This year’s queer lit fest in New Orleans took some unexpected turns. I participated in a lively panel discussion about genre (fiction vs. nonfiction) which was deftly moderated by Doc McLemore and featured my press-mate Brian Alessandro, Bobby Fieseler (whose new book American Scare investigates Florida Red-Scare era politics and draws a through-line to today’s), and memoirist Kara Zajac. It was the panel about humor that surprised me. I’ve always thought of myself as too earnest a writer to be funny but I found that I connected with the topic and made ’em laugh. For Sunday’s reading, I picked an excerpt from chapter 7, my hustler origin story.
For a half hour sexual encounter I might have had voluntarily had the winds been blowing differently, I had cash for the week. Andrés’ glib comment on the crosstown bus after our first date with the decorator—You just turned your first trick—echoed back at me.This time, instead of confusion, it landed with the thrill of new possibilities. I headed home with a stack of twenties and a business plan.”