With a new collection of short stories, poetry and essays, 33 members of Colorado’s GLBT community are asking, “Why focus on the family when you can focus on the fabulous?” The book, titled “Focus on the Fabulous,” is the brainchild of Matt Kailey, reporter for Out Front Colorado and author of the book “Just Add Hormones: An Insider’s Guide to the Transsexual Experience.”
Kailey was in Washington, D.C., last year for a book expo when he ran into a representative from Boulder-based Johnson Publishing.
“She said, ‘We’ve always wanted to do a GLBT-focused book, but we don’t where to start,'” Kailey says.
Kailey jumped at the chance to edit the collection. “I put calls for submissions in everything I could think of,” he says.
Submissions flooded in. As Kailey chose the pieces that would eventually appear in “Focus on the Fabulous,” he looked for a variety of styles as well as a range of ages, genders and experiences in the authors.
And, he says, each piece had to be somehow related to Colorado.
One chosen essay tells the story of a man who was a gay activist decades ago in Colorado Springs. Another piece is a romantic tale of two women in rural Colorado.
“I’m just so excited about it because it’s the first time it’s been done and it’s a great representation of Colorado’s GLBT community, ” Kailey says.
The release of the book next week will be kicked off by a Sept. 6 signing at the LoDo location of the Tattered Cover Bookstore. About 20 of the book’s authors will be there, Kailey says.
Other signings around the state are scheduled for the coming weeks. Visit Kailey’s Web site for more information.
“Focus on the Fabulous” authors:
David Alan, Dave Brown, Shannon Bullock, Christopher Caldwell, Suzanne Marie Calvin, Peter D. Clarke, Alex C. Dembicki, Sunshine Dempsey, darona draka, Laura Givens, Barry Jay Glass, Gretchen Haley, Tigre Haller, Shakirah C. Hemstrom, Aimee Herman, Deena Larsen, Carolee Laughton, Lisa Lusero, Frank Lyon, Lily Marlowe, Donaciano Martinez, Richard McComb, Kimberlee A. Miller, Frederick Lyle Morris, Debra A. Myers, Angela Palermo, Nick Sarchet, Melanie Stafford, Donald Stikeleather, Dan Stone, Nuclia Waste, Jerry L. Wheeler and Alysha Wood.
