
LGBTQ+ literature has the power to transform and inspire all who are exposed to it, and ReadOUT 2025 will endeavor to be a conduit of this transformation and inspiration
SCHEDULE OF EVENTS
SCHEDULE OF EVENTS
FRIDAY, February 14th
Catherine Hickman Theater
Gulfport, Florida
11:00am: Check In Begins
12:00pm: Community Panel: LGBTQ+ Journalism
featuring: Tamara Leigh, Valerie Smith, David Warner, Ryan Williams-Jent
What is the future of LGBTQ+ Journalism and how might LGBTQ+ centered publications be a beacon of truth and a place of community for LGBTQ+ people in the next four years when we are under attack more than ever. This panel will explore the past, present and future of LGBTQ+ publications and journalists.
1:00pm: Community Panel: Florida Educators and Indie Bookstore Owners Talk Banned Books
featuring: Susan Wannemacher, Tricia Smith, Jen Cousins and Brad Rice with Moderator, Rob Sanders
Join local educators, librarians and Indie Bookstore owners as they talk banned books and what is within their sphere of influence to continue education around the importance of reading banned literature and how best to uplift literature that educates, celebrates and inspires the LGBTQ+ community despite challenges.
2:00pm: Community Panel: The Power of Peer to Peer Accountability
featuring: Sheree L. Greer, Maroon Stranger, Slam Anderson, Silk Jazmyne
Writing groups, whether formal or informal, have the power to spark and sustain your creative practice as a writer. This panel explores how writers, both published and unpublished, can form partnerships and create accountability to nurture each others' artmaking and writing careers.
3:00pm: A Showcase of Author Readings
Enjoy a video of selected readings from LGBTQ+ Authors around the world who could not join us in person at ReadOUT as they share excerpts of their newest and most popular works.
6:30pm: Be My Spicy Valentine:
featuring: Quinn Riley, J.J. Arias, K. Aten, Virginia Black, Cathy Pegau and Nan Campbell with Moderator, Elle Ire
Get ready for a sizzling night of passion and laughter! Join a panel of bold and brilliant Sapphic authors as they discuss writing love scenes, and blush through live readings of their work by award winning narrator, Quinn Riley. Figure out which author wrote which sexy moment and have a chance to win great swag, and books. Celebrate love, desire, and unapologetic storytelling in this unforgettable and spicy Valentine’s event!
SATURDAY, February 15th
Catherine Hickman Theater
Gulfport, Florida
9:00am: Connecting Queer Stories with Spirituality and Healing
featuring: Trent Clifford, Sam Houser, Paige Rawson, Raja Gopal Bhattar with Moderator, Dr. Angela Yarber
Discover the powerful intersection of queerness, spirituality, and healing in this transformative panel. Join authors as they share how their stories explore identity, resilience, and the search for meaning. Celebrate the ways queer narratives can inspire growth, connection, and empowerment.
10:00am: Highlighting Trans and Non-Binary Authors
featuring: Luc Dreamer, Jose Iriarte, Maria Ingrande Mora and Sander Santiago
Join us for an inspiring conversation with trailblazing trans and non-binary authors. Discover their stories, creative journeys, and unique perspectives as they celebrate the power of diverse voices in storytelling.
11:00am: Why is the Queer Community Drawn to Fantasy and Sci-Fi
featuring: Alexis Westmore, David Berger, Ellen Kushner, JR Dawson, K. Aten, and Virginia Black and Moderator, José Iriarte
Step into realms of endless possibility with a panel of queer authors as they explore the deep connection between the LGBTQ+ community and fantasy and sci-fi. Discover how these genres offer space for self-discovery, empowerment, and reimagining worlds where everyone belongs.
1:00pm: Keynote Speaker: Ellen Kushner
2:00pm: Tropes and Meet Cutes
featuring: J.J. Arias, Georgia Beers, Melissa Brayden, Bryce Oakley, and Stephanie Shea
Fall in love with the charm of LGBTQ+ romance! Join these authors as they delve into beloved tropes, unforgettable meet-cutes, and how they reimagine classic romantic moments to reflect diverse love stories.
3:00pm: Queer Art as Resistance
featuring: Sandra Lambert, Sarah Greenman, JR Dawson, Dee Holloway, Mercedes Lewis, Slam Anderson
Celebrate the power of queer storytelling as a force for change! Join a panel of authors and creators as they explore how queer literary art challenges norms, amplifies marginalized voices, and inspires resilience.
4:00pm: Series vs. Standalone
featuring: S.W. Andersen, J.J. Arias, Melissa Brayden, Elle Ire, and Stephanie Shea
Do you love getting lost in an epic series or do you savor the satisfaction of a story wrapped up in one novel? In this panel authors discuss the magic behind crafting unforgettable stories, whether they span multiple books or wrap up in one.
5:00pm Open Signing and Cocktail Hour
SATURDAY EVENING ENTERTAINMENT EVENT
Comedian Poppy Champlin w| special guest Rachel Covello
Doors Open: 7pm
Showtime: 7:30pm
Hickman Theater — Gulfport, FL
SUNDAY, February 16th
Catherine Hickman Theater
Gulfport, Florida
10:00am: YA/Middle Grade LGBTQ+ Literature
featuring: David Berger, José Iriarte, Ginny Myers Sain, and Maria Ingrande Mora
Celebrate the vibrant and empowering world of LGBTQ+ stories for young readers! Join this panel as they discuss how their books inspire, uplift, and reflect the experiences of LGBTQ+ youth. Discover the importance of representation and the joy of creating stories that resonate with readers of all ages.
11:00am: Queering History
featuring: Luc Dreamer, J.E. Leak, and Cathy Pegau
Step back in time with a panel of authors who bring queer characters to the forefront of historical fiction. Discover how they uncover hidden stories, challenge conventional narratives, and reimagine the past with vibrant, authentic LGBTQ+ perspectives.
1:00pm: The Use of Place and Time in Romance
featuring: Nan Campbell, Barbara Murphy, Macon Leigh, Sander Santiago, and Naomi Rivers
From cozy small towns to major cities, restaurant kitchens to tabloid magazines, discover how the right backdrop or time period intensifies emotion, deepens connections, and draws readers into unforgettable tales of passion and connection
2:00pm: The Art of Dialogue in Literature
featuring: Georgia Beers, Elle Ire, J.E. Leak, Gale Massey, and Quinn Riley
Dialogue can transform a story. This dynamic panel brings together a group of authors and an audiobook narrator as they explore how well-crafted conversations bring characters to life, reveal essential details, and set the perfect tone
3:00pm: Highlighting BIPOC Queer Authors
featuring: Virginia Black, Sheree L. Greer, Naomi Rivers, and Sander Santiago
4:00pm Plot Twists and Red Herrings: The Art of Misleading the Reader
featuring: SW Andersen, K. Aten, Elle Ire, Gale Massey, and Macon Leigh
Step into the world of literary mischief with a panel of master storytellers! Explore the secrets behind crafting jaw-dropping plot twists and clever red herrings that keep readers guessing until the very last page.
5:00pm Open Signing and Cocktail Hour

ReadOUT 2025 Authors
OUT Arts & Culture is proud to welcome this year’s lineup of panelists, moderators and keynote speakers to ReadOUT: Queering the Narrative
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José Pablo Iriarte is a Cuban-American writer and teacher who lives in Central Florida. Their short fiction has been selected for inclusion in numerous Year's Best anthologies, including Best American Science Fiction and Fantasy 2022, The Best Science Fiction of the Year (Volume 7), and Transcendent 4: The Year's Best Transgender Speculative Fiction. Their novelette, "The Substance of My Lives, the Accidents of Our Births," was a Nebula Award Finalist for 2018 and longlisted for the Otherwise (Tiptree) Award, while their short story "Proof by Induction" was a finalist for the Nebula, Hugo, Locus, and Sturgeon awards for 2021. Their debut novel, Benny Ramírez and the Nearly Departed, was published in 2024 by Knopf Books for Young Readers, an imprint of Penguin Random House. The follow up, AJ Torres and the Treasure of Captain Grayshark, will be published on June 24, 2025. José served on the board of directors of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America, and their longer work is represented by Cameron McClure of the Donald Maass Literary Agency.
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Dr. Angela Yarber is an award-winning and bestselling author of nine books, including Queering the American Dream and The Authorpreneur Handbook. She is the founder of Tehom Center Publishing, a press publishing feminist and queer authors, with a commitment to elevate BIPOC writers. In addition to writing and publishing, she also coaches marginalized authors in book writing, book marketing, and authorpreneurship. With a PhD from UC Berkeley and over two decades in the field, her work has been featured in Forbes, HuffPo, The Advocate, NPR, Ms Magazine, the television show Tiny House Nation, and more
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When she isn't taking shooting lessons, cave-swimming with bats flying overhead, or ziplining down a mountain, Goldie winner Elle Ire writes science fiction and paranormal romance featuring kickass women who fall in love with each other. Elle currently has ten Sapphic novels in print, including her most recent December 2024 release, Speak EZ, from Bywater Books.
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Macon Leigh is a romance evangelist, writer, and person who is usually reading.She lives in Arkansas (in the good part - yes, there is a good part), where she runs a summer camp when she isn't reading, writing, or playing outside. Macon writes queer love stories with hopes of wrangling one into a romance novel one day. You can find her on Twitter, Substack, and Instagram - probably (okay, definitely) talking about books she thinks you'll like.
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CATHY PEGAU grew up in New York State reading horror, science fiction, and fantasy novels, and playing RPGs. Her science fiction romances have won RWA Fantasy, Futuristic, and Paranormal (FF&P) Chapter Best Futuristic Romance and Best of the Best Prism Awards and a Golden Crown Literary Award for Science Fiction/Fantasy. She lives in Alaska with her spouse, two dogs, and numerous roaming moose.
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Melissa Brayden is a multi-award-winning romance author, embracing the full-time writer's life in San Antonio, Texas, and enjoying every minute of it. Melissa is married and working really hard at remembering to do the dishes. For personal enjoyment, she spends time with her Jack Russell terriers and checks out the NYC theater scene as often as possible. She considers herself a reluctant patron of spin class, but would much rather be sipping merlot and staring off into space. Bring her coffee, wine, or doughnuts and you'll have a friend for life. www.melissabrayden.com
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Stephanie Shea is a best-selling contemporary romance author and recovering perfectionist. Her favorite things include bingeing TV shows, and creating worlds where diversity is standard, competency is sexy, and no character is too queer, broken, or sensitive. Then, there’s the wanderlust.
She lives in Mexico City, where she's probably fixating on her next book, stumbling through Spanish phrases, and grabbing a michelada every chance she gets.
Community Panelists
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Valerie Smith (she/her) is a transgender lesbian and novice writer based in Saint Petersburg. As the editor in chief of The Sapphic Sun, a local monthly newspaper for lesbians and sapphics, Valerie works alongside talented sapphic creators to publish stories that queer women actually want to read.
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Jen Cousins is a mom of four public school kids in Orlando and a fierce advocate for LGBTQ+ rights. She serves as chair of GLSEN Central Florida, which she built as a chapter of the national GLSEN network in January 2024 with her co-chair, Dr. Francis. This chapter seeks to support LGBTQ+ youth in Central Florida schools as well as the region’s educators, who often have a difficult time interpreting the ever-changing state laws as they pertain to LGBTQ+ individuals and themes in classrooms. As a parent of two queer children, these issues are of the utmost importance to her.
She frequently gives testimony in support of pro-LGBTQ+ policy in school board meetings, state Board of Education meetings, state Board of Health meetings and in committees in Tallahassee and Washington, DC, where she uses her own voice for those who are unable to speak out for themselves.
She was a co-founder of the Florida Freedom to Read Project and serves on the Board of Peer Support Space, the Advisory Committee for GRACE (Gender Research Advisory Council and Education) and the Steering Committee for HRC Orlando. In 2023 she received the “Trailblazer” award from the LGBTQ+ Center, Orlando and in 2024 she was named as one of 11 of Orlando Weekly’s “People We Love” and was a finalist for the Orlando Sentinel’s “Central Floridian of the Year” award.
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Sorrel D. Richmond is a West Virginia transplant now living in a small town in central North Carolina with their wife, two kids, two sneaky cats, and willful beagle. Sorrel teaches English and Creative Writing on the high school level and is an avid backyard gardener with a love of okra and a hatred for squash bugs. Their characters often have a passion for nature and a love of love itself.
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Suzanne Lenoir is originally from the East Coast and is currently a resident of Cincinnati, Ohio. Suzanne's strongest childhood memories are of exploring medieval city walls, feeling the coolness of dark, ancient churches, and staring at arms and armor while dreaming of being a knight. Her debut novel, A Talent Within, combines her love of YA fantasy with her interest in medieval history.
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Born and raised in Rochester, New York, Georgia still lives there. While she could do without temperatures below 30 degrees or above 80, she loves her little section of Upstate. Lake Ontario, the Finger Lakes, wine country…it’s lush and beautiful and home. The change of seasons makes her happy and fall is her very favorite.
Georgia has written all her life. Short stories. Journals. Newspaper articles. Words have always been an important part of her world. Numbers hate her and high school math made her cry, but words have always come easy. Her mother still has a second grade report card that states, “Georgia likes to tell stories,” as well as, “Georgia spells above her grade level.” While she never considered writing fiction as a career, looking back, it kind of makes sense.
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Dr. Raja Gopal Bhattar (pronouns: they/them/theirs) is a nationally-recognized higher education leader, advocate, consultant and author. Raja currently serves as the Program Manager for the Social Justice and Career Advancement Academy for ACCCA. Previously, Dr. Bhattar served as the Assistant Provost and Executive Director of the Center for Identity + Inclusion at the University of Chicago, overseeing the Office of Multicultural Student Affairs, LGBTQ Student Life and Student Support Services along with campus-wide climate and inclusion work. Raja also served the first gender-queer, person of color and immigrant to direct UCLA's LGBTQ Campus Resource Center.
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Maroon Stranger is a lifelong avid reader and writer of speculative fiction. She began her professional writing career in 2019, as a freelance ghostwriter for paranormal romance novels. Since, she has attended classes and workshops with organizations like Anaphora Arts, Midnight & Indigo, Clarion West, and Kitchen Table Literary Arts, to build her practice. Community with other writers has been an essential part of her growth, from casual weekly write-ins to discussion groups and intensive critique salons. Now living in Tampa, FL, she is currently working on unapologetically Black, Brown, and Queer speculative short stories for SFWA-market publication.
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Ryan Williams-Jent (He/Him/His) is a husband, dog dad, Cheez-It connoisseur and comic book superfan. He and his husband live in St. Petersburg where he’s the proud managing editor for Watermark Out News, the LGBTQ+ news source that’s served Central Florida and Tampa Bay since 1994. Learn more at WatermarkOutNews.com.
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Tricia Smith is an Administrative Services Coordinator with the St. Petersburg Library System. She has a Bachelor's Degree in Public Relations from Auburn University and received her Master's of Information Science from The University of Tennessee. Originally from Auburn, Alabama, she bounced around the South before finally settling in St. Pete. She likes to read books that are controversial because she likes to know what all the fuss is about. She reads classics for the same reason. She also enjoys travel books because they provide a temporary escape until she can take on the next adventure.
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Meredith Doench is the author of the Luce Hansen sapphic thriller series and the stand-alone, Whereabouts Unknown. She's currently working on a new stand-alone, Never Say Die. Meredith is an avid armchair detective and amateur web sleuth who loves all things mystery. She’s also a board member of Mystery Writers of America, Midwest Chapter and a principal lecturer of creative writing and literature at the University of Dayton in Ohio. Learn more at www.meredithdoench.com
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Morgan currently lives in Boston, Massachusetts, but she has called many places home over the years, including Florida, where she was raised. She is a practicing attorney who enjoys spending as much time outside as possible. View from the Top is her debut novel and her second book, A Conflict of Interest will be released June 15.
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David S. Pederson has written multiple mysteries, all featuring LGBTQ+ characters. He's a two-time finalist for the Lambda Literary Award for Gay Mysteries. His second book, Death Goes Overboard, was selected by the GLBT Round Table of the American Library Association for the 2018 Over the Rainbow book list. Two of his poems, "My Candle" and "I Never Knew," were used in the 2024 OCTC stage production of Love Notes Cabaret of Words & Music. He's passionate about mysteries, old movies, ocean liners, and reading. He, his husband, and their sweet rescue cats reside in the sunny Southwest. David can be contacted at davidspederson@gmail.com or via his website, www.davidspederson.com.
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David Berger was the boy under the blanket reading books by flashlight when he should have been sleeping, and he hasn’t stopped reading since. His creative fires started by reading Greek mythology, the stories of Olympian gods and heroes sparking a conflagration of learning that took him through novels—sci-fi, fantasy, or whatever he could find—and that, coupled with his love of comic books, especially Wonder Woman, brought him to writing. The act of putting pen to paper gave him an outlet he had never had, and the inspiration of the Muses pushed him forward.
His love of fantasy prompted writing a Greek myth fantasy series, Task Force: Gaea, a Celtic fantasy trilogy beginning with The Quest of Wyndracer and Fyrehunter, as well as two anthologies of his own short fiction and poetry, Hippocrene’s Promise and Hippocrene’s Dream. When he’s not teaching or writing, he’s living his best fantasy life playing Dungeons & Dragons.
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Sheree L. Greer is a writer, teacher, and arts administrator living in Tampa, Florida. She is the author of two novels, Let the Lover Be (Bold Strokes Books 2014) and A Return to Arms (Bold Strokes Books 2016). Her work has been published online and in print at the Bellevue Literary Review, Obsidian: Literature & Arts in the African Diaspora, Burrow Press Review, LezTalk Anthology, VerySmartBrothas, Autostraddle, The Windy City Times, Bleed Literary Journal, Current: An Anthology for Jackson, Mississippi, Windy City Queer Anthology: Dispatches from the Third Coast, and others.
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Trent Clifford is a poet, playwright, spiritual director, and author of Reclaiming Faith: Learning to Reimagine Church, God, and Ourselves (2024). He lives in Waco, TX, where he is the Artistic Director of Wild Imaginings, a theatre company specializing in new work. He writes weekly at his substack, ReWriting Faith, and more of his work can be found at reclaimingfaith.org.
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Dawson's debut, The First Bright Thing, is a Golden Crown award winner. Her shorter works are in places such as F&SF, Uncanny, and Lightspeed. Dawson lives in Minnesota with a loving spouse and three dogs. She is a professor at Drexel University's MFA program. Her second novel, The Lighthouse at the Edge of the World, is a loose sapphic retelling of Orpheus, and releases from Tor in July 2025.
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Dee Holloway is a librarian, writer, and Floridian in upstate New York. Bouncing between romance, speculative fiction, and essays, her work has appeared from publishers as varied as Neon Hemlock, Invisible Oranges, Ancillary Review of Books, World Weaver Press, and more.
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I’m Sarah Greenman — creative alchemist, artist, writer, and facilitator. My work is steeped in the Celtic imagination and informed by socially engaged movements for change. I believe that your creativity is a gift, meant to be wielded with great love and joy. It is a bone-deep tool for healing, justice, and revelatory collective liberation.
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Luc Dreamer is a trans dad, part-time van lifer, and full-time wanderer. If he isn't out mountain biking, kayaking or hiking, he's in his writing shed working on his next queer romance.
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Sandra Gail Lambert (she/her) writes fiction and memoir about the intersections of disability, queerness, aging, and lesbian desire. Her work often incorporates the natural worlds of Florida. She is the author of My Withered Legs and Other Essays as well as the Lambda Literary Award-nominated memoir A Certain Loneliness. She has published two novels, The River's Memory and The Sacrifice Zone: An Environmental Thriller. Her writings have also been published by The New York Times, The Sun, Uncharted, Orion, Narratively, and The Paris Review. She is an NEA Creative Writing Fellow. Lambert and her wife live in Gainesville close to her beloved rivers and swamps.
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Dr. A. Paige Rawson (Ph.D., M.A., M.Div.) is a certified life coach, interdisciplinary scholar-practitioner, spiritual teacher, healer, writer, public speaker, and professional enthusiast. Having survived five years of reparative therapy, Paige knows firsthand the trauma inflicted by toxic theologies and exclusivist ideologies as well as the way to personal healing and spiritual wholeness.
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I am an independent author writing about fictional lesbians of all varieties.
My writing journey began with fan faction, and as much as I LOVED being part of a community of super fans, I got tired of working with other people’s characters to tell my stories. I started asking myself: Why should we string together pieces of subtext when our community deserves well-developed main-text about LBGT people and those who love them! So, that is what I aim to deliver.
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David Warner is a writer, editor, and actor. He was editor in chief from 2004-18 of Creative Loafing, where he is currently writing about theater. He has also been the editor of duPont Registry Tampa Bay and Philadelphia City Paper, and has written about the arts for The Gabber and Seven Days Vermont.
The recipient of a National Arts Journalism Fellowship from Columbia University, he has a BA from Harvard and an MA in theater from Villanova. Through Feb. 23 you can find him at the Boyd Hill Nature Preserve, where he’s playing Art the Tortoise in American Stage’s “Tales By Twilight,” and in March he’ll play Tampa Mayor Julian Lane in Stageworks’ “When the Righteous Triumph.”
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Susan Wannemacher is a middle school ESOL and Intensive Reading teacher. She has spent six of her middle school years sitting on the Controversial Materials Committee and her entire 11 year teaching career attempting to convince children that reading is a necessary and beautiful life skill.
She spends the rest of her life playing roller derby, training new derby skaters, running, and watching Lightning hockey.
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VIRGINIA BLACK (she/her) is the author of Consecrated Ground and No Shelter But the Stars. She is a two-time winner of Golden Crown Literary Society Awards, and has been selected to participate in the 2024 Lambda Literary Writers Retreat for Emerging LGBTQ Voices. Born in California--where even green is brown--Virginia escaped to the rain showers and vibrant greens of the Pacific Northwest. She lives with her wife of more than twenty years and their savagely witty teenage daughter
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Maria Ingrande Mora (they/she) is a content designer and a brunch enthusiast. Their love languages are snacks, queer joy, and live music. A graduate of the University of Florida, Maria lives near a wetlands preserve with three cats, two teenagers, and two billion mosquitoes. They can often be found writing at their stand-up desk, surrounded by house plants. Unless the cats have destroyed them.
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J.E. Leak is a Golden Crown Literary Society award-winning author of the sapphic noir-inspired Shadow series. An antiques conservator by trade, she has always been fascinated by history and the stories objects could tell if they could speak. When she isn’t bingeing 1940s noir films, she’s writing or photographing nature on the spring-fed azure rivers of Central Florida. She has an Associate of Science degree in graphic design and is a devoted night owl.
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Nan Campbell grew up on the Jersey Shore, where she first discovered her love of romance novels as a kid, spending her summers at the beach reading stories that were wholly inappropriate for her age. She was, and continues to be, a sucker for a happy ending. She is a seasoned traveler, having visited many countries across six continents, and hopes to make it to the seventh someday. She hates to cook but loves to practice her cocktail-making skills. She also loves karaoke, which is unfortunate for anyone within range of her singing voice. Nan and her wife live in New York City, where they struggle to balance their natural homebody tendencies with all the amazing things the city has to offer.
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Barbara Lynn Murphy is originally from Long Island, New York, but currently lives in suburban Atlanta, Georgia, with her wife and five dogs. She is a late bloomer to writing, having only started doing so in earnest during the Covid years. What was once a passing fancy has morphed into a second chapter in her professional life (although she still maintains her day job in Technology—for now.)
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K. Aten is an award-winning author living in Michigan with her wife, two kids, two cats, and her photogenic dog, Jill. She’s published sixteen mostly speculative fiction novels since 2018 and is currently penning for Flashpoint Publications. Kelly loves fanfic, gravitates toward speculative fiction in both reading and writing, and will talk your ear off about the entire book writing process.
Kelly writes heroines into existence one story at a time.
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Gale Massey’s debut novel, The Girl from Blind River, received a 2018 Florida Book Award and was a finalist for the Clara Johnson award. Her work has appeared in Lambda Literary, CutBank, CrimeReads, Sabal, the Tampa Bay Times, SawPalm, and the forthcoming Tampa Bay Noir. Gale was a Tennessee Williams Scholar at the Sewanee Writers Conference, a fellow at Writers in Paradise, and has served as a panel judge for the Lamdba Literary Awards. She has been nominated for a Pushcart prize in both fiction and nonfiction. She is currently working on her second novel.
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Bryce grew up in the mountains of Colorado with a taste for adventure and a head full of clouds. She never grew out of either.
She lives in Denver with her partner, two adorable rescue dogs, and a very opinionated cat.
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Alexis Westmore is an author of literary fiction who resides in the Washington DCregion. As a women's literature and diversity advocate, she is eager to see the beauty of the
LGBTQ+ community presented broadly. She is devoted to science and happy ever after. Her
March 2024 release “The Hidden Relic Hunter” combines epic science fiction and fantasy to
structure a world as familiar as Earth and as unique as the human imagination. Her July 2024
release “Follow the Money” is a sci-fi sapphic romance of forever love with imaginative twists
fueled by her passion for discovery. And, she wrapped up 2024 with her fall release of “Tell Her
I Love Her” which is a sapphic contemporary romance where a love-at-first-sight attraction turns
slow-burn with a surprising turn. Alexis is a plant lover, wine admirer, and ice cream devotee.
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Naomi Rivers writes lesbian romance and women’s fiction. Naomi Rivers is a wife writing team that believes in romance, fairy tales, and happily ever after. Their first novel, THIS: A Simple, Complex Love Story, was written over twenty years to maintain their connection during multiple deployments. They are retired U.S. military veterans and reside with their two rescue dogs on the east coast. Naomi's work has appeared in I Heart SapphFic's anthology Favorite Scenes from Favorite Authors. Their second novel is in progress with a pending release in 2024.
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Silk Jazmyne is a student of life who loves the artistically strange and narrative in all its forms. She’s a book reviewer and essayist. She’s also a Speculative fiction writer and teaching artist for Kitchen Table Literary Arts, Grubstreet Writers and The Porch. Her work has appeared both online and in print at Black Girl Nerds, Straylight Magazine, The Gateway Review, Serendipity Literary Magazine, Midnight & Indigo, African Writer Magazine, Ekphrastic Exhibition in Tandem: Back | Forth. She was born in New York and grew up all over as a Navy brat. She holds a MFA in Creative Writing from the University of Tampa and a Bachelor’s Degree in Communications from Florida International University.
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Slam Anderson - is the Outreach Director for The Kitchen Table Literary Arts Center, a nonprofit organization that builds awareness, appreciation, and support for Black Women and Women of Color writers. She is a youth and adult facilitator, spoken word artist, slam poet and Writer. She has held the titles of speaker, performer and competitive poet across the nation. Slam has competed in national and regional poetry slams in Charlotte, NC, Oakland, CA, Greensboro, NC, and others. She has presented at several Child Welfare conference around the country including, the 2021 National CASA Conference in Seattle, WA, 2021 Office of Respondent Parents’ Counsel Annual conference in Colorado, Springs, the 2022 Texas CASA Lived Experience Conference in Denton, TX; the 2024 National American Academy of Pediatrics Conference in Orlando, Fl, and a list of others.
She grew up in the foster care system and utilizes her passionate, and powerfully abilities of “storytelling” to empower others with her Lived Experience. In 2019, she was the recipient of the “Outstanding Youth” award at the Florida Coalition for Children’s national conference in Orlando, Fl. Slam is one of several co-hosts of the Unbelievably Resilient podcast composed of other Lived Experienced change agents discussing themes of, “Trauma to Triumph”.
Slam is a graduate of the University of South Florida (Tampa, FL) with a B.A in Creative Writing; and a current Graduate student in the Master of Social Work program. She is a native of Alachua/Gainesville, FL.
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Maroon Stranger is a lifelong avid reader and writer of speculative fiction. She began her professional writing career in 2019, as a freelance ghostwriter for paranormal romance novels. Since, she has attended classes and workshops with organizations like Anaphora Arts, Midnight & Indigo, Clarion West, and Kitchen Table Literary Arts, to build her practice. Community with other writers has been an essential part of her growth, from casual weekly write-ins to discussion groups and intensive critique salons. Now living in Tampa, FL, she is currently working on unapologetically Black, Brown, and Queer speculative short stories for SFWA-market publication.
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Lauren Melissa Ellzey (she/her), known across social media as @Autienelle, is an autistic author, educator, and self-advocate. Her young adult novels, Boy at the Window, StreamLine, and Gimmicks and Glamour, emphasize the importance of belonging for queer, neurodivergent youth of color. Through writing and presenting, she highlights the inequitable systems that oppress queer, BIPOC, and disabled folks. Her work has crossed paths with Nest Support Project at NYU, the Program for Inclusion and Neurodiversity Education (PINE), Reframing Autism, Cripple Media, AbleZine, Think Inclusive, and the United Nations. She holds an MS in Library and Information Science and resides in New York City.
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Eddie S. Pierce is a Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing degree recipient from Chicago State
University, home of the world-renowned Gwendolyn Brooks Writing Center. Pierce released his first
self-published work, Love: Something Infinite, and simultaneously launched Rainbow Room Publishing,
LLC Saturday, November 12, 2011.
His second novel, Love: From Behind, followed on Sunday, June 30, 2013. LOVE Changes, the third
novel in the series, and the Rainbow Room Publishing Guide are amongst the author’s most recent
publications, both published in 2018. Pierce is currently concluding From a Black Perspective, a
three-part anthology series featuring published as well as new up-and-coming authors.
In addition to producing more titles and pursuing numerous other literary and artistic ventures,
Pierce is currently overseeing the company’s multiple publishing services and expanding the
company’s offerings in an effort to provide more opportunities for new authors and professionals in
the creative arts. He currently resides in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex.
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Anne Shade had two goals as a little girl growing up in Chicago: be the first woman to play football for the Chicago Bears, and write best-selling novels about life and love. She wasn't the first woman to play on Da Bears, but she did play football for the New York Sharks Women's Professional Football team, and she is currently working hard on her second goal by writing the types of romance novels she believes represent her life, love, and community. She knows with the help of you, the reader, she will reach the best-seller list in no time!
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Advocate, activist, and educator, Tamara Leigh has dedicated her life to championing for the BIPOC, QTPOC, LGBTQIA+ and Trans Communities. Starting her career in public relations,
Leigh went on to become the director of operations and public relations for an agency in New York and the editor of Empty Closet Magazine (the longest continuously published LGBTQ+ publication in the nation).
In 2020, she launched Blaque/OUT Equity & Inclusivity Architects and Blaque/OUT Magazine to further educate around intersectionality and create space for Black and Brown queer voices.
She is also the founder of Tampa Bay Black Lesbians in Central Florida. She has spoken and provided educational services around the topics of implicit bias, queer and trans rights and the Intersectionality of QTPOC at rallies, in board rooms, and for classes and companies nationwide.
Leigh also consults with individual organizations and companies to improve their diversity, equity practices, and capacity as well as on a myriad of projects and curriculum creation for universities, municipalities and orgs nationwide to ensure that diversity, equity and accessibility is centered in their work.
She developed the first Juneteenth event during Pride month for a specifically queer audience in Florida. She created the Trans Remembrance Archive and Information Index that uses geospatial technology to track and map violence against members of the Trans, GNC and NB communities.
Entering its fifth year, Blaque/OUT Magazine (www.blaqueout.com) now boasts readers and writers from around the world, providing a platform for Black and Brown, queer, and trans stories, news, politics, celebrities, and change makers.
Author Readings
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Bio: Krystal A. Smith is a poet and speculative fiction writer. Her poems have appeared in Entropy Magazine, Serendipity, Kissing Dynamite, and Sinister Wisdom. Her collection Two Moons: Stories was a 2019 Lambda Literary Award Finalist. Her poetry collection, This is Not About Love (BLF Press, 2021), explores the complexities of human emotion and relationships via memory, experience, and imagination. Her most recent book, Sheila on the Mend (2024), is her first full length novel as an indie author. Follow Krystal @authorkasmith on bluesky/tiktok and authorkasmith.substack.com
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When asked what I wanted to be when I grow up, I said, “A writer.” I knew that I wanted to write stories, but it took a long time to understand what kind of stories. Today, I’m the proud author of eight novels with Bold Strokes Books. I write Sapphic fiction, and wouldn’t have it any other way.
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Lizbette Ocasio-Russe is a Puerto Rican author currently working as an Assistant Professor of Creative Writing at Southern New Hampshire University. She is also the founder and Editor-in-Chief of the entertainment site PussyPopCulture.com. Her work generally takes up queer and anti-colonialist themes using fictive characters to explore pressing social issues and criticize discriminatory and oppressive sociopolitical and economic practices. Lizbette’s fiction has been published in several publications including eTropic electronic journal of studies in the tropics, Poui: The Cavehill Journal of Creative Writing, Moko: Caribbean Arts and Letters, Tonguas: Student Literary and Artistic Expression Journal, Flash Fiction Magazine, Writing Texas, Corpus Christi Writers 2023, Mays Publishing, The Windward Review, and South Hall Literary Magazine. Lizbette’s debut book, Loverbar, was published July 2023 by Flashpoint Publications.
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From old west gunslingers to modern day romance, S.W. Andersen offers a variety of romantic adventures, including the Amazon best selling lesbian romances, Love By Design, and Switchback. Having been raised by her mother, a strong female character in her own right, she has always been attracted to stories that depicted independent, determined, capable women. A romantic at heart, her characters are rooted in hope and perseverance. She has spent a large part of her life around horses and rodeos and has always had an affinity for the cowgirl lifestyle. Her love of the mountains, westerns and stories involving strong female characters were the driving forces behind the Sarah Sawyer series. When she isn't working or writing, she enjoys outdoor activities and traveling with her wife, Dianna. They share their ten acres in rural Florida with a rambunctious crew of two dogs, four cats and two horses.
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Sander completed his master of science from Purdue University in 2017 and has been published in scientific journals and a speaker for Ignite Talks and is a published poet. Wanting to see more of himself in fiction, his works feature LGBT characters and characters of color. He lives in South Florida with his partner, his best friend, and their many pets. As a Colorado native, he spends too much time telling Floridians how great the mountains are.
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Ginny Myers Sain is the author of DARK AND SHALLOW LIES (2021), SECRETS SO DEEP (2022), ONE LAST BREATH (2024), and WHEN THE BONES SING (2025) all from Penguin Teen. Her debut novel, DARK AND SHALLOW LIES, is a New York Times bestseller, an Indie Bookstore Bestseller, a Barnes & Noble YA Pick of the Month, an Amazon Editor's Pick, and a 2022 CRYSTAL KITE award winner from the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators. Ginny's books are available world-wide in ten countries and counting!
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Ellen Kushner weaves together multiple careers as a writer, radio host, teacher, performer and public speaker.
A graduate of Barnard College, she also attended Bryn Mawr College, and grew up in Cleveland, Ohio. She began her career in publishing as a fiction editor in New York City, but left to write her first novel Swordspoint, which has become a cult classic, hailed as the progenitor of the “mannerpunk” (or “Fantasy of Manners”) school of urban fantasy. Swordspoint was followed by Thomas the Rhymer (World Fantasy Award and the Mythopoeic Award), and two more novels in her “Riverside” series. In 2015, Thomas the Rhymer was published in the UK as part of the Gollancz “Fantasy Masterworks” line.
In addition, her short fiction appears regularly in numerous anthologies. Her stories have been translated into a wide variety of languages, including Japanese, French, Dutch, German, Spanish, Latvian and Finnish.She lives in Mexico City, where she's probably fixating on her next book, stumbling through Spanish phrases, and grabbing a michelada every chance she gets.
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Quinn Riley (a.k.a. Jeremy Carlisle Parker) is an actor and singer working in New York City. She started her career as an opera singer (and has since transitioned to musical theater) and her training has afforded her a facility with many accents and foreign languages. Quinn has a profound love for storytelling and firmly believes that books can change lives. She is an out and proud queer woman and is deeply committed to amplifying queer voices whenever she can. When Quinn isn't in the booth, you can find her tie-dying t-shirts in her kitchen sink while listening to true crime podcasts and catching up on RuPaul's Drag Race.
Partners in Pride
supporters and funders of ReadOUT 2025
Funding for this program was provided through a grant from Florida Humanities with funds from the National Endowment for the Humanities. Any views, findings, conclusions or recommendations expressed in this program do not necessarily represent those of Florida Humanities or the National Endowment for the Humanities.
Pictured: Angela Davis, James Baldwin, & Virginia Woolf
