MarioJohn

Some things aren’t worth the wait. Sex before puberty. Tattoos before prison. Sero-conversion before Hivster. With this “why wait?” credo and in-between trips to local bars and federal corrections institutions, MarioJohn writes for Hivster. For three years, he wrote Bric-a-Brac, a monthly column no one ever read, in a local community newspaper, the Capitol Hill Times, no one ever read either. Memorable lines include (from an article on the Crescent Lounge), “To the tranny who sweet-talked me with her honey-tongue and sparking eyes: give me back my wallet,” and (from an article advocating a new anti-gay bashing slogan-cum-police-tactic), “Bash a faggot. Get a bullet.”

His last stint at a gay rag, Mo Magazine, ended in termination after he refused to edit an article attacking the mainstream gay media for not defending Sen. Larry Craig’s right to public toilet sex and marital infidelity, “He’s married and fucking straight. Have some sympathy for the poor guy. What else is he supposed to do? Christ.”

Simply, he gives good copy. He makes no guarantees about happy endings.

Brad Crelia

Brad’s parents ran an alternative newspaper, The Local Planet, while he was in high school and it looks like growing up around two politically minded journalist rubbed off on him. He started early; writing for The Local Planet and for The Spokesmen-Review. At 18, Brad stopped writing and got the political bug; volunteering for Al Gore, a family friend’s campaign for mayor and then for John Kerry. After a few failed campaigns he tried his hand at writing again and eventually returned to politics. Spending most of 2008 working for Hillary Clinton’s campaign and volunteering for Obama’s campaign. After 2008, Brad took a break from both writing and campaigns and spent some much needed time to work out his priorities.

In March of 2010 Brad was diagnosed with HIV and lost the luxury of figuring his priorities out on his own. He starting writing again to help himself heal and now hopes to write to help other going through similar situations. Bio’s are tricky and his life story won’t fit in a few hundred words but rest assured, Brad can relate to most of you in someway or another. His friends can attest to how busy he’s been the last twenty-five years, which wasn’t always a good thing.

Hivster.com is a site for anyone and for everyone. It was created with the intention of making something new, something that wasn’t already out there. We really hope that we can accomplish that goal and build an open, honest and welcoming community for anyone regardless of your status.

Ian: OneAngryQueer

Soldier, writer, drunk, and troublemaker- Ian has been many things in his life, but the overall consensus amongst his associates is unanimous: he is a loudmouthed grump. Ian joined the Army at the tender age of 18 to become an Arabic translator and attended the prestigious Defense Language Institute in Monterey, CA. It is widely considered the best language school in the world, and he graduated in 2002 with honors. To be honest, it’s been downhill from there. After getting kicked out of the Army for being a man’s man, Ian worked for years in generally sinful occupations, flogging liquor in bars, dealing dildos in porn stores, and generally being a troublemaker and ne’er-do-well. Testing positive in 2009 didn’t really make him any less cranky. He is now trying to bilk the American people out of their money in exchange for reading his complaints about society and government, and I can’t really tell you that it’s any more of an admirable pasttime than his former exploits.

Nick Lanni

Nick is your standard “pocket-gay”. For those of you who don’t know what one is, they are gays that are small enough to fit in your pocket. A full head of hair and a good set of teeth, he is everything you could possibly want in one.

Hailing from upstate New York, Nick now resides in Brooklyn. When he isn’t busy designing upholstery fabric for Middle America, you can find him rummaging through used bookstores or tearing it up on the dance floor.

While waiting at the doctor’s office one day, he picked up a magazine curious about an article on some porn star. He couldn’t believe his eyes when he turned to an article about hivster. It was like he was the little bee girl in that Blind Melon video and he had finally found his fellow bees.

With a smile and some wit, he hopes to bring some ruckus to the internet with hivster. Stay tuned.

Ericka Taylor

Ericka Taylor is a native Nashvillian who never expects to adjust to Spokane’s weather. She studied English as an undergrad and then, as would be expected, jumped into a career of community organizing and social justice work. Despite the gratification associated with sticking it to “The Man,” she decided to take time out to focus on writing and is currently pursuing a Masters of Fine Arts at Eastern Washington University, with a concentration in fiction.

 

She identifies as an ally to oppressed (or, as Bob Marley put it, “downpressed”) communities – be they HIV positive, homeless, queer, immigrant, or poor. As a Black woman, she may not have the same set of privileges as straight, white men, but she refuses to ignore the privilege she carries as a straight, college-educated, (reasonably) financially-secure U.S. citizen. She believes in striving for a world where all privileges become meaningless. Having been unable to support Washington DC’s racist football mascot during her 15 years in DC, she is a (usually) proud fan of the Tennessee Titans.

Aaron Laxton

On June 6, 2011 Aaron Laxton received the news that he was HIV positive and in that split moment he knew what had to be done. Prior to his diagnosis Aaron was already well-respected as a public speaker, advocate and activist in Washington, DC and Nationally. Up to this point however, most of his efforts had been focused on foster care and youth advocacy. In this singular moment he knew that he would now devote his efforts to the topic HIV/AIDS and as so many before him become a champion of the cause. Daily thousands log on to Aaron’s YouTube channel, “My HIV Journey” to watch as he lives his live with HIV on video. Aaron holds a degree in sociology and psychology and is it he process of pursuing a Masters of Social Work.

Michael Congdon

Michael Congdon has been writing since he was 15 – albeit badly for many of those years. He published his first book in 2004, entitled S.O.U.P.S. Since then he has been busy collaborating on an RPG game book, writing short stories and essays, and has also completed his first novella. Michael has lived in Seattle Washington for the past 11 years and is still not used to the rain or the passive-aggressive men in the Pacific Northwest.

When he grows up, Michael wants to either own his own restaurant or be a successful author.

 

S. Anthony

S. Anthony is your atypical theatre gay trying to live in love in the concrete jungle that is New York City. Frustrated with being single, thirty-something and having more and more rejections only due to the fact that he is HIV positive, he started a blog journaling his absurd dating adventures. This blog can now be read on Positivelite.com.

Obsessed with all things that entertain, S. Anthony can talk your ear off in all matters concerning TV, movies, dances, music, theatre, musical theatre and the occasional Mexican sex show. Well, you never know where the next great idea will come from!

 

 

 

Lex Morgan

Lex Morgan is a writer and blogger based in the Pacific Northwest, where she lives with her partner, Fox, and their pets. Before moving West, she grew up in rural America as a closeted lesbian, which informs her desire to reach people who don’t have access to large and diverse communities.

While she usually likes to keep it light on her sex blog, her background working with victims of sexual and relationship violence and her passion for sex and body positivity fuels her passion for writing about sex and sexual health. Lex also spends a great deal of time reading, learning and writing about issues of race and gender, sexuality and equality.

She currently writes an entertaining and educational lesbian sex blog called Lez Have Sex, and regularly contributes to Good Vibrations Magazine, affiliated with the San Francisco-based store of the same name.