All of this simply means that publishers of both gay and non-gay fiction show little interest in the once prominent genre of historical fiction. Yet from the large number of sites devoted to historical fan fiction that is homoerotic, it is clear that readers enjoy seeking out stories set in other time periods that feature themes or characters related to homosexuality.
The list below is a short one, but I hope that, as historical fiction gradually becomes more widely known as a publishing category, gay fiction publishers will likewise become interested in historical novels.
This directory is maintained by Dusk Peterson, who writes gay historical fantasy and gay historical fiction.
Updated May 2012.
Sections below:
* Links
* Related Sites at This Domain
* Contact Information
Beyond Renault: Alexander the Great in Fiction. Not specifically devoted to gay historical fiction, this site nevertheless is careful to note what fiction writers have said about Alexander's sexuality and to mention any background the writers had that may have influenced their treatment of that subject. Mary Renault, of course, wrote excellent male/male historical fiction; see the links page of this site for other Renault resources.
[updated] GLBT Bookshelf: Historical Fiction and Our Story: GLBTQ Historical Fiction. The first link is to an online bookstore run by Mel Keegan; the second link, within the same domain, is a section edited by edited by Nan Hawthorne, which offers reviews and resources.
Historical Lesbian Fiction. An Amazon.com Listmania page by abqbeach.
Lavendar Ladies: Lesbians in Historical Fiction. An Amazon.com Listmania page by MJ Lowe.
More Historical Fiction of the Queer Variety. A section within a long list of GLBT literature recommendations by Switchknife.
Rainbow Reading: Gay Historical Fiction and Lesbian Historical Fiction. Two highly selective lists.
Rainbow Reviews: Gay Historical, Lesbian Historical, Bisexual Historical, Transgender Historical, Intersex Historical, and Pansexual Historical. Reviews of queer historical fiction. The gay section is quite large.
Slash Cotillion. [No longer online, alas, and archive.org didn't archive it, darn it.] An online archive of historical fiction and historical fantasy featuring same-sex-attracted characters. Original fiction can be found in the "Original" and "Real People" sections, while some legendary and mythological stories are located within the "Books" section. The home, recommendations, and links pages have an enormous number of links to related archives, home pages, and forums.
So You'd Like to Read Challenging Historical Novels with Gay Protagonists. An Amazon.com introduction to the subject by xvegangirlx, "a reader admittedly biased against contemporary fiction."
Speak Its Name, Speak Its Name e-mail list, The Frosted Monocle e-mail list, and The Macaronis. Related resources devoted to gay historical fiction. These are the best places online to locate information about GLBT historical fiction and (in the case of The Frosted Monocle) GLBT historical fantasy; all four resources focus primarily on gay fiction. These are the most extensive resources available on the Web about gay historical fiction.
Aslan's Kin: Interfaith Fantasy and Science Fiction.
Gay and Lesbian Books in Alternative Formats: A Web Directory.
GLBT Science Fiction and Fantasy Literature: A Web Directory.
Historical Fantasy: Links for Readers of Historical Fiction and Fantasy.
Information on Original Fiction in the Fan Fiction Communities. Includes information on homoerotic historical fiction.
The Literature and History of Friendship, Romance, and Sexuality. Includes information on gay literature and gay history.
Online Resources for Blind and Partially Sighted Readers of Science Fiction and Fantasy. Includes links to e-texts and online audio.
Comments and questions may be sent to Dusk Peterson by e-mail.
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