Diverse Literature Award 2023

Organized by Editorial Siete Islas, Asociación Pasaje Begoña, Madrid Orgullo, and the Madrid Orgullo Cultural Festival Muestra T. Sponsored by SHANGAY and Ritual Hoteles.

June 1973. After years of discrimination and family rejection due to his homosexuality, Luismi flees his hometown and arrives in Marbella. There he meets Tanke and Toñi, two transvestites who help him leave the past behind and open the doors to the Dragón Rojo, a legendary bar where, for the first time, he can be himself.

Luismi embarks on a journey of self-discovery and fights for the coveted crown of Miss Dragón, the most desired title among the transformistas of the Costa del Sol. Based on true events, this novel revives the semi-clandestine parties of the final years of the Franco dictatorship, where artists, aristocrats, and jet set ladies chose the best transformista in Marbella.

Miss Dragón is a tribute to those who, from the margins, built spaces of freedom and resistance in a gray and repressive Spain. Miguel Ángel Parra delivers a necessary and powerful literary debut that celebrates the memory and courage of an entire generation.

About the author

Miguel Ángel Parra Anguita (Jaén, 1974) is a multimedia journalist and screenwriter. He has worked at Diario Jaén, Odiel Información, and El Correo de Andalucía (where he was head of Culture, editorial coordinator, and web editor). He collaborates with the magazine Meridiam of the Andalusian Institute for Women, Canal Sur TV, and press offices for major events such as the Seville European Film Festival and the Flamenco Biennial.

Screenwriter of short films (La cajera, Mamá okupa, Desvío a Torremolinos, Espich) and short theater (Ay, diva mía, Recién casados, Orgullo S.O.S.), his passion for communication, cinema, fashion, and series runs through his creative career.