Author: Read with Pride

Post 3 of 10 in the ‘Why Read with Pride’ series Here’s a question that should keep every indie author up at night: Who owns your relationship with your readers? If you’re selling exclusively on Amazon, the answer isn’t you. It’s them. Let’s talk about why that matters: and more importantly, what you can do …

You Own the Data: Building an Independent Author BusinessRead More

Let’s talk money, honey. 💰 Because if you’re an LGBTQ+ author pouring your heart into MM romance books or queer fiction, you deserve to be paid like the creative powerhouse you are, not like a side gig that pays out when Amazon feels like it. Here’s the uncomfortable truth: most indie authors are getting a …

Keep What You Earn: Why Daily Payouts and 85% Royalties Change EverythingRead More

Let’s talk about something that keeps LGBTQ+ authors up at night. It’s not writer’s block. It’s not plot holes. It’s the creeping dread that one morning, you’ll wake up to find your book, your baby, your income source, your artistic expression, dungeoned, blocked, or banned by a faceless algorithm. Welcome to “Amazon Anxiety.” And if …

Say Goodbye to 'Amazon Anxiety': Publishing with Total FreedomRead More

Here’s the truth bomb every LGBTQ+ author needs to hear: you don’t have to choose between reach and revenue. The smartest authors in 2026 aren’t putting all their eggs in one basket: they’re playing the long game with a hybrid author strategy that uses big platforms for what they do best (discovery) while building their …

The Hybrid Author Strategy: Using Discovery to Fuel Your Direct StoreRead More

Let’s talk about revolutions. Not the dramatic, barricade-storming kind: though those have their place: but the quiet, powerful kind that happens when people say “enough” and build something better. That’s exactly what’s happening in queer publishing right now. And if you’re reading this, you’re either already part of it or about to be. The Problem …

More Than a Bookstore: Joining the Queer Publishing RevolutionRead More

You know that feeling when you’re writing a particularly intimate scene, the kind where your characters finally break through their walls, where the love is raw and real and queer, and you pause mid-sentence, wondering: Is this too much? Will this get flagged? Will I lose my entire book if I let them be this …

Unfiltered and Unapologetic: The Freedom to Tell Your Real StoryRead More

Here’s the truth that most LGBTQ+ authors already know: you didn’t get into this to become a tech expert. You’re here to write fearless gay romance, compelling MM fiction, and the kind of queer stories that make hearts race and souls feel seen. Yet somewhere between finishing your manuscript and actually getting paid for it, …

Your Vision, Our Platform: Launching Your Branded Author HubRead More

This is Story #5 in our 8-part series, “Living Behind Closed Doors”, exploring the intimate reality of MM life when the world isn’t watching. There’s a specific kind of exhaustion that settles into your bones when you’re playing a role you never auditioned for. It’s Thanksgiving, and you’re sitting across the table from the person …

The 'Roommate' Dynamic: Playing the Part for FamilyRead More

There’s a specific kind of electricity that runs through a relationship when it’s a secret. It hums beneath every shared glance, every carefully neutral conversation in public, every late-night drive to nowhere just so you can hold hands without looking over your shoulder. It’s intoxicating and suffocating in equal measure: a pressure cooker that either …

The Pressure Cooker: The Weight and Thrill of the SecretRead More

Part 4 of 8 in the “Living Behind Closed Doors” series There’s something sacred about 2 AM when the house is asleep and the only light comes from your phone screen. That blue glow? It’s not just illuminating your face: it’s lighting up the first door you’ve ever been able to lock behind you. For …

Digital Safe Havens: The First Room with a LockRead More

There’s something about small towns that romance novels get perfectly right and terrifyingly wrong at the same time. Yes, there’s charm, the kind where the diner knows your order before you sit down and the hardware store owner asks about your mom by name. But that same intimacy? It’s a double-edged sword when you’re living …

Small Town Shadows: Love Where Everyone Knows Your NameRead More

Alt text: A professional man in business attire standing in a modern office, looking thoughtfully out the window at the city skyline, symbolizing the isolation of keeping personal life hidden at work There’s a version of you that walks through those glass doors every morning at 8:47 a.m. sharp. Suit pressed. Coffee in hand. Smile …

The Corporate Veil: Navigating Love in the Professional ClosetRead More

There’s something sacred about 6:47 AM. The alarm hasn’t gone off yet. The world outside is still half-asleep. And in this stolen pocket of time, it’s just the two of you, no explanations needed, no careful pronouns, no checking over your shoulder to see who might be watching. He reaches across the bed, fingers finding …

The Morning Hush: The Beauty of a Shared Life Behind Closed DoorsRead More

So here we are: the final curtain call of our eight-part journey through the glittering, grinding, gorgeous world of drag. We’ve talked about the makeup, the money, the hecklers, and the heels. We’ve dissected the art of the lip sync and the exhaustion of living two lives. But now it’s time to zoom out and …

The Final Curtain: Legacy, Evolution, and the Future of the LookRead More

Let’s get real for a second. Being a drag queen isn’t all standing ovations and dollar bills raining down. Behind every flawless contour and death drop is someone who’s probably had to scroll past hateful comments, sit through awkward family dinners, and stare at their reflection wondering if they’re good enough. Welcome to the part …

Facing the Critics: Dealing with Judgment (Internal and External)Read More

Part 6 of the “Life as a Drag Queen” Series Let’s clear something up right now: if you think lip syncing is just mouthing words while Beyoncé does the heavy lifting, you’ve got another thing coming. The art of the drag queen lip sync is a full-contact sport: part theatre, part athleticism, part emotional excavation, …

The Art of the Lip Sync: More Than Just Moving Your LipsRead More

Let’s talk about something most people don’t see when they’re mesmerized by a queen death-dropping in eight-inch heels: the math. Yeah, honey, the math. Because behind every flawless contour and crystallized corset is a spreadsheet that would make your accountant weep. Welcome to the fifth installment of our “Life as a Drag Queen” series, where …

The Highs and Lows of the Tip Jar: The Financial Reality of DragRead More

At 7:45 AM, you’re answering emails in a beige cubicle, sipping burnt coffee from a chipped mug. By 11:45 PM, you’re death-dropping in six-inch heels while a crowd of drunk strangers screams your stage name. Welcome to the drag queen double life: where spreadsheets meet sequins, and nobody at corporate knows you spent last night …

The 9-to-5 Grind vs. the 5-to-9 Shine: Living a Double LifeRead More

The audience sees sequins and sass. They see perfectly painted faces and death-drops that defy gravity. What they don’t see? The cramped dressing room where three queens are arguing over a curling iron, someone’s crying off their lashes because their boyfriend just texted “we need to talk,” and a Drag Mother is literally safety-pinning another …

Sisterhood in the Dressing Room: The Heart of the ShowRead More

There’s a moment, right before you step into the light, when your entire body screams at you to run. Your palms are sweating through your gloves. Your heart is doing a death metal drum solo in your chest. And that cheap synthetic wig you bought off Amazon for thirty-nine bucks? It suddenly feels like it …

The First Time on Stage: From Cheap Wigs to SpotlightsRead More