Everything feels kind of paralyzing, doesn’t it? We had an election here in the states and it did not go well! And since then, it’s been difficult to do anything. To read anything, to watch anything, to create anything. I thought about posting a blog and then I was like, what do I even say? Nothing makes it better. I can’t read the news, I can’t watch late night shows, social media is tricky at best.

What do you even say? I don’t have wise words about it. I just do what everyone else does. Hope for the best moving forward, continue to vote in a way that protects the whole and me as an individual, and be supportive to those who need extra support. I’m lucky on so many fronts, the main one being I live in California and I know we’ll maintain protections that others will likely lose. Though I’m grateful to live here, there’s also a guilt that comes along with that luck because so many people don’t have that added layer of safety.

So what do you say? Nothing makes this better. Then I fall back on saying nothing, paralyzed into silence. It’s better to leave space for people of color, trans folks, immigrants terrified of mass deportations, activists who excel at organizing… I can amplify other voices, I can donate to good causes, I can keep writing explicit literature, queer literature, subversive literature. Fuck, what is there to say?

Anyway, if you’re out there making your voice heard, I’m proud of you. And if you’re stunned into silence, I understand you. And if you need to take some time to sort out your own head, I don’t blame you. If you’re a writer, I hope you keep writing. If you’re a reader, I hope you keep reading and supporting your favorite writers. And I truly, truly hope things get better not worse.