Elska Magazine - Los Angeles (California)

Welcome to the second edition of the eighteenth book in the Elska series, showcasing ordinary men from extraordinary Los Angeles. (Well, we tried to find ordinary men, but who's ordinary anyway, right?)

Inside this new rendering of Elska Los Angeles, writer and photographer Liam Campbell introduces the city through encounters with over a dozen local gay men. Each of them took part in a photoshoot that comprised of street scenes and home scenes, the men dressed in their own style or often not dressed at all. For a city people often call ‘fake’, the images here are absolutely real, allowing you to get to know people rather than personas.

Each participant (aka ‘elskan’) was also invited to write a short story on any topic of their choosing. This book brings together a selection these elskans’ stories and diary-style texts contributed by Liam based on his recollections of the time he spent in LA and with these men. Some of the highlights include: Drew Droege's stream of consciousness on his typical day in LA; Larry D's ode to a society that makes him and his husband feel more accepted than he ever dreamed could happen in the USA; Dylan R's tale of a hazy morning-after struggle to find his car; and Matthew G's reminiscence of the big step he took to leave the closeted West Virginia boy behind and come out West Hollywood style.

‘Elska Los Angeles’ features fifteen chapters and the following local elskans: Grey Cotton, Kristopher Gee, Matthew G, Drew Droege, Lawrence Tiller, Gregory C, Alan Adolfo, Phinn S, Dylan R, Trentton Barber, Daniel Dehnert, Larry D and Tammie Brown

We also recommend ordering our companion publication, ‘Ekstra Los Angeles’, available separately or as part of the ‘deluxe version’. Inside you'll meet eight more men: Ted G, Caden Gray, Jeremiah Hein, BB Gunn, Jose Alves, Jeremy Lucido, David Pevsner and Jet Zhou. You'll then also get to see various outtakes from all our LA elskans along with some further behind the scenes notes. Finally, you'll find a special feature on how we chose our cover art and you'll get to see a few of our famous (or perhaps infamous) reader selfies.