Welcome to what i loved this week — an every Friday compilation of 10ish things that brought me joy, moved my heart, or otherwise reminded me of the importance of breathing. (Read past editions here and here.)
These sweet briefs will always feature MANY queer voices here on Substack as part of my Amplify Queer Voices initiative.
Speaking of, if you’re a queer voice I don’t yet know here, I want to amplify you! Reach out via message or comment, and I’ll add you to my list of must-reads.
xo, Bardette
gorgeous self-affirming nonbinary joy & existence!
after my little hope about my pap smear experience —
of with The Divine Feminine as a Pap Smear (thank you so much for your bravery and vulnerability in sharing this story, Gabby!)I have always been a cheerleader, haven’t I? 🥹
a delicious little fairy tale by
— yes, short stories are exhausting! but I’m so glad we got this “rare and quiet outing” with youfor once, I am proud of my home state (and if you don’t yet subscribe to
, please do)okay, my literary soul feels like it found a home in
by 𝙅𝙤⚢📖🏳️🌈 — I can’t wait to continue my binge of this stack following Rachilde’s The Princess of Darknessohhh yes, creativity is the path forward indeed in this revolution,
!
- ’s exquisite rambles from a crumbling empire and ongoing visioning of liberated community (oh my friend, how I share your heart’s longings)
and, lastly, this excerpt from my latest — i made this for you (and the generous response & donations from my beloved friends and readers in its wake)
New to MDQ? I’m so glad you’re here! My Dear Queer is visual (and sometimes, not visual) storytelling about the things that matter. This includes
long-form visual essays like this one
LITTLE HOPES like this one
every Friday compilations of things I loved that week like this one
I don’t paywall my content — in fact, I don’t offer paid subscriptions — and donate 10% of any monthly readers’ tips to the Trevor Project and Trans Lifeline.
Ah, thank you for the mention! I really appreciate it.
For me, finding, preserving, and amplifying queer women's voices is essential to our history - and that history is so important. What the conservatives argue is "new" or "because social media" isn't - and the history of queer literature shows me that ideas of queerness have been around for hundreds of years (and I'm sure longer, but we don't have writing for that).
Thank you for mentioning my story "The Crier" Kate! You said "delicious" 🥰