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Degranon Rewritten for Gay Audience That Embraced It
Monday, June 28, 2004 7:14:00 AM
by Duane Simolke
| Gay/Lesbian/Bi |
When Duane Simolke completed his fourth book, Degranon, he thought of it as a science fiction novel that included religious themes, gay themes, and some gay minor characters. However, he soon found that most of the people who bought it usually read gay books.
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Ronald L. Donaghe, author of such bestselling gay novels as Uncle Sean and The Blind Season, had given Simolke feedback on the manuscript and wrote an advance review, saying “Duane Simolke's latest offering is a fascinating sci-fi excursion into a world as unique as his singular vision.”
Shortly after the book’s debut, it received a positive review from Mark Kendrick, author of such bestselling gay novels as Stealing Some Time and Desert Sons. Kendrick titled that review “A Reminder of the Danger of Fanaticism.”
Joe Wright of the LGBT organization and Web site StoneWall Society (http://www.stonewallsociety.com) called Degranon “a must read.” Shortly after that review appeared, Degranon received a StoneWall Society Pride in the Arts Award, a third-time achievement for Simolke.
Now Simolke has completed an exciting new edition of the novel that pays homage to his gay readers and many of their concerns. In the original, the scientist Taldra was one of few people on her world who could see in color, but the police of her world (the Maintainers) wouldn’t let colorsighted people tell anyone about that ability. Simolke explores that “closet” metaphor even more in the new edition. He also rewrote three of the major characters as gay men: Taldra’s twin sons and Taldra’s apprentice.
Gay marriage was legal in the first edition, but the second edition more pointedly counters real-life arguments against gay marriage. Still, Simolke focuses on entertaining his readers with the story of a family caught between an oppressive religious world and an oppressive secular one.
Published: June 2004.
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