GAYLETTER

“Pray the Gay Away actually started as an idea after we came out and our mom threw holy water at us. So, after that rather interesting response, the book started as just a sticky note. Then more strange things started happening with/to us and the sticky notes turned into our book.” When we met The Zakar Twins last summer they casually mentioned they were writing a book in between stripping off their underwear and bearing it all for our magazine. I’m a pretentious asshole sometimes and was like: These gays work for Monster, how are they writing a book? (Sorry, guys!) When I wasn’t trying to look at their dicks and trying to style the image we were shooting with Tom & Abi, I was curious what their book was about. They told me they had been writing it for a bit, in hopes of shedding a different light on the LGBTQ-Arabian community, something they talked a about in GAYLETTER Issue 7. Along with trying to make the LGBTQ-Arabian community more inclusionary and visible, they wanted to show readers that things don’t necessarily get better, “but they do heal in their own fucked up ways.” I’m here for that because I’m a pensive realist who sometimes just sounds morose, but coming from Zack and Michael maybe some readers will take comfort in the fact that even though their life feels like a hot mess, it’s just running its course and the best thing to do is stick it out and be gaggy anyway. She’s a cute read for any day of the week and the cover features a nun and the boys, so you’ll get some bulging eyeballs if you read it on public transit. (Always good.) Zack and Michael told me they have two other books planned and just started outlining the next. Get behind their authorship now or forever hold your peace!  —Chris Stewart