Ruth Gogoll has had enough of cheesy or tragic lesbian plot-lines. She set up her own publishing house, and has been running the el!es Lesbian Literary Awards for six years

(Probably NSFW!) The fabulous Secrets Ireland has teamed up with the team here at Gaelick Towers, to bring you: The 12 Toys of Christmas! Each day, we will bring you a festive fave from the Secrets Ireland shelves, to make you ooh! and ahh!

Patricia Highsmith is most famous for her Ripley novels and for Strangers on a Train. In 1948, Highsmith began her one non-suspense novel. The Price of Salt was a love story between two women, and has been re-published under the title Carol. Even in a brighter time, Carol is a novel to rekindle your defiance.

The Sealed Letter is excellent for many reasons; it’s a great story beautifully written and the evocation of the period is fascinating. For the LGBT reader, though, there is an extra layer of interest.

A couple years ago, Stephen Fry wrote a letter to his 16 year-old self. I know what you are doing now, young Stephen. It’s early 1973. You are in the library, cross-referencing bibliographies so that you can find more and more examples of queer people in history, art and literature against whom you can hope [...]

This is a bit weird, but the last week, for me, has been Harry Potter week. Which, I realise, it has been for a lot of people. The weird thing, for me, is that I have never read Harry Potter. I have only watched the films because my wife is a fan, and I will [...]

Self-publishing is a tough business. You have to have the belief in yourself, the money to do it and the chutzpah to do some publicity and get it out there. And that’s even before you’ve written anything in the first place. I couldn’t do it and I take my hat off to anyone who does. Jane Reynolds, I hand you my hat!

I must take this opportunity to apologise to the very nice J1 youngster who thought she was on her way to an adventure in the US of A, but it got off to a sticky start with yours truly trying to stem the chortles for five hours on a plane. It’s all Tina Fey’s fault.

Mark Simpson, who first coined the term ‘metrosexual’ in 1994, explains why the metrosexual is an important indication of how masculinity, and sexual identity, are changing. Quiet Riot Girl spoke to him for Gaelick.

Jodi Picoult is no stranger to controversy, having written about such hot button issues as a school shooting (in Nineteen Minutes), a priest agreeing to the death penalty (in Change of Heart) and forced organ donation (in My Sister’s Keeper). What puts her poles apart from headline-chasing novelists is pure and simple; her skill as a writer.

Some of Gaelick’s books of 2010. What have you been reading this year that we’ve left out? Any recommendations for last minute seasonal gifts for our readers? Let us know!

Cordelia Fine’s latest book, “Delusions of Gender”, published in September of this year sets out to robustly challenge “the idea that male and female psychologies are inherently different”. And she challenges it most successfully.

Living Dolls is a modern account of the injustices faced by women in today’s western society and the causes and facilitators of these. Natasha Walter deals largely with commercialisation, and how it has played a huge part in the shaping of today’s narrow view of what it is to be female.

Ever feel that you needed help in the world of lesbian dating and relationships? Jenny Jacobs book, and subsequent website, aims to point you in the right direction.
The Lesbian Dating Bible contains within it a lesbian relationship guide which proposes steps that are time proven.

Every once in a while a book comes along that leaves you breathless. You want everyone you know to read it just so you can talk about it, assess it, hunt out hidden meanings and recall what moved you most. Emma Donoghue’s latest, Room, is an absolute must. If ever there is such a thing as “essential reading”, this is it.

Celebrating 15 years of fabulous music making! Gloria, Dublin’s Lesbian and Gay Choir return with their unique mix of Musicals, Madrigals, Classical and Camp. The evening of fun and music is hosted by the fabulous Miss Panti.

Do you think you have a busy life? Yes? Have you written three books, made two films, married, raised two children, started your own production company and launched the careers of some singers? Then had time to pen poetry, short stories and keep a blog up to date? How about winning awards for nearly all of the above? If you answered yes, you are either lying (naughty) or are Shamim Sarif (hi!).