After losing his job as a classical music buyer in 2008, Sterling struggled to get back on track. Four years later, he found himself homeless and staying with a friend in San Francisco. Unable to get a full-time job, he worked at a small Buddhist bookshop, where he was paid a weekly stipend.
“I’d turned to Buddhism in my early 60s to help me clear some emotional challenges I’d struggled with in the past,” he says. “By 2012, I had also started writing and was working on a fantasy novel. While searching for writers’ groups, I spotted a support group for gay men. I had no expectations but I thought I’d give it a shot.”
