On the road once again with Sister Spit, this time it's the US and a few Canada stops. I need to blog more, there are so many tour stories! Right now we are in Prescott, Arizona. I love college shows because college students actually buy tons of merch. That's my food cash for the next day, people. We had this big discussion in the van yesterday about how people just don't believe they should have to pay for art and performance (because so many people tried to wrangle their way into our L.A. show for free), but people will totally pay for a stupid movie or whatever, like corporations deserve your money and not actual queer artists in the community. Touring is so expensive in itself and it's also one of the only ways writers can make a little cash, so thank you college kids who want to decorate their dorms with creamsickle posters and buy all our books. Loves it.
And here's a nice word about my book from an amazon review:
there's always the "conceptual problem" with queer theory; it's grand for the academic world but begs for the reality of experience. talking about sex/gender/sexual desire and the intersections of race & class needs to be done, but that discussion becomes moot when it does not move into the personal. what's more democratic-- and i use that word in terms of access-- is the reality of the queer lived experience.
argo is able to take the queer vernacular of every-day and shape a solid book that is not only a pleasure to read but is also politically important: she addresses the notions of home & family; shifting identity; class & sex work; desire & performing gender. her characters aren't cardboard representations: like cruzer, a queer of color who's got family money (and thus monetary privilege). they're also given autonomy: the ability to name themselves, speak for themselves, and create their own communities.
argo examines -- and creates a literary feast -- out of the way queer lives are Really Lived: often messy & contradictory.
and this tastes good, too, like a creamsickle when yr stoned on a hot summer day.
Oct 3, 2009
Aug 27, 2009
Love this GoodReads Review
A fellow writer Faith Reidenbach wrote it. She gave the book such a caring, intelligent read. She also told me this story: "Today I was having my regular morning walk with my 69-year-old neighbor (a married straight lady who grew up in Kansas), and out of the blue she said, "I'd like you to loan me that Creamsickle book." I hemmed and hawed and said, "You know, it's pretty graphic, Mary Ann." But she said firmly, "I want to read about those bois, is that how you say it? I think I'm one too."
Wow I found that so fucking adorable. Okay now the review:
"It’s unusual to encounter literary lesbian fiction that's also a guilty pleasure, but both terms apply fairly to this book. The Creamsickle itself is full of trash--it's an unheated, lopsided flophouse in the Mission district of San Francisco that has an "ever-revolving door." Over the years, it’s been occupied by revolutionaries, "hippie fags and fairies," grunge lesbians, and now The Crew, three 20-something skateboarding bois who have made the house their "ultimate bachelor pad." Their procession of lovers are not mere lipsticks lesbians but "fierce girls," the "tough bunch of femmes with razor heels and sharp tongues" who can handle the neighborhood. The novel is more about queer family--creating it and maintaining it--than about individual relationships, and the house plays a Mansfield Park-like role in the story. The Creamsickle is available in paperback ($14.95) and as an e-book ($10.95) from www.bellabooks.com.
Poetry-loving Georgie is the most romantic and also the most sensible of the three bois. We meet her when she’s lovesick over a heroin-addicted girl, but she’s smart and strong enough to move on soon. She makes wise-beyond-her-years observations about herself and her friends, often wry or hilarious, like this one that made me LOL heartily in recognition (of myself and a previous partner): "Soda was the ultimate subletter of hearts......the first three months Soda was the best live-in lover a girl could possibly have. She usually didn’t have a job so whatever girl she was currently f*cking became her part-time employment. Girls would try to promote her to full time or permanent status, but she made sure to keep herself at entry level." Georgie’s literal transformation in the novel comes when, unemployed and broke, she adopts an outwardly femme identity and warily takes a job dancing in a strip club.
People in my demographic (50-ish, suburbanite) may need to read this novel with a cyberdictionary of urban slang and a cyberglossary of skateboarding terms at hand. (My favorite new word, which I did manage to figure out on my own, is bromance, for a butch/butch relationship.) The effort was worth it to me in order to get inside a world of young queer women who divide themselves into bois and girls, tops and bottoms—except when they don’t. Georgie sets a good example for readers in acknowledging that she doesn’t understand all the family dynamics, notably the feelings of my favorite character, a friend of hers who is considering transitioning (becoming more fully biologically male). I appreciated her discussions with that friend and from other characters who have conversations along the lines of "I don’t get dating a transboy. I mean, what’s the difference from a man?"
Most of these characters are working poor and are just getting launched in life. For example, the official end of Georgie’s relationships is simply "the divvying up of the sex toys," and in an 8-speaker argument about same-sex marriage, no one comes close to imagining why most older couples want it. But the only thing that made me feel apart from the characters was their constant alcohol and drug abuse, which after a while just seems sad and boring. Georgie is not an addict, though, and she relieves the irritation with self-aware comments like "I find a direct link to the amount of coke everyone is doing to how dramatic they all are being."
Argo avoids all the mistakes that too many lesbian writers make with regard to sex—-saving it for one or two "dramatic" scenes, only alluding to it, describing it almost clinically, or ignoring it altogether. References to sex start on page 1, and Argo often covers a lot of ground in a single sentence that contains the verb f*ck. The book’s only major flaw is disjointedness. Some of it reads like performance pieces or stories strung together, with girls appearing on the scene and leaving again with no strong narrative thread. However, this didn’t keep me from staying keenly interested in what happens to the 3 main characters and to the houe."s
Wow I found that so fucking adorable. Okay now the review:
"It’s unusual to encounter literary lesbian fiction that's also a guilty pleasure, but both terms apply fairly to this book. The Creamsickle itself is full of trash--it's an unheated, lopsided flophouse in the Mission district of San Francisco that has an "ever-revolving door." Over the years, it’s been occupied by revolutionaries, "hippie fags and fairies," grunge lesbians, and now The Crew, three 20-something skateboarding bois who have made the house their "ultimate bachelor pad." Their procession of lovers are not mere lipsticks lesbians but "fierce girls," the "tough bunch of femmes with razor heels and sharp tongues" who can handle the neighborhood. The novel is more about queer family--creating it and maintaining it--than about individual relationships, and the house plays a Mansfield Park-like role in the story. The Creamsickle is available in paperback ($14.95) and as an e-book ($10.95) from www.bellabooks.com.
Poetry-loving Georgie is the most romantic and also the most sensible of the three bois. We meet her when she’s lovesick over a heroin-addicted girl, but she’s smart and strong enough to move on soon. She makes wise-beyond-her-years observations about herself and her friends, often wry or hilarious, like this one that made me LOL heartily in recognition (of myself and a previous partner): "Soda was the ultimate subletter of hearts......the first three months Soda was the best live-in lover a girl could possibly have. She usually didn’t have a job so whatever girl she was currently f*cking became her part-time employment. Girls would try to promote her to full time or permanent status, but she made sure to keep herself at entry level." Georgie’s literal transformation in the novel comes when, unemployed and broke, she adopts an outwardly femme identity and warily takes a job dancing in a strip club.
People in my demographic (50-ish, suburbanite) may need to read this novel with a cyberdictionary of urban slang and a cyberglossary of skateboarding terms at hand. (My favorite new word, which I did manage to figure out on my own, is bromance, for a butch/butch relationship.) The effort was worth it to me in order to get inside a world of young queer women who divide themselves into bois and girls, tops and bottoms—except when they don’t. Georgie sets a good example for readers in acknowledging that she doesn’t understand all the family dynamics, notably the feelings of my favorite character, a friend of hers who is considering transitioning (becoming more fully biologically male). I appreciated her discussions with that friend and from other characters who have conversations along the lines of "I don’t get dating a transboy. I mean, what’s the difference from a man?"
Most of these characters are working poor and are just getting launched in life. For example, the official end of Georgie’s relationships is simply "the divvying up of the sex toys," and in an 8-speaker argument about same-sex marriage, no one comes close to imagining why most older couples want it. But the only thing that made me feel apart from the characters was their constant alcohol and drug abuse, which after a while just seems sad and boring. Georgie is not an addict, though, and she relieves the irritation with self-aware comments like "I find a direct link to the amount of coke everyone is doing to how dramatic they all are being."
Argo avoids all the mistakes that too many lesbian writers make with regard to sex—-saving it for one or two "dramatic" scenes, only alluding to it, describing it almost clinically, or ignoring it altogether. References to sex start on page 1, and Argo often covers a lot of ground in a single sentence that contains the verb f*ck. The book’s only major flaw is disjointedness. Some of it reads like performance pieces or stories strung together, with girls appearing on the scene and leaving again with no strong narrative thread. However, this didn’t keep me from staying keenly interested in what happens to the 3 main characters and to the houe."s
Bloody Art
by Katie
http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5077144
http://kiki.typepad.com/
inspired by my 90's queer activist look for the Radar fashion show thingy
Aug 13, 2009
Jul 31, 2009
Jul 24, 2009
Jul 12, 2009
Jul 2, 2009
Jun 17, 2009
Buy The Creamsickle!
Support your local independent bookstore and buy it there. They can order it for you
just ask! If you want to buy it online try to support independent
publishers like www.bellabooks.com. Our local bookstores are struggling so show your love!
I'm having a release party at Mission Hill Saloon on July 11th. Michelle Tea, Kirk Read, Len Plass and Sara Seinberg will be reading from The Creamsickle, perhaps in hilarious voices. If you miss that come to my
reading at Modern Times Books on July 22nd! That would be an excellent
time to get a signed copy from an awesome local bookstore.
Thanks for supporting! Rhiannon
Meet The Crew. Georgie—a hopeless romantic with a weakness for
punk-rock-girls even if they consistently trample her heart. Cruzer—a
Mexican-American photographer, the tough kid, who chases love all the
way to the East Coast. Soda—a gender queer heartthrob from the Midwest,
who dreams of pirate ships, moustaches and femme foxes.
Welcome to The Creamsickle, the ultimate bachelor pad, a lopsided
Victorian in the Mission District, home to this rascally crew of
charming skater bois who hop from one bed to another in pursuit of sex,
love or just the next new thrill. This is a San Francisco you have
never seen, an eclectic landscape of dyke clubs and dyke havens, along
with the exotic Minxy, a wonderland where baby butch Georgie enters the
femme-centric world of strippers for the most comical gender-bending
education of all.
Discover today's world of young queers, a world where personal
identity is in constant flux, where gender exploration can be
performance—or a life saving transition. Beneath the sex, music, drugs
and drama, you'll find something true and timeless: a search for love,
for queer family, for meaning, for connection, and affirmation.
just ask! If you want to buy it online try to support independent
publishers like www.bellabooks.com. Our local bookstores are struggling so show your love!
I'm having a release party at Mission Hill Saloon on July 11th. Michelle Tea, Kirk Read, Len Plass and Sara Seinberg will be reading from The Creamsickle, perhaps in hilarious voices. If you miss that come to my
reading at Modern Times Books on July 22nd! That would be an excellent
time to get a signed copy from an awesome local bookstore.
Thanks for supporting! Rhiannon
Meet The Crew. Georgie—a hopeless romantic with a weakness for
punk-rock-girls even if they consistently trample her heart. Cruzer—a
Mexican-American photographer, the tough kid, who chases love all the
way to the East Coast. Soda—a gender queer heartthrob from the Midwest,
who dreams of pirate ships, moustaches and femme foxes.
Welcome to The Creamsickle, the ultimate bachelor pad, a lopsided
Victorian in the Mission District, home to this rascally crew of
charming skater bois who hop from one bed to another in pursuit of sex,
love or just the next new thrill. This is a San Francisco you have
never seen, an eclectic landscape of dyke clubs and dyke havens, along
with the exotic Minxy, a wonderland where baby butch Georgie enters the
femme-centric world of strippers for the most comical gender-bending
education of all.
Discover today's world of young queers, a world where personal
identity is in constant flux, where gender exploration can be
performance—or a life saving transition. Beneath the sex, music, drugs
and drama, you'll find something true and timeless: a search for love,
for queer family, for meaning, for connection, and affirmation.
Jun 9, 2009
May 28, 2009
Sneak Peak!
some outtakes from a few of the photo shoots i've done for the popsicle project. we've done 35 shoots so this is just a taste... come to the show june 23rd at the lex to see em all!
May 2, 2009
The Radar Spectacle
Radar is throwing a benefit this May in order to raise funds for the first annual Radar Lab, a free queer writer's retreat in Mexico. Please come and support this amazing opportunity for broke artists! I am one of the lab participants and I am thrilled to be able to take time away to work on my next novel, and to soak up all the inspiration that will come from being amongst other artist in my community.
Saturday, May 30, 7pm
a.Muse Gallery, 614 Alabama St.
$20/ticket
https://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/66883 or at the door!
Featuring Dorothy Allison, ZZ Packer, Eileen Myles, Marga Gomez, Suppositori Spelling + music by Yes Alexander!
Hosted by Ali Liebegott + Michelle Tea
Food (courtesy Dolores Park Cafe)
Drink (courtesy Lagunitas + more!)
Art Auction (artwork by Chris Duncan, Xylor Jane, Peter Pizzi, Sara Thustra, Eric Drooker + more!)
Raffle (Alla Prima, Pauline's Pizza, Last Gasp, Seal Press, Daniel Handler, Dog Eared Books, Books Inc. + more!)
*Benefiting RADAR Lab, a free queer writers retreat!
Radar Lab Fellows:
KIRK READ performance artist, memoirist, teacher, literary organizer. SF
MELIZA BANALES poet, memoirist, fashion designer, teacher. SF
NATALIE ILLUM poet, memoirist, literary organizer. DC
NICOLE J GEORGES illustrator, zinester, memoirist, teacher. PDX
LUCY CORIN novelist, short story author, teacher. BERKELEY
ELAN performance artist, playwright, filmmaker, zinester. SF
SARA SEINBERG novelist, poet, photographer, literary organizer. SF
SAMUEL TOPIARY performance artist, video artist, dancer. BROOKLYN
RHIANNON ARGO novelist, future librarian. SF
MYRIAM GURBA fiction writer, teacher. LONG BEACH
ENRIQUE URETA playwright. SF
PAGE MCBEE novelist, memoirist, teacher, arts organizer. OAKLAND
Saturday, May 30, 7pm
a.Muse Gallery, 614 Alabama St.
$20/ticket
https://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/66883 or at the door!
Featuring Dorothy Allison, ZZ Packer, Eileen Myles, Marga Gomez, Suppositori Spelling + music by Yes Alexander!
Hosted by Ali Liebegott + Michelle Tea
Food (courtesy Dolores Park Cafe)
Drink (courtesy Lagunitas + more!)
Art Auction (artwork by Chris Duncan, Xylor Jane, Peter Pizzi, Sara Thustra, Eric Drooker + more!)
Raffle (Alla Prima, Pauline's Pizza, Last Gasp, Seal Press, Daniel Handler, Dog Eared Books, Books Inc. + more!)
*Benefiting RADAR Lab, a free queer writers retreat!
Radar Lab Fellows:
KIRK READ performance artist, memoirist, teacher, literary organizer. SF
MELIZA BANALES poet, memoirist, fashion designer, teacher. SF
NATALIE ILLUM poet, memoirist, literary organizer. DC
NICOLE J GEORGES illustrator, zinester, memoirist, teacher. PDX
LUCY CORIN novelist, short story author, teacher. BERKELEY
ELAN performance artist, playwright, filmmaker, zinester. SF
SARA SEINBERG novelist, poet, photographer, literary organizer. SF
SAMUEL TOPIARY performance artist, video artist, dancer. BROOKLYN
RHIANNON ARGO novelist, future librarian. SF
MYRIAM GURBA fiction writer, teacher. LONG BEACH
ENRIQUE URETA playwright. SF
PAGE MCBEE novelist, memoirist, teacher, arts organizer. OAKLAND
May 1, 2009
Homo A Go Go 2009 Confirmed Artists!
I'm one of them. I'll be reading and showing visuals of the Popsickle Project...
SOMARTS/The Eagle/ Thee Parkside Days and Times TBA
Girl In A Coma, Mirah, Purple Rhinstone Eagle, Katastrophe, Hunx and His Punx, D.a.v.O., Krylon Superstar, Partyline, Tara Jane O'Neil, Tender Forever, The Pickup Pattern, Sgt. Sass, Pariah Piranha, Lovers, Argyle Miss, Jenna Riot, Amy Kasio, Dorian Wood, Mon Cousin Belge, The Younger Lovers, Benni E, Puce Moment, Madame Morte, Alexander Crumbsnatcher, Athens Boys Choir, Lenelle Moïse, Team Gina, Dave End, Yr Heart Breaks, Nomy Lamm, The Casual Lust, Light Leaks, Tori Fixx, Jeremy Gloff, MKG FRNDZ, Warm Streams, The Judy Experience, Kirk Read, Rhiannon Argo, Clint Catalyst.
SOMARTS/The Eagle/ Thee Parkside Days and Times TBA
Girl In A Coma, Mirah, Purple Rhinstone Eagle, Katastrophe, Hunx and His Punx, D.a.v.O., Krylon Superstar, Partyline, Tara Jane O'Neil, Tender Forever, The Pickup Pattern, Sgt. Sass, Pariah Piranha, Lovers, Argyle Miss, Jenna Riot, Amy Kasio, Dorian Wood, Mon Cousin Belge, The Younger Lovers, Benni E, Puce Moment, Madame Morte, Alexander Crumbsnatcher, Athens Boys Choir, Lenelle Moïse, Team Gina, Dave End, Yr Heart Breaks, Nomy Lamm, The Casual Lust, Light Leaks, Tori Fixx, Jeremy Gloff, MKG FRNDZ, Warm Streams, The Judy Experience, Kirk Read, Rhiannon Argo, Clint Catalyst.
Mar 12, 2009
Feb 26, 2009
The Creamsickle is being typeset this week!
Yay!
And Cristy C. Road has started drawing the possible cover art. Can't wait to see it!
And I've been improving my website bit by bit:
www.rhiannonargo.com
Cristy C. Road gets it.
And Cristy C. Road has started drawing the possible cover art. Can't wait to see it!
And I've been improving my website bit by bit:
www.rhiannonargo.com
Cristy C. Road gets it.
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