About Genderbent

Genderbent is a newsletter about gender written by me – journalist and professional transsexual Quinn Rhodes. I'm a trans guy and bisexual fag who is frequently frustrated by the ways it feels like trans people have to simplify our lives and our gender in order for cis people to see us as deserving of basic human rights.

Being trans in 2023 in the face of a stream of anti-trans legislation and dehumanising media coverage is exhausting, but my transness brings me so much joy. I started Genderbent to serve as a more SFW portfolio of my personal writing than my sex blog, and also to give myself a space to share more messy and nuanced conversations about gender than I'm able to explore in my journalism.

Brilliant newsletter segment artwork by @drawn.in.the.fog.

Every issue of Genderbent includes a long-form essay exploring an aspect of gender or transmasculinity, from bodies and medical transition to existing as a trans person in public to grappling with my own fragile masculinity. Each newsletter also includes cruising the internet – a round-up of links to what I've been writing, reading, and generally getting excited about recently.

I do my best to include appropriate content warnings for in each newsletter, but my writing frequently touches on transphobia, gender dysphoria, suicidal ideation, and the violence faced by trans and non-binary people.

About Quinn Rhodes

I'm an award-nominated freelance journalist whose work focuses on queering sex and dismantling shame. I've been writing about sex for six years, and my journalism aims to change how people think and talk about intimacy.

I've written about sexual health, reproductive justice, queer culture, and blow jobs for publications including VICE, Mashable, and Cosmopolitan. Some of my favourites include this piece on why trans people need to be included in the fight for abortion rights and this piece on the struggles trans masc folks still face accessing PrEP.

You can check out my (very NSFW) sex blog at On Queer Street and find me on Instagram and Mastodon.