Brandon Shire

Author of Contemporary Gay Romance

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Prince & Ekaj – LGBT Film

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Prince and Ekaj

Prince & Ekaj is a story about two gay Latino teenagers who are completely different from each other. One is a runaway teenager, and the other is a self-taught street hustler who spends his time wandering the streets of NYC at night looking for ways to make money. They both meet by chance and end up realizing that they depend on one another more than they think in a city that is full of crime, drugs, prostitution, and of course, hope.

Their story is not an easy one, but then surviving on the street as a gay teen isn’t easy either.

I featured the producers of this film on my blog some months back, and then brought it up again when one of the young actors was beaten and robbed in real life. The film is in the last two & a half weeks of filming and has a fundraiser event in NYC on Oct 25th and you can be a part of this monumental work of art.  Space is limited to 75 guests. Register

See the trailer on their website

The other side of Homophobia on Twitter

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I’ve been on Twitter for almost two years now, tweeting away about LGBT Youth, books, music, and all manner of things generally LGBTQ related.  When the news about the new site that tracks the use of homophobic slurs hit the Twittersphere this week I had already seen it (and tweeted about it) before it became a huge news item on the LGBT circuit. I watched as many of the major LGBT blogs/feeds spoke about how depressed, saddened, and disturbed they were. I also noted how more than a few people repeated that sentiment on their own feeds, some of them had just a few friends and followers, and some had thousands.

What did the big news sites fail to report?

There is, and has been, just as much lgbtq-positive and anti-homophobic sentiment on twitter as there is homophobia. (See feed below.) [Read more…] about The other side of Homophobia on Twitter

The absence of hope – Homeless LGBT Youth

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As many of you know I help raise awareness and funds for two LGBT charities. 10% of the proceeds from the sales of my books go to them.  Lost n Found, one of the charities, posted a video about what they find during outreach to homeless LGBT Youth.

This is how 500,000 homeless gay kids live on the street every single day. You can help by donating to either of the groups below, or by finding a local lgbt charity in your area that does the same type of outreach.

 

lgbt youth nonprofit

Lost n Found

 

 

 

 

 

 

lgbt nonprofitGLBTAYS

LGBT Hip Hop Artist Lanice London

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Lanice London, lgbt, hiphopI want to welcome Lanice London to the blog today. Watch for her name, it is fast growing in the hip-hop music scene and, from what I’ve seen (and heard) she’s not taking any prisoners.

I know, most of you are looking at this on my blog and say Whaaat? I don’t listen to that! Grow up, please. Music is a cultural revolution more than any other form of art and the one last bastions of homophobia in music is hip-hop. (Though this is rapidly changing.) The simple fact is that LGBTQ kids aren’t listening to Evita anymore people; they’re looking for music that represents how they feel right now, in this time period, and reflects what they are going through on a day-to-day basis. Hip-hop does that, poetically, sometimes harshly; but always with an understanding that the artist has lived the rhymes and can express a shared reality in their beats. That is why it is such a popular music genre.

B: Lanice, you’re from Philly, that’s a hard city. How has that influenced your music, particularly as a lesbian woman? [Read more…] about LGBT Hip Hop Artist Lanice London

The Generosity of Fans

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There are quite a few days when I wake up and wonder what the hell I’m doing putting my books out. I have no inspiration to be an “author,”  for me it’s just scribbling words on paper and crafting a story that reflects on some of the harshness, and the beauty, of life.

And then there are days when you wake up, open your email, and find that your expectations of humanity are, once again, reaffirmed because of the generosity of strangers. This morning was one of those mornings and here’s why:

Fans started a Goodreads Fan Group about my books.

Afflicted jumped up to #18 on the Amazon Gay & Lesbian Romance Bestsellers list

Someone from my new Fan Group made a donation on my behalf to one of the charities I work with. 

I want to thank all those anonymous people out there who are reading the books, and I especially want to thank the person(s) that took the time, and the money from their pocket, to make a difference. Your actions have moved me greatly.

Vote for LGBT Youth – They need your help!

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lgbt nonprofitGLBTAYS is one of the organizations that I help raise funds and awareness for. We need your vote to help them secure a grant from Chase Bank. This is one of the  only organizations in the Northern Alabama area serving LGBT youth and is right smack in the middle of hostile central as far as anything LGBT goes.

All it takes is one click to change the lives of many LGBT Youth. Vote by Sept 19th.

Cast your vote for GLBTAYS and one other charity using your Facebook profile.

See the video message from founder James L Robinson below.