Joel Derfner
| Joel Derfner | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Born |
January 12, 1973 (age 44) Washington D.C. |
| Occupation | Author, composer |
| Known for |
Gay Haiku (2005) Swish (2008) Lawfully Wedded Husband (2013) |
Joel Derfner (born January 12, 1973) is an American writer and composer. He is the author of three gay-themed books: Gay Haiku (2005), Swish: My Quest to Become the Gayest Person Ever and What Ended Up Happening Instead (2008), and Lawfully Wedded Husband: How My Gay Marriage Will Save the American Family (2013). His articles have appeared in publications including the Huffington Post, The Advocate, Time Out New York, and Between the Lines. Derfner and his works have been cited as references on gay culture, and he has been noted as one of "today's best-known gay writers".
Derfner is the composer of several musicals, and he teaches musical theater composition at New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts. Derfner was also co-star of the first season of the 2010 reality television show Girls Who Like Boys Who Like Boys, along with his close friend Sarah Rose.
Derfner was born in 1973 in Washington, D.C. and grew up in Charleston, South Carolina. His parents were civil rights activists, and were active in Mississippi during the Civil Rights Movement. His father, Armand Derfner, is a civil rights lawyer, and his mother Mary Frances Derfner (née Seddon) met Armand when she became his legal secretary in Washington, D.C. in 1967. Joel's father is Jewish and his mother was Christian; he was raised Jewish and converted to Judaism at the age of seven. His mother, who suffered from type 1 diabetes, died in 1992. Joel came out to his parents as gay when he was 15.
Derfner attended Porter-Gaud School, where he excelled academically and was class valedictorian. He was also an avid singer, and considered singing as a career until his junior year of college, when severe gastric reflux numbed the back of his throat.
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