After a scorching ninety-degree afternoon in New York City, the evening of May 31 finally began to cool as the nineteenth annual Lambda Literary Awards kicked off at FIT’s Katie Murphy Amphitheater. Among those gathered at the sold-out ceremony — which celebrates everything the LGBT writing and publishing community has to offer — were special guest Kate Clinton, Marijane Meaker (Highsmith: A Romance of the 1950s), Radclyff (Bold Strokes Books), Rachel Pepper (The Ultimate Guide to Pregnancy for Lesbians), Alison Bechdel (Fun House), Alison Smith (Name All the Animals), Kim Wallace (Erik & Isabella: Junior Year at Foresthill), Hilary Carlip (Queen of the Oddballs), Ellis Avery (The Teahouse Fire) and Michelle Tea (Rose of No Man’s Land).

presenter Alison Smith and awardee Alison Bechdel

Executive director Charles Flowers hosted the event, which featured twenty-five award categories — including, for the first time, bisexual and anthology books. Kate Clinton, described as a “faith-based, tax-paying, American-loving political humorist and family entertainer,” got the ball rolling with the opening “I’m so excited to be here, I’m wearing an astronaut diaper.” Mary Cheney was the brunt of many jokes, with Clinton announcing her nomination for the book Self Made Man and a very funny Christopher Rice (Anne Rice’s son and author of several best sellers) including Cheney’s Now It’s My Turn in the list of best Lesbian Romances.