


Jeff Adams & Will Knauss met in September 1993 and married on September 7, 1997. Jeff Adams's first novel was released in September 2013: Hat Trick is a story he has loved working on for nearly more than six years. Will Knauss is a writer of Cool Cinema Trash and he is working on a novel and various short story projects. "After more than six months of getting to know one another and “going out,” we decided to move in together. We signed the lease for our present home on Valentine’s Day 1996."

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Source: http://www.jeffandwill.com/about/

Days of Love: Celebrating LGBT History One Story at a Time by Elisa Rolle
Paperback: 760 pages
Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform; 1 edition (July 1, 2014)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1500563323
ISBN-13: 978-1500563325
CreateSpace Store: https://www.createspace.com/4910282
Amazon (Paperback): http://www.amazon.com/dp/1500563323/?tag=elimyrevandra-20
Amazon (Kindle): http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00MZG0VHY/?tag=elimyrevandra-20

Days of Love chronicles more than 700 LGBT couples throughout history, spanning 2000 years from Alexander the Great to the most recent winner of a Lambda Literary Award. Many of the contemporary couples share their stories on how they met and fell in love, as well as photos from when they married or of their families. Included are professional portraits by Robert Giard and Stathis Orphanos, paintings by John Singer Sargent and Giovanni Boldini, and photographs by Frances Benjamin Johnson, Arnold Genthe, and Carl Van Vechten among others. “It's wonderful. Laying it out chronologically is inspired, offering a solid GLBT history. I kept learning things. I love the decision to include couples broken by death. It makes clear how important love is, as well as showing what people have been through. The layout and photos look terrific.” Christopher Bram “I couldn’t resist clicking through every page. I never realized the scope of the book would cover centuries! I know that it will be hugely validating to young, newly-emerging LGBT kids and be reassured that they really can have a secure, respected place in the world as their futures unfold.” Howard Cruse “This international history-and-photo book, featuring 100s of detailed bios of some of the most forward-moving gay persons in history, is sure to be one of those bestsellers that gay folk will enjoy for years to come as reference and research that is filled with facts and fun.” Jack Fritscher

David Levithan (born September 7, 1972)

David Levithan (born September 7, 1972) is an American young-adult fiction editor and award-winning author. His first book, Boy Meets Boy, was published in 2003. He has written numerous works featuring strong male gay characters, most notably Boy Meets Boy and Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist.

At 19, Levithan received an internship at Scholastic Corporation where he began working on the The Baby-sitters Club series. Levithan still works for Scholastic as an editorial director. Levithan is also the founding editor of PUSH, a young-adult imprint of Scholastic Press focusing on new voices and new authors. PUSH publishes edgier material for young adults and is where Patricia McCormick got her start with 2002's Cut.

In an interview with Barnes & Noble, Levithan claimed that he learned how to write books that were both funny and touching from Judith Viorst's Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day. He continues to work as both a writer and editor saying, "I love editing just as much, if not more than writing". Levithan's first collaboration with author Rachel Cohn, 2006's Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist was adapted for the big screen in 2008, and his novel, Love is the Higher Law, was published in August 2009 by Knopf Books for Young Readers.

Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Levithan

YA does it better? Rachel Cohn collaborated with David Levithan on Nick & Nora's Infinite Playlist, a short yet perfect novel. Rachel gave me Nick & Nora... in galley form and I tore through it in two hours. It was, as I told Rachel, "a perfect romantic comedy." With seeming effortlessness, David and Rachel had written a boy-meets-girl/boy-loses-girl/boy-gets-girl back story equal to the original Nick & Nora, the gum shoe duo introduced by Dashiell Hammett's The Thin Man (later made into the 1934 movie of the same name, starring William Powell and Myrna Loy.) --Tomas Mournian

Part of me just loves Boy Meets Boy. Another part of me nurses a slight reservation. But it’s groundbreaking, and deserves mention. And deserves to be read. My reservation? It’s so…happy. No, that’s not quite the word. Because there’s teen angst. But it’s set in a high school, and being out and gay just doesn’t seem like an issue. Part of me finds this hugely refreshing, because it should be that way. Part of me steps back and comments that it isn’t…yet. But maybe we need to see the image of this world in a book before it can come true. I’m very glad David Levithan wrote it. --Catherine Ryan Hyde

By page two, it was over. I fell in love and couldn’t stop. And I dare any reader not to fall in love with David Levithan’s Boy Meets Boy. It’s an adorable, charming, heartwarming work of staggering genius. The writing is rhythmic and pop and Pop, like a perfectly crafted pop song. It’s a fantasy about growing up gay, a naturalistic book about being a teenager. He’s filled the story with Christians and drag queens and jealous lovers-to-be. Romance and adventure and… I’m not afraid to give this book as a gift to anyone. In fact it’s my go-to gift. I know it’s that good and impossible not to love. --Aaron Krach

David Levithan has written or co-written a number of excellent young adult novels, including the one the charming movie Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist was based on, but the one that really caught my attention was Boy Meets Boy. It represented a fundamental change in the way YA gay books were written. Up to that point, almost all gay YA novels were coming-out stories. Boy Meets Boy is an unapologetic fairy tale set in world where being gay is so normal and accepted, the high school quarterback is also a drag queen. The main character doesn't struggle with being gay. He just deals with the same problems as every other kid. How revolutionary! --Josh Aterovis

Further Readings:

Boy Meets Boy by David Levithan
Age Range: 12 and up
Grade Level: 7 and up
Paperback: 224 pages
Publisher: Alfred A. Knopf; Reprint edition (May 10, 2005)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0375832998
ISBN-13: 978-0375832994
Amazon: Boy Meets Boy
Amazon Kindle: Boy Meets Boy

This is the story of Paul, a sophomore at a high school like no other: The cheerleaders ride Harleys, the homecoming queen used to be a guy named Daryl (she now prefers Infinite Darlene and is also the star quarterback), and the gay-straight alliance was formed to help the straight kids learn how to dance.

When Paul meets Noah, he thinks he’s found the one his heart is made for. Until he blows it. The school bookie says the odds are 12-to-1 against him getting Noah back, but Paul’s not giving up without playing his love really loud. His best friend Joni might be drifting away, his other best friend Tony might be dealing with ultra-religious parents, and his ex-boyfriend Kyle might not be going away anytime soon, but sometimes everything needs to fall apart before it can really fit together right.

This is a happy-meaningful romantic comedy about finding love, losing love, and doing what it takes to get love back in a crazy-wonderful world.

More Spotlights at my website: http://www.elisarolle.com/, My Lists/Gay Novels

Justin Lee (born September 7, 1977)

Justin Lee (born September 7, 1977) is the founder of the Gay Christian Network (GCN), a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that provides resources and support to gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender Christians. According to the GCN website, "We also work with churches and other Christian organizations to help educate the Christian community about sexual orientation issues from a Biblical standpoint." Lee founded GCN in August, 2001 to "build a supportive community to support fellow gay Christians in their Christian walks." In an interview for CNN, Lee explained the purpose of the organization:

"We're just trying to get people together who experience attraction to the same sex, however they have handled that, and who love Jesus and say, OK, you are welcome here, and then let's pray together and figure out where God wants us to take it."

Lee is recognizable for his baldness and noticeable lack of eyebrows due to alopecia areata, a condition he has had since childhood.

He is also the director of a 2009 documentary, Through My Eyes, which explores the struggles of young gay Christians, and the author of the 2012 book Torn: Rescuing the Gospel from the Gays-vs.-Christians Debate, published by Hachette Book Group.

Lee grew up in a conservative Christian home and continues to hold many of the same core doctrines. According to The New York Times, "Justin Lee believes that the Virgin birth was real, that there is a heaven and a hell, that salvation comes through Christ alone and that he... is an evangelical Christian."

( Read more... )

Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Justin_Lee_(activist)

Further Readings:

Torn: Rescuing the Gospel from the Gays-vs.-Christians Debate by Justin Lee
Paperback: 272 pages
Publisher: Jericho Books; Reprint edition (May 14, 2013)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1455514306
ISBN-13: 978-1455514304
Amazon: Torn: Rescuing the Gospel from the Gays-vs.-Christians Debate

As a teenager and young man, Justin Lee felt deeply torn. Nicknamed "God Boy" by his peers, he knew that he was called to a life in the evangelical Christian ministry. But Lee harbored a secret: He also knew that he was gay. In this groundbreaking book, Lee recalls the events--his coming out to his parents, his experiences with the "ex-gay" movement, and his in-depth study of the Bible--that led him, eventually, to self-acceptance.

But more than just a memoir, TORN provides insightful, practical guidance for all committed Christians who wonder how to relate to gay friends or family members--or who struggle with their own sexuality. Convinced that "in a culture that sees gays and Christians as enemies, gay Christians are in a unique position to bring peace," Lee demonstrates that people of faith on both sides of the debate can respect, learn from, and love one another.

More Spotlights at my website: http://www.elisarolle.com/, My Lists/Gay Novels

Michael Feinstein & Terrence Flannery

Michael Jay Feinstein (born September 7, 1956) is an American singer, pianist, and music revivalist. He is an interpreter of, and an anthropologist and archivist for, the repertoire known as the Great American Songbook. In 1988 he won a Drama Desk Special Award for celebrating American musical theatre songs. Feinstein is also a multi-platinum-selling, five-time Grammy-nominated recording artist. He currently serves as Artistic Director for The Center for the Performing Arts in Carmel, Indiana. In October 2008, Feinstein married his longtime partner of 11 years, Terrence Flannery. The ceremony was performed by famed family court and television judge Judith Sheindlin, also known as Judge Judy. Feinstein and Flannery have homes in New York, Los Angeles, and Indiana.

Feinstein was born in Columbus, Ohio, the son of Florence Mazie (née Cohen), an amateur tap dancer, and Edward Feinstein, a sales executive for the Sara Lee Corporation and a former amateur singer. At the age of five, he studied piano for a couple of months until his teacher became angered that he wasn't reading the sheet music she gave him, since he was more comfortable playing by ear. As his mother saw no problem with her son's method, she took him out of lessons and allowed him to enjoy music his own way.

As of June 2011, Feinstein has written the score for two new stage musicals, The Night They Saved Macy’s Parade and The Gold Room. He is working with MGM to turn The Thomas Crown Affair into a Broadway musical. He is also scoring his second movie, The Big Valley.


Michael Feinstein is an American singer, pianist, and music revivalist. He is an interpreter of the repertoire known as the Great American Songbook. In 1988 he won a Drama Desk Special Award for celebrating American musical theatre songs. In October 2008, Feinstein married his longtime partner of 11 years, Terrence Flannery. The ceremony was performed by television judge Judith Sheindlin, also known as Judge Judy. Feinstein and Flannery have homes in New York, Los Angeles, and Indiana.

Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Feinstein

( Further Readings )

More LGBT Couples at my website: http://www.elisarolle.com/, My Ramblings/Real Life Romance

Owen Pallett & Patrick Borjal

Michael James Owen Pallett (born September 7, 1979) is a Canadian composer, violinist, keyboardist, and vocalist, who performs solo as Owen Pallett or, before 2010, under the name Final Fantasy. As Final Fantasy, he won the 2006 Polaris Music Prize for the album He Poos Clouds. Patrick Borjal, Pallett's boyfriend, began working as his manager in 2006, and formed the management company Boyfriend Management.

On his Final Fantasy releases, Pallett has collaborated with Leon Taheny, who is credited as drummer and engineer. Following the release of Heartland, Pallett has toured with guitarist/percussionist Thomas Gill and more recently with his former collaborators in Les Mouches, Rob Gordon and Matt Smith.

Pallett has been noted for his live performances, wherein he plays the violin into a loop pedal, a technique also used by musicians such as Andrew Bird, Jeremy Larson, Kishi Bashi, Emily Wells and Zoë Keating. Pallett uses Max/MSP and SooperLooper to do multi-phonic looping, which sends his violin signal to amplifiers across the stage.

Pallett's father is an avid church organist who provided Owen with a background in classical music until his early preteens. From the age of a toddler, Owen studied classical violin and composed his first piece at age 13. A notable early composition includes some of the music for the game Traffic Department 2192; he moved on to scoring films, to composing two operas while in university. Apart from the indie music scene, he has had commissions from the Barbican, Toronto Symphony Orchestra, Bang on a Can, Ecstatic Music Festival, the Vancouver CBC Orchestra, and Fine Young Classicals.


Michael James Owen Pallett is a Canadian composer, violinist, keyboardist, and vocalist, who performs solo as Owen Pallett or, before 2010, under the name Final Fantasy. As Final Fantasy, he won the 2006 Polaris Music Prize for the album He Poos Clouds. Patrick Borjal, Pallett's boyfriend, began working as his manager in 2006, and formed the management company Boyfriend Management. Pallett received an Honours Bachelor of Music for Composition from the University of Toronto in 2002.

( Read more... )

Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Owen_Pallett

( Further Readings )

More LGBT Couples at my website: http://www.elisarolle.com/, My Ramblings/Real Life Romance

GRL: Cherie Noel

Starting from June 1, 2015, I will daily feature authors attending the three conventions I will join, Euro Pride in Munich (July), UK Meet in Bristol (September) and GRL in San Diego (October).

For the GRL in San Diego, October 15-18, 2015, today author is Cherie Noel: Butcher, baker, candlestick maker…ummm, eww, every chance I get, and I surely would if these damn characters would ever shut up. Born in West Palm Beach, Florida and raised…er, is all over the damn place a sufficiently descriptive term? No? Then how about this? Tinker, tailor, Indian chief…Ooooh, especially when smexy men are involved (!), only under duress, and did the cheek-bones give it away?
Seriously? I’ve lived in Washington D.C., Virginia, Upper Michigan, Texas, New York, California, and Alabama in the United States; Hessen in Germany, London in England, Masirah Island in Oman and…sometimes it was in a house, sometimes in a tent, and sometimes anyplace I could find to lay my head.
I’ve been in love with words since before I drew breath, and I don’t see that ever changing. I write stories. Sometimes I write music with them, sometimes they’re poems, and lately, to my great delight, M/M erotic romance. Yum. Smexy man to the second…or third power…now that’s the kinda math I can get behind!!
The hair curls or frizzes as it will, the eyes are green and tend to look in two different directions—no, really—and the rest is subject to change. You know the guy who didn’t know if he was a butterfly dreaming he was a man or a man dreaming he was a butterfly? Yeah, that’s me, but substitute drag queen for butterfly and wacky, wild ex-Army chick for man.

Further Readings:

Sam & Patric (Storming Love Series Flood Book 6) by Cherie Noel
Publisher: MLR Press (May 10, 2015)
Amazon Kindle: Sam & Patric (Storming Love Series Flood Book 6)

Patric Carselowey stole Samuel Touchet-Smith's heart six years ago in an incendiary act of passion. Then he disappeared, joining the Army without a word. When he returned, treating Sam like stranger, he broke Sam's heart. Now Sam's meddling Maman and sister have booked him a hiking tour with Patric as the guide. Caught in the unexpected storm, will Sam's wounded heart be healed during their race to safety or crushed once and for all by lingering misunderstandings and lost memories?