Obligatory Introduction Post

Sorry I haven’t come around to introducing myself sooner, but I wanted to focus on not sucking (look at the fodder I’m giving the commenters already) before saying, “Hello.”

I’m really excited to join the Queerty community as your editor. I’ve been a fan of the site for a long time and I think its role as an independent source of gay news and also just plain cool stuff is an important one. I say “community”, because that’s how I see the site and I will depend on you to let me know what stories you want to see, what works and of course, to tell me when I screw up. We’re not always going to agree on everything, but my goal is to facilitate a discussion about our community, which is larger than any single one of us. I know I have big shoes to fill with Andrew’s departure and I hope you’ll bear with me as I get started.

A little about myself: I came out when I was 16 in Massachusetts. I wasn’t even the first kid out in my school and being gay’s never been a big deal for me. I went to NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts for Dramatic Writing before dropping out to get a fancy union job at ABC. After optioning a pilot, I moved to L.A. where I direct  videos (most recently the BCBG Fall Campaign ads) and work as a journalist for Out, The Advocate and Salon. In my spare time, I go to southern Utah to hike and canyoneer (like rock climbing, but in reverse and with swimming). I directed a documentary on religious roadside attractions in America (the world’s largest 10 Commandments, Noah’s Ark built to biblical scale in western Maryland–that sort of thing) and I’m a huge history buff. I like puppies.

About the name– As some of you have gathered from my imdb page, it’s not my legal one. When I started writing gay stuff in high school, it bothered my parents who were afraid I would embarrass them (their views, as they say, “have evolved” since then). So, I started writing under a pen name. When I moved out to L.A. I was having script meetings and it became lame to repeat over and over again, “Actually it’s not my real name”, so I went with it and it stuck. Contrary to popular rumor, saying my name three times in a row will not exile me to your train set.

I’ll be upfront with you. You may not like everything I post and talk about, but I will always be willing to engage in substantive discussion. I’m slightly terrified of the commenters, to be honest. “You have bad breath” is neither witty, funny or true unless I’ve been making pasta–which I won’t be making for you anytime soon, jerk. But I like the back and forth of blogging. I hope to introduce some more original reporting on the site and I think it’s important that gay media focus on both the good and the bad of our community. I’m willing to have my beliefs challenged if you are. If you aren’t, I promise there’ll always be Morning Goods.

It’s an interesting time to be taking over the reins at Queerty. I’ve been out protesting the last few nights here in L.A. and it’s been inspiring. A lot of the questions you’re asking in the comments are coming up in the protest lines– from whether gay marriage is really that important to what we did wrong to where to go next. It’s incredibly inspiring and the most common thing I hear, the place these conversations keep coming back to is “This is the civil rights struggle of our generation.” We’re angry, but we’re also certain we are on the right side of history. “Pride” has always been an amorphous concept to me and something I’ve never seen reflected in the annual bacchanalia parades we throw each June, but I saw it this weekend– and I see a new beginning for the gay community. I also am very much aware that this struggle is part of a much longer story and I’m humbly grateful for the people who have marched and fought and died before me.

I’m thoroughly convinced that we will win this battle. I’m convinced that we are collectively some of the most resourceful, passionate and dedicated people on Earth. I’m also convinced that it will take a lot of hard work and self-examination for us to get there. I look forward to joining you here and on the streets as we write the next chapter of our story.

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