Category Archives: Authors

Authors of books with intersex characters

Designing Your Own Cover

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I spend almost as much of my time on cover design as I do writing. And I enjoy it nearly as much. The design for the cover of Child of an Elfin Sea began when I ran across a watercolor mermaid by the same artist who did the watercolor that appeared on my Short Story Outsider.

After thinking about ways to build a cover from the image, I decided that the image was too busy as it was. So, I extracted the mermaid from the background.

For a background, I look for an image that can cover the entire book. That way, I’m not left with a line on either edge of the spine.

But first, I format the interior well enough to get an idea of page count. Then I go to bookow to generate a template. I generally use 6″ x 9″.

I add guides at 0.5 inches from the crop lines and 0.5 inches from the spine. They help me position images more easily.

For a background, I chose a blue water color to go with the watercolor mermaid. It was too dark and too saturated, so I altered it a bit.

I like object book covers, and they tend to be popular in Fantasy. There’s another reason, though, I think. Object covers are a little easier to build because you generally don’t have to overcome busy areas where you want to place title and author text.

To focus better on the area where I would add the mermaid, I added two layers. The first was a circular watercolor, the second a watercolor that looked a bit like coral. Then I added more watercolor details to the top and bottom of the image.


For me, cover design isn’t a linear process. I went through several iterations for the mermaid object and the field around her. For now, I want to look at what I did to add text.

Child of an Elfin Sea is Fae Fantasy. Although the title may convey that, the genre tends to use more fanciful fonts that you might see on a Mystery. I use Yana quite a bit. It’s versatile and has a wide variety of embellished characters.

Finding the individual characters, sizes, and offsets that I wanted took me weeks. One of the few shortcomings of the Yana font is that not all of the embellished characters are the size that you might expect. So it takes some adjustment.

The title looks okay in black, but I wanted it to appear as though it’s in the sea mist. Yeah. That. So I added a layer to add texture to the font.

Last of all, I wanted to add a little more depth by having some of the swashes appear to go in front of the rest of the character. Or behind it. I added those by painting a mask that allowed parts of the background to show through. Note that the blue guides help keep the text centered on the front cover and equidistant from the edges.

When I’m working on a cover, it’s easy for a layer to become lost in the stack. So I group those that I can–Background, Title, Author, Spine, etc. The exceptions are the single layers that I need to position individually.

After adding the mermaid, I adjusted its brightness and color saturation to better coordinate with the background. And I adjusted the background color to fit the mermaid’s colors.

I decided to place the mermaid in front (or on top) of the title text. To add a little conflict. Then, since I also added a lightning strike, I added it in front of the title text but behind the mermaid.

On the back cover, I generally add an additional subtitle above the blurb. Then the size of the blurb, along with the usual publisher information (press, genre, isbn barcode) determines what else I’ll add to the back cover. In this case, I wanted to add a little more whimsy.

The blurb can be as difficult to get right as the rest of the book. Then you have to blend the text and whatever back cover image(s) you use. I ended up adjusting the image size, the text character size, and the layout quite a few times before it felt balanced.

The back cover object image of the girl in the wind was easier to mask than the mermaid because of the relative simplicity of the image’s background. It didn’t require building a second file. Fortunately, the back cover object image didn’t require any color adjustments.

To get from paperback cover to ebook cover, I clip the image to 6.25″ x 9.25″, keeping the rightmost area. Note that part of the spine text remains.

Then I resize the image so that the height is 2560 pixels, the preferred ebook cover height. That results in an image width of 1730. The preferred width is 1600, so I crop to that width. That removes the spine text and leaves the front cover image centered.

It would be nice if I could design a book cover without quite so many iterations. The process I just described was the result of months of image selection and manipulation, and text sizing and placement. I even changed the title to see how that might work out.

If you create your own covers, don’t be afraid to experiment and to keep trying out different methods and ideas. Even if it takes forever, you’ll likely have fun doing it.

A Proper Young Lady

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US and UK codes #audiobook #newadult #intersex #sweetromance

I have free audiobook codes for my second novel. The Scottish narrator did an outstanding job. If you’d like a free code, all I ask is that you leave an honest review.

A woman with the complete form of Androgen Insensitivity Syndrome might never discover that she has testes in her abdomen rather than ovaries and uterus.

Danièle knows, and she grieves that she can never have her own children. She has a partial form of AIS that left her with ambiguous genitals, a steady stream of doctors and psychologists, and parents determined to see her happy as a girl.

After Melanie agrees to have a baby for her, Danièle learns that the clinic can extract sperm from her own gonadal biopsies, and she becomes the biological father herself.

Ethan adores the graceful young woman named Danièle, while Melanie imagines a life with the father of her children.

Danièle? She’s happy with her intersex body—somewhere between princess and little boy. But in a black and white world, she must choose—once and for all—who she will be. And whom she will love.

If you’re interested, contact me at liannesimon AT yahoo DOT com.

Watercolor Memories

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My third novel, Watercolor Memories, is being released this week. Although not quite the same genre as Outsider, it’s set in the same alternate-history Scotland.

Toward the end of World War II, a biological weapon meant for London veered off course and struck Eilean nan Sìthean. Within forty-eight hours, the ensuing plague killed all of the men and most of the women on the island. Six months later, the survivors gave birth to children of the plague–the Fair Folk reborn.

Anya’s a fifteen-year-old foster girl, living in Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania. In the past year, she’s gone from petite blonde to tall and muscular redhead. She doesn’t understand what’s happening to her body or her gender, but she knows she doesn’t want the doctors fixing her.

Watercolor Memories looks at gender and sexuality. It explores the boundary between friend and lover. What happens to you if your memories flow like the paint running down your artwork? If the world shifts, and everything changes, will your best friend still be there or will you die alone?

Silver Dagger Book Tours is conducting a blog tour for both Watercolor Memories and Outsider. Hop on over to their site for a schedule and some giveaways.

Fae Fantasy, Sweet Romance, Intersex OwnVoice

Intersex in Christ: A Review

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The Author:

Jennifer Anne Cox, PhD. teaches systematic theology as an Adjunct Faculty Member at Tabor College in Perth, Western Australia. Her newest book, Intersex in Christ: Ambiguous Biology and the Gospel was published recently by Cascade Books. I was given a copy in exchange for an honest review.

Disclaimer:

As a Christian with an intersex condition, I’m too close to this subject to give an entirely unbiased review. Please keep that in mind.

Introduction:

The author’s stated goal was to write an evangelical response to intersex, and to do so from a particular world view. Her words are directed at Christians.

“Yet an evangelical Christian response, which considers intersex through the lens of Christ, his person and work, is needed.” —page 2

Reaching Christians regarding intersex:

To the evangelical Christian, her message then is—the Gospel is as much for someone with an intersex condition as it is for you. Stop abusing these people.

Jennifer Cox addresses intersex from an evangelical point of view without reducing the complexity of human biology to the presence or absence of a Y chromosome. She doesn’t lecture intersex people about embracing the binary. Our bodies are fine the way they are.

A number of Christian scholars claim an intersex person’s ‘true’ sex can be determined from some indicator of God’s creational intent. So I was a bit surprised this author didn’t follow that well-trodden path.

Indeed, after discussing 1 Corinthians 7:17-24, she says:

“It is quite acceptable to live with the gender assigned at birth, and even possibly scribed into the flesh by surgery. God would not see this as a sin. The situation in which the intersex person finds himself or herself when coming to know Jesus as Lord is a situation in which that person may validly remain. However, it is not a sin to transition to the other gender. There is abundant grace in Christ. A decision about gender for the intersex person should be made according to grace and with the guidance of the Holy Spirit. The fact that this is difficult and may take some time to work through is not an insurmountable problem. Christians should recognize the grace of God in this matter and support the intersex person in the decision-making process.” —page 151

For that statement alone, I will be giving copies of this book to evangelical leaders and Christian friends willing to read it. I dearly wish those who signed the Nashville Statement would take the above quote to heart.

In her chapter on Sex, Gender, and Intersex, the author compares complementarian and egalitarian positions. For reference, most of the signatories to the Nashville Statement would claim to be complementarian. Jennifer Cox, is an egalitarian. As she says:

“I will advocate for a more egalitarian position, particularly in church. The egalitarian position would provide no hindrance to intersex persons taking up any role in church or society.” —page 78

She makes a strong case for her views and rightly associates the more extreme form of Complementarianism with Arianism, a heresy.

Although I have some areas of disagreement with her theology, I think she presents her case well.

So, yes, send a copy of this book to your Southern Baptist or Presbyterian Church in America friends.

About the Resurrection:

Although the author deals with a number of different subjects, I want to comment in more detail on her views of the Resurrection.

My mother once asked me whether I’d be male or female in Heaven. I told her that I didn’t know and wouldn’t care. My Redeemer loves me.

Jennifer Cox insists that our resurrected bodies will be binary—entirely male or female. Like many Christians, she dismisses the verses that speak about a lack of sex—or at least sexual function—in our new bodies. She says:

“Intersex bodies will be healed; intersex people will be restored according to God’s creative intent. This is not to say that identity will be in question, since identity is secured in Christ. However, which intersex person will be male and which female cannot be known in the present.” —page 127

So, rather than pointing to the presence or absence of a Y chromosome to determine ‘true’ sex, she maintains that only God knows, and He’ll make that clear at the Resurrection.

My fallen rational mind isn’t the measure of all things. But some of the statements evangelicals make about sex seem inconsistent to me.

There will be no marriage in Heaven. No sexual activity. No reproduction. The point of our resurrected bodies being sexed, according to Jennifer Cox is:

“Being male and female is a very significant part of being human, because this difference enables people to be ‘fellow humanity.’ Human sexual differentiation is part of our creaturehood. Therefore, we must expect that in the resurrection male and female sexual distinctions will remain.” —page 139

According to some evangelicals, being male or female is essential to our humanity. Yet being intersex is a disorder that can be healed without changing our identity. A binary sex is so central to our being that our resurrected bodies must be sexed. But intersex will be erased.

At a glance, my naked body’s female—wrinkles, sagging skin, and all. My gender wanders at times, but remains well within the bounds expected of a woman. That’s me.

If I rise from the dead with a completely female body, I won’t complain. It would seem odd to me, however, to suddenly have a functional reproductive system in a place where such will never be used.

If I rise from the dead with a completely male body, I won’t complain. But my gender would also need to change. Otherwise, I would become like the transgender people whom the author condemns because:

“their understanding of their own selves, is incongruous with their biological sex.” —page 38

In another chapter, the author says that:

“Identity is not primarily found in a physical attribute or the shape of our genitals.” —page 140

She also says,

“Human beings were created with bodies and we cannot disconnect ourselves from those bodies. In some sense we are our bodies.” —page 129

I agree that our bodies are an important part of our selves. In the Resurrection our bodies will still reflect our selves. If someone who lived most of her life as a woman—though intersex—is resurrected with a functional male reproductive system—how can that still be her self? And we shall surely be recognizable as ourselves in our new bodies.

Job said:

“I know that my redeemer lives, and that in the end he will stand on the earth. And after my skin has been destroyed, yet in my flesh I will see God; I myself will see him with my own eyes—I and not another. How my heart yearns within me!” —Job 19:25-27

Reaching those with an intersex condition:

What about my intersex friends who aren’t Christians? Will I recommend the book to them?

No. It’s not directed at non-Christians. But I hope enough evangelicals read Intersex in Christ that the attitudes of Christians toward intersex people change. From what I’ve read in this book, I suspect the author shares that same vision.

“We must love people as they are, while also considering what they will become.” —page 5

Some Christians have made a point of telling me that intersex is a result of the Fall. Okay. But if you tell a woman in labor that her pain is due to the fall of mankind into sin, she’ll never let you share the Gospel with her. Love her first. Help her through that pain. Show her you care.

When trying to reach someone who is intersex, you can’t start with a view that we’re physically broken. And be aware that words you consider ‘the truth in love’ can still injure us.

The author says:

“It is false to declare that everything that occurs naturally is intended by the Creator to be that way. Not everything that exists necessarily ought to exist.” —page 58

I took that as, “You should not exist.” Is that fair of me? Perhaps not. But don’t expect an intersex person who reads Intersex in Christ to respond well to such things.

Remember that I said I’m not unbiased. I interpret language through the context in which I live and my particular history as both a Christian and intersex.

I don’t believe the author meant anything untoward by any of her statements. It’s just my cPTSD kicking in. We who are intersex—at least my generation—live in a world altered by trauma. Not caused by our being intersex, but rather by how people react to our differences.

It’s not that unusual for Christians to try to erase intersex. By minimizing our numbers. By reducing sex to a single biological parameter.

By assuming that we’re unhappy with our bodies. That intersex is a medical disorder rather than a part of the diversity of God’s good creation. By telling us we need or want to be healed.

By looking for our ‘true’ sex. By objecting to the gender we choose.

It’s unfair to suggest that this book actually says any of those things. But a number of my intersex friends are understandably sensitive. So, no, I’m not likely to recommend the book to them, except as something to give their Christian friends.

Drawing from Intersex Experience:

Many of the quotes the author uses are from intersex people I know, or from doctors I’ve seen or scholars I’ve corresponded with.

Megan DeFranza is one of my closest friends. Susannah Cornwall is one of the most winsome people you’d ever want to meet.

I was a member of ISNA. I’ve been involved with or attended intersex support group meetings for nearly twenty years. I know quite a few of the intersex people the book quotes.

I’ve met Doctors Reiner and Migeon and Berkovitz and Creighton and Minto. I know what it’s like to spread my legs with more than just my own doctor present. I’ve had genital surgeries to repair previous failed ones.

I’m delighted that the author quotes so many intersex people. It shows that she did her homework. That she cares to listen to us. But I hope that she has taken or will take the time and effort to develop intimate friendships with enough intersex people to really understand us. I hope that the AIS-DSD support group will let her visit one of their annual meetings.

Ending on a Good Note:

To be fair, Jennifer Cox says a number of very positive things about intersex people:

“However a person is sexed—female, male, or intersex—the human body is very good.”—page 44

and

“this does not necessarily imply that people who are unambiguously sexed are closer to the image of God than those who are intersex.” —page 55

and

“To intersex believers, I want particularly to emphasize that you are acceptable to God without alteration, because you are created in his image, made because of love, and are valued and dignified as an intersex person.” —page 165

Intersex in Christ—give a copy to your Christian friends.

A Proper Young Lady

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9780985148225In the summer of 2012, the AIS-DSD support group met in Oklahoma City. Most who attended were women with Androgen Insensitivity Syndrome or—like me—had some other Difference of Sex Development. #intersex is the word most of us happily accept.

That year, the organization invited medical personnel involved in the treatment or study of intersex—the friendly ones, at least. Among those was Eric Vilain, MD, PhD, the Co-Director of the UCLA Institite for Society and Genetics.

In response to a question, Dr. Vilain said that it might be possible to harvest immature spermatazoa from the gonads of a woman with Partial Androgen Insensitivity Syndrome and use those to fertilize human eggs. He suggested that only ethical considerations were keeping a clinic from doing so. Or, perhaps, a clinic had already done so quietly.

My publisher and I had recently finished editing my first novel, Confessions of a Teenage Hermaphrodite, so I was eager to start writing my next book.

Three long years passed before A Proper Young Lady became a reality.

A woman with the complete form of Androgen Insensitivity Syndrome might never discover that she has testes in her abdomen rather than ovaries and uterus.

Danièle knows, and she grieves that she can never have her own children. She has a partial form of AIS that left her with ambiguous genitals, a steady stream of doctors and psychologists, and parents determined to see her happy as a girl.

After Danièle’s best friend and childhood crush agrees to act as a surrogate for her, Danièle learns that the clinic can extract sperm from her own gonadal biopsies, so she becomes the biological father of Melanie’s baby herself.

Ethan adores the graceful young woman named Danièle, while Melanie imagines a life with the father of her children. Danièle? She’s happy with her intersex body—somewhere between princess and little boy. But in a black and white world, she must choose—once and for all—who she will be. And whom she will love.

Eastern Iowa Review — Changeling

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Eastern Iowa Review

“Afterward, pain shadows my every move. Whenever I stop, the dull ache in my tailbone grows until it consumes each waking thought and pursues me into my dreams.” —Changeling

The inaugural issue of the Eastern Iowa Review is scheduled for an early May release. I’m delighted that a personal essay I wrote on intersex, will be included.

The literary journal’s founding editor, Chila Woychik, was gracious enough to drop by and chat about her new venture.

Lianne: Welcome! The EIR submission guidelines say, “Show us the good and glorious respites between the hurt; show us those good spaces.” I love that sentiment. Tell us a little more about your vision for the magazine. What drives you?

Chila: Coming from a non-faith childhood to an evangelical young adult and middle life experience, then to a more general faith perspective has led me to believe that there is true beauty and balance in this world, and it’s not that hard to find, especially if we approach life with a nonsectarian mindset. Further, having a child of my own has helped me grasp the importance of appropriateness in reading materials, viewing materials, etc., on impressionable minds, and how often “adult” materials are pretty worthless in the overall scheme even to adults. My goal is to try to bring that kind of truth and beauty to the world.

Lianne: If you would, give our readers a bit of a preview—what are some of the special things in this issue?

Chila: Besides your fantastically open and honest essay, we have creative writing ideas from a Pushcart Award winner, stories and nonfiction from MFA’s, MDs, those with little published writing and those with a CV as long as your arm. Of course, I’m grateful for each and every contribution but am extra pleased with our nonfiction and fiction special contributors: one is an English Language Fellow with the US State Department in Russia, and the other has been published numerous times simply because her writing is top notch literary.

Lianne: When I started sending out queries for Confessions of a Teenage Hermaphrodite, my assumption was that I should seek an agent who represented Christians. But even ‘edgy’ Christian Fiction didn’t include novels with an intersex main character.

It was about that time, I think, that I ran across an article you’d written on the issues with Christian Fiction. (Indeed, my novel has a few of the problems so prevalent in the genre.) Has the situation improved much over the past two or three years?

Picture0338Chila: I just finished judging a group of middle grade / YA samples for a West Coast Christian writing contest, and I was amazed to find about half the entries were quite decent. Yes, there were the usual too-overt religious elements, but overall the good pieces were really quite good. Of course, these were only samples, the first ten pages or so, so who knows how those stories resolved and how they moved toward that resolution. I seldom read Christian fiction anymore; I don’t have time to waste on what has too often been bad writing teamed with an attempt at redemption through in-your-face preachiness. I’m still waiting for the day when serious writers who also believe in God will seek to address universal truths in a way that everyone, of faith or not, will sit up and take notice.

Lianne: A few of the agents that I met face to face—some of whom praised my writing—lost all interest once I explained that I was intersex. The Lord has called me to be more transparent. So I don’t hide what I am any longer. But that makes me more vulnerable.

On a previous occasion, you offered me a contract on a short story. While writing Changeling, I kept reminding myself of that. Yet I worried you might not want to risk publishing what I wrote. My essay seemed well outside what most literary magazines would print. Even given your statements regarding Christian Fiction. Would you share a bit more about your thoughts on determining limits for content?

Chila: I think your story is an important and poignant one. I also think many literary magazines would gladly publish it given you maintain a general, not-overly-religious, stance. For the Eastern Iowa Review, I sought strong nonfiction that was true and still beautiful with redeeming value for the general reader, the homeschooling mom and her brood to the college professor seeking something a little less traditional, a break from the norm. I guess I don’t consider “intersex” a tough topic as opposed to, say, a graphic story with sex scenes or brash profanity or crude jokes. To me, the truth of an intersex birth is a far cry from themes some would consider “adult.” Also to me, I would have gladly (though carefully) explained to my young son about genetic differences; their reality; it’s where we live. We learn about, learn from, and love people, period. There is no distinction, or should be no distinction. It is not unbiblical to be born intersex, so why should people hide it or discriminate against it?

Lianne: You’ve recently become a literary agent. Port Yonder Press publishes books. Eastern Iowa Review prints poetry, fiction, and non-fiction. You’re an editor and a prolific writer. How do you find the time to remain healthy and happy, let alone sane?

Chila: A few things changed earlier this year, primarily that Port Yonder Press will no longer publish material, though a few of our books will remain on our sales lists for the next year or two. Also, as of now, EIR is only an annual thing, if that. Re: editing – most of my work as an editor was for Port Yonder Press, so that will no longer apply. I had also managed the Zero Bone Poetry Prize, but this is our last year for that as well. I’ve trimmed my life out of a compelling desire to write, so for now I’m focusing on my personal writing journey, this new literary agenting gig, and possibly the journal. This is very doable and will allow me to follow my dreams at last. I also have a small farm full of animals, an awesome Jeep, and a few hobbies that I adore, such as hiking, boot & book shopping, and keeping up with friends and relatives: these things bring perspective and keep me grounded.

Lianne: I’m really excited about the release of Eastern Iowa Review. Where can people purchase a copy? How much of the content will be available online? When will you be open to submissions again?

Chila: Our goal is to have a link here by May 1st. If you purchase off our site, you’ll save over an Amazon purchase, so we’re hoping many folks will avail themselves of that opportunity; it will also net more proceeds for us and for the cause of good literature. Online content will be very limited, perhaps one-sixth of the total number of stories. “Changeling” will be one of the stories available online as will a couple more essays and a piece of fiction or two. We want people to read some of the best we’ve included so they’ll be encouraged to want the rest. All the stories are good, of course, but I feel we’ll have a good cross-section of styles and topics free online.

Lianne: Thanks for stopping by. May our dear Lord richly bless you. And thank you, dear lady, for your friendship.

Chila: The honor is all mine, Lianne, and your friendship has become special to me. Best to you as well!

[edited September 26th, 2015] Changeling is here.

Interview–Abigail Tarttelin

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Author Abigail Tarttelin

Author Abigail Tarttelin

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Abigail Tarttelin, the author of Golden Boy agreed to speak with me again.

Lianne: Hi Abigail! Thanks for coming back again.

Abigail: Hi Lianne! Armed with a cup of tea now! How are you?

Lianne: Darjeeling?

Abigail: No, Green. I drink it all day!

Lianne: Ah. I’m great. Not sure I could drink tea all day, though.

Abigail: I know it’s a bit crazy. But I’m British. It’s what we do!

Lianne: I used to travel some for business. After a day in the air I like black tea with a shot of Bailey’s

Abigail: oo that sounds lovely!

Lianne: So, you’re working on a new book?

Abigail: No I’m working on a screenplay. I have a great friend I met on a job two years ago that I write with.

Lianne: Sounds like fun!

Did you accomplish your goals with Golden Boy?

Abigail: Which goals?

Lianne: You were writing about gender, neh? And wanted to express some ideas. Have readers reacted as you had hoped?

Abigail: By and large yes! My aim with Golden Boy was to add to a discussion, and perhaps also to bring that discussion into a wider forum. I wanted to pose questions rather than offer conclusions and I think readers seem to be galvanized to do their own thinking about gender norms, which was what I had hoped to achieve.

Lianne: I suspect that people will react in a wide variety of ways. Some of the things that resonate with an intersex person may fly right past someone else.

Abigail: That’s true.

Lianne: Mind you, I think you did an excellent job of presenting issues faced by an intersex teen.

Abigail: Thanks so much, Lianne. That really means so much coming from someone who has had to deal with these things on a personal level, and I’m really happy that you think so.

Lianne: One of the complaints I got about Confessions was that the protagonist didn’t stand up for herself more. But Max seems to have the same personality issue. Or perhaps it’s just his resilliance. There’s so much pressure to be what others expect. It’s not always overt, though.

Abigail: Yes, and I think this is a major difficulty with gender and sexuality issues for teens. There is so much negativity and feelings of fear and guilt surrounding the concepts of sex and gender that adolescents find themselves overwhelmed into silence. And I think it’s a really good point – for Max and Jamie – that this is also indicative of an inner resilience and an attempt to not bring an argument about who they are to the table, but to withhold themselves from others and remain as they are, inside.

Lianne: Exactly!

Abigail: 🙂

I do think it’s hard too, from my own perspective as well as Max’s, to stand up for yourself when you’re an amenable person surrounded by strong personalities.

Lianne: But why are you amenable? And, perhaps that means you’re stronger? With Max, he seemed okay at the beginning. Lots of kids are insecure about anything to do with sex.

Abigail: I think amenable, in the sense of being open and responsive, is a great thing to be! But when you reach adulthood, as Max does, you find there are decisions to be made that will mark the rest of your life, and you have to stand up for yourself in a way you didn’t when you were younger.

Lianne: Lots of kids are insecure about anything to do with sex.

Abigail: That’s very true.

Lianne: I’m glad it wasn’t Max who made the final decision regarding the medical procedure. I would have been upset with you.

Abigail: I think Karen’s point of view in the book, particular with her influence over Max and his medical decisions, is one of the most divisive parts of the novel for readers. On the one hand, she’s being a good mother and trying to take hard decisions off his hands; on the other hand, perhaps she goes too far with a choice that Max should have taken responsibility for.

Lianne: And, actually, I had to put the book down for a while after he got his mom’s attention.

Abigail: I know. It was such a sad scene to write, and I’m pretty sure I had to take a breath afterwards before beginning the next chapter.

What did you think of Karen?

Lianne: For some parents of intersex kids, it’s about them. For Karen, it was about her. I don’t care how much she claims to love Max. What she did was unconscionable. Doctors panic about intersex. The kids can’t afford to have parents who do.

Abigail: That’s very true. That’s one reason I think it’s so important to have books like Confessions and Golden Boy, that speak to parents and adult readers.

Lianne: Yes. And I wish you success!

Abigail: And to you!! 🙂

Lianne: Fortunately, the growth of support groups has meant an increasing number of activist parents.

Abigail: Yes! Which is wonderful.

Lianne: I understand you’re doing an audiobook? Mine is in process.

Abigail: Yes, Simon and Schuster are putting out an audiobook. I read the part of Sylvie. I really hope people like it! I’m so interested to hear the final version. I have heard snippets from each of the narrators, and they all sound fantastic! It’s still set in England, so all the voices are English.

Lianne: Is she the character you most identify with?

Abigail: Sylvie is probably the character I sound most like in any case! Max and Sylvie equally I very much identify with. I was very like Sylvie as a teenager – although nowhere near as cool or confident, particularly with people I had crushes on!!

Lianne: I’ll be interested to hear what Max sounds like. I assume he had enough Testosterone to change his voice.

Abigail: Well in the book, I think it’s nice because people can really make their minds up. For me, his voice wouldn’t be so deep. I’m interested too to see what it sounds like in the audio book!

Lianne: Can you share something personal that might surprise your readers?

Abigail: Ok, a thought: I am the luckiest person I know, largely because I haven’t always been lucky. I have had to work really hard and think outside the box to get to where I am as a writer and a person, and the fact that my career and achievements aren’t based solely on luck means that I’m prouder of those achievements than I would have been otherwise. I think this is a thought that could be very relevant to intersex readers. Your gender hasn’t been handed to you on a plate, and you have to make choices that others never have to. But perhaps that means that, in the end, you can be prouder of the person you become, because you had to fight for yourself and assert who you are every step of the way.

Lianne: Thanks!

Abigail: No problem 🙂 You are the master of your own fate, and not a product of a gender role you arbitrarily received, and had to submit to.

Lianne: I liked the way Golden Boy ended, at least in terms of the issue of intersex still being unresolved. Even if Max had ‘normalizing’ surgery, he’d still be intersex.

Abigail: I agree. As much as we change ourselves, we are still ourselves. And there’s nothing wrong with Max.

Lianne: It is important, however, to get to the point where intersex (or whatever) isn’t the all-consuming focus of your life.

Abigail: Totally. That’s really the point of the book. Max is Max. There’s nothing wrong with him and intersex isn’t the only facet of his personality. What happens in the novel hopefully makes the reader ask ‘Why is it such a big deal?’

Well! I am late for a date!! Not a romantic date, a work one…! I have to go. But it’s been so lovely talking to you again!

Lianne: Thanks so much for taking the time. 🙂

Abigail: Thank YOU! Very best of luck with Confessions and talk soon! 🙂

Lianne: Thanks. 🙂

You can read our first interview here at MuseItUp Publishing;s blog

Golden Boy–Abigail Tarttelin

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goldenBoy

Not since Herculine Barbin’s autobiography has a book so thoroughly opened up old wounds. After reading the opening scenes, I set Golden Boy aside for several days while I debated how wise it would be to finish it.

The protagonist in Golden Boy is Max, an intersex teen living as a boy. At the beginning of the novel he’s raped by a male friend who treats Max sexually as female. And Max doesn’t go to the authorities.

Long ago, a roommate in the boys’ dorm–yes, boys’ dorm–proved that he could do whatever he wanted to me. No, I wasn’t sexually assaulted. Not exactly, anyway. But it was clear that, to him, I wasn’t a boy. And I didn’t go to the authorities. Why not? Read Golden Boy. Max would understand.

Max has a close family–father, mother, brother–that doesn’t seem to realize just how dysfunctional they are. Father is running for Parliament. Mother’s a hot-shot attorney. Brother has his own issues and is a bit annoyed at Max’s perfection.

But the opening was compelling enough to draw me in. I’m glad I finished the book, but it took several weeks to get over the visceral reaction I got every time I recalled some of the novel’s events. Yes. Entirely too close to home.

Abigail Tarttelin deals well with issues faced by one intersex teen, and how it all changes when someone discovers his secret, and how little control some kids have over their lives.

Very few of us get to the point of not caring who knows we’re intersex. Even fewer, perhaps, can forget that we are. For Max, coming to terms with his condition is traumatic. No. Let me restate that. For Max, the trauma isn’t his condition. It’s how everyone around him treats him. Ms Tarttelin does an excellent job of demonstrating how each person in Max’s life reacts. In the end, even those who are supposed to be closest to him, won’t let him make his own decisions.

Golden Boy should be released in May. Highly recommended whether you’re into YA or #yasaves or not.

You can see a discussion I had with the author on the MuseItUp blog.

Phoebe Hart – Orchids: my intersex adventure

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Phoebe Hart is a documentary filmmaker. Orchids: My Intersex Adventure presents her story of self-discovery. Thank you so much for being here, Phoebe. Would you tell us a little about yourself?

I’m Phoebe Hart.  I am a documentary filmmaker and CAIS woman based in Brisbane Australia

How and when were you told your diagnosis?

My mother told me I didn’t have a womb and couldn’t menstruate or get pregnant when I was about 11.  She then filled in all the gaps when I was about 17 and I’ve been researching it ever since!

Can you explain a little about your condition?

CAIS is a congenital condition whereby I have 46XY chromosomes and testes but androgens such as testosterone have no effect on my body so I developed as feminine in the uterus.

What do you like the most and the least about having a difference of sexual development?

I don’t like being different.  But, at the same time, it’s pretty cool (being different).

Making a movie is a pretty bold move. How has the publicity affected you and your family?

The movie I made – Orchids: My Intersex Adventure – was therapeutic but in the way that shock therapy is therapeutic.  It was something that created waves but in the end has helped my family come together.  It was something I had to get off my chest and, not really by choice, I had to drag everyone I love along with me. Otherwise, I was surprised how few people recognized me after it was broadcast in Australia!! (Phew!)

How has your condition affected your relationships?

Not really.  I’m married now and, after quite some years of marriage, my husband did grieve not having the opportunity to have his own biological children.  But you never know what life has planned and he may get his wish yet.

Has it affected your religious views? How have Christians treated you?

I was raised to be a leftwing atheist.  If anything, nowadays I have an Eastern religious perspective along the lines of Buddhism. I have some views about intersex and spirituality along the lines of “two spirit” beings.  However, I’ve never had any bad reactions from other religions including Christianity.  In fact, the church-going people I tell about my CAIS generally congratulate me on my courage, and then tell me about the godly virtues of adoption, etc.  It might be easier for religious people to accept AIS as it’s “god’s choice” and part of the glory of his/her creation rather than an individual wandering off the righteous path.

Have you ever thought about who you might have been without your condition?

I would be a boy, yes.  I would have probably really loved that.  But, it’s my destiny to live in this body, and perhaps my kharma – what I needed to learn in this lifetime.

Is there something you’d like to share that might surprise people?

My movie is going to show on the TV in America – on Showtime.

What’s the one thing you’d most like people to know about you?

I’m a nice person, but I’m not perfect.  Far from it.  However, I believe there’s a power to telling our stories and that should be celebrated.

Thanks for sharing. More information on the film may be found the website or on Facebook