Wednesday 13 May 2015

Where Art Thou Bisexual and Lesbian Relationships?


I am bisexual.


Right now, there's a variety of feelings going through you all - some of you didn't even bat an eyelid, some may have tweaked an eyebrow in interest, some may have been surprised, and some will have been shocked and even disgusted, but right now, it's not your reaction that matters to me most, what matters to me most is that I feel there aren't enough LGBT novels out there that covers being bisexual, or lesbian for that matter, and I would say that this distresses me, but it does more than that, it angers me.

Now let's bare in mind that novels concerning gay couples are still few and far between, but there are some stand out titles that come to mind when people mention them in passing: The Realm of Possibility, Two Boys Kissing and Boy Meets Boy by David Levithan, and his short story in My True Love Gave To Me, Your Temporary Santa, One Man Guy by Michael Barakiva and Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Saenz just to name a few, and it's an amazing step in literature, not only for these novels to have been published for young adult readers, but to have them liked and loved by people, but lesbian romances are still few and far between, no matter how many came about last year. Books like Tell Me Again How a Crush Should Feel by Sara Farizan, Lies We Tell Ourselves by Robin Talley and Everything Leads To You by Nina LaCour were raved about before their releases, but afterwards, they seemed forgotten about, yet the novels focusing on men seem to stay rife on the market.

Why?


Is it because male/male romances are more acceptable in society than female/female romances are? I myself have known of three male/male couples in my friendships group, two married and one very happily dating, and nobody batted an eyelid towards them. They are in love. They are happy and that's just accepted, yet, although I've come out to my closest friends, some have still seemed surprised when I've said I've got a crush on another woman, or if I think a lady looks attractive. Is it still a strange concept for people to understand, or is it that people are so aware of female/female porn that just assume it's all an act? Is society still unaccepting of romance between two women, and if so, is it affecting what books could and should be on the market?

I myself haven't been able to gain a copy of any of the aforementioned titles, but I did read Dare Me by Megan Abbott which, in my opinion, covered the subject very well - it covered the natural feeling of being interested in women, it showed the main character developing a crush on an older lady, it allowed the other characters to talk about liking and loving another woman with ease and with acceptance, it delved into the connection between two women and how lines between friendship and romance can become blurred and I'm telling you, I really enjoyed it, but there just wasn't enough in it for me to be wowed with amazement. I'm not asking for steamy scenes, wow, I'm not asking for erotica of any kind, I'm asking for there to be more authors willing to right about such romances in their novels without a seconds thought. I'm asking for a fantasy novel with a heroine and a love interest of the same sex, embarking on a romance with no such qualms about it being an LGBT novel. I'm asking for a novel that deals with science and development in technology but has a friendship to romance relationship with two women without a big deal being out it. I'm asking for romances, whether it be between men, between women or between both, to be something other than just a genre, to be in something other than just a contemporary. I'm asking for fairness.

I do fear that I may deviated a little, however, I don't expect everyone to feel the way I do, nor do I expect authors and publishers to get right on it, but I do wish for more books out there that relate to me completely. I'm more than happy reading a male/female romance, damn I have my fair share of book boyfriends, step aside people, I will battle you to the death, but there are so few female/female relationships that sometimes, it really makes me not only angry, but really pretty sad. There's still a fight to get more POC in novels, a not just in a fleeting mention, but in the front of the pack, and there's a battle to get more cultures involved in novels, but for me personally, my fight is to find more of books that relate to me, that allow me to not feel ashamed of who I am and who I may or may not love. There needs to be more out there, and there needs to be more out there now.

Should there be more lesbian/bisexual romances out there?

Should we be encouraging more diversity when it comes to sexuality and acceptance, in all genres?

2 comments:

  1. YES YES YES. Everything Leads to You was just SO adorable and there need to be more books like it. I definitely feel, though, that m/m romances are more acceptable. And as someone who's questioning, that's kind of sad :( :( YA has become a lot better at representing diverse characters but there is still a long way to go. I mean, it baffles me that same-sex marriage is still not recognised in Australia :( :(

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