Jude Thatcher’s life pretty much revolves around The Next Chapter Books – the bookstore she inherited from her mother. Or at least, will inherit once she has enough money to buy it back from the corporate suits currently running it. Then one day, a mysterious woman walks into the store during Jude’s shift.
The two have instant chemistry, but when Jude lets the woman leave without so much as getting a phone number, she thinks the two will never meet again. That is, until a quick web search reveals the stranger is actually a former child star.
So, what happens when a sensitive book seller falls for a driven Hollywood actress?
Such is the premise for Cameron Kellogg’s queer romance The Next Chapter. If you want a cozy, breezy romance to read this is a pretty solid option. Filled to the brim with lovable queer characters, including non- binary and chronic illness representation, what I admire most about Kellogg’s work is the aim to take characters who are normally relegated as background players and bring them into the forefront.
Gabriel, or Gabi for short, has wanted to be a pro soccer player (or football player, if you say it correctly) for as long as he can remember. As he enters his freshman year of college ball, he quickly becomes a standout player and it seems that dream may become a reality. But then, Vale enters his life.
Vale is Gabe’s philosophy classmate, a classmate he may or may not have made out with at a frat party once. Philosophy not being Gabriel’s best subject, Vale agrees to start tutoring him – and the relationship quickly blossoms, causing Gabriel to confront his bisexuality. This realization, however, would come with dangerous consequences. For a POC athlete, coming out could mean giving up his dream.
“Because I know for a fact that my people aren’t ready. Fans can be great, and Mexicans are some of the best football fans in the world. But I also know they come with their fill of homophobia. I- nah. There’s no room for a brown, bi, Mexicano futbolista. – excerpt from Futbolista
In Futbolista, Jonny Garza Villa highlights the extra challenges that queer POC face in the coming out process, and how many are forced to remain closeted in the same of safety. As I was reading, I could help but think Futbolista is exactly why we need more queer stories to come specifically from a POC lens. For many who are hiding their identity – they aren’t living a lie. They are simply trying to survive. Or, in the case of our protagonist in Futbolista, trying to chase their dreams while being the authentic version of themselves.
As a writer, I feel like upping my word count is on my list of resolutions every single year. Yet once January makes way for February, I’m back to square one – disappointed and with a handful of writing projects left unfinished. Well, not this year! I’m utilizing the following five “hacks” to help me reach my writing goals in 2026 – and I’m sharing them here so we can reach up our word count goals together!
Find a new writing spot.
Personally, I thrive in public writing spaces. I love a café, with soft music and the smell of coffee brewing. If you don’t want to shell out the eight bucks for a latte, however, your local public library is a great alternative. While you’re there, sign up for a library card as well. If we don’t use these spaces, we will lose them!
If you’re more of a homebody, that’s totally fine! Set up a cozy corner and designate that as your “writing corner”. Make sure it’s stocked with everything you need to be productive.
Find inspiration by re-reading your faves.
Is there a specific book that inspired you to write? Re-read it. That author who’s work you admire? Go to the library and check-out every book of theirs they have. This is a great way to re-light that fire that dims time to time as we’re fulfilling our daily obligations.
Find an accountability buddy.
Tell your partner or a friend about your writing goals, and have them check in on you about your progress. Having to repeatedly tell somebody you didn’t make your word count goal is not fun.
Don’t forget to take breaks!
I mean take REAL breaks. No phones, no distractions. You can’t write about life if you never take time to live it now and again.
Hope these help! If you any more tips or tricks, leave them in the comments below and good luck to all in 2026!
It’s 1954. Lily Hu is a seventeen year old high school senior – living in Chinatown in San Francisco. On the surface, she has always been the quintessential “perfect Chinese daughter”. But underneath, feelings begin to bubble up Lily soon can’t ignore.
These feelings come to a head when Lily befriends a classmate named Cath. Cath offers to take Lily to a show at the Telegraph Club – a lesbian bar where Tommy Andrews, the “Male Impersonator” whom Lily has been admiring from afar, performs. The Telegraph Club soon becomes a safe space for Lily and Cath. Every visit to the club, however, not only puts Lily’s own safety as risk – but her entire family’s as the threat of deportation looms over her father.
A lot of times, historical queer fiction can come off a bit like…I guess the word is Tragedy porn? I don’t know how else to explain it other than Telegraph Club does not read that way. The challenges faced by the characters come naturally from the environment they are living in. The plot unfolds naturally and is paced extremely well.
I also really appreciated that the book (not sure if every edition has this, but mine did) came with a 13 page section of historical context, analysis and references written by the author. This shows the care and research that went into this novel.
have you read Last Night at the Telegraph Club? Please tell me your thoughts in the comments below!
Intersex – A term referring to a variety of conditions in which a person is born with a reproductive or sexual anatomy that doesn’t fit with the typical definitions of female or male.
The “I” in LGBTQIA!
Historically, the intersex community has been ridiculed by peers, misunderstood by the medical community, and essentially ignored by multi-media.
Basically, this community has been through it.
In Middlesex, author Jeffrey Eugenides attempts to shed light on this community that has historically been kept in the dark. Does it succeed? Or does it miss the mark?
Middlesex follows the story of Cal Stephanides (born Caliope) – a second generation Greek American who, at fourteen, discovers he is intersex. However, the first half of the book is dedicated to recaping Cal’s family history, including their journey from from a small village in Greece to Detroit Michigan, and how a family secret ties in with her genetic condition.
So, what does Middlesex get right?
If you dive into the discourse online from Intersex readers…not much.
WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD.
The implication that Cal’s Intersex condition is a result of his family’s history of incest is not only downright inaccurate from a scientific point of view, it’s also hurtful. It paint’s intersex conditions as a punishment, deepening the stigma against a community that is fighting for acceptance and understanding. Because of this, any praise I could throw at this work would pale against the backdrop of this careless misrepresentation of a deeply marginalized community.
In conclusion – read Middlesex, but bear in mind that this story is not told by an intersex author. It’s a work of fiction with no basis in reality. It’s entertainment at the end of the day. If you are interested in the learning about the intersex community, I will leave some links down below.
Have you read Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides? I wanna hear your thoughts in the comments below!
Do you have a queer-centric short story, essay, novel excerpt or other writing that’s 3,000 words or less you’re dying to share? Submit to the Carbiner! Accepted submissions will get posted on the “Coffee Break” page. No submission fee required! Just send your submission to thecarabinercafe@gmail.com with your name and brief author bio and give me two-three days to get back to you. 18+ only, please!
I looked forward to reading all your amazing work!
Christmas, to be exact. For the holiday, sixteen-year-old me is about to receive, from her grandparents, the single most life-changing gift of her short life; A Macbook Pro.
Armed with my first ever portal into the virtual universe, I discovered YouTube for the first time. Or, specifically, discovered that Youtube was more than cat videos and Vevo. Yes, I discovered Youtubing, and one of my favorite channels was run by two brothers named Hank and John Green, better known was the Vlogbrothers.
From ages seventeen to nineteen, I’m pretty sure my key identifier was “Nerdfighter”. I wore my DFTBA bracelet everywhere. I went to the Fault of Our Stars movie opening weekend, and I collected every single one of John Green’s books – highlighting passages like they were the new testament.
Except for one…
Honestly, I’m not really sure why I never got around to reading Will Grayson, Will Grayson at the height of my nerdfighterdom in the 2010s. It was just one of those books that sat on my TBR – sitting unacknowledged for over a decade.
Until now.
When I searched up queer lit recommendations and this book came up, I knew it was time to finally pick it up.
If you’re going to do the same and pick up Will Grayson, Will Grayson, I suggest you do two things; accept this book as a product of its time and remember that the characters are seventeen.
Before you open this book, take off your 2020s goggles and accept this book as a product of the time in which it was written. Do the authors use all the right terms and verbage? No, of course not, it was 2010. Do the characters make the best decisions, particularly when it comes to their romantic relationships? No. Give them a break, they’re seventeen. Honestly, when you get past the millennial optimism, you begin to see that, actually, this book is quite ahead of its time. In an era of Kurt Hummels and “Just Jacks”, Will Grayson is a strikingly multi-dimensional queer character, which is really what we’re looking for here at the Carabiner Café.
If you’ve read Will Grayson, Will Grayson, tell me your thoughts. Would you cite will Grayson (lowercase will Grayson, to clarify) as a multi-dimensional queer character? Do you still enjoy John Green’s writing, or are the tropes too outdated to get past? Sound off in the comments below!
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