Queerly dearly beloveds, we did it!
My Dear Queer has officially broken the 100 subscribers mark.
This is hugely momentous. ‘Tis my life’s mission to spread my clever words and drawings far and wide, and MDQ’s growing readership is helping me achieve that.
Thank you for being one of my dearest 108 (!!!). Now, honey, let’s celebrate!
Here are 62 queer / delightful / kind / pussy-appreciative ways you can do just that.
I’d love it if you’d pick one of the things from this list, go out and do it, and tell me about it later.
I promise it will make the world a (queerer) better place.
Thanks for reading and listening. Now let’s get to 500 subscribers, shall we?
xo,
Bardette
If My Dear Queer brings you joy, makes you gayer, shifts your neurons into a more positive bouncy-house space, or otherwise changes your reality for better, consider upgrading to a paid subscription. This is obviously the best way to celebrate, because it supports queer art thriving in a capitalist world, and it only costs the equivalent of a small lesbian latte each month (!!).
Be crowned an absolute Queen of all MDQ Queens by becoming a founding member of MDQ — basically you’ll be the equivalent of a patron in Shakespeare’s era, and I will henceforth write you luscious poetry praising your feet, mouth, and ancestry.
If a paid or founding member subscription is outta the question, why not tell three friends about My Dear Queer? I like threes. And I like friends.
Gift a My Dear Queer subscription to a dearly queerly beloved in need.
And, oh! If you aren’t yet a subscriber of any kind to My Dear Queer, it’s time to subscribe, baby!
Purchase a My Dear Queer group subscription for any group, organization, company, collective of cats, etc.
Donate to My Dear Queer (the equivalent of buying me a lesbian latte, wee!).
Subscribe to QStack, Substack’s directory of queer-created Substack content and a beautiful, beautiful place to be. Or browse QStack and subscribe to at least one gorgeous Stack you find there. Queer voices matter!
Read MDQ’s most popular post of all time, which features a hefty stroke of vulnerability and original, hand-drawn art. (And then share it.)
Let me know what you’ve loved most about MDQ thus far and what you’re excited to see more of. Your feedback matters to me!
Tell a queer person in your life that you see them, you love them, and you hear them. Bonus points if that queer person is young (they need us right now).
Purchase a print of MDQ original artwork. Send me a message and we’ll get you set up with somethin’ pretty.
Request a commission of original artwork by yours truly. I take commissions on a case-by-case basis. Send me a message and we’ll get you set up with somethin’ custom and pretty.
Make a donation to the Trevor Project. They’re saving lives out there — valuable, gorgeous, dear lives.
Send me a hand-written letter or postcard, and we can initiate our pen-pal-ship. I’m serious. I live for letters. Drop me a message and we’ll exchange addresses.
Register to vote and then mother-fucking vote when it’s time!
On that note, check out my friend Nan Tepper’s post on voting and real change: We Can Be Heroes, Just for One Day.
If you yourself have a Substack, add My Dear Queer to your list of recommended Stacks. (THANK YOU!)
Find your favorite MDQ post of all time and re-stack it on Substack.
Find your favorite MDQ post of all time and share it on a non-Substack platform like Instagram or Facebook.
Or just share this amazing publication however you see fit.
Make a donation to the ACLU Drag Defense Fund.
Go outside, find a beautiful tree, kiss them, thank them, hug them.
Send me a cat pic.
Or several.
Or 100.
Why not buy a pride flag and hang it proudly? I like buying my flags from Flags for Good.
Write a testimonial for My Dear Queer that I can share on my homepage. I.e., “this babe loves cats, writes funny stuff, and draws cute shit. I like her and she’s super gay.”
Watch Desert Hearts (duh).
Attend a local drag event and tip your drag queens, babe!
Adopt a cat. Obviously, I’m serious.
Or, like, donate to a cat shelter. Obviously, I’m serious.
Or maybe participate in a local neuter/vaccination initiative to help keep strays safe and healthy. Obviously, I’m serious.
My beloved manifesto on what it means to be a crazy cat lady was featured this Pride month in QStack — give her a read if you haven’t yet done so.
Make a donation to Trans Lifeline.
Check out the Human Rights Campaign’s guide to Being an LGBTQIA+ ally — or send to a friend (or several!).
Watch Portrait of a Lady on Fire (duh).
Follow yours truly on Instagram to get MDQ doodles in your feed on a (mostly) daily basis: @bardette_herself
Volunteer your time with a local LGBTQIA+ organization.
Use Charity Navigator to search for LGBTQIA+ charities to support.
Read this gorgeous poem by Deborah A. Miranda.
I love anything by Mr. Troy Ford, but I particularly loved his latest piece on introversion, small talk, and just wanting to be alone. Check it out.
New to Substack and want help bringing it into reality? Style Your Stack can help you do just that (and it’s queer-owned and queer-created!).
Order yourself a copy of Andrew Greer’s Less. It’s my favorite book and likely will remain so until I die. Oh, and obviously, it’s gay! And it won the Pulitzer. Enough said.
How the heck do I, Bardette, identify? I get this question a lot, which is why I decided to create an illustrated post answering it. Check it out.
Follow my friend Tess’s podcast MorningPoems. She’s got the best late night early AM radio voice. Trust me. And their poetry is intelligent, wry, insightful, and damn good. (They’ve got a Substack, too!)
Check out Everywhere is Queer — their app and online map helps you easily find queer-owned local businesses and support them!
Watch Outstanding, a beautiful documentary on LGBTQIA+ comedy (available on Netflix).
Read (or listen to) RuPaul’s latest memoir, The House of Hidden Meanings.
I had the pleasure of meeting the photographer behind the visual narrative project This Skin I’m In, which documents LGBTQIA+ stories and identities. Download the app to take a deeper dive.
Linda Epstein’s wry five-minute take on the Lesbian Card is absolute gold. Read!
In the coming months, I’m going to be selling select originals of oil paintings created by yours truly over the last decade. Stay tuned if you’re keen to take one home (I want them to go to good homes).
Laugh with me about the value of therapy, and what it boils down to.
I recently gave my personal website a fresh re-polish. Take a gander.
I live for anything that Katya and Trixie Mattel create, including their 30-minute bits on Still Watching Netflix (watch!).
And their podcast, the Bald and the Beautiful. Katya recently interviewed QUEEN of QUEENS Sasha Colby (listen!).
Blast this playlist and dance in your kitchen.
Curious about the Things that Matter, which I’m committed to talking about every week on MDQ? This post tells all.
I’ve been doing a lot of healing lately, and this illustrated post by ND Stevenson made me feel really seen in that process. Read and/or subscribe, please.
Anything by Robin Taylor is worth your time. Check out his Substack That Trans Friend You Didn’t Know You Needed.
Yeah, I talk to my cat all the time. I recorded one of our recent conversations here (it’s quick, and I think you’ll like it).
If you made it to the end of this list, congratulations, and thank you for staying with me! Give yourself some love, whatever that looks like. And then go spread it in the world.
AMAZING! I'm ALL CAPS SCREAMING, TOO!! Let me clarify: not screaming about you reaching 108 (probably more by now). I'm screaming because your list of things to do is fabulous! Thank you, thank you for the mention. I've done many of these things already, and THANK you for the two mentions...I'm verklempt. I'm going to look at the list again, and see what other queer deeds I can accomplish, and then I'll get back to you. And, I think you missed one, that might be helpful? A donate button for folks who are in that in-between place of free vs. paid subscriber. Tips and lesbian lattes are wonderful. Congratulations, Kate!
Congrats!