The Maenad's Bone Garden

Proud to be part of the kith books inaugural fall/winter collection, with Flying the Jolly Scarlet, Gambling with the Gods Very happy to be part of an ensemble chorus of such distinct and unique voices.  The next six months are going to make such a lovely noise. https://www.kithbooks.com/ #kithbooks #theFineLine #SnakeskinStockings #lacuna #UtopiainGreen #Mid-twenties #FlyingtheJollyScarletGamblingwiththeGods #NatRaum #ClemFlowers #TommyBlake #MagiSumpter #SGHuerta #theMaenad #2022 #2023

 This year has been the deadliest in the West Bank since 2005. “We're hearing helicopters and gunfire," a colleague of mine shared recently. "It's like there is a war going on.” Since the start of the year, 130 Palestinians, including 28 children, lost their lives due to the ongoing violence in the West Bank. During October, 29 Palestinians were killed in what’s been the deadliest month thus far. The youngest victim was just 12 years old. Over 400 have been injured. Anera is an aid organization without political or religious affiliations, helps Palestinian refugees and vulnerable communities in Palestine (Gaza/West Bank), Lebanon and Jordan. In 2021, Anera distributed 117,175 hot meals for struggling families, repaired 1,198 damaged homes and businesses, and delivered $87 million worth of medicines and healthcare supplies in the region. Our on-the-ground staff are equipped with the tools, knowledge, and resources they need to ensure relief and humanitarian aid are d...

A break in form today, but to a greater purpose.  As a reminder, the Maenad stands with all oppressed people (especially oppressed women) everywhere, world wide.       So should you.      In the past few days, the fight on the streets has gone beyond Mahsa Amini’s death. It is now about vengeance; I am here for every minute of my life I have been humiliated for being a woman. Two months ago, as I stood with other women in protest against the hijab decree, a policeman called me a slut. Although I was fully dressed, he said I was naked. I have had this and worse many, many times. Back then we were just a few dozen women asking for the right to choose how we dressed. I never expected that just a few weeks later things would take such a deadly turn. Now, as we protest we are risking death. When I heard about Mahsa’s killing, I couldn’t let them get away with it. All our lives we have been policed and silenced, and I want to be free. So, before they cu...

Here is a _tiny_ snippet of things to come from  Flying the Jolly Scarlet, Gambling with the Gods  coming in February 2023 in partnership with kith books   This is from Punk Pornography, which appeared previously over at Beyond the Underground back over the summer.  

Metaphysical Dog by Frank Bidart My rating: 5 of 5 stars What did I think? I think the library is fine and good but I need to own this book. Metaphysical Dog was my first introduction to Frank Bidart's work and a heady introduction it is. Frank Bidart I love the style, the format, the incredible atmosphere - it has moved the bar for this kind of work, much much higher. It's so good that despite a pile of books to be read, I've read it three times instead. Like, Hunger for the Absolute, Against Rage, For the AIDS dead, On this earth where no secure foothold is, Three Tattoos, As You crave soul....it's impossible to pick a single specific selection from this. It is, or it can be, a very quick read but I urge you to take your time and savour it. Metaphysical Dog is a collection that demands repeat dives and deep study. (There's a notes section at the end which provides some context but in the main, you are entirely on your own. I love that.) In presentation, Met...

I am supremely pleased to announce that in 2023, the Maenad (that’s me) and kith books will be bringing to you my next long form work. Flying the Jolly Scarlet, Gambling with the Gods: Depositions on Capitalism, Piracy, Death, Money, Sex, and Work (I love long titles and I don’t care.) I am so completely happy to be working with kith books on this; grokking and utterly enthusiastic about my vision and what I want to say. We are already hard at work making this the best possible delivery of that idea. Almost certainly an 18+ work but I won’t tell if you read your parent’s copy. It will leave you bloody, horny, and ready for revolution. A wonderful follow up and excellent companion piece to the Ishtar cycle (available from Lupercalia Press) if I do say so myself. As an act of art, craft, and intention, I can’t wait to get this out into the world. Please follow @KithBooks on twitter and @kithbooks on IG to get regular updates and behind the scenes stuff as we make this h...

Book review    (WARNING that will subject you to good reads)  Whatever Gets You Through: Twelve Women on Life After Sexual Assault "When we are not fixed, not over it, still triggered, still feeling, still healing in our forties, fifties, sixties, and beyond we are not failing. We are remembering. We are learning from our survivorhood. We are moving from a model that gasps at our scars to one that wants to learn as much from them as possible. We are not an individual defect. We are a collective movement, a series of overlapping Survivor communities." -Not over it, not fixed, and living a life worth living: a disability Justice vision of survivorhood By Leah Lakshmi Piepzna-Samarasinha From “ Whatever Gets You Through Twelve survivors on life after sexual assaul t” This…was not what I expected. It was so much more than that. It's going to be difficult to be objective and not get rather personal with this review, but that's to be expected given the subject matter. I was...

(Maenad's note:  This is more of a traditional blog post and, tbh, doesn't have shit to do with my writing.  So if that is your only interest you can safely ignore this.  Thanks!  Potential employers, this gets hella personal so don't read if you can't keep things distinct, umkay?  I did however mean what I said abotut being an open book.   Proceed at caution okay?)   Weird facts about my recovery from surgery …and my recovery from the   the people that I have  wasted the best years of my life [1] on.   ( Fuck them with a rusty spork covered in shit and dew.)   1.         I no longer drink coffee every day. I do drink coffee, and while I technically can pro’lly start drinking it ‘normally’ I am now in the habit of having it every few days and cold over ice.    I do not see a reason to change this for the foreseeable  2.        I have (...