Settling In Gently by R.A.Davis

So I'm writing a romance novel about gay mormon missionaries and it started as me cackling over my keyboard: "heheheh, this is quite scandalous, the church leaders say 'grab your muskets to defend yourselves from the gays? I'ma make missionaries *Kiiiissss* and touch each others' BUTTS, So there!! " It started as a thumb to nose at the church, neener neener. Well, really at the specific homophobia of the church in the early 2000s. That's when I was marinating in it. Pfff, I knew I was queer when I went on a mission. I fell in love with girls since middle school! (Hi Elly! I love you!!!! You're literally the coolest person in the world!!!) but I also fell in love with boys and I kinda... hoped that would cancel it out (sorry Elly. I'm the worst. You deserved better and I'm glad you got it. Still love you, though.) I even put words to it-- I bought bisexual pins for my paisley flute case! I was out! And also Mormon! What the fuck!! So then I went...

  Sex and Power, Gender and Transgression: Lessons for Today from LGBT+ Diversity in the 15th and 16th Centuries Rebecca Stevenson (As presented at the Dorothy Dunnett Society Centenary Conference in Edinburgh, with some added notes in smaller font) April 12, 2023 Good afternoon, my name is Rebecca Stevenson. It is a pleasure to be here, speaking about Sexuality, Gender, Power, and Queerness in the 15th and 16th century World.  Cut Sleeves and Bitten Peaches Is it possible to understand the inner worlds of people we’d call LGBT+ from 600 years ago? Or to understand how they defined themselves, how they accessed or lost social power? Or how social systems shaped the meaning of sexual and gender behavior? Stories and poetry are decoder rings for queer interiorities of the past. Writings from queer points of view allow for self-definition in context, and reveal eddies of social power and transgression. And stories illuminate the rainbow palate of diverse sexualities, identities, ...