QUESTIONS ABOUT THE PROJECT
Who is in charge of Queerlit?
We are a project group led by the University of Gothenburg, with collaborators at Södertörn University and KvinnSam, among others. The project is funded by Riksbankens jubileumsfond. You can read more about us here.
How long will the project last?
We will continue working throughout 2023, after which the database will be taken over by KvinnSam. Please follow us on social media and we will tell you what we are working on right now. We are on Facebook and Instagram as @queerlitse (Swedish only).
QUESTIONS ABOUT THE CONTENT
How many entries are included in the database?
Right now, we have about 2000 entries, but the database is constantly growing larger.
Which entries are included in the database?
Fiction that deals with same-sex desire/practice or transgressions of binary gender norms. This includes—but is not limited to—what is currently known as lgbtqi. You can find our criterias for inclusion here.
I want tips on good books about X, can I find them in Queerlit?
Yes and no. You can use the subject headings to find books on specific topics. But the database does not only contain good books—there is no quality requirement for inclusion in Queerlit. You will certainly not like all of the entries, and some of them are downright offensive. Queerlit is not a list of recommended reading. There are others who recommend good books—feel free to look at our links page and you will find some of them.
Are there non-fiction books in Queerlit?
No, Queerlit does not contain non-fiction books. The purpose of the database has been to collect fiction (novels, poems and short stories). However, we do include autobiographical texts on the verge of fiction—books that may not be classified as fiction at the library, but that could regarded as ficiton. You can find our inclusion criteria here.
Are there translated books in Queerlit?
Yes, if they are written by authors based in Sweden and translated into Swedish. August Strindberg’s Player d’un fou (A madman’s manifesto) is one such example. Strindberg was Swedish and wrote mainly in Swedish, but this novel was first written and published in French.
Why is book X not included in Queerlit?
Either because it doesn’t fit our inclusion criteria, or because we missed it.
If you notice that we are missing a work that should be included:First, take a look at the inclusion criteria. Does it fit? Email us! We would love to hear from you: queerlit@lir.gu.se.
Most entries in Queerlit are pretty obvious, but there are also many borderline cases. For example, one of the criteria for inclusion in the database is that the context is such that the work can be considered to belong there. This means that a work can be included in the database if, for example, it has been canonized as lgbtqi literature by community groups. Using this criterion, we have, for example, included Tove Jansson’s Moomin series, which contains references to gay subculture and which many lgbtqi people have read in this way (although we have not included all books set in the Moomin world, only the Moomin series itself).
We also use the same criteria to include works described as lgbtqi literature in research. For example, Viktor Rydberg’s novel Den siste Atenaren (1859) was the subject of a 1928 study in which literary scholar Victor Svanberg mentioned what he called Rydberg’s ”boyish love”. Since then, Rydberg’s work has often been read from a homosexual perspective, which is why we have included parts of it in Queerlit.
But … this book is not about lgbtqi?
The entries in the Queerlit database depicts same-sex desire and transgressions of binary gender norms. This is a very broad definition, encompassing much more than what is included in lgbtqi.
We have chosen to do so in order to include misconceptions, myths and stereotypes. The database is a research infrastructure and is primarily aimed at researchers. The aim is to facilitate future research and provide new knowledge about opinions, prejudices and fantasies—both positive and negative. Queerlit is not a list of recommended reading, and is not intended to be used to find good books.
I have written a book on lgbtqi, can it be included in the database?
If it fits the inclusion criteria, we will include it. To be considered for Queerlit, it needs to be published and have an ISBN number.
QUESTIONS ABOUT THE KEYWORDS AND THESAURUS
Read more about our keywords and thesaurus here.
What keywords do you use?
We have created our own thesaurus, the Queer Literature Indexing Thesaurus (QLIT). The thesaurus contains over 800 subject headings related to the areas of the database. To describe other aspects of the literature, we also use subject headings from other thesauri: SAO (Swedish Subject Headings), Children’s Subject Headings and SAOGF (Genre and Form).
In the database, the QLIT keywords are yellow, and the other keywords are gray.
Why are there no subject headings for Book X?
We are continuously working on adding subject headings, but we have not yet managed to include all titles. There are also works that we don’t know much about, and for that reason have been unable to add subject headings. In this case, the work may be included in the database without any keywords at all. If you notice that we are missing subject headings for a work that you know more of, please contact us by email: queerlit@lir.gu.se.
Why are there no books with the subject word X?
When creating the subject words (read more here), we have tried to think about what books could exist, rather than having books that all the words can be used for. That’s why there are subject words that don’t have any titles attached to them.
For example, we want all subject headings to include variants for all aspects of lgbtqi, and have specifying terms for bisexual, homosexual, intersex, queer and transgender people throughout. So, for example, there are not only subject headings such as ”Young transgender people”, ”Parents of transgender people” and so on—but also corresponding subject headings for bisexual, lesbian, gay, intersex and queer people. We do this even if there are no books on each of these groups. A kind of idea of inclusion, then, which unfortunately has not always been realized in literature.
But of course, it may also be that we have missed or not had time to index the books that deal with the keyword you searched for—please contact queerlit@lir.gu.se if that is the case! And well, you can always write a book on the subject you are missing …
Why don’t I find any 19th century books when I search for 19th century?
In that case, you have searched for the keyword ’19th century’. The keyword ”19th century” will bring up all books about the 19th century, but not all books written in the 19th century. For the latter, use the year of publication filter instead. Enter ”1800” in from and ”1899” in to.
How do you use the keyword X?
All our keywords have a scope note, which is an explanatory text describing how the keyword is used in the database. You can see all our scope notes in the database by clicking on the ”Ämnen” tab.
Why do you use the keyword X?
Some of the keywords in Queerlit are ones that were used in Swedish a long time ago, but are no longer used. Some are also offensive. We have such keywords on works that use them themselves.
There are also keywords that serve to capture both outdated and offensive words—they are collected under the umbrella terms Historiska termer” (Historical terms) and ”Skällsord” (Insults).
What does it mean when it says ”perifert” (peripheral) after a keyword?
Usually in indexing, only central topics of a book is considered for keywords. However, Queerlit wants to make it possible to also find subjects that are a bit more peripheral, subjects that may not be crucial but may be of interest to researchers and specialists. Therefore, when you search the database, you may sometimes see e.g. keyword “Unga intersexpersoner – perifert” (Young intersex people – peripheral). This may mean that there is a young intersex person in the story, but that this person is not featured very much. Or that young intersex people are discussed in a short passage.