#trans girl! Adrienne

[catastrophic-crow]

the real gender euphoria was the trans women we knocked up along the way

if you thought I was done making comics about adrien being trans you thought wrong. fuck you

[makingqueerhistory]

I Hope We Choose Love: A Trans Girl's Notes from the End of the World

Kai Cheng Thom

What can we hope for at the end of the world? What can we trust in when community has broken our hearts? What would it mean to pursue justice without violence? How can we love in the absence of faith? In a heartbreaking yet hopeful collection of personal essays and prose poems, blending the confessional, political, and literary, Kai Cheng Thom dives deep into the questions that haunt social movements today. With the author's characteristic eloquence and honesty, I Hope We Choose Love proposes heartfelt solutions on the topics of violence, complicity, family, vengeance, and forgiveness. Taking its cues from contemporary thought leaders in the transformative justice movement such as adrienne maree brown and Leah Lakshmi Piepzna-Samarasinha, this provocative book is a call for nuance in a time of political polarization, for healing in a time of justice, and for love in an apocalypse.

(Affiliate link above)

[thevampireslovelywife]

Rita Malloy— She/they

Age: 19

Gender: cis-female

Sexuality: Lesbian(romantically) Pansexual(sexually)

Relationships: Grey(best friend), Emerson(sibling)

Occupation: Stripper & library worker

Grey DiScala— he/they

Age: 20

Gender: cis-male

Sexuality: bisexual and polyamorous 

Relationships: Rita(best friend), Elijah(Friends)

Occupation: tattoo artist

Tessa Gomez— She/her

Age: 17

Gender: Trans woman

Sexuality: Straight

Relationships: Ethan(friend)

Occupation: Library volunteer

Elijah Hwang— He/him

Name: Elijah Hwang 

Age: 20

Gender: Cis-male 

Sexuality: Straight(will figure out he's bisexual later) and polyamorous 

Relationships: Grey(friends), Rachel(sister)

Emerson Malloy— They/them

Age: 17

Gender: Non binary

Sexuality: Gay

Relationships: Rita(siblings), ethan(friends), Bellona(friends), Adrienne(best friend)

Adrienne Durand— They/she

Age: 16

Gender: idk but she’s vibing

Sexuality: Aromantic and bisexual demisexual

Relationships: Bellona(queer platonic partners), Emerson(best friends), Lina(friends)

Bellona Gupta— She/her

Age: 16

Gender: Cis-female

Sexuality: Straight and Asexual

Relationships: Adrienne(queer platonic partner), Lina(friend), Emerson(friend)

Joshua Lennon— He/him

Age: 37

Gender: Cis-male

Sexuality: Gay

Relationships: (his husband), Rita(her employer)

Ethan Matthews- They/he

Age: 15

Gender: Genderfluid, transmac

Sexuality: Gay(bi curious)

Relationships: Lina(friend/crush?), Tessa(best friend), Emerson(friend), Elijah(half brother)

Carolina(Lina) Augustin- She/they

Age: 16

Gender: Demi girl(questioning genderfluid)

Sexuality: Pansexual

Relationships: Ethan(friends/crush), adrienne(friends), Bellona(friends)

@justaboymadeofhoneyandglass @themortalityofundyingstars @starmanbutitsregulusblack

@m0ngrxl

Thx for helping me name them: @obsessingoverl

[gatnya-kat]

Comphet is not a extrictly lesbian experience

Comphet is a experience created by heteronormativity which states cisheterosexuality being the "norm" or the "right thing to do", Everything who doesn't get close to this norm is "wrong"

You can be Bisexual, Gay, Trans, NB, etc and still have comphet

Heterosexuality is more an institute more than a sexuality, paraphrasing Adrienne Rich postulate in the essay "Compulsory heterosexuality and lesbian existence" (1980)

I think the reason that comphet relates more with lesbians is because as little girls/AFABs is teached us that man is the center of our lives and that's why most of us have it

Still, remember, if you have comphet, you are still valid ✨

[catastrophic-crow]

i love her

is the answer

how do wefeel ab tgirl adrien :T

[princess-of-the-corner]

Adrien(ne) texts their friends and tells them they had Félix use the Peacock to trans their gender, then shares photos (taken by Marinette) showing off her new female form. Everyone approves. One takes it as a point in favor of letting Félix stay on the team.

Adrienne: "@Everyone I have tits now!!!!"

Everyone: "Adrienne, honey, darling, light of my life: how are you going to explain suddenly being a girl to the public without explaining the Sentimonster thing?"

Adrienne: "I may not have thought this through."

[synderesis08]

I HOPE WE CHOOSE LOVE: A Trans Girl’s Notes From the End of the World

“This enlightened essay collection is both an invocation of and invitation to love—with intention—as a way to repair, rebuild and reimagine new worlds. I hope readers will choose to take up Kai Cheng Thom’s fiery call to arms.” – Vivek Shraya

What can we hope for at the end of the world? What can we trust in when community has broken our hearts? What would it mean to pursue justice without violence? How can we love in the absence of faith?

In a heartbreaking yet hopeful collection of personal essays and prose poems, blending the confessional, political, and literary, acclaimed poet and essayist Kai Cheng Thom dives deep into the questions that haunt social movements today. With the author’s characteristic eloquence and honesty, I Hope We Choose Love proposes heartfelt solutions on the topics of violence, complicity, family, vengeance, and forgiveness. Taking its cues from contemporary thought leaders in the transformative justice movement such as Adrienne Maree Brown and Leah Lakshmi Piepzna-Samarasinha, this provocative book is a call for nuance in a time of political polarization, for healing in a time of justice, and for love in an apocalypse.

[theinquisitxor]

January 2023 Reading Wrap-Up

I read a whopping 15 books this month, which is the most I think I've ever read in a month. That is partially due to novella audiobooks, as I could get through each one in 4-5 hours. But, looking at previous Januarys, I do tend to read the most during this month. Most noteworthy: After starting the Wayward Children series back in 2019, I made myself catch up to the most recent release!

1.In An Absent Dream (Wayward Children #4) by Seanan Mcguire. 4/5 stars. This is one of my favorites of the series, and I saw aspects of myself in Elizabeth. This novella also contains many things I enjoy- especially goblin markets and bargains. portal fantasy, audiobook, novella.

2.The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon (trans. Lucia Graves) 4/5 stars. This may be the book that was on my physical tbr the longest. I got this book in high school and it followed me through college and now to my post-college life. I really enjoyed the immersiveness of this story; it makes me want to travel to Barcelona and retrace the footsteps of the characters. The story slowly built up to an explosive and cinematic ending, with twists and turns I did not see coming. I'm not 100% sure if I'm going to read the rest in the series though. historical fiction.

3.Come Tumbling Down (Wayward Children #5) by Seanan Mcguire. 3/5 stars. This was not my favorite, and while I'm glad I got to see how Jack and Jill's story resolved, this book felt largely unnecessary. However it was cool that Seanan Mcguire narrated the audiobook herself. portal fantasy, audiobook, novella

4.Ninth House (Alex Stern #1) by Lehigh Bardugo. 5/5 stars. I reread this in anticipation for the release of book 2, and I enjoyed this even more than the first time. This series is one of my favorite works-in-progress. fantasy

5.Sofi and the Bone Song by Adrienne Tooley. 4/5 stars. This was a sweet, enjoyable, wintery read. I read this mainly because I am always on the hunt for books that feature music/musicians as main characters. This was definitely younger-ya, and featured a sapphic romance. I can forgive some of the faults of this book for how much I enjoyed it. young adult fantasy.

6.Across the Green Grass Fields (Wayward Children #6) by Seanan Mcguire. 3/5 stars. I was expecting this book to be a favorite based off the setting/premise of the story, but I found it lacking in many ways. I related to Regan about girlhood and growing up, however I was left wanting more from the story. This one felt very underdeveloped. fantasy, novella, audiobook.

7.Where the Drowned Girls Go (Wayward Children #7) by Seanan Mcguire. 3.5/5 stars. I enjoyed this one more than the previous two, with the exploration of Cora and the introduction of the anthesis to Eleanor West's school. audiobook, fantasy, novella.

8. Hell Bent (Alex Stern #2) by Lehigh Bardugo. 5/5 stars. This was fantastic and I enjoyed it just as much as the first book. Lehigh is really good at writing these types of stories, and I hope I don't have to wait another 4 years for book 3! fantasy.

9.Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries by Heather Fawcett. 5/5 stars. This is a new favorite, and a wonderfully witty book about academics, faeries and folklore. This reminded me of HMC and Spinning Silver, and was just perfect. Cozy historical fantasy

10.The Cruel Prince (The Folk of the Air #1) by Holly Black. 3.5/5 stars. I reread this on audio in anticipation for The Stolen Heir. I wanted to reread the OG trilogy first, and the audiobook narrator was awesome, and this was a fun reread. I don't think I enjoyed this book quite as much as when I first read it, but I was also Jude's age and these books were much more my *thing* back then. Listening on audio was a great way to listen to the story without feeling like I had to be super dedicated to it. audiobook, Ya fantasy

11. The Wicked King (The Folk of the Air #2) by Holly Black.5/5 stars. This book is definitely my favorite of the 3, and I find it so entertaining and fun to listen to. Jude is awesome in this book, and a lot of the other characters grow and get more fleshed out as well. audiobook, ya fantasy

12.World Without End (Kingsbridge 2) by Ken Follett. 4/5 stars: This is set in the same town, Kingsbridge, but set 200 years after the first book and following a new set of characters. These books are basically a middle ages soap opera, and I just find them so entertaining. historical fiction.

13.Lost in the Moment and Found (Wayward Children 8) by Seanan Mcguire, 4/5 stars. This is probably my favorite of the series other than book 1. I enjoyed the story behind this one a lot, and all the little easter eggs that come up from the rest of the series was so much fun. I can't believe I binge read this series, but now have to wait a year for the next! audiobook, fantasy, novella.

14.Women's Bookscapes in Early Modern Britain: Reading, Ownership and Circulation. This was my nonfiction for the month, and I had seen this book in the library and checked it out to myself. The subject was interesting to me, and I enjoyed reading through this collection of thirteen essays on the topic. Definitely very academic and dense however. non-fiction.

15.Gallant by V.E. Schwab, 2/5 stars. This one was a disapointement, and it felf underdeveloped and lackluster all around. After Addie LaRue also being a flop for me, my trust in VE Schwab is wavering :(

7 audiobooks, 8 physical books. 5 novellas, 10 novels. 12 fantasy, 2 historical fiction, 1 nonfiction. Average rating: 3.9

[paracosmicat]

Fan Fiction Review

Once again, I have thoughts, and need somewhere to dump them and I’m using it as an excuse to treat this like a book review. WELCOME to my very professional book review.

This time is the one and only @buggachat’s fan fiction Rocking the Cat Eye

I feel particularly excited about this one because I have a whole transfem Adrien that I write and her name is Adrienne and she is very cute and very cat girl so lets seeee (I know this Adrien is genderfluid, but they can have overlap) 🎉

YOU HAVE NO IDEA HOW EXCITED I AM TO SEE THAT ALIX HAS RETURNED FROM THE VOID (the time?? Void??) everyone shut the hell up ALIX IS HERE!!!!

I WAS RIGHT TO BE EXCITED ABOUT HER THIS IS SO SWEET alsooo is she like,,, picking up on vibes?? IS ADRIEN GIVING VIBES???

SHE IS DEFINITELY PICKING UP ON VIBES

I’m just pausing my yelling because I just realized Alix is totally a time traveler and might just know

OH I SEE SO YEAH I WAS PROBABLY SUPPOSED TO INFER THAT FROM THE START LOL AND I FELT SO SMART FOR WHAT

ALIX IS BEING SO OBVIOUS LMAO HOW IS NO ONE PICKING UP ON THIS (like Plagg said, people are blind) same energy as very single “MO-MA’AM” in the show

But also we love to see this room full of lesbians some of which with boyfriends but whatever thrive

ADRIEN YOURE ALWAYS PRETTY IM YOUR NUMBER ONE FAN I LOVE YOU

Me and Buggachat hand hold emoji making our trans/genderfluid Adrien's wear green nail polish at the start of their exploration

OKAY THERE IS NO ARGUING WITH THAT PUT THE MAKE UP WIPES DOWN THIS INSTANT

SEE LOOK WHAT YOU DID MARI

This is a TRAVESTY

I guess you’ll have to make her a dress to make up for it

I am sensing a nonsense

I know this ISN'T a Doctor Who reference but I love the idea of referring to real things that happen in real life in the future as spoilers and it is my favorite thing about River Song

OH MY GOD OH MY GOD OH MY GOD ADRIENNE YES THAT WOULD BE YOUR MARINO NAME

MY Adrienne says hello and that she hopes you figure it out and to invest in a cheese den for Plagg it's worth it

I STILL CAN'T BELIEVE THAT SCENE WAS REAL SOMETIMES alsoooo princess as a nickname for Adrien is ABSOLUTELY incredible

MEOW IDJJFJFHHH I CAN'T BREATHE HE IS THE CUTEST IN THE WORLD

WOW DIE DIE DIE

This is so terrifying I'm???

THE NONSENSE IS COMING

I WAS EXPECTING IT TO MAKE ME LAUGH NOT CRY OH GOD THIS IS SO HARD TO READ I WANT TO GIVE HIM A HUG

Oh my god it's THAT level of repression ADRIEN TAKE THE ROCK OUT OF YOUR SHOE

I don't have anything clever to add except that this line made me cry laughing

and then Nino was genderfluid

GENDERFLUID MARC IS SUCH A GOOD HEADCANNON I FEEL LIKE I SHOULD HAVE CONSIDERED IT BEFORE????

YES YEES YES PRINCESS AS A NICKNAME IS STICKING

Conclusion: Read this right now read it a million times I am going to reread it again

Also feel free to suggest another one for me to read (even your own) I am always looking

[meander1995]

A moment of reflection

It has been a long time since I paid any mind to this account. I am here to make a gigantic life announcement.

On July 11th, 2023, my life changed forever when I asked my sister if I could put on her black dress (in the photos below). In that exact moment, I felt a cold rush of euphoric bliss as the dress fit me--something unlike anything I felt before. On a whim, I looked at myself in the bathroom mirror with my phone and took the first photo below--I saw her. I knew from the cold chills right then and there that my egg had cracked and that I am a trans woman.

From there, my ADHD hyperfixations had spent most of the time since in an intense focus on getting to the bottom of things. And once it was certain (self-doubt be damned), focused on getting my ducks in a row to transition socially and physically. I came out to my family less than a week after I realized myself--I simply went to sleep in a dress and didn't give a fuck who saw me. I figured that if I was half-asleep, I would have time to make myself spill the beans before processing enough to put myself in a panic. Not that I had cause to panic much since I am grateful that my family is either supportive (my mom; one of my younger brothers) or part of the LGBT+ community (my other younger brother and my two younger sisters) themselves. As such, all of them supported me the instant I came out and picked my name of "Adrienne." Hell, my sisters even got me dresses and taught me how to do makeup for my 28th birthday on July the 19th--and later took me thrift-shopping for even more dresses (my favorite photos of which are included)

Even though I never felt any signs of being trans before 7/11/2023, in hindsight, there may have been quite a few signs in my memories. Such as when I was in kindergarden, I recall saying to someone that "if I was a girl, I'd look forward to being pregnant," something which I said ignorant of how hard pregnancy is on a human body--but perhaps is something that should've been a sign. Or all the times I felt as though I related to women more than men in a social sense--loathing toxic masculinity was normal for me, but even the non-toxic parts of it felt like I was just coasting. Or the times in Uni where my social anxiety (likely a product of my autism) plus my brain fog (which I now know was likely the product of then-undetected gender dysphoria) led me to believe that I was so bad at befriending women that I was a serial harasser--something I blamed myself in a now-misdirected sense of self-loathing that I thought only plunging into my academics (at the expense of a social life) would cure. Or my general sense of depression over much of my post-Uni life that I had no idea of the cause--until my egg cracked and I saw the problem right in the eyes.

Not going to lie, seeing posts on Reddit, Discord, and Mastodon from other transfemmes (especially those with Autism and ADHD--like myself) with similar life experiences to me and befriending them ended up assuring me that I was never broken. Just misdirected the entire time. And little things like dresses, makeup, shaving my legs, stuffing a sports-bra to give myself the convincing illusion of breasts, and feeling as though I am swimming in my pool for the first time in my own body since pre-puberty. Every day since my egg cracked, my resolve that I am a trans woman has only grown more-and-more.

In the afternoon on my 28th birthday (7/19/2023), I took my phone with me to walk to the woods outside the front yard of the lake house I was spending the week with my family on vacation. I was determined to make the call to my local Planned Parenthood to schedule an HRT consultation under informed consent. While I was successful, I was taken a bit aback by the fact that the waitlist for it is so backed up that the soonest I could be scheduled was October 2nd. After I successfully scheduled myself, my immediate thought was "I don't want to have to wait that long." And so later that week (upon returning to my hometown), I was directed by someone on Mastodon to a DIY HRT directory of international pharmacies that I can order HRT from. I chose to order 2mg Estradiol and 100mg Spiro from Thailand and--last I checked--the shipment is on the plane now and will arrive anywhere between 8/15/2023 and 9/5/2023. It is a 3 month supply of HRT--long enough to last until the consultation gives me officially regulated hormones yet short enough that I won't suffer health problems from being unable to check my bloodwork.

Even though I am resolute that transitioning is the only correct choice for me, I will not lie that I have some anxieties about this still. Not with the transition itself, but some things that accompany this. Since I couldn't immediately afford to bank sperm, a major source of anxiety is and was having to make the choice between fulfilling myself or having bio kids. As is, my options for children are hoping I get supremely lucky with some still-active swimmers, hope I can go off hormones and bank sperm at a time where I have a stable income (I'm also using a job coach system to place me into a job now--and the system knows of and is supportive of my transition), adopt children, or end up step-parenting a child of a future date. I don't see adopting or step-parenting a child as meaning that that child is less 'mine' than a biological kid, but I do think having a bio kid would be nice when the time is right to raise them (probably a decade down the road). I hope that future generations of trans people do not have to make this choice. And that isn't even considering that the idea of bottom surgery has crossed my mind a few times--I don't dislike my natal genitals, but think it'd be cooler and more gender-affirming with a vagina (that's just me personally---you are valid if you don't agree with me); it's a thought I'll put a pin in for now and see how I feel down the road.

The other annoyance is my mom. Yes, she is supportive of my choice to go on hormones (I haven't told her the DIY HRT route as she is a stickler for offical pharmacutical medications and I don't want to worry her unless the signs of feminization become too noticeable to hide). However, she is just as surprised about this as I am. She thinks I am going too fast--aka, she hasn't been aware that transition can come from euphoria instead of dysphoric suffering. I'm glad I didn't have to suffer in order to realize my identity and hope it becomes more accepted that that is a valid path to realizing yourself. But mom is slow to adapting her terms. She thinks "Andi" (just one letter off from my deadname) is a sufficient nickname for "Adrienne" instead of "Adri" or even "Addie." And she's also referred to me as "he" or "son" when I am neither. I've gently starting nudging her as of today, but something tells me it will take a little bit to get her to adjust.

Overall, I am excited to begin my body transitioning into a female form. I've made peace that I probably was a woman the whole time. My brain fog may have been caused by years under the wrong hormones (testosterone instead of estrogen). I want my body to run on the correct fuel. Give me no brain fog, give me soft skin, give me reduced body hair, give me greater emotional range, give me girlsmell, give me boobs. And at this point, I love being trans. Because in a way, all the questioning that got me here made me more sure of who I am---almost as though the end-result is an hard-earned victory that I am eager to claim the spoils to.

As for fighting the political battle against transphobia, I'm all for it as a liberal and as a human being who is appalled with what is going on. However, I am focusing all my energy on transitioning at the moment. When I have energy to spare, I will fight the good fight. But I have to live life a little bit as me first.

EDIT: One thing I forgot to mention in the large body is that paying for the DIY HRT put me back on my insurance payments and that I will need mutual aid in order to pay my insurance so that I can afford the officially prescribed HRT after the Planned Parenthood consultation. Below are links to my PayPal and Venmo accounts. If anyone would like to donate, it would be VERY much appreciated. But only donate if you can do so without putting yourselves in financial jeopardy.

Venmo: https://www.venmo.com/u/adrienne-harper-115

PayPal: https://paypal.me/AdrienneHarper7

[haveyoureadthistransbook]

Out of the Twilight by Adrienne Nash

goodreads

Chris is sixteen. For at least nine years of his short life, he has suffered from a mouldering discontent without actually identifying why he is so unhappy. The youngest by far of three children, he would be the last to leave home. His father’s death and his exam results decide him to find employment rather than further education. Working with the fun girls of the Returns Section, triggers his salvation from a life of despair.

Mod opinion: I haven't heard of this novel before, but it doesn't sound like something I'd want to read either.

[fiishingboo]

a lot happened while i played today, so before i go to bed, here's a proper update!

REEDY LEGACY - GENERATION 2 ½ […] > Layne Reedy <–-> Yutaka Miura > Jefferson Goth <–-> Christine Reedy + Thorne Reedy > Adrienne Reedy

So today, both Christine and Adrienne aged up as well! But unfortunately with that, so did Stella, poor girl is getting old :( Christine now has their own house on the property so she has more space for Adrienne, and, soon Jefferson! Layne, in the truest celebration of trans visibility day, as all we trans monsterfuckers wish for, finally got over his fear of his husband's werewolf form! And last but certainly not least, Christine graduated high school, and is hopefully going to begin applying to colleges!

[melanielocke]

Book recommendations: witches

Everyone loves witches, right? They're certainly one of my favorites and somehow keep showing up in most of the books I write. So I picked out a couple of witch books that I loved and will tell you a little more about them.

I'm starting with These Witches Don't Burn and This Coven Won't Break by Isabel Sterling

This is a complete duology set in modern day Salem, following Hannah, an elemental witch, with as you guessed, power over the elements. She has to keep her magic a secret from everyone non magical, including her best friend Gemma. When Hannah starts discovering signs of dark magic in her town, she suspects a blood witch, but her coven doesn't believe her, so she's forced to team up with her ex girlfriend Veronica, another elemental, to figure out who's responsible.

This book is really the kind that balances contemporary teen life and romance with magic and action, and you do have to like that, but generally the book is fast paced and easy to get through. There's a romance built up inbetween the action between Hannah and a new girl in town called Morgan, and a lot of tension comes from the old fashioned YA magic girl who has to keep her powers secret from best friends and potential girlfriends.

Other books from this author: The Coldest Touch, which is a sapphic vampire book

Next I'll talk about Labyrinth Lost by Zoraida Cordova, which is first in a complete series but the books are more companions than direct sequels. I realize now that I never actually bought or read the third book, so maybe I'll put that on my wishlist.

The series is about a latine family of brujas, which each book focusing on a different sister and the first one follows Alex. Alex is an Encantrix, the most powerful bruja in her generation, but she struggles to control her magic and would much rather be rid of it. On her Deathday celebration she tries a spell to get rid of it, but instead she accidently makes her family disappear. To get them back, she has to travel to Los Lagos, a mysterious alternate world she has to traverse to find them. She has the help of Nova, a brujo she doesn't trust, and her best friend Rishi.

There's somewhat of (bisexual) love triangle, but Alex makes a pretty clear choice pretty soon so it's not dragged out or in the way of the story.

The second book is about the oldest sister Lula, whose boyfriend dies and she tries to use her healing power to bring him back, only to accidently start a zombie apocalypse. It's been a while since I read these books so I don't remember it well but I loved the first one in particular.

Cemetery Boys is the first novel by Aiden Thomas (I have talked about his newest book the Sunbearer Trials before, which is also amazing)

Cemetery Boys is a contemporary fantasy set in California, where a local latine community has magic powers. Their magic is gendered, and while it does mention the potential of non binary witches, this is not further explore. Brujas have the power to heal while brujos have power over the dead. Yadriel is a trans boy, and while his family seems to accept that he's trans, they don't accept him as a brujo and won't let him prove himself. So he decides to do the ritual himself to prove he is a brujo, and he ends up accidently summoning Julian Diaz, a boy from his school who was recently murdered, and Julian wants nothing more than to find out what happened to him. Yadriel decides to help him, but the longer Julian spends around him, the more Yadriel doesn't want him to leave.

This book has a lot of mystery and intrigue, with Yadriel and Julian following clues to figure out what happened to him, but there's also a lot of relationship building. I also really liked the inclusion of Maritza, Yadriel's best friend and another bruja. Her bruja powers require animal blood to work, but she's vegan and therefore doesn't use her powers, which I think was an interesting choice.

Sweet and Bitter Magic is the first book by Adrienne Tooley

Tamsin is the most powerful witch of her generation, but after committing a terrible magical sin she's exiled from the coven and cursed so she can't feel love. The only way to get the ability back temporarily is by taking love from others. She lives in a village in the human lands where she sells her magic abilities in exchange for people's love.

Wren is a source, a much rarer being than a witch. She's made of magic but can't use it herself. Instead, she can see magic and allow a witch to take power from her. Wren has hidden this ability all her life, because she would be taken away to train with the Coven and she has to take care of her sick father.

When a plague ravages the land, caused by a witch using dark magic somewhere, Wren's father becomes one of its victims, and Wren makes a deal with Tamsin to save her father in exchange for her love for her father. Together, they'll set off on a journey to find out what caused the plague and put an end to it.

This is a very character driven book, with a lot of emphasis on Tamsin's past and what caused her to be exiled and cursed. It's also good to remember that in the story Tamsin is still a teenager, meaning she was twelve or so when she was exiled and cursed. Meanwhile, Wren has always put her father before anyone else, including herself, and has to learn to stop letting her life revolve around him. This is a sapphic book, with the main relationship between Tamsin and Wren, and I guess you could classify it as enemies to lovers? Or at the very least, dislike each other to lovers.

The last book on this list is Sofi and the Bone Song, Adrienne Tooley's second book

Like Sweet and Bitter Magic, this is a stand alone, and while there are also witches in here, this book is in the first place about music, and takes on and challenges the idea that suffering creates the best art.

In the land of Aell, winter is eternal and magic is easily available through paper spells made by witches that can be bought. Music is the last artform that has been untouched by this magic, and to ensure it stays this way there are only five Musiks, each playing a different instrument, who are allowed to compose and perform music. Other people can learn to play from these Musiks, but only as amateurs. Sofi is the daughter of one of the Musiks, and she wants nothing more than to become his successor. She's been practicing music all her life and has quite a brutal routine for herself to ensure she is the best, a routine that her father taught her.

On the day of the auditions for her father's successor, Sofi meets unexpected competition. Lara has never played the lute before, all her musical experience is with singing, but somehow she plays so well that the judges choose her over Sofi.

When her father dies on the same day, Lara immediately inherits the Musik title and has to go on a tour through the kingdom to play her own music, something she has no experience with whatsoever. Sofi doesn't believe Lara's talent is genuine, after all, who plays the lute perfectly when they've never played before? She offers to help Lara with the intent of finding proof Lara used illegal magic to enhance her performance, so she can win the Musik title back.

But the more time Sofi spends around Lara, the more she starts to question what she knew about her family, her practice routine, and if her father was truly as great as she thought he was.

Sofi can be described as an unlikeable main character, especially at first. She only really cares about becoming Musik at first, and offers to help Lara with the idea of exposing her, but despite that I found her easy to root for and I loved seeing her grow and challenging the ideas she was brought up with. I think this is a very underrated book and I hope more people buy it

Next up by Adrienne Tooley is the Third Daughter, a first book in a duology

@alastaircarstairsdefenselawyer @life-through-the-eyes-of @astriefer @justanormaldemon @ipromiseiwillwrite @a-dream-dirty-and-bruised @amchara @all-for-the-fanfiction @imsoftforthomastair @ddepressedbookworm @queenlilith43 @wagner-fell @cant-think-of-anything @laylax13s @tessherongraystairs @boredfangirl16 @artist-in-soul @bottomdelioncourt @ikissedsmithparker

[holaafrica]

New Post has been published on https://holaafrica.org/compulsive-heterosexuality-maybe-you-are-born-with-it-maybe-you-are-a-little-queer/

Compulsive heterosexuality: Maybe you are born with it. Maybe you are a little queer

Here is a question for you: re you straight or is it just compulsory heterosexuality?

In a lot of ways a lot of us don’t think about this. From when we are tiny humans we are paired across the ‘two’ genders.

Awwwwww, such a cute boy you will break little girls hearts.

You will make a pretty wife one day?

Is that your boyfriend?

Straightness is often seen as the default and not only that a very particular type of straightness. One that involves monogamy and babies and marriage and a whole societal set up.

But in this internet age, sexuality is something we are thinking about more and more. Who are we attracted to? Who turns me on? Who makes me think of forever? Why is this Tik Tok of a queer woman licking her lips making me feel some type of way?

These are some real questions.

Despite these deep ponderings we are socialised to think about our sexuality in different ways and one of those tricky sticky ways is to be straight enter – compulsive heterosexuality.

‘Compulsory heterosexuality’ aka ‘Comphet’ aka ‘the idea that heterosexuality is the expected norm’. The phrase “compulsory heterosexuality” originally referred to the assumption by a male-dominated society that the only normal sexual relationship is between a man and a woman.

Adrienne Rich popularized the phrase “compulsory heterosexuality” in her 1980 essay “Compulsory Heterosexuality and Lesbian Existence.”  Rich, who died in 2012, was a prominent feminist poet and writer who came out as a lesbian in 1976. In the essay, she argued from a specifically lesbian feminist point of view that heterosexuality is not intrinsic in human beings.

‘Nor is it the only normal sexuality’, Rich said. She further asserted that women can benefit more from relationships with other women than from relationships with men. ‘Heterosexuality may not be a “preference” at all but something that has had to be imposed, managed, organised, propagandised, and maintained by force.’ – Adrienne Rich

After the Am I A Lesbian MasterDoc remerged in the Tik Tok streets folx started thinking about this again. Created by Angali Luiz is tackled the obstacles that many lesbian faced when coming out that were *outside* of the classics i.e. family, religion etc etc. In a Vice interview  she said that, ‘I realised I loved women when I was a teenager, but I never quite knew if my attraction for men was real or a social construct I took in as a facet of my identity.’

The Lesbian Masterdoc’s primary focus is the social and internal obstacles known as compulsory heterosexuality and heteronormativity and the internalized homophobia that comes with that. It looks at how people struggled with their feelings because they thought being straight is how they were *supposed* to feel not how they actually felt.  Luiz says ‘Compulsory Heterosexuality is the voice in my head that says I must really be het ​even when I’m in love with a woman.​’

And this does not have to be all about love, it can be about who you are attracted to or want to have a sexual engagement with, no matter how deep and intense. Becausee are socialised to believe being straight is the default setting swerving from that even for a second could feel like this big thing, this deep tectonic shift that goes against everything that is holy and natural to human beings. Thus, even something as small as looking at another woman and being like ‘damn, I would love to spend one afternoon pressed against that body’ suddenly feeling like this HUGE diversion from ‘the norm’ and what is natural.

The idea of comphet is harmful, it isn’t hard to see why. By automatically thinking that everyone is cis het and straight then queer, trans and other bodies are erased and marginalised and automatically othered.  You are automatically going against society, nature, the natural order of things and are there for ‘deviant’, and with deviancy comes discrimination and sometimes even violence.

Not only that but damn does it make dating *even* harder cause now we all outchea thinking everyone is trying to be heterosexual. And then how do you find someone to sit on your face on a Friday night?

One Cosmo article quotes the awesome co-hosts of Inner Hoe Uprising, Sam Riddle saying that ‘although compulsory heterosexuality can be overt—like a massage parlour using the term “couples massages” as meaning a massage for a man and a woman … it’s often more subtle and insidious.’

“Compulsory heterosexuality is the societal nudge that pushes folks into opting into heterosexual relationships regardless of whether or not they truly desire to do so,” Riddle says.

And it’s not just the queers, comphet has us all by the balls/labia being heterosexual comes with SO MANY rules. CompHet prescribes a whole bunch of things, even to the straights.  The idea of compulsory heterosexuality is not simply for queer folx discovering their sexuality but for all folx to sit and truly unpack their identity. Download some programs and apps and not simply just use the default settings. What does your straightness look like?

An article by Maggie Zhou in Refinery29 says that ‘a part of figuring out who you are and what your sexuality is is taking steps to unlearn certain truths from your life.’

Sexuality is so broad and more and more people are beginning to see that although they may not be the lesbian waving a flag at Pride month they might not be completely straight either. With sexuality falling on a spectrum there are so many ways to create and come into, from being strictly dickly to sometimes being romantically attracted to people of the same sex or gender, to only wanting to sleep with a beautiful non-binary pansexual on Thursday nights.

We need to genuinely unpack our romantic and sexual attractions on the spectrum they lay on, sometimes they could match, sometimes they might not.  It really is for the best to unpack the ideas we have around our sex and sexuality, not simply accept what we have around us, and this goes for queer and non-queer folx. How are you sitting in your sex, your love, your attraction and your engagements.

Don’t just accept the default settings, download the apps, filters, widgets and wallpapers that you want to make life lovely.  

Articles:

So are You Straight or Nah?: Understanding Heteronormativity – HOLAAfrica

Are You Straight Or Is It Just ‘Compulsory Heterosexuality’? – Refinery29

Am I A Lesbian? The Lesbian Masterdoc Is a Popular Source of Answers To This Elusive Question – Autostraddle

Compulsory Heterosexuality: What to Know About the Term “Comphet” You’ve Seen on TikTok – Cosmopolitan

What Is Compulsory Heterosexuality? – ThoughtCo

Check out the Basically…Life Podcast (on all platforms) and our YouTube series We Are F**kin Here for other vibes that show how queers are living, lovin’ and f*ckin.

For more info about all things gender and sexuality download our Touch Manual which has a bunch of info about dating, sexuality, gender, sex and much more!

Also visit our Instagram page and Twitter account for even more great content!

Comment and share your thoughts! Your name and email won’t be published if you don’t want it to.

To submit to HOLAA! email submissions@holaafrica.org

[princess-of-the-corner]

Fic Snip! “All of Them? Every Last One?”

“Do you think she’ll come?” said the girl, leaning back on the bench at Place de Vosges.

“I don’t know.” Plagg shrugged. “Your princess is the least predictable person I’ve ever heard about.”

“I’ve got so many things to tell her. I feel like I’m going to burst. About me, about her, about – about us…”

“Well, if she doesn’t come, you could try talking to her in a normal way. Maybe the note frightened her,” said Plagg, sitting down on the girl’s shoulder. “Just take her aside at school and talk to her. Then you could even kiss her.” He made a silly little kissing face, but she batted him away.

“Don’t mock me, Plagg.” Her tone was amused, but a little bit tired, same as her golden smile. “This is important to me. I really need to tell her that I love her. And that I’m… me. You know.”

Plagg sighed. “Yeah, I know. Sorry, kid. But I still think you should talk to her at school tomorrow if she doesn’t show up today. She’s definitely into you already… and she knows you’re awesome, so she won’t mind that you’re actually a girl, either.”

Adrienne’s eyes lit up. “I hope you’re right.”

Oh everyone's trans