Writing the book that scares you

When I finished my edits for Christina’s Portrait, I tweeted the following.

I feel my book is ready for the world, but I’m not sure if the world is ready for my book.

Frankly, I’m not sure if I’m ready for this book.

This was a hard novel to write. It wasn’t just the tragedy that initiated it. I had to confront many difficult truths about growing up in the San Fernando Valley in the seventies — as well as serious issues facing society today. Some scenes were uncomfortable to write. But those are the things you must write.

One of them is the role LGBTQ+ people played in my high school experience.

When I was in Vocal Ensemble, I performed with some talented young men. I met one of them in junior high. Another was my first new friend when I started high school. I didn’t know they were gay at the time because they were deeply in the closet. They dated girls, went to school dances, and didn’t show signs they were anything but straight. I didn’t know until years later, the same way I didn’t know about my brother. Sadly, I only found out about my high school friends when they died from AIDS. For that reason, I put LGBTQ+ characters in my novel.

Yeah. A straight white male Boomer writing LGBTQ+ characters. What could possibly go wrong?