The First Queer Love Project Live Reading Event Was a Smash!
Our first public reading by QLP writers took place March 23 at Book Soup in L.A.
I planned to wake up bright and early and write an enthusiastic recap of our fantastic Sunday afternoon event in Los Angeles—the first public reading of Queer Love Project contributors and the launch of the first volume of The QLP Quarterly zine at Book Soup. But you know how it goes: Michael and I went for some celebratory drinks along Santa Monica Boulevard (yes, I’m that annoying Gen Xer who always hears Sheryl Crow singing her 1993 ear worm, “All I Wanna Do,” in my head whenever see the sign) along with other participants and pals, and then grabbed burgers before I crashed (well, I did watch the latest episode of White Lotus before calling it a night).
Snuggled up next to my husband Patricio, I just couldn’t manage to do all the social media posting right away or listen to some of the comments I recorded so I could transcribe them and get this written and send it early as I’d planned.
I’m staying at a friend’s casita in West Hollywood, and as the birds started chirping, the squirrels scampered up an impressive cactus to the roof, and I saw the hummingbirds flitting outside the window, I decided to just bask in the natural sounds and enjoy a leisurely morning with Patricio. He was such a trooper, helping me shlep the bag of swag, taking photos and videos and making sure I didn’t feel too stressed amid all the excitement. I’ve learned that he’s an introvert who can force himself to socialize, but he needs time to recharge after such a hectic weekend of flying and meeting new people, catching up with friends and being bombarded with my needs and hyper energy (thankfully,
’s book Quiet has helped me figure out how to better allow him do what he needs).
Luckily, the QLP contributors who read their work—
, , and co-editor —all posted and shared and amplified the good vibes from the evening so that I could join the fray when I eventually saw all the mentions. Then I got to work editing and scheduling this week’s and next week’s essays and questionnaires, prepping for the class I’m teaching this week via Zoom, and going for a walk to get lunch. Now, I’m finally tackling this part of my to-do list.Book Soup was a welcome home and the place was packed!
I started off by sharing the reason why I launched QLP last year, and yes, I got emotional and couldn’t stop the tears. Why? Because it was thrilling to have had an idea and now seeing all of these people come together to support it. All of the contributors offer a wide array of insights and wisdom, and I’ve learned from each of them, so I was so happy to gather us all together to celebrate their work and share their stories.
But don’t just take my word for it. Since I can’t quite figure out the proper way to embed a threads post in Substack yet, here’s what Blue Guidal wrote: “Amazing space, wonderful event host Lucy Glad, and good vibes!”
Bob Merrick said it was a dream come true to be reading at the legendary bookshop.
On his own Substack, Martin Goodman wrote: “It was a cheerful gathering in Book Soup, over in West Hollywood—a dream scenario for me, driving along Sunset Boulevard, through Beverly Hills, to my own book event. The readings were powerful and the audience was warm. My own tale was a rare public expression of what I deem to be my mystical side…”
We sold dozens of zines and people donated to The Queer Love Project and received shirts and totes (which you can see on our Etsy site). If you want to help support our mission and aren’t ready to subscribe just yet, you can also do so via Venmo. This will help fund the project, and we use these donations to pay our contributors.
I can’t thank everyone enough for showing up for this special event—and for the generosity of the contributors and the staff who made it happen. An extra big thanks to Michael for organizing the event. I’m going to keep this short so I can send it and keep on enjoying the gorgeous Southern California evening.
We’re just getting started during this action-packed week. We’ll be at the AWP Conference & Book Fair from Thursday-Saturday. We’re also hosting signings at our table by four incredible authors, so if you’re going to be attending, please stop by, say hello, play some trivia and win some prizes! We all need to hold space for queer love, and we hope you’ll join us on this journey.
That’s awesome. Congrats❣️You need to do one in NYC.
Wish I could have been there. Fondly, Michael