Explaining My Inspiration for LGBT Representation in a Number of My Fiction Stories

Happy Pride Month 2026, all! Pride Month is one of the many reasons why I do love the month of June. It's championship month in sports, the summer season kicks off, and of course, the Pride festivities. Pride Month and Pride Nights in anything should be honored, respected, and most of all, celebrated immensely. I've written a few pieces in the Pride category of Vocal; one that explains the overdue evolution of LGBT portrayal in TV and films, and one that is centered on Velma Dinkley's history as a LGBT icon.

Regarding this, I want to delve into my fiction stories. A large number of my fiction pieces have LGBT characters in them, such as:

Four years ago, I wrote this, Secrets and Deceptions, my second-ever fiction story. This piece centered on Gwen Dawson-Finley, a CEO whose newly hired female assistant comes on to her. The story reveals that Gwen once cheated on her wife, Rita, with a previous assistant, who suddently turned up missing, and that's when things get thrilling. I really didn't want to waste time with the representation here; in fact, this was the first of (if I recall) about four straight fiction stories I wrote that had LGBT representation.

I mentioned this in my story about my women's wrestling fics. I wrote Love in the Time of Wrestling on Valentine's Day last year, and it centers on Lena Pierce being pursued by a mysterious villainess known as Seductress, all while simultaneously planning a special Valentine's Day date with her wife, Natasha. When I mentioned this in my story about my inspirations for my women's wrestling fics, I didn't spoil it, but I will here. The reveal in the end, on that date night, that Natasha was Seductress, was inspired by my desire to see an LGBT couple face each other.

I also thought back to an actual real-life couple, Kiera Hogan and Diamanté, two of my favorites in women's wrestling. I saw them face each other once, with Diamanté as the heel in that contest. Though regarding my piece, Natasha's wrestling villainy was done out of love and romance.

A recent example of mine is Deadly Desperation, which I wrote less than a year ago, centering on Cassie Crandall, who is on the verge of divorcing her wife, Janine Templeton. The marriage is hampered by Janine's control and abuse, and that control includes Janine not willing to settle for divorce. She resorts to supernaturally evil methods to destroy Cassie, and this story is quite a gripping tale that I devised,

Those are some examples, and as those who have read my stories know, most of my fiction pieces are fantasy Lifetime films. And the reason for the LGBT representation is simple: I want more such representation in Lifetime's films.

I can't be the only one who remembers An Unexpected Love. This film was a Lifetime original that hit the network back in 2003, and starred Wendy Crewson and Leslie Hope. Hope's character, Kate Mayer, is separated from her husband, and after snagging a real estate job, she is introduced to her new boss, McNally "Mac" Hayes (Crewson). As time flies, so do the sparks between the two, and they end up in a relationship. I really enjoyed this when I saw it on TV back then; I don't think I recall Lifetime ever airing something like this before, so this was very revolutionary.

I remember happily beaming when I actually saw an LGBT Lifetime villainess; occurring in early 2023. The film, Murder at Blackthorne Manor, centered on protagonist Hayley and her effort at running murder mystery games at the titular Blackthorne Manor, only for the home's owner, Charles Benedict, to be found actually murdered. Once Hayley's search and investigation reached its climax, the killer was revealed as Diana Montgomery, one of the guests, and she was revealed to be having an affair with Charles' late wife, Victoria. Diana killed not only Charles, she also murdered another guest, Gordon Ramshaw, and plotted to frame Hayley and obtain the manor.

Veronica Martell played Diana Montgomery in that film, and she was amazing as the murderous villainess! The LGBT aspect was also epic, and also rare. I want to say that the only other LGBT Lifetime villainess that I recall beforehand was Yancy Butler's character in The Ex.

It was later that same year that we Lifetime fans were treated to the film, You're Not Supposed to Be Here, which starred Chrishell Stause and Diora Baird as married couple Zoe and Kennedy, the former half expecting their first child. The pair head to a mountain town on a peaceful retreat, but it's anything but peaceful, as they find themselves pursued by a sinister group of townspeople. I remember this film being promoted a good bit because of the LGBT centerpiece, and I really enjoyed this one so much. I'm a huge fan of both Stause and Baird, and I also loved seeing Heather Matarazzo (who recently underwent a villainous turn on Wednesday) in this one as well! This film gives me hope that we will see more LGBT representation in Lifetime thrillers!

Regarding the LGBT representation in my women's wrestling fics, it's simple. It's my way of exposing how chickenshit WWE is when it comes to providing a meaningful LGBT storyline. Don't say "Billy and Chuck." Don't. The Billy and Chuck storyline was an immense slap to the LGBT community; it was absolutely homophobic as hell. WWE gave us a good moment when Liv Morgan crashed Lana's wedding to Bobby Lashley by revealing that she and Lana were once lovers. They could have built on that, we could have seen the angle last a good bit and give us a lengthy aftermath. Instead, they backed out and killed it after a month--if that. I'm showing how easy it is to have meaningful LGBT storylines in wrestling. I've written some pretty good stories like this, and I am nowhere close to being done.

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My imagination continues to work double overtime; triple overtime, even, when it comes to my story writing. It continues to percolate, continues to think of that next fiction piece, and I do enjoy the thinking process, because when it's written out, it can look so beautiful. Regarding Lifetime, I have no doubt that we'll continue to see some good LGBT representation in thrillers. Regarding wrestling, well, thank God AEW exists--they're way more open-minded and have smarter people than WWE.