Edward Frederic Benson was born to a family of writers–-both his parents and three of his surviving siblings were all authors. And, according to some accounts, most of his immediate family was queer. Benson himself was gay, and included gay and lesbian characters in some of his works. His mother, after his father’s death, moved her long-time female companion into their house, and his sister Margaret, an Egyptologist as well as an author, also enjoyed a long-term same-sex relationship.