Jay Besemer
@divinetailor.bsky.social
poet-artist-fool. aging, tr🔼ns, qu3️⃣3️⃣r, sick/disabled, autistic. he/they. i do not often follow back, so don’t follow me with that expectation.🚨DO NOT ADD TO STARTER PACKS WITHOUT CONSENT!🚨
http://www.jaybesemer.net
http://www.jaybesemer.net
Pinned
meanwhile, poetry
November 26, 2025 at 12:52 AM
meanwhile, poetry
here is the announcements thread i mentioned last week. these are primarily related to what i’m up to at chicago tardis this year. if you aren’t going to be there you may prefer to just scroll on by.
i’ll be volunteering this year, so chances are i’ll run into pretty much everybody.
i’ll be volunteering this year, so chances are i’ll run into pretty much everybody.
November 26, 2025 at 12:36 AM
here is the announcements thread i mentioned last week. these are primarily related to what i’m up to at chicago tardis this year. if you aren’t going to be there you may prefer to just scroll on by.
i’ll be volunteering this year, so chances are i’ll run into pretty much everybody.
i’ll be volunteering this year, so chances are i’ll run into pretty much everybody.
so my joke/hope of colliding two of my worlds has taken four years to come to fruition, but YES so thrilled to be co-modding this workshop with the wonderful @teganandsarahj.bsky.social later this week! come play!
what can you learn about creative writing from Doctor Who? find out this Saturday at @chicagotardis.bsky.social!
moderated by @divinetailor.bsky.social & myself.
moderated by @divinetailor.bsky.social & myself.
November 25, 2025 at 11:52 PM
so my joke/hope of colliding two of my worlds has taken four years to come to fruition, but YES so thrilled to be co-modding this workshop with the wonderful @teganandsarahj.bsky.social later this week! come play!
this tariff shit—i don’t recall the last time a package reached me from the uk. somewhere in the void, two separately-mailed author copies of DEAR FATHER, SAFE AT PRESENT hover between hope & despair, through no fault of either me or my publisher.
November 25, 2025 at 12:27 PM
this tariff shit—i don’t recall the last time a package reached me from the uk. somewhere in the void, two separately-mailed author copies of DEAR FATHER, SAFE AT PRESENT hover between hope & despair, through no fault of either me or my publisher.
up at 04:00 this morning because excited.🌟
November 25, 2025 at 10:47 AM
up at 04:00 this morning because excited.🌟
Reposted by Jay Besemer
A friend of a friend of mine got nabbed by ICE. Here's his wife's GoFundMe for legal fees. Please help if you can.
gofund.me/aa7546b5f
gofund.me/aa7546b5f
Donate to Support Carlos's Fight Against Deportation, organized by guadalupe de velasco
HOLA MI NOMBRE ES GUADALUPE DE VELASCO ESPOSA DE CARLOS MEJOR CONOCIDO… guadalupe de velasco needs your support for Support Carlos's Fight Against Deportation
gofund.me
November 24, 2025 at 11:09 PM
A friend of a friend of mine got nabbed by ICE. Here's his wife's GoFundMe for legal fees. Please help if you can.
gofund.me/aa7546b5f
gofund.me/aa7546b5f
i will be wearing so many hats at @chicagotardis.bsky.social this year!
seriously. i’m bringing a topper, a bowler, a trilby & two soft caps.🤷♂️
seriously. i’m bringing a topper, a bowler, a trilby & two soft caps.🤷♂️
November 24, 2025 at 10:37 PM
i will be wearing so many hats at @chicagotardis.bsky.social this year!
seriously. i’m bringing a topper, a bowler, a trilby & two soft caps.🤷♂️
seriously. i’m bringing a topper, a bowler, a trilby & two soft caps.🤷♂️
one massive thing you can do to help this normative holiday season is to simply refrain from shaming people who do not drink alcohol. you can also not demand an explanation for why…& for mega-bonus you can even be the shield if someone is being bullied about what they do or don’t consume.
November 24, 2025 at 7:45 PM
one massive thing you can do to help this normative holiday season is to simply refrain from shaming people who do not drink alcohol. you can also not demand an explanation for why…& for mega-bonus you can even be the shield if someone is being bullied about what they do or don’t consume.
oh, by the way—please print & use as needed! ‘tis the season & all that.
just fill in the blank. note the two checkbox options: “at holidays” & “ever”!!
just fill in the blank. note the two checkbox options: “at holidays” & “ever”!!
![a hand lettered card-sized pass or certificate reading “THIS PASS EXEMPTS THE BEARER FROM DISCUSSING THEIR ___________WITH
THEIR ORIGIN FAMILY [] AT HOLIDAYS [] EVER”](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:efjzy3zfwfz5mkfchj7m2ryh/bafkreieq3pd6eln6mdo7dbz7ftzezz6lbnf2sqiu5xmtqyzjyba2t4lnrq@jpeg)
November 24, 2025 at 7:10 PM
oh, by the way—please print & use as needed! ‘tis the season & all that.
just fill in the blank. note the two checkbox options: “at holidays” & “ever”!!
just fill in the blank. note the two checkbox options: “at holidays” & “ever”!!
oh no it’s year-end-lists-mas already??
November 24, 2025 at 7:03 PM
oh no it’s year-end-lists-mas already??
hey @goldsf.bsky.social & @unamccormack.bsky.social see how MAYBE THE BIRDS is centered here in this photo!
November 24, 2025 at 6:38 PM
hey @goldsf.bsky.social & @unamccormack.bsky.social see how MAYBE THE BIRDS is centered here in this photo!
r. demonstrates some personal ways of engaging autumnal foliage. note: caution recommended…
November 24, 2025 at 3:53 PM
r. demonstrates some personal ways of engaging autumnal foliage. note: caution recommended…
emphatically corroborated.
which brings me to a bit of unasked for advice, which is that some people want "nice things" on their walls & it is the most demoralising awen-killing thing to try to produce work for them. feel into your weirdness & your people will find you
November 24, 2025 at 2:21 PM
emphatically corroborated.
found a treasure today. these “triangle classics” editions were super important to me in the 80s & 90s. my intro to quentin crisp was through the omnibus put out in this series, & my intro to chip delany was their edition of THE MOTION OF LIGHT IN WATER.
November 23, 2025 at 9:21 PM
found a treasure today. these “triangle classics” editions were super important to me in the 80s & 90s. my intro to quentin crisp was through the omnibus put out in this series, & my intro to chip delany was their edition of THE MOTION OF LIGHT IN WATER.
today’s agenda:
-walk in the park
-type up workshop notes/add to shared folder
-messing about w/new collage & erasure source stuff
-assorted followup
-continued throwing stuff into suitcase
-walk in the park
-type up workshop notes/add to shared folder
-messing about w/new collage & erasure source stuff
-assorted followup
-continued throwing stuff into suitcase
November 23, 2025 at 3:07 PM
today’s agenda:
-walk in the park
-type up workshop notes/add to shared folder
-messing about w/new collage & erasure source stuff
-assorted followup
-continued throwing stuff into suitcase
-walk in the park
-type up workshop notes/add to shared folder
-messing about w/new collage & erasure source stuff
-assorted followup
-continued throwing stuff into suitcase
got my author copies of a chapbook i’ve long wanted to see into the world, but which hadn’t gotten there till earlier this fall. very limited edition (35 copies) letterpress cover, by z-axial press, available for free (until they run out) at the free stuff reading series (“& nowhere online”).
November 23, 2025 at 1:57 PM
got my author copies of a chapbook i’ve long wanted to see into the world, but which hadn’t gotten there till earlier this fall. very limited edition (35 copies) letterpress cover, by z-axial press, available for free (until they run out) at the free stuff reading series (“& nowhere online”).
out & about, i sport various looks to convey “i’m not a fascist” in various contexts. i call them, for short:
fun-size urban druid
paraclown
tweedpunk
midcentury modern trickster
(other looks are in the works as seasons shift)
fun-size urban druid
paraclown
tweedpunk
midcentury modern trickster
(other looks are in the works as seasons shift)
November 22, 2025 at 8:50 PM
out & about, i sport various looks to convey “i’m not a fascist” in various contexts. i call them, for short:
fun-size urban druid
paraclown
tweedpunk
midcentury modern trickster
(other looks are in the works as seasons shift)
fun-size urban druid
paraclown
tweedpunk
midcentury modern trickster
(other looks are in the works as seasons shift)
thinking & playing
November 22, 2025 at 3:07 AM
thinking & playing
if someone insults me directly or by proxy (by insulting something i clearly value), i am much more curious about why they bothered to go to the trouble to do so than i am invested in defending myself/the thing. these days i don’t get very angry about it, just sort of tilt my head to the side
November 22, 2025 at 2:48 AM
if someone insults me directly or by proxy (by insulting something i clearly value), i am much more curious about why they bothered to go to the trouble to do so than i am invested in defending myself/the thing. these days i don’t get very angry about it, just sort of tilt my head to the side
the kids are alright🌟
November 21, 2025 at 7:06 PM
the kids are alright🌟
this was such a thought-&-feeling-provoking interview for me! i found myself longing for this approach in the states—resistant to medicalization of our self-determination, yet not shaming those who decide to embrace medical assistance, & resistant to any reductionist ideas of tr@ns care.
This discussion with La Liga de Salud Trans (Trans Health League) hints at a collective effort to make the demedicalization and collectivization of healthcare a field of resistance and agency for trans people in Colombia. Advocating for alternative health protocols, redress for violence, and
November 21, 2025 at 1:37 PM
this was such a thought-&-feeling-provoking interview for me! i found myself longing for this approach in the states—resistant to medicalization of our self-determination, yet not shaming those who decide to embrace medical assistance, & resistant to any reductionist ideas of tr@ns care.
“lettuce introductions for 2026” whispers my email, & i think about surprising word combinations & how poetry just comes out of nowhere, out of everywhere
November 21, 2025 at 1:41 AM
“lettuce introductions for 2026” whispers my email, & i think about surprising word combinations & how poetry just comes out of nowhere, out of everywhere
Reposted by Jay Besemer
tonight at the carnegie center, one of my last in-person readings for the next few months...
open to the public.
6pm to 7pm.
open to the public.
6pm to 7pm.
November 20, 2025 at 6:04 PM
tonight at the carnegie center, one of my last in-person readings for the next few months...
open to the public.
6pm to 7pm.
open to the public.
6pm to 7pm.
meeting a pal today & trying to low-key prep for a short workshop i’m co-teaching next week that was just dropped into our laps on monday…it’s pretty low-stakes but still, whoops! new deadline!
maybe i’ll chat about it with the pal i’m meeting; always good to get a fresh perspective.
maybe i’ll chat about it with the pal i’m meeting; always good to get a fresh perspective.
November 20, 2025 at 3:16 PM
meeting a pal today & trying to low-key prep for a short workshop i’m co-teaching next week that was just dropped into our laps on monday…it’s pretty low-stakes but still, whoops! new deadline!
maybe i’ll chat about it with the pal i’m meeting; always good to get a fresh perspective.
maybe i’ll chat about it with the pal i’m meeting; always good to get a fresh perspective.
Reposted by Jay Besemer
🚨 I have a new chapbook out in the world! 🚨
The Man is a sequence of 24 micro poems, all beginning with ‘The Man’. I also provided the doodles for the cover. I have 50 copies & they’re all pay-what-you-want (+ $4 for shipping) so DM me if you want a copy! 📚❤️
The Man is a sequence of 24 micro poems, all beginning with ‘The Man’. I also provided the doodles for the cover. I have 50 copies & they’re all pay-what-you-want (+ $4 for shipping) so DM me if you want a copy! 📚❤️
November 20, 2025 at 12:38 PM
🚨 I have a new chapbook out in the world! 🚨
The Man is a sequence of 24 micro poems, all beginning with ‘The Man’. I also provided the doodles for the cover. I have 50 copies & they’re all pay-what-you-want (+ $4 for shipping) so DM me if you want a copy! 📚❤️
The Man is a sequence of 24 micro poems, all beginning with ‘The Man’. I also provided the doodles for the cover. I have 50 copies & they’re all pay-what-you-want (+ $4 for shipping) so DM me if you want a copy! 📚❤️