On my knees AGAIN... Book Blogger Appreciation Week

Can everybody do me a big-ass favour? With Book Blogger Appreciation Week upcoming, it's time to get nominations in for our favourite book-related blogs. Nominations close AUGUST 31st, so there's no time to waste.

If you love me like I love you, please please please with sugar on top nominate Donuts and Desires in the Best Published Author Blog category... or any other category you think I'm good for.

Send your nominations to BbawawardsATgmailDOTcom by August 31st, 2008.

Here are all the details...

BBAW Award Nominations are Open

It's time to open nominations for Book Blogger Appreciation Week Awards 2008!

Listed below are the categories of awards. There are many. You may not have a nomination for each award. It doesn't matter. Nominate up to two blogs per category and send an email to BbawawardsATgmailDOTcom with your choices. You DO NOT have to have a blog to make nominations. Comments left on this post will NOT be accepted as nominations. Each category will be narrowed to the top five blogs by number of nominations received, so don't be shy!!! Support your favorite blogs and bloggers! Nominations will close on August 31st.

And the categories for the Book Blogger Appreciation Week Awards 2008 are:

Best General Book Blog
Best Kidlit Blog
Best Christian/Inspirational Fiction Blog
Best Literary Fiction Blog
Best Book Club Blog
Best Romance Blog
Best Thrillers/Mystery/Suspense Blog
Best Non-fiction Blog
Best Young Adult Lit Blog
Best Book/Publishing Industry Blog
Best Challenge Host
Best Community Builder
Best Cookbook Blog
Best History/Historical Fiction Blog
Best Design
Most Chatty
Most Concise
Most Eclectic Taste
Best Name for a Blog
Best Published Author Blog
Best Book published in 2008
Best Meme/Carnival/Event
Most Extravagant Giveaways
Best Book Community site
Write In--think we missed something? Write in your category and nomination and if there are enough other write-ins of the same category it will be added!

i'm a wiener

If only I could be in writing mode and business mode simultaneously, but that seems to be happening for me with increasing infrequency. I don't remember the last time I got out there, promoting my work. Right now it's all about the writing.

I think I'm having way too much sex, and it must way too good, because the moment Sweet leaves my house or throws me out of the car on the side of the highway or whatever, I'm right back at my computer writing about it. It's a little like dream journaling, for anyone who's done that: you don't want to let a single detail slip through your fingers because it all has such great value. I want to include in my work every body twinge, every sigh of enlightenment, every expression of emotion.

Maybe I've told Sweet I'm only with her for the material one too many times; I think she's starting to believe it. Truly, the inspiration of new material is just a delightful bonus.

Ooops... I've been rambling so much I almost for to explain my wiener-ness:Put on your congratulatory caps, because my story Secret Mercy received an honourable mention in For The Girls' "transgression" short story competition. You can read the judges' comments here. Become a For The Girls member soon, because Secret Mercy is scheduled to appear on the site September 18th. Keep an eye out for it!

Lot of Lovin'
gigi

Missing: One Husband

What is my alma mater doing employing the outdated title “Miss?”

Every single item of mail I get from my university is addressed to Miss Giselle Renarde. Miss? Miss! Seriously? There isn’t a single other institution –not a bank, not a charity, not even my cable provider- that sends mail addressed to Miss Renarde.

It disturbs me that the very institution where I learned how to be an effective feminist, where I studied issues in gender and linguistics, now sends mail to my house that slaps me in the face on a feminist linguistic level. I’ve even gone to the university’s website, where you can change your address, phone number, e-mail and essentially every item of contact information -- except title.

I guess the only way for me to get that changed is to get married, or get a doctorate. No, wait… how does Fr. Giselle Renarde sound? Or Giselle Renarde, Esq? Or Rev. Renarde?

I am not a Miss! I am not Miss-ing a husband. If I have to choose, I’ll take “Ms,” but I’d prefer to trash the titles altogether. Titles only serve to highlight differences and segregate along the well-worn lines of gender and class.

Want to know a secret? Every time I have to fill out a form with a drop down menu that only allows you to select from the titles of Mr, Mrs or Miss, I select “Mr” every time.

Is that petty? Well, it’s my choice.

Butchering the Classics

Hi, all! I’m out of town at the moment, but if my computer’s smarter than I am, it should be able to post today’s Monday Miscellany on my behalf.

I have some “informations” for you, as we say in franglais (aka Frenglish): I like to write music in my beyond-ample spare time. Not just that, but I’ve fished some of it out from under my mattress and posted it to my lovely little Myspace page for all to hear. Myspace.com/gisellerenarde

Most of my work fits into a collection I call "Butchering the Classics" because, along with my Garageband software, that's what I tend to do. Hopefully I butcher them in a way that is pleasing to the ear, at least. Might as well check it out; it's all free.

I started (re)arranging classical music to use as a soundtrack for my promotional book trailers (like, did I mention I also write erotic fiction? lol) but soon developed a taste for producing my own music, such as it is.

As for my butchering, it tends to be of french impressionist music. "The Little Shepherd" you may recognize as a composition of Claude Debussy's, whereas "She's Like the Swallow" is a traditional Canadian song. I enjoy those hauntingly beautiful sounds, reminiscent of twilight by a lakeside campfire. I also love Bach, which led me to produce “I (heart) Bach,” an elegant arrangement of his F minor keyboard concerto.

"Vous le voulez comment?" is a sexy little number I wrote (all by myself, mommy!), which begins with a bit of pleading. Although the lyrics are “vous le voulez comment?” (“how do you want it?”), the intensity of expression suggests something else. The subtext reads more as, “I’ll give you anything you want, just fuck me already!” Then we get into the “ah, oui, c’est ça,” suggesting the pleading has paid off. Doesn’t last long, though. It ends with a musical joke, because, hell, sex is funny.

I feel like I’m giving an awards speech, here. Finally, I would like to thank my mother for forcing me to practise piano as a child. All those lessons were good for something after all…

Bright Blessings,
gigi

A Nice Package, Love Bites and Rainbow Reviews

I had an exciting mail day. Snail mail, to be precise. Did you know that still existed? Yes, that’s right: a real live person brings stuff right to your door and it doesn’t cost you a penny. What service! And it’s been around for how long, you say?

Anyway, silly-time over. I received in the post my contributor copy of a great little anthology called Love Bites. I’m sure I’ve mentioned it before. It’s the paranormal M/M/F ménage antho brought to you by the letter Bare Back Angels and the number Torquere Press. Some really hot guy-guy-girl stories in this baby.

But we still haven’t come to the exciting bit. Believe it or not, before the mail came this morning, I had never seen my work in print! That’s right. All my other work has appeared in some or another electronic format. Gosh, is it ever exciting to see your name in print, and to flip through a paperback to find your own words inside. “Q” – I wrote that! “Well-greased stripper pole” – my words! “Tell me what happened or I’ll tie your ass hair to your pubes!” – ahem… yes… also mine.

To add to the excitement, I came upon a great review of my story “The Regular,” which appears in Love Bites. Emily at Rainbow Reviews calls “The Regular,” “an ingenuous twist on the classic tale of Cupid’s arrow.” Aw, shucks! And it gets even better: “This lovely story explores how love is often found in the most unexpected places, with the people we see each and every day.”

There’s also a character cross-over I should mention. Anyone who read Tangled Roots must be wondering what happened to poor, spurned Toby. Buy a copy of Love Bites and read “The Regular.” You’ll die a happy man.

Here’s to the print anthology and many happy mail days to come! (I hear my contributor copies of Coming Together: With Pride are on their way—just one more reason to celebrate life and work!)

Cuddles all around!
gigi

Thanks Everybody!

Woo-hoo! We won!

A great big hug and thank you to everybody who voted for my book trailers in last week's competition held by The Romance Room. I'm happy to announce that we won in both categories!

The book trailer for Cunning Little Vixens won:
The book trailer for Tangled Roots won:
If you haven't yet seen the trailers, click the awards links above and check them out. Thanks again to everybody who voted for me. You're the best readers ever!
Bright Blessings,
gigi

I'm on my knees... to beg for your vote!

My book trailers for Cunning Little Vixens and Tangled Roots are both finalists in the "Best Book Trailer" competition over at The Romance Room. I'll love you forever if you vote for me!

Vote for the Tangled Roots trailer under "Best Book Trailer Erotic Romance: Contemporary "

Vote for the Cunning Little Vixens trailer under "Best Book Trailer Erotic Romance: Historical"

Polls are open today (Sunday Aug 3rd) and tomorrow (Monday Aug 4th), so vote early and... often...?

Thanks everybody! I really appreciate your help. Let's win this thang!

Bright Blessings,
Giselle

Stepping Out with my Sweet

Girl Sweet called me today, mid-morning. “I’m in the city. Can you meet me for lunch in an hour?”

Let’s see… Can I be clear across the city an hour from now when I’m still in my pyjamas and the coffee hasn’t even finished brewing…?

“I would really love to see you, even if it’s just for a little while,” she pleaded.

It would be our first “outing.” Sure, we’ve had lunch together before, but I’ve only ever gone out with boy Sweet. I’ve had girl Sweet over to my place, but we had no “real world” experience yet. To Sweet, this was important.

If I said it really wasn’t doable, she would have taken it as an affront. She would have thought I didn’t want to be seen in public with her, when nothing could be further from the truth. Hell, I want to show her picture to everyone on the subway and say, “This is my girlfriend. Isn’t she hot?!?”

Sweet is a hell of a lot needier, and way more of a girly girl, than any gg (“genuine girl” or chromosomal female) I’ve ever been interested in. I tend to like girls who only wear skirts facetiously. With Sweet, I really have to be careful. She’s sensitive. She’s a little bit fragile, even. She interprets everything as relating to her trans-ness.

“I’ll see you in an hour, Sweet.”

Miraculously, it took me only forty minutes to get across the city. There was Sweet, waiting for me at the subway. She looked more spectacular than ever, even though her outfit was very simple. I was glowing, seeing her. She was glowing, seeing me.

When we got to the restaurant, the server showed us to our table and said, “Enjoy your meal, ladies.” My heart fluttered just a little bit. Normally, I would have been irritated at being called a “lady” because I sure as hell don’t look or act like one, but today I was too delighted to care.

Sweet still has concerns about being “read” (about people wondering if her sex is aligned with her gender presentation), but I can’t imagine anyone viewing her as anything but the gorgeous girl I see.

Lesbians in Sport? Surely not!

And you thought European football was a bore...

Stamford Bridge, 1921, the home of Chelsea Football Club. A crowd of 10,000 saw the French Ladies football team win 2-1. This game caused a stir in the media when the two captains, Alice Kell and Madeline Bracquemond, kissed each other at the end of the match.

From www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/Fdickkerrs.htm

Just a cute little tidbit for today's Monday Miscellany. If you're looking for more, check out my new page at the Queer Writers' website: http://queerwriters.ning.com/profile/GiselleRenarde

And, by the way, exactly why have you not yet purchased your copy of Cunning Little Vixens? This short story features lesbians from around the time of the above era, and it's only $1.99!

The Straight Translation: Defining Trans Terms

In talking with my mom and grandmother about my relationship with Sweet, it became very clear to me that many people who are generally accepting (and I use that word quite consciously – I’m embracing; they’re accepting) of the trans community have little grasp on the terminology. That’s not a dig. Of course people aren’t going to be aware of definitions if they’re not a part of the community or if they haven’t studied trans issues academically.

With that in mind, I would like to provide a bit of a trans dictionary. The following is adapted from transproud.com and an article by Warren J. Blumenfeld of the Univesity of Massachusetts, combined with my academic and Sweet’s acquired knowledge. This at least provides a baseline, though not every trans person will agree with every definition.
Definitions of Transgender Terminology

Biological Sex (or Chromosomal Sex): An individual’s sex as determined by their chromosomal makeup, which hormones predominate in the individual’s system, and internal and external genitalia. The distinction commonly made is that between male and female, but between 1% and 4% of the population is born intersexed, with biological aspects of both sexes to varying degrees.

Cross-dresser: An individual who sometimes wears clothing considered inappropriate for that person’s biological sex. Cross-dressers generally want to “pass” as their target gender.

Cross-living: A TG person who lives full-time in their preferred gender image, whether in preparation for a sex-change operation or not.

DRAB: DRessed As a Boy

DRAG: DRessed As a Girl

Drag Queen: Generally refers to a gay man who sometimes puts on women’s clothing in a performative capacity, without necessarily attempting to “pass.”

Drag King: Generally refers to a lesbian who sometimes puts on men’s clothing in a performative capacity, without necessarily attempting to “pass.”

FTM: Abbreviation for Female-To-Male cross-dresser or transsexual.

Gender Dysphoria: Medically, refers to extreme discontent with the individual’s biological sex.

Gender Identity: An individual’s innermost concept of self as male, female, intersex, travesti, hijra, two-spirit… and the list goes on. Take your pick! Gender identity is about how we perceive ourselves and what we label ourselves, and it doesn’t have to be consistent with biological sex.

Gender Image: The individual’s gender-presentation out in the world.

Gender Role: Socially/culturally-defined roles and behaviours assigned to individuals based on their gender.

Genderqueer: An umbrella term describing individuals who don’t subscribe to the binary identities of male and female, who fall outside gender definitions, or who see themselves as both male and female.

Hijra: A member of the venerated (at least historically) “third sex” of India. Most hijra are biologically male or intersex, and dress and identify in a way reserved for women in that culture.

In Transition: A transsexual in the process of changing sex. This including taking hormones, cross-living, and finally surgery. A practical minimum for this process is about two years, but usually it takes longer.

Intersex: An individual born with the full or partial sex organs of both male and female, or with underdeveloped or ambiguous sex organs. This word replaces the politically incorrect hermaphrodite.

MTF: Abbreviation for Male-To-Female cross-dresser or transsexuals.

Non-surgical Transsexual: A transsexual who may seek sex reassignment through hormones and/or cross-living, but stops short of surgery.

Pass: To exist convincingly in one’s preferred gender image.

Post-op: Transsexuals who have had sex-change operation(s), and now have the physical anatomy they desire.

Pre-op: Transsexuals who have not yet had their reassignment operation(s), but who are working towards it.

Sex reassignment surgery (SRS): Sex-change operation.

T-friendly: An organization, institution or individual that embraces transgendered peoples and their needs.

Transgender (TG): Frequently used as an umbrella term encompassing all those people who transgress society’s gender norms. A transgender person may feel society is limiting that individual’s personal expression by maintining two distinct gender constructs. This term often includes transsexuals, cross-dressers, two spirit, etc.

Transphobia: A form of oppression exercised against the trans community; the fear and hatred of TS/TG people, as well as those gender-transgressive element that exist in all people.

Transsexual (TS): A TG individual who wants to or has changed their body to be more in line with their gender identity.

Two-Spirit: A traditional role in Native American and Canadian First Nations societies, this term describes both the feminine and masculine spirit co-existing in one individual.

Bright Blessings,
Giselle Renarde