So I lent Cordelia's Honor to a friend form pooh soc, and she’s about half way through and mentioned to me that she was very happy that it was non-heteronormative. I was bit surprised by this because it’s fairly low key in the book. One character is bi and his homosexual relationship took place off screen. Also there are hermaphrodites. Any way the conversation ended with me telling her I’d write up a list of some other non-heteronomative spec fic. So this is what I’ve come up with so far.
The Vorkosigan books by Lois McMaster Bujold –See above
Special Mention: Ethan of Athos – The main character is form planet of only men where romantic relationships between men are the norm. (Also taking care of children is considered valuable work—they have something called social duty credits to keep track of it)
Bujold’s Five Gods books: Some characters are gay – the Bastard is the god of all things out of season including gay people
Elizabeth Bear: Promethean Age, Jenny Casey books. There are people who just happen to be in same sex relationships rather then that being a main plot point.
Sherwood Smith: Inda books, The Trouble with Kings. In Inda a fairly major character is gay; in The Trouble with Kings only fairly minor characters are homosexual. Both books are set in Sartorias-deles, where homosexual relationships are not stigmatized.
Ellen Kushner’s Riverside books, starting with Swordspoint: In these books everyone is bisexual. Both Swordspoint and The Fall of Kings both have gay couples as main characters.
A Door Into Ocean by Joan Slonczewski and all women planet where pair bonding between women is common (called lovesharing).
Glory Season by David Brin – women are factually clonal (ie they can clone themselves or reproduce sexually) and generally form romantic relationships with other women.
Nicola Griffith: I’ve read Ammonite which features an all women world, and I think her other work also deals with Queer themes.
Darkover –Marion Zimmer Bradley, especially the Free Amazon books (Currently in print in omnibus as The Saga of the Renunciates) but also in general. The Terrains have rather US in the 50’s attitudes about sexuality, but Darkoveran culture is generally accepting.
Small Change by Jo Walton: An Alternate history, some of the characters just happen to be gay dealt with in historically realistic way.
Anything I should add to this?