Your hold is ready! (02. 29. 24)

February 29, 2024

What am I doing with my extra bonus day this year? Sending a newsletter, apparently!

What a month. Despite its brevity, February has been packed with stuff, especially social stuff. It started off with AWP, my first, held this year in Kansas City, MO. I navigated football-laden airports, rideshares, and hotel guests (those who weren’t also there for AWP, that is) alongside my hotel-mate, , and other writer-friends (including !), did a couple readings, met a bunch of beloveds, and generally…had an absurdly good time. Highlights include buying an unadvisable number of books (and getting a couple more signed!), getting flagged down and complimented by people I really admire, and hiking at (per my last email) ass-o’-clock early and reading fresh poems in front of a roaring fireplace. I left eager to go to LA next year (inasmuch as it’s possible to be “eager to go to LA”) and, fingers crossed, to propose/be on a panel or two.

It’s also crucial to note what was not permitted at AWP this year. Following a pathetic non-response to RAWI’s statement on the ongoing Palestinian genocide, a group of attendees organized a vigil/protest in the book fair room of the conference center where AWP was held. While protest actions have no obligation to be “peaceful,” it is notable that this one was, given the ultimate response of the conference center’s wannabe event-cops.

This vigil involved a rotating group of speakers reading the names of Palestinian children and infants under the age of five murdered by the IOF. We stood with signs to bear witness to these names, periodically chanting “Free Free Palestine” and other familiar slogans. We left ample space both for those who pretended to ignore us to pass through; we also organized ourselves in such a way that mobility-aid users, including the significant number standing and sitting alongside us, to pass through unhindered.

Predictably, we were soon accosted by security, claiming that we posed, variously, a “fire hazard” and an “access hazard.” They marched us into several different formations, taking especial care to hassle attendees of color. About an hour and a half into this action, speakers had not yet finished reading the names of murdered children and infants. Yet security finally forced the entire group downstairs, out of the building, and, ironically, into the streets with protest signs. The collective energy of this particular morning was emblematic of that at the broader conference: kuffiyehs all over, panels beginning with a reading of RAWI’s statement (per their request). There was no shortage of energy for Palestinian liberation, policing efforts be damned.

The following day, an increased security presence made life significantly harder for everyone. Whereas we had previously been able to walk freely into the book fair area (and access conference panel spaces), security now blocked the escalators we used to enter the space. When panelists explained that, if panels began at 9:00, then letting panelists (and attendees) in at 9 would cause significant delays, security seemed to delight in saying “we’ll let you in at 9:00.” They delighted further in keeping us held up for several minutes past 9, simply because they could.

There’s little else to say here, except, of course, ACAB. And ACAB, evidently, includes sad sack conference center security alongside the actual armed cops we saw, inexplicably, roaming the book fair. And, as always, Free Palestine. Honor Aaron Bushnell’s (z”l) legacy of courage, sacrifice, and crystal moral clarity. Fight on behalf of the tens of thousands of Palestinians murdered by the IOF, including those massacred while waiting for humanitarian aid as I write this. Toward the end of “israel” in our lifetimes, by any means necessary.

Deep breath. Donate for e-sims, even if it’s only one dollar 【ENG/中文都有】. Stay informed. Keep showing up.

Other news/updates: my girlfriend, Gwen, came to visit this past week! We had a wonderful time together, including attending a gathering hosted by Dyke Days Davis and celebrating my second ever 5k, in which I improved my time by over ten minutes with a 39:31 finish. It was significantly easier than last time….and perhaps, maybe, even a little fun? Am I becoming someone who likes running? What???

To copy a passage from my last email: The cover for my debut novel, Failure to Comply, is here, along with a (US) pre-order link! Thanks to my incredible publicist, Addie Tsai, I got an exclusive cover reveal in the Chicago Review of Books. I’m over-the-moon happy about these updates, about the impending availability of ARCs (interested reviewers/interviewers, contact me! In the meantime, add it on Goodreads and Storygraph, and tell your friends. I’ve begun sending out the rough/AWP-ready ARCs, and more official ones will be ready to go in early March. Use the above links to get on the reviewer list.

Other literary updates: General submissions are open for manywor(l)ds, which was recently recognized by Best Microfiction, reopens March 1-April 30. For an idea of what we like, check out issue 3, which dropped 2/16. Those affected by any of the ongoing genocides, and all MENA/SWANA creatives, are encouraged to submit year-round. All who are, live, laugh, or love Mad dykes are also welcome to submit my guest-edited issue of Sinister Wisdom called Mad Dykes, Queer Worlds, open through June 2024.

Now, onto the recommendations.

Today’s Recs:

Books:

Music:

Poetry & Prose & In-Between:

Essays and Articles:

My Recent Work: