Sydney Pokorny, the New York writer and critic best known as co-author, with Liz Tracey, of the 1996 humor guide So You Want to Be a Lesbian?, died on September 1, 2008.
A graduate of Vassar College, Pokorny and Tracey wrote the Outweek column “Out on the Town” in 1990 and 1991. Pokorny later co-founded Dead Jackie Susann Quarterly, a zine devoted to preserving the memory of novelist Jacqueline Susann, whose first two issues appeared in December 1992 and April 1993. She also wrote art criticism for Artforum.
So You Want to Be a Lesbian?: A Guide for Amateurs and Professionals (1996), published by St. Martin’s Griffin, is a humorous travel guide to the “Sapphic landscape.” It covers key terms, coming out, lesbian history and culture, and dating tips for the confirmed, the soon-to-be-out and the plain curious.
The book was a finalist in the Humor category at the 9th Annual Lambda Literary Awards. Judy Carter’s Homo Handbook took the prize.
Complete Bibliography
Nonfiction: So You Want to Be a Lesbian?: A Guide for Amateurs and Professionals (1996), with Liz Tracey
Zine: Dead Jackie Susann Quarterly (1992 to 1993), with Liz Tracey