writing
Darwin S. Ward



Novels
Becoming Alec


Photo by kael t. block.
Over the last several years, gay characters have broken into the mainstream popular culture with TV shows like Will and Grace and Queer Eye for the Straight Guy. As society adapts to new sexual orientation paradigms, the next frontier will be gender identity issues. Becoming Alec is one of the first novels to deal in depth with the topic of transitioning female to male transsexuals (FTMs). This 240 page novel is one of the first of its kind and includes an intimate look at the emotional and physical changes that the main character and his friends, family, and lovers go through as he finds his identity.

Alec always thought she was a lesbian. She got thrown out of her house for it as a teenager, in fact. But when she moves to Chicago she begins a journey of self- discovery that leads to a place that she never imagined possible. She discovers that she isn't a lesbian at all....but a straight man. During the journey Alec befriends an old-school butch-femme couple, a post-transition FTM, and two femme lovers. The book is a coming of age story as well as a story of putting one's demons to sleep. It describes in intimate detail the process of gender transition, while also touching on the ideological conflicts between the butch-femme community and the FTM community. The story also highlights how people can choose to form unique and unconventional families as well as unique and unconventional gender identities.

While a few memoirs and collections of essays have been published on FTM issues, few fictional works on the topic are currently available. The closest books for comparison purposes that exist are Leslie Feinberg's Stone Butch Blues and Drag King Dreams. Becoming Alec is a modern take on the topic with a strong focus on transgender issues.

"Honest and heart-felt, Darwin Ward’s characters ring true. Ward’s story is firmly grounded in working class experience and values, and explores the struggles of transmen in the Midwest . An FTM story that can speak to anyone who has worked hard to survive and to be her- or himself."
-Jamison Green, Author of Becoming a Visible Man

Link to press release for book reading at A Room of One's Own bookstore in Madison, WI

Becoming Alec is currently available through Lulu.com and through other major on-line distribution outlets (like Amazon), as well as through a limited number of independent bookstores nationwide.
  • Darwin S. Ward/MBM Press Lulu Storefront (purchase books here)
  • Becoming Alec homepage (purchase books here)
  • Becoming Alec for Kindle
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    Darwin is currently completing the sequel to Becoming Alec, Becoming Tucker. Ze expects to publish Becoming Tucker in late 2008 or early 2009 Ze is also currently working on two other novels. Queries regarding the manuscripts can be sent to mbigmistake AT gmail.com (replace the AT with @ before sending your email).
    More praise for Becoming Alec:

    "5.0 out of 5 stars
    Awesome book- Won't be able to put it down!
    This is a fantastic piece of work. I could not put this book down once I got started and read it in one day because I could not leave Alec. It's the kind of book that you never want to end. Darwin S. Ward makes hir characters come to life in such a way you feel like you are right there watching these characters in real life. I truly felt like a "fly on the wall" while reading this book. I just read it last Saturday and am planing on reading it again this week. Once you get involved in "Becoming Alec" You will be hooked. Great read for any FTM or family and friends of an FTM. This book is so good that you really don't even need to know what an FTM is, you will find out in the book. I am an avid reader and this is as close to my #1 favorite as one could get. Hurry up and grab this book, you'll be glad you did!"
    By Proud FTM "Erik" (Nevada, USA) via Amazon.com

    "My girlfriend and I are very impressed by how Darwin got the dynamics and feel of butch/femme relationships right in this novel. Not many do."
    -Sashe Mishur, event coordinator for Room of One's Own Feminist Bookstore in Madison, WI

    "I enjoyed the cast. I could visualize each of them clearly in my mind... I felt myself walking in those bars and bathrooms and dining rooms. I enjoyed my journey and look forward to Darwin's next effort." -from http://www.redspud.net/epilogue/

    Review in Our Lives Magazine Nov/Dec 2008 by Gretchen Treu
    What Does It Mean To Be A Man? Becoming Alec by Darwin Ward
    Becoming Alec, the debut novel by Madison's own Darwin Ward, has been a sleeper hit, securing a spot for the author in the Wisconsin Book Festival and generating some great buzz and discussion in feminist and GLBT literary circles around town. The novel's protagonist, Alec, starts out as a working-class lesbian who eventually identifies as a transman. We follow him as he creates a family, realizes his true self and finds love and contentment along the way. Alec's journey also takes him through butch-femme culture, and the novel sensitively yet unflinchingly explores the often tense boundary between butch lesbian and transmasculine identities. Ward explores the positive and negative aspects of transition with grace and aplomb, neither sugarcoating the difficulties transpeople often face nor ruining the narrative with melodrama. Alec's story is accessible, particular, genuine and best of all, wholly heartfelt.

    Becoming Alec has been accepted to the 2008 Wisconsin Book Festival