how the familiar becomes unknown to us
"in or out, but shut the door"
the means by which you become a stranger
The holidays are always a rough time for me. This year is... a lot.
I've had some pretty big upheavals recently in my personal life, such that I'm left heading into the holiday season searching for some kind of handhold. I don't know that there's a good time to have huge parts of my life fall apart all at once, but I really don't recommend doing it at the start of a long and cold winter.
As part of all this I've been thinking about where poetry fits in with all this. Part of me was sensing that 2026 was going to be another ramp-up for all this; I already have some featured reader spots lined up, plus some pending subscriptions, plus my chapbook next summer, plus my first slam competition (see below). But there's another part of me that worries that maybe I should just walk away from it entirely. In part, some of the upheavals in my life have made me question whether I'm even capable of being in community with other people– and if I really can't manage that anymore, then a big part of the joy and magic of making poetry (which is to say, being in community with other poets) isn't accessible to me.
It's weird to send out an email newsletter ostensibly focused on my poetry career in which the conclusion is left vague but suggests, perhaps, leaving all of this behind to better writers and better people than I am. It's just sort of where I am. Either 2026 is going to put a lot of momentum into the work I'm doing, or it's going to see me quietly step away from the mic with a middling score and no invite to the afterparty.
A few people have told me recently that I couldn't give up on poetry if I tried. That may be true. I just wish I knew for sure that poetry couldn't give up on me either.
Updates
acolytes of abundance
I made this short video that features the song "it's saturday I'm leavin'" by Nori Li and my poem "sometimes I forget that I'm wearing glitter."
Miss you, friend.
I'm featuring at That's Poetic!!
I'll be debuting TWO new poems! Come see me and Boston poet Aparna Paul finish off the year with a reading on Family (born, chosen, forged, estranged, grieved).
TRANS MAG Issue 2 is out NOW
This is such an amazing collection of trans art and I'm honored to have a piece included here. Go get your copy!
Also, I'll be hanging out with the folks from TRANS MAG this Saturday at Dorothy. Come chill with cool trans people in my favorite lesbian bar!
Baby's first slam competition!
I'm probably biting off more than I can chew here buuuuuut yr girl is going to The 2026 Midwest Mashup! I'm going to be competing with a team of fellow poets against some of the best slam artists in the country. I'm sure I won't completely embarrass myself or anything.
What's Bridget Reading?
Cheating a little bit here. I've been pretty overwhelmed with life and so haven't started a new book yet, and probably won't until around Christmas (when I'll have some time off from work). Poetry Magazine is a good way to get my fix in between new reads.
What's Bridget Listening To?
I'll be real with you: I never pegged myself as the kind of middle-aged lady who copes with breakups and heartache by listening to country music. Here we are, I guess.
Other People's Poems
Love you,
Bridget