Tara 0:19
Hey, everyone, welcome to a very special bonus episode of Queerly Recommended. As always, I am Tara Scott and with me is Kris Bryant.
Kris 0:28
Hello, everybody. What makes this episode so special? Well, we’re also joined by the award winning author, Georgia Beers. Welcome, Georgia.
Georgia 0:37
Hello, thank you so much for having me on this lovely evening.
Tara 0:40
We are so excited that you’re here. And I don’t know if you know this about the show. Hopefully you do. Maybe you don’t, whatever. But you know- Right? So at Queerly Recommended we really are all about sharing the queer media that we love, whether it’s books, TV shows, movies, video games.. I had somebody this week, reach out through Instagram saying, “I didn’t know there were queer video games”. Yes. Yes, there are.
Georgia 1:09
I don’t think I knew that either now that I think about it,
Tara 1:11
Right? Well, then we need to get you a Nintendo Switch. And I’m gonna get you some recommendations.
Georgia 1:16
Yes.
Tara 1:18
And so that’s kind of some of what we’re hoping to talk to you about today and keeping it around, you know, like, what’s the queer media that you love. And to kick us off we just want to ask: Is there an LGBTQ movie or book or whatever else, I mean, I was gonna say video game, but you just said you don’t play them. But is there is there something that affected you at some point in your life and really stuck with you?
Georgia 1:46
I remember and t his is, it’s not a hap- I remember when I went to the movie theater to see Boys Don’t Cry. That movie wrecked me.
Kris 1:57
Yes.
Georgia 1:58
It was wonderful. It was a great movie. I will never ever watch it again. But I remember I went to the theater with my wife at the time and some friends. It was like our night out. What a, you know, downer. I remember that I just, we were quiet all the way home. And as soon as we got in the house, I just burst into tears.
Tara 2:19
Yeah.
Georgia 2:20
It was just and I can remember it like it happened yesterday. It just was- I think it was the first time that- I mean, I had a pretty easy coming out. I have never, you know, I have not faced a lot of adversity in my own life. And I’m very lucky. And I know that and I think that that movie shined a light for me that let me know that there are some horrible people in the world. And not everybody has a yellow brick road like I did. And it stayed with me. I mean, that’s from what the mid 90s I think?
Kris 2:58
Now didn’t that take place in the Midwest? Wasn’t it like, where I am from? So yeah, for sure.
Georgia 3:04
But I just I can see the kitchen, I can see myself walking in and I remember Bonnie turned around, and she was like, “What’s wrong?” And I just started to cry. And she held me and I just was like, “People are so awful”. That affected me and like not a great way. But yeah, that one. That one.
Tara 3:23
Yeah, that’s fair.
Kris 3:25
Okay, so what what do you want to see more of like LGBTQ stuff? TV shows, movies, I know you spend- you write so much, and so quickly, so I know that you don’t have a lot of spare time. But like, what, what what could be your downtime? What would you want more of?
Georgia 3:42
I want more movies, and I want more movies that are not about coming out.
Kris 3:48
Right? Mm hmm.
Georgia 3:49
I want more movies where the protagonist just happens to be gay.
Kris 3:54
Yes.
Georgia 3:55
And like any other movie, so there would probably be a love interest because that’s what other- you know, like, I want I want an action movie where the lead instead of Liam Neeson is a gay woman. And I want a horror movie where the five friends that go to the cabin for the weekend are all gay. You know what I mean? Like, I want that kind of stuff where the movies, not about they’re coming out process or dealing with their parents or bringing somebody home because I know that that happens and I realized that that’s important. But I feel like that’s what we always focus on when we make movies. And I want people to make movies out of the millions of books that we’ve all written because-
I will tell you, let me give you a little my background. We have an awesome LGBTQ Film Festival here in Rochester. It’s the biggest one on the East Coast outside of New York City. It runs for 10 days, we usually run 40 plus movies, and I’m on the programming committee. So there’s like a dozen of us that sift through dozens and dozens and dozens of movies from now until July. We watch movies. That’s all we do. And then we talk about them and we say well, you know, does this appeal to the audience, what are the pros and cons of this movie? Does this work? And then we put the programming together. So I see a lot of crap. And when I see something like that, it makes me crazy, because I’m like, who’s writing this stuff?
There’s a- I know so many good writers. I know I’m a good writer, come and find us, make our books into movies, because there’s such good stuff. And I don’t know who’s writing these terrible screenplays. There’s some really good stuff, too. I don’t mean to trash everybody. But you know, when you have to sift through the dregs, there’s some dregs. Let me tell you.
Tara 5:38
Oh, definitely.
Kris 5:40
I did that for, you know, for the show. I’ll turn on, you know, I’ll speak into the remote and I’ll say LGBTQ movies. And I’m like, “Oh, this sounds good”. And then I like watch it. I’m like, “This is the worst piece of shit I’ve eveer seen. I just wasted two hours of my life.”
Georgia 5:56
Well, you know what that’s called? I call that the lesbian rule of mediocrity. Because we will watch whatever there is, and love it. Because it has lesbians in it.
Kris 6:07
I think you and I argued one time a couple years ago about a movie, and I don’t remember what it was it just it just popped in my head. And it was like, I was so mad because I- Shit I wish I could remember the movie cuz we were arguing about it. And I just thought it was horrible. I thought the acting was bad. And it’s something a woman- a young woman brings her girlfriend home, but doesn’t tell her parents that’s her girlfriend. And it’s kind of real soap operaish looking and I want-
Tara 6:34
It’s not Happiest Season?
Kris 6:35
No, no. It wasn’t that one. I think we all like everybody knows. Yeah, no, it wasn’t that one. It was like how God I wish I could remember what it was but but yeah, just like the desperation we have to have representation on the film. Or on the you know, on the screen we want that. and by the way, I just want to say we can have Liam Neeson but let’s make a gay or a gay lead. The Taken series, let’s let’s have, let’s have- you know, let’s have a Liam Neeson and a husband and a daughter gets taken. I mean, it’s- Yeah, I feel like anything. Anything.
Tara 7:12
Give us a lady James Bond. She can still have a Bond Girl.
Georgia 7:15
Yes, I agree.
Kris 7:16
Who would we cast as Lady James- Jane Bond, who would be cast as Jane Bond?
Tara 7:22
Charlize Theron. That’s my pick.
Kris 7:25
But she’s already played something like that. What was she in?
Georgia 7:28
Yeah, you’re right.
Kris 7:29
She just did this. She was in Berlin.
Tara 7:32
Atomic Blonde?
Kris 7:34
Yeah, that’s right.
Tara 7:36
Yeah, I was thinking based on The Old Guard.
Kris 7:38
So we need someone suave, somebody who’s real suave, who could like slip in and slip out and like-
Georgia 7:45
If Angelina Jolie was 10 years younger she could still do that. She’s great in Salt. One of my favorite action movies ever.
Kris 7:53
I love Salt. I will watch- I will watch anything. Angelina Jolie if she’s on TV.
Georgia 7:57
Me too.
Kris 7:57
I will stop and just be like mesmerized.
Georgia 8:00
Me too.
Kris 8:01
And I’ve seen it 9000 times and I know what happens but I’ll still stop and wise.
Georgia 8:05
Me too.
Kris 8:06
She’s my eye candy for sure.
Georgia 8:08
Yeah, she’s everybody’s eye candy.
Kris 8:11
There is like a love hate with her. Some people are like so in love with her. And there are other people. They’re just like, “Oh my gosh, is horrible. Blah, blah, blah.”
Georgia 8:19
My mom told me one day that if she was ever going to sleep with a woman it would be her.
Kris 8:28
Oh, that’s funny. That’s good. Okay, so so back on this recommendations. Do you ever like go with somebody else’s recommendation or just kind of wing it? Do you like find something? Or do you see something on Facebook? On Twitter?
Georgia 8:43
Yeah, I’m pretty well versed but I’m always looking for new stuff. So if I see a recommendation or you know somebody I- it has to be somebody I trust though, because I’ve fallen into that trap before and again, I will I stayed out of The Happiest Season arguments online.
Kris 9:04
Yes, yes.
Georgia 9:05
I did not enjoy that movie at all.
Kris 9:07
Thank you. Thank you. I didn’t either I thought, I thought the girlfriend was awful to her girlfriend. I mean, I thought she was an awful person.
Georgia 9:16
I din’t thought you would treat your friend that way let alone your girlfriend.
Kris 9:19
Right? Right.
Georgia 9:20
And leaving her with your family that she doesn’t even know, I’m just going to go off and do my own thing and you’re on your own and I- That- I did not enjoy that movie.`
Kris 9:28
Yeah, there’s a lot of things wrong with it. So that’s why we need fun. And Tara sent me a holiday queer movie that’s coming out. What was it called? The simple, jolliest. gayest season of all?
Tara 9:35
Let me bring up our WhatsApp.
Kris 9:46
She was super excited. Yeah, cause it was like-
Tara 9:48
I don’t remember anything. Well, here’s the thing. Let’s be honest. I’m not gonna watch it because I watch almost nothing, but you might.
Kris 9:54
I will totally watch it. Here it is, another gay movie. Netflix announced on Tuesday that they’re working on a gay movie titled Single All The Way and it’s like Georgia Beer’s fauxmance.
Georgia 10:05
Is it?
Kris 10:05
Yes.
Georgia 10:06
Is it girls or boys though, because I find that is-
Kris 10:09
It’s boys
Georgia 10:10
It’s boys, that’s how it goes, it’ll be the boys first. And then us. That’s how it always goes.
Kris 10:15
Like, I’ll be 70 by the time that shit hits a screen and you know. I don’t have time for that.
Georgia 10:20
Oscar movies are always the boy movies.
Tara 10:23
Well, that’s where I think with- So I’m gonna just disclose I did not watch Happiest Season because I watched everybody talking about it and thought, ‘I’m going to give myself the gift of not spending that time watching that movie”.
Georgia 10:34
Some people dig it it and I just, and it’s actually been polarizing. Like there. I have friends that I can’t talk to about it because they’re mad at me because I didn’t like it. And you get that whole, “Well, you need to support it because it’s gay stuff. And if you support it, more will come.” And I understand that. I do get that. But it doesn’t mean I have to like it.
Kris 10:52
Yeah, plus, we need I mean, positive. That’s what we need positive movies.
Georgia 10:56
I support that it got made. That’s awesome. I’m so glad that it got made. And I’m soglad it did well. I just didn’t like it.
Kris 11:03
Right. Yes, it could do better. Like you said, we have so many Christmas- even if we just even it would just make it a seasonal thing. And we just had a Christmas movie, there are so many Christmas novels out there that- are that do a much better job than this. So apparently we need to get in with the right people, the right screenwriters, find some movie people and and have something that’s positive and you know, nurturing instead of this, like every typical stereotypical thing that you hear in your life about lesbians are that just like their lifestyle or what they do, how they do things, how they treat other people that was in this movie, and I’m just like, “Oh my gosh”.
Georgia 11:42
I will say that’s one of the first times that I’ve ever enjoyed Kristen Stewart. Another thing I’m not allowed to talk about cause most love heer.
Tara 11:50
No, no, no. You know what? This is a safe space. I say go for it.
Georgia 11:59
One of my ImageOut friends calls her “The Moper”.
Kris 12:02
Yes. Yes. I have talked about her twice on the series, on this show already. Just Yeah, because-
Tara 12:09
We’ve gotten no hate mail so go for it.
Kris 12:11
Yeah. So I’m not a fan of hers at all. I mean, but like, I love the whole Twilight series. The movies are just like, whatever. But the books themselves I thought were great. And I just think she’s, yeah, she’s very mopey.
Georgia 12:22
I’ve seen a couple of roles where she’s been good, but she’s not- I’m not a fan. She’s fine.
Kris 12:27
Yeah, and yeah, I agree. I supported her in that.
Georgia 12:30
Okay. I’m on her side. For sure. So in my life (inaudible) Team Kristen
Tara 12:41
What about- Kris did you end up watching that one? I- not this past Christmas, but I think it was the Christmas before there was the one that came out and it has like three couples or something like that. And one of them is from Wynonna Earp. One of them is Dominic. I can’t remember her last name.
Kris 12:55
It’s French, yeah.
Tara 12:57
I heard that one was really good and really sweet.
Kris 12:59
Oh, that was on. Isn’t that on tele?
Tara 13:01
Yeah.
Kris 13:02
It was on on tele wasn’t it?
Tara 13:03
Yeah.
Kris 13:04
And I did not see it because I did not subscribe, which is horrible..
Georgia 13:09
I had a subscription to that and I never watch, like I subscribed to be supportive. And then I-
Kris 13:14
And I’m like, “Oh, I need to watch this”. Well, and now that we’re doing more of this, you know, I’m gonna get- I started subscribing to things so we can watch things. You know, like I subscribe to Apple to watch Dickinson. So yeah, so I’m gonna- I’ll get to it. I will get to it because I absolutely loved Dom. I think she’s just an adorable actress. And she’s super sweet. And yes, I will watch it. But no, I have not seen it yet.
Tara 13:36
Alright, maybe we’ll make that our extra special Christmas episode this year. We’ll both watch it.
Kris 13:43
Yeah, there’s- well, and we started this whole podcast right after Christmas. Like it was like I had seen like 1000 gay, lesbian Christmas things. And it was it was after it was over. So ha inbv the season we have to start like in August, because I have seen so many we want to talk about this recommendation.
Tara 14:02
Your recommendations from August to December is nothing but holiday.
Kris 14:06
All holiday movies, I’ll tell you that now. All holiday movies.
Tara 14:09
Mm hmm. So Georgia, I don’t think it’s a secret. You’re known as one of the biggest authors in lesbian romance.
Georgia 14:18
Well, that’s just because there’s been a pandemic. I’ve put on a little extra weight. I’m working on that, working on it.
Tara 14:24
All right, phrasing. One of the most popular authors in lesbian romance, although you know, who among us has not put on a few pandemic pounds? Let’s be honest. How much romance do you read? And do you read outside of romance?
Georgia 14:41
I do. Yes. I try to read my friends’ stuff. It’s hard. I read Kris. I read Melissa Brayden. I try to read Rachel Spangler. I try, like Kris and Melissa are my first two and then I have more that I need to get to but, I just- It’s awful. I really, I’m trying to be better about that but I run out of time and plus I tend to go “romance, suspense, romance, suspense” because I really like suspense and thrillers. So I go back and forth. And then I get stuck and then I also read some mainstream romance. I love Kristan Higgins.
Tara 15:15
Oh, yeah.
Georgia 15:16
Jill Shalvis. I feel like I read somebody else recently, but I can’t remember now who it was. Ann Padgett. It is somebody I love who I guess I would classify as dramatic fiction. And I read a lot of suspense, a lot of thrillers. Those are my favorite movies. Those are my favorite. I wish I could write suspense. But I, I don’t think I am smart enough. I don’t think I- you have to be so careful to tie up every last loose end. And I just- I worry that I would miss one because readers are smart. And they look at you.
Tara 15:51
Yeah, it’s a- well, I mean, I am not an author. So I can’t fully empathize, but I have to imagine it can’t be easy to be, like is Nora Roberts the only one who does both equally well.
Georgia 16:01
No, a lot.
Tara 16:02
Are there a lot? Oh Okay.
Georgia 16:04
Yeah. I just think it’s not. And I say it’s not something I can do. I- it doesn’t mean I wouldn’t try at some point. Because it is it is- I love romantic intrigue. Love it. Love it. Love it. I just, I don’t know. I don’t know that I have it in me.
Kris 16:18
I feel the same. I’m not a Sidney Sheldon. I’m not, I can’t do that. Write romance with this with this massive story.
Georgia 16:24
Yep. Love to read it though. Love Carsen Taite all day long, but I can’t I don’t think I could write that.
Tara 16:29
Fair.
Georgia 16:31
Yeah.
Tara 16:32
So do you have any big ol queer recommendations for the listeners? Just things that you’ve really loved? Maybe they’ve gotten you through the pandemic? Maybe it’s just something that you think everybody needs to watch or read? What is it?
Georgia 16:48
I’ve gotten- I’ve got my old favorites always that I will pull out and watch whenever, Imagine Me and You is always going to be one of those just because I love it so much. And I love- I love everything about that movie. But have you guys seen Summerland?
Tara 17:01
No.
Georgia 17:03
So good. It’s actually- they’re running it on, I want to say it’s on Showtime right now but I, I, I on demanded it. I want to say maybe four months ago, five months ago when it was released. It’s British. It’s with Gemma Arterton who I adore cool. Gemma Arterton of the overbite or underbite.
Tara 17:23
She is perfect!
Georgia 17:26
And it’s just a sweet story. It’s the lesbian part of it is kind of a backstory, but it’s very integral and into the entire thing. So it’s definitely worth it. It’s got a fun little twist that I didn’t see coming. And then when I talk about Gemma Arterton, there’s another movie she was in called Vita & Virginia, and it’s about Vito Sackville-West and Virginia Woolf. And they had a fling, and it’s so good. And the Virginia Woolf character, just as a writer, the vocabulary in the script just made me swoon. I was just all like, “Oh my god, I love this movie.”
Um, that was actually something that we screened for our film festival last year. So I watched it with a group of people and it just, we all loved it. The guys, the girls. We have- our programming committee is a nice mix of lesbians, bisexuals, transgender and gay men. So we’ve got a little bit of everybody and we were all like, “This movie is fantastic”. It’s just- it’s sexy, it’s intelligent, it’s funny, and Virginia Woolf- Gemma Arterton plays Vita Sackville-West and Virginia Woolf is played by Elizabeth Debicki. Do you know she is? She was in Widows. She’s in the movie Widows She was in- she’s very tall. She’s like six foot three, I think.
Tara 18:51
Whoa.
Georgia 18:52
Blonde, beautiful. It’s just, it’s a really well written movie. I highly, highly recommend it.
Tara 18:58
Very good. Kris. I feel like you’re gonna jump on that fastest.
Kris 19:02
Well, no, I know. I was I was gonna type it in. I was like, wait a minute. I’m in the middle of a podcast. What am I doing? I’m supposed to be talking. Yes. So, I’m gonna hold off on that. But yes, I will totally jump on that. Because I do that a lot. And ever since, well, the episode that’s gonna drop on Tuesday, we discuss a website where now I go to it because it saves me a lot of time, it tells you like different like, does somebody die? Does somebody get beat up? You know, Does The Dog Die. All those other things that are important that I want to know before I go through and start watching a movie.
Georgia 19:36
Well that’s like spoiling the entire movie.
Kris 19:40
Okay, so I usually go there, or I have been going there just to find out the ending, if the ending is worth it. Like I’ve seen so far. Well, it’s like it’s just a happy ending. or sad ending, I guess is what it does. And so I started looking because I started watching this one movie and I thought, “Oh, this has potential” because I really don’t know a lot about the movies that I’m going to watch or recommend. I’ll just read a little blurb that you see. And so I’m like, “Oh, this is kind of cool. It’s very, very queer. You know, ticks. It was like Brooklyn Bizarre, I started that. And I was like, This is interesting. Okay, I can do this. This is Oh, okay. All right. Cool. All right. There’s some little like different kind of kinky things”. I’m like, “Okay:, and then there was kind of a rapey part. And I was like, “I’m out”, you know, there’s certain things that- and I had already invested, like half an hour into this movie.
Georgia 20:37
What was the name again?
Kris 20:38
Brooklyn Bizarre.
Georgia 20:39
Never heard of it.
Kris 20:40
So, but it really did have potential and I just didn’t like the way this one scene was happening. So like, I want to know if there’s like a rape scene, I can prepare myself for that. If it even needs, like you said, “Why can’t it just be a normal movie that doesn’t focus on sexuality?” Why does it have to be, you know, why can’t it just be a normal like, “Hey, we’re, I met somebody here, or we’re going on vacation here”. But no, like, we have to have movies about whether it’s coming out, or, you know, leaving your husband and heterosexual marriage and finding a, you know, a lesbian to be with. There’s a it’s always based upon sexuality. All lesbian movies are based on preferences, sexuality, and coming out. And, like, there are so many movies and TV shows, which I will watch, but they’re all about young adults.
Georgia 21:28
Right
Kris 21:28
Oh, and I want to see movies that are you no more characters that are more like, our age, like in their 30s. So, right.
Georgia 21:36
And I don’t- I don’t want to say that, you know, we don’t need coming out movies anymore, because we do. And we always will. And I know that there’s been a little bit of a, I don’t want to say a backlash, but a little bit of an outcry about all of the lesbian period movies that have been coming out. Like everything is in the 1800s or whatever. And I actually just watched The World to Come.
Kris 21:59
Oh yes!
Tara 22:01
That’s the one that got us to look at- so somebody wrote in, so the episode that Kris was talking about is actually going to be on a week before this one comes out. And somebody had written in and said, “Why haven’t you talked about The World to Come? This is my favorite. Like my wife and I saw it. It was beautiful. It’s the best lesbian movie we’ve ever seen”. And I had been saying to Kris, the reason we started going to this- going to- the reason we went to this website was because I’ve been saying somebody needs to build a website called like, Does the Lesbian Die, kind of like the Does the Dog Die website because-
Georgia 22:31
Which I go to all the time. That’s the only thing I want to know. Does the dog die?
Tara 22:35
Well it turns out that they have a ton of filters on that website, including for LGBTQ people, because for me, like, I was fuckin scarred by watching the movie High Art. It’s the same director-
Kris 22:50
Oh yes.
Tara 22:50
Right? Yeah. Like it just like such a painful- and that, it was like that, and I can’t remember there are a couple of others, but it’s like, “Oh, okay. So there’s not going to be queer women in a movie, unless there’s some kind of a punishment, whether it’s like one of them dies, one of them gets institutionalized. The one of them goes back to their partner for a loveless marriage, like, whatever”. And I was like, “I’m done”. So Kris watches all the movies and TV shows for this podcast and I watch none of them because I needed that website. But the funny thing is when- So, my husband, Neil, he’s the guy. He’s the guy. He edits this podcast was the point of what I was trying to say it as he was editing that when he was like, “Oh, did you know they have filters for that on Does the Dog Die?” And I was like, “Shut up!”
Kris 23:31
That is the website I’ve been using, and you go through it-
Georgia 23:35
Because I watch a lot of horror movies. And if there’s an animal and the horror movie, that’s my first thing is “Oh, is the dog going to die?” The dog knows, nobody listens to the dog, and the ghost kills the dog. That’s what always happens. The dog knows. I don’t know if you saw The Conjuring. But the dog won’t go in the house at the very beginning. And I’m like, “Listen to the dog.”
Tara 23:56
Right? No. So yeah, we went through- For that movie we kind of went through some- not everything because they have like dozens of things it filters on but you already know this because you saw the movie, but no dragons die.
Kris 24:09
Yeah, that’s right. Yeah. And I had just come off of reviewing Ammonite. So it was kind of-
Georgia 24:17
I loved Ammonite.
Kris 24:17
Yes. Thank you. We have to talk about the ending. I need somebody to talk about the ending with.
Georgia 24:21
We will, we will.
Kris 24:23
Yes, so I did that on the last pod, or a couple podcasts ago, we talked about Ammonite if it was a happy ending or not, but I had just seen a period piece. So I didn’t want to turn around again and see the same kind of movie I wanted to expand and go somewhere else.
Georgia 24:37
And I’m assuming we probably should not spoil anybody on this, right? So in general, I mean, because I-
Kris 24:44
We could.
-discuss The World to Come but-
We could do a spoiler announcement like-
Georgia 24:51
Yeah, I will just say that I was. I saw all of these people all over Twitter loving the movie and it is it’s beautifully shot. It is, it’s very well acted. It’s fucking depressing. It really is. What I mean it takes place in the, you know, early America frontier, you know, so what do you expect it’s not going to be happy but I love Katherine Waterston. I love Vanessa Kirby. Who I just watched in Pieces of a Woman which she is up for an Oscar for on Netflix. So everybody in it is very good. It’s just not a happy movie. I found it beautiful to look at. I didn’t find it beautiful to think about.
Tara 25:35
Is that the one that the trailer started going around a few months ago, and it was like the two couples and the women. I didn’t even watch that trailer with the sound on and I was like, “Well, one of them’s clearly going to die from something.”
Georgia 25:48
Well, you know, they’re not going to end up together. I mean there’s not a spoiler to tell you that.
Tara 25:54
No.
Georgia 25:56
But conversely, I found the end of Ammonite to be happy. They left it open.
Kris 26:01
I thought that it had potential. And it wasn’t negative. It was just like two very stubborn women just staring at each other. Like, “Are we going to do this? Are we not going to do this? This is gonna happen. Let’s do this”.
Georgia 26:16
I, I felt the same way about Portrait of a Lady On Fire. Did you see that or not?
Kris 26:21
I have not seen that movie. No,
Georgia 26:23
I recommend that one. That one is so much better, as far as I’m concerned.
Kris 26:28
Okay, so then while we’re talking about the period pieces, I’m just going to ask you this. Gentleman, was it Gentleman Jack?
Georgia 26:35
Gentleman Jack. I haven’t watched it all. I watched like the first two episodes. I have it on my DVR. I just haven’t gotten to it.
Kris 26:41
Okay. All right.
Georgia 26:42
People love it. I know they do. So I’m reserving judgment. It didn’t suck me in enough to watch every episode right away, but I haven’t deleted them. So I’ll watch it at some point.
Tara 26:52
That’s a great sign.
Kris 26:54
Yeah, I think and then she’s kind of a badass. She’s a badass, for sure. Yeah. So I have I have my own opinion about that show.
Georgia 27:04
Okay.
Tara 27:05
What is it?
Kris 27:05
I think, you know, I thought it was good, but it wasn’t like, I’m not gonna go tattoo, like, have a tattoo of it. You know of the whole series. It was okay. It was, it was, I think, the whole staring at the camera, talking to the audience? I felt like when that- when I first saw that in any sort of television or, or movie or anything like that first time I saw it was in House of Cards. I don’t know if anybody here watched House of Cards. And at first, I was annoyed. For the first 10 minutes like, “I can’t handle this”.
Georgia 27:38
Well it’s very different.
Kris 27:39
It is very different. Yes.
Georgia 27:42
Just the look to the camera. It’s breaking the fourth wall, which is not- we have been taught is not allowed.
Kris 27:48
Exactly.
Georgia 27:48
But now it is, you know. It’s a different modern thing. And it takes some getting used to.
Kris 27:54
It does. And so, and I loved it in House of Cards, and I kind of thought- yeah, Modern Family. Yes. It feels like you know, with Modern Family.
Georgia 28:02
It’s about the look, it doesn’t mean-
Kris 28:04
Right.
Georgia 28:05
I’m talking about when they have a scene and someone looks at the camera like-
Kris 28:08
Right. Yeah, exactly. Which is great. It’s hilarious. Yeah, you’re right. It does. And so whereas Gentlemen Jack it, you know, literally has a conversation with the audience, you know, and so I felt like that really worked for House of Cards.
Georgia 28:24
It works really well in Fleabag.
Kris 28:26
I love Fleabag. I love that. Yeah, for sure. So I felt like, like so much of it. There’s so much of it on TV. And then when when that that came about, I expected too much out of that series, I think, yeah, I was just kind of like, yeah, I’m over that.
Georgia 28:44
I also have to wonder if part of its popularity is because of the butch angle. You know, we don’t often see the more masculine, take charge lesbian on television, you know, and I think that our fellow butch and boi, and all of that faction of lesbianism, they don’t get to be seen very often. So I think that’s why Gentlemen Jack is so popular. And that’s amazing. I’m very happy about that.
Kris 29:12
Yeah, any representation for sure. Yeah.
Georgia 29:16
I mean, you know, you get your L Words and you get- but there’s, there’s hardly any they’re all you know, feminine and pretty. The majority of them. I get you don’t see yourself as often as you’d like to.
Kris 29:27
Did you see ah, what was the second one? The L Word, Generation Z?
Georgia 29:32
Generation Q.
Kris 29:33
Oh Q. Thank you. Hello? You would think I would know that, though, but that was- they had a lot of different characters, for sure. Way different than the first series or, I think we only had one? Bette was only- Well? I’m trying to think- yeah, that’s true. She was pretty crazy-
Georgia 29:54
Jennifer Beals in a suit will always get me to follow her. Always.
Kris 29:57
Oh, yeah, for sure. But yeah, so It’s a bit more diversity in the second series for sure. And that’s gonna, that should have. I don’t know if it was successful or not.
Georgia 30:07
I think it was. There were four originals. It was Bette and Alice and Shane and there was another one. Wasn’t there? Maybe it was just those three.
Kris 30:21
For sure those three. Now I’m drawing a blank. We know it’s not Jenny.
Georgia 30:27
That’s funny because I did not like Shane at all in the original.
Kris 30:31
-gasps- Nipple confidence, nipple confidence. That was Shane.
Georgia 30:35
She looks like a Fraggle with that hair. She walks in the bar and everyone turns to look at her, really?
Tara 30:44
Okay, but how many women that thought they were straight saw Shane and reconsidered.
Georgia 30:51
You’re probably right. You’re probably right. But in the second version of it, in The L Word: Generation Q i really liked Shane, like she had grown up.
Kris 31:00
She had grown up, for sure.
Tara 31:01
Oh, nice.
Kris 31:02
Yeah. So they had good representation in the second one, I just didn’t know if I watched it. I know that like, like when it first get- like Queer As Folk, or when the American version came out. You know, that’s what that was when I was like, starting to identify and see myself in different things and people and- And I love the Queer As Folk, I just loved it. I loved that whole series. And so then The L Word, when it came out afterwards, it was like mind blowing. So I don’t know, I don’t know if Q had the same effect on our generation or on this generation because now there’s so much to choose from. So if there’s like an other queer thing, you know, I don’t know.
Georgia 31:47
Well, and it’s kind of amazing that there’s enough stuff out there where we don’t have to watch it all. “Oh, yeah. I don’t want to watch that”. You know, there’s this other five things I can choose from. That’s kind of cool.
Kris 31:57
It is cool. Yeah. So it’s funny, like when I speak into the remote, I’m like “LGBTQ”. And then it pulls up everything. And I can pick the L. I can pick the you know, G, I can pick the B, the T, the Q, I can pick whatever one I want. And so that’s options. I love options. Like I’m in the mood for a gay man movie, let’s watch something. Yeah.
Tara 32:17
It’s very good. So before we go, Georgia you have a new book that is out right now on the Bold Strokes Books website, and it’s going to be available everywhere next week. Can you tell us a little-
Georgia 32:28
It’s available on Bold Strokes- Oh, yes, you are correct.
Tara 32:33
Because they release exclusively on their website first.
Georgia 32:37
Yes, you’re right. It is called The Secret Poet. And it is my take on the Cyrano de Bergerac trope, with the whole, you know, do you you have this person that you adore who has fallen for someone and asks for your help? And as you help them, you realize that you are also falling for this person? And so what do you do? So it’s that kind of, of tale and I really had a good time- it’s written from first person which Kris is good at and I don’t do very often so.
Tara 33:05
No, you don’t.
Georgia 33:07
It’s- It’s interesting. I like first person a lot, but I don’t do it very often. And so it was I felt like I was stretching my wings a little bit. You know, getting that- get really in the thing.
Kris 33:17
Yeah.
Georgia 33:19
I had a lot of fun with hat one yeah. So that’s the latest.
Tara 33:24
Yeah, I just saw that- I was just on the website because at Smart Bitches, Trashy Books every month we do kind of a one of the books we’re looking forward to. And I went, whoo. Just dop that into the spreadsheet. And then what is next for you?
Georgia 33:41
Then I have a series coming out is called The Swizzle Stick romances. And it centers around three Italian cousins, the Martini cousins. Julia, Vanessa, and Amelia. And Julia owns a bar. And in the back of the bar, she has made it into like a little hangout area where she and her cousins hang out. And she practices making drinks and they sit on a couch and they navigate love and life and all of that. So there are three books in the series. So each book is one of the cousins meeting her love. The first two are written. I just sent the second one into my editor. I have to finish editing the first one. And then I will start writing the third one this week.
Tara 34:28
Very exciting. Will the first one be out later this year?
Georgia 34:32
It will be out in August. Yes.
Kris 34:34
Oh, cool. Yeah,
Tara 34:35
Cause, how many books do you put out a year? It’s like three or four?
Georgia 34:38
Three.
Tara 34:38
Yeah, three. Okay.
Georgia 34:39
Yeah. Last year, I did three books and a novella, which -exasperated poof sound-
Tara 34:47
That’s a lot.
Kris 34:48
Well I did it.
Tara 34:50
Oh, so-
Georgia 34:51
It was a novella, and that was kind of a no brainer to write. I had a lot of fun with it. That was my first fake romance.
Kris 34:57
Yeah, it was great.
Georgia 34:58
Thank you.
Kris 34:59
Yeah. I loved it. You can tell you can tell like when a writer has a lot of fun with their books you can always tell because it really comes through and yeah, it’s especially novella and Christmas. You can’t fuck up Christmas.
Georgia 35:12
Right?
Kris 35:13
It’s perfect.
Georgia 35:14
I want to write another one for Christmas. Fun.
Kris 35:17
Yeah, I love Christmas stuff. I mean, I wrote the Tinsel for Christmas. And I do I love. I love Christmas. That’s why I’m doing this whole podcast from August to December. But, um, for sure, I mean, yeah, that’s you definitely need to write a Christmas book or Christmas stuff. I like it for sure. Yeah.
Tara 35:38
So how can people find you online if they’d like to connect with you?
Georgia 35:42
Oh my god, I’m everywhere. It’s hard to escape me. I’m on Facebook. I’m on Twitter. I’m on Instagram. I’m actually, I have a Tumblr but I have no idea how to use it. So just sits there. I don’t understand tumbe, I’m so old. That’s the thing in the world where I can feel all kinds of young and then I open my folder and I’m like, “I don’t know what this is.”
I have a website. georgiabeers.com
Tara 36:12
Oh, good. That is all for this episode. Thank you Georgia so much for joining us.
Georgia 36:17
This was a blast. Thank you guys. I had so much fun
Tara 36:20
For everybody else out there. You know, we hope you enjoyed the show as much as we did. If you have, please subscribe wherever you listen to your podcasts. And if you would consider leaving a review on Apple podcasts. We would love you forever.
Kris 36:33
And if you want to connect with us on your favorite social media, just look for @queerlyrecommended on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, or even our website queerlyrecommended.com.
Tara 36:45
Bye, everyone.
Kris 36:46
Bye