Difference is Born on the Lips: Reflections on Sexuality, Stigma and Society

'A provocative, raw, and soulful book... An unflinching and visionary read.' - Attitude

Raw and stunningly written, Handrick takes us on a journey through his experiences as a gay working-class man, confronting the toxic narratives and myths that society has built up around masculinity, class, and sexuality.

Much more than just a personal story, Handrick's book delves deep into the heart of a crisis facing the gay community today: a mental health epidemic that shows no signs of slowing down. With shocking statistics and hard-hitting research, Handrick reveals the dark reality of what it means to be a gay man in a world that still clings to outdated and harmful stereotypes.

Yet despite the challenges, Handrick's message is one of hope. Through his personal struggles and his deep understanding of the root causes of the crisis facing the gay community, he calls on us all to come together and create a new conversation. A conversation that confronts the systemic inequalities and discrimination that should have never existed in the first place.

If you're looking for a book that will challenge you, inspire you, and leave you with a renewed sense of hope, ´Difference is Born on the Lips´ is a must-read.


Michael Handrick's work has been shortlisted for Penguin Random House's Write Now 2020 and Kit de Waal's anthology, Common People, and longlisted for the London Writers Awards, 2019. He has had features in Attitude and PYLOT, and his fiction pieces have been published in anthologies such as Litro, and shortlisted and longlisted for various competitions including the Creative Future Literary Awards (2018, 2020).