Queer as Folklore

By Sacha Coward£18.99 + Shipping
Status: supporters list closed
Publication Date: TBCAvailable
  • visa
  • american-express
  • mastercard
  • maestro
  • paypal
  • google-pay
  • apple-pay
  • amex
  • facebook
  • twitter
  • whatsapp
  • email

About The Book

Join any Pride march and you are likely to see a glorious display of papier-mâché unicorn heads trailing sequins, drag queens wearing mermaid tails and more fairy wings than you can shake a trident at. But these are not just accessories: they are queer symbols with historic roots.

Queer as Folklore is an exhilarating journey across centuries and continents which reveals the unsung heroes and villains of storytelling, magic and fantasy. Featuring images from archives, galleries and museums around the world, each chapter investigates the queer history of different mythic and folkloric characters, both old and new.

Leaving no headstone unturned, Sacha Coward will take you on a wild ride through the night from ancient Greece to the main stage of RuPaul’s Drag Race, visiting cross-dressing pirates, radical fairies and the graves of the ‘queerly departed’ along the way. Queer communities have often sought refuge in the shadows, found kinship in the in-between and created safe spaces in underworlds; but these forgotten narratives tell stories of remarkable resilience that deserve to be heard.

To truly understand who queer people are today, we must confront the twisted tales of the past and Queer as Folklore is a celebration of queer history like you've never seen it before.

If history is normally written by our masters then it’s good to be reminded that the myths and legends of folklore are foremost imagined and passed down by the common people, revealing a wealth of queerness that the official historians chose not to talk about. I learned something fascinating on every page.
Christine Burns, MBE

  • Hardback488 Pledges
    £18.99+ Shipping
  • Ebook via Glassboxx1288 Pledges
    £10.00
  • Signed Hardback804 Pledges
    £35.00+ Shipping
  • Art Cards
    Art Cards14 Pledges

    Five Art Cards inspired by Queer as Folklore. Each card will centre a mythical creature or monster from the book. Frame ...

    £15.00
  • Mythical Creature Tattoo
    Mythical Creature Tattoo17 Pledges

    A temporary tattoo of a mythical creature, inspired by Sacha's book.

    £5.00+ Shipping
  • Queer History Statement T-shirt
    Queer History Statement T-shirt40 Pledges

    Loud and proud folklore fan? This LGBTQ+ inspired tee is for you! Available in S, M, L, XL.

    £45.00+ Shipping
  • Virtual Talk on the Queer History of Monsters
    Virtual Talk on the Queer History of Monsters12 Pledges

    A virtual one hour talk with Sacha exploring the queer history of monsters, with interactive activities. You'll have the...

    £50.00+ Shipping
  • Patron2 Pledges

    Be one of the book's biggest supporters and have your name published in a special Patron list in front of the book.

    £850.00
  • Museum Tour
    Museum Tour8 Pledges

    Join Sacha for an intimate two-hour group tour of the British Museum, where you'll hear the hidden queer stories behind ...

    £65.00+ Shipping
  • Cemetery Tour
    Cemetery Tour20 Pledges

    Join Sacha for an intimate group tour of Tower Hamlets Cemetery Park, to uncover new tales of queer history. Warning: my...

    £25.00+ Shipping
  • Donate a Copy to Your Museum5 Pledges
    £30.00+ Shipping
  • Updates From The Author

    The book is nearly ready...

    Hello everyone, sorry it's taken a while to give another update, but it's for good reasons... namely LGBT History Month which takes place in the UK every February, which is where I do a lot of my work...

    05.03.2024
    Cover reveal!

    Hello, I've got some great news to share with you. We have now finalised the front cover of Queer as Folklore and I am delighted with how it has turned out. The cover is a collaboration between Unboun...

    22.01.2024
    Foreword By Joanne Harris!

    I wanted to shout about this sooner (and if you are unfortunate enough to follow me on social media you'll have heard about it already!) but the incredible author Joanne Harris has agreed to write a f...

    27.02.2023
    Fairies done, Witches next!

    Hi everyone, hope you all had a fab ease into the new year! I've just had my first kick-off meeting with Unbound for 2023 and all is looking good. :-) As a small update I have now finished the first d...

    26.01.2023
    Merry Christmas and a Happy New Queer!

    Hi everyone, just checking in to let you know that three chapters have made there way to Unbound for a preliminary read. They've been given the thumbs up (they will all still need a proper edit!) and ...

    24.12.2022
    Hello you wonderful queer-kids, hybrids and cryptids!

    Thanks so much for all of your support. It's been... well it's been overwhelming and incredible how quickly you came together to support my book. And it really has been a whirlwind of a week since 'Qu...

    07.12.2022

    Be a part of our community! 334,112 people from 207 countries have pledged £11,980,334 to fund 646 projects - and counting!

    Your Bag