Literary Community Building: Twentieth-Century Lesbian Publishing Literary Community Building Twentieth-Century Lesbian Publishing seeks to piece together the community-building work of mid- to-late twentieth-century lesbian publishing. I argue that literature, in its varied and interconnected forms, was a guiding force in creating, critiquing, and expanding the concept of lesbian identity and community in the United States during the 1950s through 1980s. This dissertation analyzes pulp fiction, comics, lesbian-feminist press paperbacks, and mini-magazines called “zines.” My attention on the mid-to-late twentieth century and wide array of primary sources highlights how popular culture and innovations in publishing technologies allowed for wide, nontraditional, and diverse constructions of lesbian identity and community.