fragile masculinity Cis people don't get to decide that 'girlies' is gender neutral On excavating language from its cultural baggage.
existing as a trans person in public Do I want the government to agree that I'm male? Is legal recognition of my gender from a transphobic government worth the paper it's written on?
existing as a trans person in public The only reason I'm coping right now Spoiler alert: it's other trans people
Members only surviving while trans Fighting the brain goblins “Suicide?” my brain asks, unprompted. Sometimes, I can’t stop myself from saying it aloud.
trans bodies Three more months. Minimum. I am not a man trapped in a woman's body; I am a man trapped in a system that is actively denying me bodily autonomy.
cruising queer culture Made-up awards for books I loved in 2024 Even though it's already February 2025.
trans bodies Clothes are hard I’m not interested in looking cis, but I do want to figure out how to look like me.
trans bodies No, I don't want to be 'positive' about my tits If gender is a performance, why is the costume so uncomfortable?
existing as a trans person in public In search of: trans rest Educating cis people at the expense of my own emotional wellbeing can wait.
medical transition How to build a boy I’m piecing myself together, unpicking the person everyone thought I was. I sometimes wonder if my 18-year-old self would recognise me now.
surviving while trans Am I mentally ill *because* I'm queer? Short answer: no. Long answer: kind of, maybe?
trans bodies Making my body more visibly queer Trans people have always existed, even when people have tried to erase us from history.
existing as a trans person in public I think this is grief How are we expected to keep going as though trans kids dying isn’t exactly what politicians and anti-trans campaigners wanted to achieve with these laws?
trans joy If being trans was a choice, I'd still choose it It’s existing in a transphobic society that is painful. Being trans itself is not. Being trans – to me at least – is joy.
fragile masculinity Cry like a boy Cis men’s tears can cost them their admission to masculinity, and trans men face far more scrutiny over our gender than they do.
fragile masculinity Testosterone isn't why men are violent I knew with absolute certainty that I wanted to start testosterone. But a small part of me was afraid that the hormones that could save my life would also turn me into someone my old self would have been scared of.
dear quinn Dear Quinn: why do you describe your sex as 'male'? I call myself male because I am not interested in upholding the false binary of ‘biological sex’ that is used to oppress and discriminate against trans people.
existing as a trans person in public Does this count as a hate crime? How are you supposed to react when someone calls you the t-slur on the tube platform?
trans bodies Sometimes I forget that my chest isn't flat I tore off the shirt. It didn’t matter how soft it felt against my skin or how masc it made me feel, I couldn’t get over the horrific reality of how I would look to other people. I was grossed out by my own body.
trans love I didn't publish anything during Pride month "Caring for myself is not self-indulgence, it is self-preservation and that is an act of political warfare." – Audre Lorde
medical transition One year on testosterone I don't know if cis people understand how serious trans people are being when we say that gender-affirming healthcare saves lives. I might still be alive today if I hadn't been able to start testosterone, but I don't think I'd want to be.
surviving while trans The single letter that would erase my transness If I die waiting for top surgery, forget burial – just drop my body on the steps of 10 Downing Street.
trans love Building self-compassion as I become a trans adult My future self reminds me that I already have all of his strength and grace and courage within me. I just need to breathe and remember how fucking badass I already am.
pronouns I'm not the only person in the room with pronouns "I'm Quinn, my pronouns are he/him." I practice until it's second nature, until I can say it as though the idea that my transness might make people uncomfortable, angry, or even violent has never occurred to me.
trans joy My biggest achievement in 2022 was surviving It's cliché to say 'it gets better' - and twelve months ago I wouldn't have believed that if you said it to me. But if the biggest thing you did in 2022 was just surviving, I see you. Me too.
