Hello all! My name is Alex Powell, and I'm a Science
Fiction Romance author. Today, I want to talk to you about LGBTQ romance in
Science Fiction.
I love writing Science Fiction, because it's a genre
that gives a writer complete freedom to create a whole new world, and to give
that world whatever rules they want. I have to admit, I get easily bored with
contemporary fiction, and what makes me happy is exploring a world that an
author put a lot of work and love into creating.
I also love putting everyday, human interactions into
that creative space. The kind of thing that someone would consider normal and
conventional. I like putting people like us in amazing places, so that the
reader can read about a character and relate to them, and can see themselves in
that space as well. I want a reader to say "This character is someone just
like me – I could be this person, wandering out amongst the stars of this
extraordinary universe."
Another thing very close to my heart is exploring
human existence in all its wondrous facets. I want all sorts of people to
relate to my characters. That's why I write LGBTQ romance in Science Fiction.
LGBTQ people aren't often portrayed in mainstream
media. That's slowly beginning to change, but there are still not that many
books with LGBTQ main characters, and there are even less Science Fiction
Romances with these characters. A lot of the time, even if there is an LGBTQ
character, something awful happens to them and they die horribly. Either that,
or the whole point of the narrative is that the character is coming out, or
it's about that character's experiences as an LGBTQ person.
But you know, LGBTQ people are still people. Not every
single thing about their life is about the fact that they are LGBTQ. Why can't
a gay guy be the space hero for once? I would like to read a story where the
character is only incidentally queer, and their orientation is treated as
normal. I would like the crazy things that happen in my LGBTQ protagonist's
love life to come from anything other than the fact they're queer.
So I'm going to write about gay space cowboys and
lesbian mecha drivers. I'm going to tell you about trans cyber hackers and
gritty bisexual star drifters. How about an ace fighter pilot? And by
"ace," I do mean asexual, and not just awesome at shooting things.
I want LGBTQ people to be able to read the things I
write and see themselves there, among the stars, alongside everyone else. LGBTQ
people are often erased from past history. I refuse to see them erased from the
future.
Love is love, so why can't my space revolutionaries
share a kiss in a space station overlooking Regulus, whatever their gender and
sexual orientation?
About
the author
Alex Powell is an avid writer and reader of sci-fi and
fantasy, but on occasion branches into other genres to keep things interesting.
Alex is a genderqueer writer from the wilds of northern Canada who loves
exploring other peoples and cultures. Alex is a recent graduate of UNBC with a
BA in English, and as a result has an unhealthy obsession with Victorian Gothic
literature. Alex has been writing from an early age, but is happy to keep
learning to improve on their writing skills. Feedback and comments as well as
any questions are appreciated! You can reach Alex at aa.powell.author@gmail.com
RANGERS OVER REGULUS
Liberty is a vampire living on a space station where
those who seek to avoid the government always land, and spends his days working
for the assassin who runs the place. Life is as peaceful as a colony of thugs
at the edge of civilization can get. Then a Ranger shows up...