Some Advice for a Transgender Author?

[Rose City Rose]

(Mods: if this would be more appropriate in the entertainment news section please let me know.  I put it here because it's not "news" per se).

I've been thinking more and more about it, and I've begun to wonder about whether and how I should promote myself as a transgender author versus my current approach, going stealth.

I'm one of the rarest sorts of author, a transgender voice in science fiction and fantasy.  I feel like if I could find readers I'd really be a sensation, but I'm reluctant to blow my cover when it's been such an awesome high passing as a straight woman so far.

There are some issues at stake here:
1. I'm still kind of high on going semi-stealth.  I love being accepted as a female author by the few people who actually read my work.  I'm afraid I'll lose my status as a woman first and simply become a trans person first in the eyes of new readers.

2. I'm published but I'm not selling many books.  I need to reach a wider audience.  Since my books have a strong LGBT appeal getting out there as a transgender author makes sense, but I don't know if it will have the desired results.

3. I don't know how to approach transgender media outlets to review and help me promote my work, or which outlets to approach in the first place.

4. My characters are quite often gay males, since I haven't really lived as a woman long enough.  I usually write about the things I've had experience in for some years; I lived a good 8 years as a gay man but I've only been a woman full-time for about a year.  Unfortunately, I fear that transgender readers will want fiction that resonates with their experience and any trans content in my work is more in the visceral feel of my latest stories (played up in SF allegories such as reincarnation, competing narratives of identity, and disruptions in reality).

All these things in mind, can anyone recommend an approach?  Should I approach trans media outlets to promote my work?  What outlets should I approach?  Should I promote myself as a trans writer at all, considering my circumstances?  Any and all advice is appreciated.

[Alereic]

As a fellow writer, I say take every opportunity to promote your work, regardless of the outlet. If you feel the need to stealth behind a pseudonym, that's fine; lots of writers do it.

As a fellow trans woman... pace yourself. If you force yourself too far, you'll be just as likely to give yourself a migraine or panic attack as sell more books.

My advice overall would be to take it a bit at a time. Test your limits, find out where they are, and push them... But carefully.

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[Rose City Rose]

As a fellow writer, I say take every opportunity to promote your work, regardless of the outlet. If you feel the need to stealth behind a pseudonym, that's fine; lots of writers do it.

Well, I'm already published under my new legal name.  I locked it in for my fiction early on so that I could get known by that name before making it official.  My first book published under my new name came out in January 2013 and my name change was made official last September.  Releasing new work under a pseudonym would complicate things as I've kind of built a brand.

Also, do you know of any transgender outlets that I could approach?

[possessed]

Do you self published or do you have a publisher behind you. I have also written a book, thinking which way to go

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[Rose City Rose]

Do you self published or do you have a publisher behind you. I have also written a book, thinking which way to go

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I'm published through a small press, but they don't have the resources to promote my work and honestly, they're hard to coordinate with.  I'm kind of left to promote my work on my own much of the time.

[Alereic]

Well, I'm already published under my new legal name.  I locked it in for my fiction early on so that I could get known by that name before making it official.  My first book published under my new name came out in January 2013 and my name change was made official last September.  Releasing new work under a pseudonym would complicate things as I've kind of built a brand.

Also, do you know of any transgender outlets that I could approach?

Sadly, I don't. I recommend going to LGBTQ events or writing on LGBTQ forums (heh) to promote your work.

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[Jenna Marie]

I write as an LGBT author, and it's been a bit of a mixed bag. Interestingly, while it hasn't really helped me sell many *novels,* it's been a significant boon to my short story career. Which means my advice is to contact Strange Horizons and Lightspeed for stories, but as for specific publishing companies for novels, most LGBT outlets I know of are small presses. My books have been and will be published by non-LGBT publishers. There are simply not that many large trans media outlets or publishers, and those that are do tend to prefer trans *content* rather than author ID, at least in my experience so far.

(I was published in "Queers Destroy SF" by Lightspeed, which would not have happened if I weren't out; I can't tell you much more without risking outing my real-life identity, ironically.)

So I guess the short version is, enjoy being "stealth"; it's unlikely that outing yourself would help sell enough more books to be worth it.

[Rose City Rose]

So I guess the short version is, enjoy being "stealth"; it's unlikely that outing yourself would help sell enough more books to be worth it.

The thing is, I write from life and most of what I write has a strong queer sensibility anyhow.

[Jenna Marie]

And in my experience, it's pretty hard to get the mainstream publishers to accept even mild queer content. It's a shame, and it's something I and other author friends of mine are battling against, but...  if your goal is to make yourself more attractive to a larger press, it's unlikely that labeling yourself as a trans woman author will help. (It might not hurt, but the worst part is, in some situations it *could.* I worry about being pigeonholed now that I saw a Publisher's Weekly review of one of my books [full disclosure, I've also been published with a small press for my novels] that complained that there wasn't any significant lesbian or trans content from "an LGBT author.")

With that said, I don't regret being out, and I think the ranks of kick-ass trans women writers can always stand to increase. 😉 I'm not trying to talk you into any particular decision, just warning against thinking that outing yourself will automatically kick-start your career. The truth is, sometimes nobody knows why lightning strikes, and the total pool of published books is growing larger by the minute. When I want to depress myself, I think about how hard it is to get noticed, period.