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On Being Different

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Forty years later, the story Miller tells remains important and necessary to read, not only for both gay and straight readers to understand the way 'it used to be', but because the issues Miller raised are still being discussed and argued about.

Miller bridged the gap between the straights and the gays in a way that few recent writers on the subject have done. He also put himself on the line as a well-known writer, who was not afraid to publicly acknowledge his homosexuality.

What It Means to Be a Homosexual

Originally published in 1971, Merle Miller's On Being Different is a pioneering and thought-provoking book about being homosexual in the United States. Just two years after the Stonewall riots, Miller wrote a poignant essay for the New York Times Magazine entitled "What It Means To Be a Homosexual" in response to a homophobic article published in Harper's Magazine. Described as "the most widely read and discussed essay of the decade," the article was developed into the remarkable short book On Being Different - one of the earliest memoirs to affirm the importance of coming out.

Originally published in 1971, Merle Miller's On Being Different is a pioneering and thought-provoking book about being homosexual in the United States. Just two years after the Stonewall riots, Miller wrote a poignant essay for the New York Times Magazine entitled "What It Means To Be a Homosexual" in response to a homophobic article published in Harper's Magazine. Described as "the most widely read and discussed essay of the decade," the article was developed into the remarkable short book On Being Different - one of the earliest memoirs to affirm the importance of coming out. 
 
Merle Miller (1919-1986) was an editor at Harper's Magazine, Time and The Nation and was the bestselling author of several books, including the novel A Gay and Melancholy Sound and Plain Speaking, a biography of Harry S Truman. 
 
Dan Savage is the internationally syndicated columnist of 'Savage Love' and the author of several books. 
Charles Kaiser is an author, journalist and blogger. His books include 1968 in America and The Gay Metropolis.

Charles Kaiser (Afterword by) CHARLES KAISER is a former reporter for The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal, and a former press critic for News-week. He has also written for The Washington Post, The Los Angeles Times, The Guardian (London), New York magazine, and Vanity Fair, among others. He is the author of 1968 in America (1988) and The Gay Metropolis (1997), a history of gay life in America that won the Lambda Literary Award and was a New York Times Notable Book. 
 
Kaiser is a founder and former president of the New York chapter of the National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association. He has taught journalism at Columbia and Princeton, where he was the Ferris Professor of Journalism. Merle Miller (Author) MERLE MILLER was born in a small town in lowa in 1919 and attended the University of lowa and the London School of Eco-nomics. Miller was awarded two Bronze Stars for bravery during World War II, both of which he later returned out of protest for American action in Vietnam. After the war, he worked as an editor at Harper's and Time magazine and was a contributing editor for The Nation. 
 
His books include the best-selling novels That Winter (1948) and A Gay and Melancholy Sound (1962), a comic nonfiction narrative about writing for television called Only You, Dick Daring! (1964), and several best-selling presidential biographies, including Plain Speaking: An Oral Biography of Harry S. Truman (1974). 
 
In 1971, he responded to a homophobic article written by Joseph Epstein in Harper's with the raw, personal, and indicting essay that became On Being Different, making him one of the first prominent Americans to come out publicly. Miller died in 1986. Dan Savage (Foreword By) DAN SAVAGE is the author of the syndicated column "Savage Love" and the editorial director of The Stranger, Seattle's weekly newspaper. 
 
He is a regular contributor to public radio's This American Life and the author of Savage Love (1998); The Kid: What Happened After My Boyfriend and I Decided to Go Get Pregnant (1999); Skipping Towards Gomorrah: The Seven Deadly Sins and the Pursuit of Happiness in America (2002); and The Commitment: Love, Sex, Marriage, and My Family (2005). 
 
In 2010, Savage and his husband, Terry Miller, created the It Gets Better Project, which provides support to LGBT youth through video testimonials and a book of anecdotal essays.

On Being Different

What It Means to Be a Homosexual

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Forty years later, the story Miller tells remains important and necessary to read, not only for both gay and straight readers to understand the way 'it used to be', but because the issues Miller raised are still being discussed and argued about.

Miller bridged the gap between the straights and the gays in a way that few recent writers on the subject have done. He also put himself on the line as a well-known writer, who was not afraid to publicly acknowledge his homosexuality.

About Merle Miller

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