What would you do if you shopped around a book to publishers and got nothing but rejection slips in return?

You could give up and let your manuscript collect dust in a box somewhere, or, you could pick yourself off the ground and publish it yourself.

That’s exactly what Kate (Hipstatic) and Rebecka did when their queer anthology called Ain’t Your Sister was rejected by a series of small Canadian publishers. Though they felt shaken at first and often wondered how much more rejection they could take without losing all dignity and will to live, the girls turned around and created their own homebrew publishing house called Homosaywhat.

Ain’t Your Sister has since been replaced by We’re Here, We’re Queer, We’re Used to Itan anthology of coming out stories by 11 emerging writers from across Canada and the United States.

Check out www.homosaywhat.ca for more details, or better yet, come out to their launch party in October.

FAGTAGS & LADYFINGERSAn Evening of Queer Film and Lit.

October 11, 8pm, Buddies in Bad Times Theatre. Readings and videos by local artists to raise money for the LesBiGay Youth Line, and to celebrate the launch of the new book, We’re Here, We’re Queer, We’re Used to It. Featuring: RM Vaughan, Allyson Mitchell, Julie Saragosa, Mike Vokins, Nico Stagias & Michael V. Smith, Mishann Lau, Brian Francis, Anand Mahadevan, Kate Zieman,and others. DJ Winnie spins it on home.

You can read about access to Plan B (emergency contraception, a.k.a. the morning after pill) in our upcoming Fall issue, but in the meantime, take a look at the thorough report complied by Women and Health Protection (WHP) and the Canadian Women’s Health Network (CWHN).

The groups want better access to Plan B, especially for teenage girls. While teen pregnancy rates have been dropping because of high birth control use, according to the report, girls age 15-19 are more likely to engage in unplanned intercourse and more likely to not use contraception regularly, or at all.

And while Plan B is available in Canada without a prescription, there still exists a lack of awareness about emergency contraception. Plan B is expensive for many people, and there are still unnecessary blocks in obtaining it. WHP and CWNH, along with women across the country, are lobbying for Plan B to be available at any retail outlet, along with better access for low income women and comprehensive sex education.

Read all about it here. Then spread the word.

Knitters take note: a Viennese art group called Gelatin recently unveiled the cutest public art installation we’ve ever seen. It’s a 200-foot-long pink toy bunny rabbit, knitted by dozens of grannies, located on the side of a mountain in Italy. What does the art “mean”? Your guess is as good as ours, but it sure looks snuggly. Members of Gelatin told Ananova.com they expect hikers to scale the bunny and lounge on its belly.

Luckily, the wascally wabbit is scheduled to remain where it is until 2025, so you’ve got a few years to save up for an Italian holiday.