I printed a few copies of this small booklet to provide as a handout during a signing this spring at the Horror Writers Association booth at Book Expo for my collection of gay-themed ghost stories The Haunted Heart and Other Tales and my recent novel The Wolf at the Door, which is set in a haunted gay-owned guesthouse in New Orleans. Since then, I have had a number of requests to see the list from other writers, librarians, and booksellers, so I’ve posted it on my Web site and provide a link here for the curious readers who would like to find more stories to read.During the eight years that I worked on the gay-themed ghost stories that became The Haunted Heart and Other Tales, I read a number of classic and contemporary ghost stories and horror anthologies and was impressed by the hidden history of how gay authors helped to shape this genre. The list, organized chronologically, reflects ghost stories and novels written by gay men and which include gay male characters, gay themes, and/or gay interpretations. I encourage readers to contact me at jimcurrier@aol.com regarding additions or omissions to this reading list. Please note that this is not a comprehensive list, but a selected and suggested one for discussion and further research. I have also not included the contributions of lesbian authors to the ghost story genre in the hopes that another author will do so, nor have I included the gay vampire tale within these recommendations—that is a genre of its own and which has grown in recent years at warp speed and lie beyond the scope of this list.
Access the list here or here.
If the links do not work or if you cannot download the file, please feel free to email me and I will email you a copy of the booklet.
My thanks to Vince Liaguno for arranging the BEA signing and to Steve Berman and Tom Cardamone for suggesting some of the stories I have included in the list.
