Edie Montreux: The Greta Thunberg of M/M Romance

I have a new slogan: I am the Greta Thunberg of M/M Romance. Pika Perfect and "Quality Assured" (one of four stories about climate-involved vampires coming soon in a yet-to-be-named anthology) both talk about climate change.

It would have been hard to write a character in tune with nature without mentioning climate change. It would have been even harder to write about pikas. In Pika Perfect, Blaze wants to be a park ranger. It's been his dream since he saw pikas at Rocky Mountain National Park when he was a kid. I wrote about my own pika experience for Joyfully Jay. Pikas are vulnerable to climate change. The thing is, so are humans, but people want to ignore that fact.

To the folks saying, "I don't need your climate change agenda in my m/m romance!" Pika Perfect and my vampire anthology are probably not for you. There may be a paragraph or two in Medium to Well where Kenny waxes poetic about the ocean and littering, so that may also be a turn-off. Even if I'm not the author for you, I'm always grateful to find someone who is - please continue to share your feedback! <3

However, I haven't quite earned the title "The Greta Thumberg of M/M Romance" because I'm not great at conservation. My carbon footprint is huge, with the number of electronic devices I use. Now that I'm working from home, I have a laptop, docking station, and 2 24-inch monitors to make the world go round. I also have a Chromebook I use as a radio all day and for my social media accounts at night, and a Windows laptop for Scrivener and Word. And then there's my Kindle and ReMarkable. Oh, and my cell phone that sits on its charger all day because I never leave this house. That's...9 devices plugged into my wall, sucking energy. I also prefer to walk on my powered treadmill in my air-conditioned house when I could walk outside.

I want to do better. I'd love to have geothermal heat/air installed when our ancient units finally give out, but I'm losing that battle with Lemur. I'd also love to have solar panels installed, and I am a huge fan of the windmills dotting the countryside between here and my parents' house. Instead, we're still on the grid. We are part of the problem, not the solution.

Thanks to the research I did for these stories, I recognize my contribution, when before I lived in ignorance. If I've given you a place to start with your own climate research, then I will gladly wear the title, "The Greta Thunberg of M/M Romance" with honor. Also, I've been informed she is 18, so while my comments are ALWAYS in poor taste, at least this one isn't as gross as I first thought.

In other news, today is the first annual federal holiday for Juneteenth. It's been celebrated by Black folks since Texas's emancipation was finally declared, 2 years after the proclamation. Now, it's well past time the rest of the U.S. honors it, too.

It's not reparations. It's not the end of racism. But it's a blessed good place to start.