About

thinking of writing // writing to think

I have been thinking about writing for a long time: 3rd grade poems; my first five-paragraph essays; my first blog (xanga); college writing assignments; endless emails; my second blog; and now this. In a time where language and content is commodified, infinitely producible, and seductively bereft of meaning more often than not, this is my attempt to go from thinking about writing to using writing to think. Both about my own life and about the world at the large, as a way to connect with my and our shared humanity in the face of machines, algorithms, and idiots who would prefer I (and we) didn't.

I expect much of this work to be unpolished, fragmented, and intentionally so. While some pieces may evolve into more polished essays, I am hoping to release some of the pressure I've put on myself to edit something to death before hitting publish. I plan for many posts to be 300 word/10 minute writing prompts courtesy of Writer-ish with Darien Gee as a way to provide structure and focus without overcommitting myself. But some will also be of my own accord or thinking.

why mercury // retro // gay

What started out as a simple jest of word play has begun to take on more meaning. Mercury (or Hermes) the god of, amongst other things, messages, eloquence, persuasion and the guide to the underworld. I hope to embody the namesake in my writing and thinking.

Retro as in fashionably nostalgic, a phrase I fear will soon apply to both writing and thinking. But also retro as in looking backwards, looking towards the lessons and learnings of the past.

Which is inextricably tied to gayness and queerness as I look towards the generations of queer thinkers and poets before me, such as the poem in the header image of this page, "Mercury Dressing" by J.D. McClatchy. What harm may come from reaching out into the past while longing for the future? "His nerve electrifies the air. // His message is his being there." I hope my nerve in putting my writing out there electrifies something in myself, and something in you; the overarching message of this project is that we are here, together.

nuts and bolts

If you subscribe today, you'll get full access to past posts as well as email newsletters about new posts. While in many ways this is a project that exists as its own capsule for myself, knowing others are reading and engaging brings me great joy. Thank you for being here.