The Autostraddle Insider: Issue 61, September 2019

Letter From Your Editors

Well hello, neighbors! This month Laneia asked us to take photos of ourselves JUST BEING US somewhere in the world, and so here we are!

1st: Riese // Drew // Kayla // Carmen // Laneia
2nd: KaeLyn // Sarah // Heather // Valerie Anne // Rachel

It has been such a busy and exciting month for us; I don’t even know where to start. Okay, yes I do! After hundreds of applications and dozens of interviews, we’ve brought 13 new Contributors into Slack! You’ll be meeting them all in the coming weeks through the work they’ll be publishing on Autostraddle dot com, and in intro posts here and on our social medias. They’ve already infused our workplace with so much energy and so many bold and bright ideas. We can’t wait for you to get to know them. Also in the realm of new employees, we’ve been refining a call for a new full-time Deputy Editor, part-time Trans Subject Editor, and a part-time A+ Director, all three of which will be published on our website next week. Absolutely none of those things would have been possible for us without your enormous and overwhelming support during our recent fundraiser, and so, once again and always, we thank you.

Our team has also been working nonstop on a company culture initiative, which we finalized and launched last week, and which we’ll be talking about more on the site in the coming weeks. Essentially, we’ve established some values that we are committed to adhering to, outlined internal behaviors that are necessary for us to live up to those values, and committed to firm next steps to make sure all of those values come to fruition. We’ve also updated so many processes and created new guidelines around things like editing ethics, and set some expectations for our senior staff around things like — get this — “work-life balance” and “prioritizing mental and emotional health.” This summer has been about listening and accountability and real growth, and we know that we’re never going to be the leaders we need to be if we’re not being wise about taking care of our own minds and spirits and bodies. It’s so rewarding to see so many ideas coming together and to know we’re creating a workspace where everyone here is safe and empowered to creatively thrive.

Of course all of these big changes are going to come with a price tag, so we’re looking ahead to 2020 with some huge goals in mind around traffic, advertising, client projects, and fundraising. It’s going to be a lot of hard work, but we know our team is more than capable of rising to these new challenges so we can continue to partner with you and our team members to do this essential work for our community.

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about Emily Dickinson ruminating on success, about how she said we can’t really feel the fullness of success unless we’ve been (or almost been) defeated, and about how notoriety has a song and a sting and also wings. Each new day as an independent publication on this internet, as an LGBTQ+ person in this political climate is a challenge in its own way. Our success is never assured, and the more publications that collapse and the larger we grow, the more threats we’ll face. But we’re ready! And we’re so grateful you’re with us on this journey!

Love,

Heather

and Riese / Laneia / Rachel / Carmen / Sarah

Nine Important Excerpts From Editorial Conversations

Carmen: New question: How do we feel about making books a public channel again?
It turns out that once it has the lock on it, you can’t search for it within slack
(ie/ contributors who aren’t already in there can’t find it to join it)
Laneia: i feel fine about it but maybe set the purpose and topic to be “a place where rachel, our books editor, will let you know about books”
or something like that
Rachel: oh yeah that’s fine with me! I had thought it was already public!
Laneia: so no one does that thing where they assign and approve things on their own somehow? like a group of preschoolers deciding everyone’s eating chocolate cake for lunch
bless their hearts

Carmen: OMG LANEIA YOU WERE IN 4-H??
My love for you just hit the stratosphere
Laneia: I TOOK THE MINUTES
“ANY NEW BUSINESS?” SAID I TO MY CLASSMATES
Carmen: I didn’t discover what 4-H was until I was an adult and let me tell you, I regret it and believe I missed out.
Laneia: we didn’t raise sheep or anything fun like that, just civic shit
ANYWAY
Carmen: haha, how did you know that I wanted to raise sheep? And chickens!
Laneia: megan raised sheep and ducks for 4-h
ducks are apparently very fucking mean
so just, bear that in mind
for the rest of your life

Drew: All cis men should be strapped to a chair Clockwork Orange style and forced to watch a double feature of Magic Mike XXL and Hustlers to model the behavior they should exhibit and what will happen to them if they don’t
This is my 2020 platform
Heather: you have my vote!
Valerie: i pledge allegiance

Rachel: I’m getting intel that we are also mentioned in the new Yorker crossword today?
Heather: !!!!!
well look at that!

Rachel: We’ve arrived
Laneia: Y’ALL
Carmen: WAIT WHAT
WHAT THE WAIT
I love this! I loooooove it
Riese: OMG
WE ARE IN A CROSSWORD???

Rachel: Navy Confirms UFO Videos Posted by Blink 182 Rocker Are Real and Should Not Have Been Released
Stef: what the shit
also ever since i showed mark hoppus up on playing the cure songs nobody in blink 182 will ever belong in this goth channel i’m sorry

Laneia: hey i’m adding the search terms to the newsletter and just curious, what is “gazelle style sex”??????
if the answer is graphic or otherwise bananas please thread it!
Drew:

Drew: Happy to be back on Tinder

Vanessa: DREW
Drew: Gonna match with her and message the essay

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Heather: i just got a new game where you’re a goose in a town and you just go around causing mayhem
Sarah: hahahhaa
what is that game called
nintendo switch is arguably the gayest handheld console of the bunch
don’t tempt me i get this feeling every 4+ years that i need a new console lmao
Heather: for sure! the game is called UNTITLED GOOSE GAME

Sarah: omg i just laughed so much
how joyful
Heather: when he takes that kid’s glasses!
Sarah: so hilarious.
i love the low run he does when he’s stolen something
Heather: lol yes
Sarah: the letter is devastating
just plop in the water! okay you’ve given me a lot to think about here today heather.
Heather:

Drew: Motion to rename Friday Open Thread: Heather Ranks Foods
Vanessa: HAHAHA

Best Laid Plan(ner)s

Every month a different writer will give you a sneak peak into their notebook organization situation. This month (Al)aina’s giving you a tour of their passion planner/ binder combo. (Also their handwriting is GORGEOUS!)

What We’ve Been Reading

Kayla Kumari Upadhyaya: Marlena by Julie Buntin

Drew: The Miseducation of Cameron Post by Emily M. Danforth

Heather: Of Ice and Shadows by Audrey Coulthurst

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Rachel: Priestdaddy, Patricia Lockwood

Riese: Mostly Dead Things by Kristen Arnett

Sarah: We Have Always Been Here by Samra Habib

MEET A WRITER’S PET!

Get to know some of our writer’s pets. This month we’re meeting KaeLyn’s betta fish, Billy Porter!

What’s your favorite food (includes human food)?

Ooh, daphnia! Do you know what daphnia are? They’re water fleas, but they’re actually crustaceans, not bugs, and they are very, very tasty. I wish I could have more daphnia every day, but they’re a special treat and also my mom won’t let me eat too much because I could get the belly bloat!

What’s your most perfect sleeping scenario?

Laying my fins on a long, still, gently floating leaf close to the surface of the water. I used to use plastic leaf hammocks made just for betta fishies, but my mom added lots more plants to my home and now I sleep and rest on real leaves that fill most of my tank.

If you could have a home on the beach, near mountains, or in a lush forest, which would you pick and why?

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I was hatched in an aquarium, but mom says betta fishies live in tropical climates. That’s why I have a special heater in my home. So I guess a lush tropical forest or a freshwater beach somewhere nice and warm.

Would you say you’ve seen a ghost?

Sometimes I see another betta fish that looks just like me if mom forgets to turn my light off at night and it freaks me the FUCK out! If you see that other doppelgänger fish around, let me know, because I have this feeling deep inside that I must kill it. Only one of us can live!

Which famous or fictional fish do you look up to and why?

Hmm, this is hard to answer. There is a real gap in representation of betta fishies in pop culture and media. I’ve had to try to relate my identity to other types of fishies or, more broadly, aquatic life, but I’ve never felt seen by a famous animal. It’s like, who am I even supposed to be? You know what I mean?

What do you wish you could say to your Mom?

Hello, Mom. I really like to look at your face when you work at your desk. It’s very boring here without you. Sorry I cause you so much worry with my tail nipping. I can’t change who I am.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BzOry09BviF/

SLACKERS

September Retro-Reading: Apples to Apples

It’s Rosh Hashanah and also it’s fall I think in other parts of the world, which means it’s time for APPLES.

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via Wilder Hungers: Falling Leaves and Galettes for Breakfast

“Strawberry Shortcake in Big Apple City” Is a Queer Romcom Don’t @ Me, by Heather Hogan (2017) – A classic film review sure to delight the cockles of your heart.

Get Baked: Apple Damn Sandwich, by Laneia (2013) – You think it’s just a recipe but it’s really a way of life.

Femme Brûlée: Vegan Apple Cider Cake, by Reneice (2017) – A great thing about Reneice is that she has a LOT of apple recipes. Here’s a good one for all ye VEGANS that also celebrates fall.

Liquor In The Autumn Evening: Spiked Mulled Cider for Two, by A.E. (2016) – If it ever gets cold, this would be a nice way to get a little warmer and a little drunk.

This Is How We Do It: Making and Canning Apple Butter, by Sarah Palmer (2015) – If you wanna get really domestic about it

Five Posts Rachel Can’t Believe You Motherf*ckers Didn’t Read Last Month

Here’s What 7 Youth Activists Want To See For Our Green New World, by Greta Moran

As an editor, I try to manage my own expectations about how much and what kind of original reporting we can publish given our budget and our resources, but I have to say I was an am SO THRILLED that we were able to publish firsthand reporting and interview material from the first-ever United Nations Youth Climate Summit, holy shit!! Read it!!

“Transparent” Changed Me (And TV) Forever, by Drew

I told this already to Drew in the comments because I was emotional after reading it, but this essay really helped me understand the social, cultural and interpersonal importance of TV as an art form and cultural force in a way I never had before; I’m so grateful to Drew for sharing so deeply what Transparent has meant to her so I could experience a small facet of it by reading.

Fear & Freedom: Traveling While Trans, by Abeni

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I’ve learned SO much from all the Travel Issue pieces, and this piece of Abeni’s really stands out to me as one; getting to read her thinking through the role that travel plays in her life and those of her loved ones’ and how it brings to the surface the dynamics of both privilege and care that underpin them has been incredibly valuable to me, and I suspect will be to you too!

Black August: A Feminist and Queer Syllabus for Black Liberation, by Carmen

This was a piece Carmen had put together for August, but we didn’t get a chance to talk about it in last month’s Insider and the incredible amount of research and reading material she’s put together here is relevant and enriching all year long and frankly forever — don’t miss out!

PHOTOESSAY: Women Run the Show at Yola Día 2019, by Reneice

There is nothing about this for you to not enjoy. Molly’s incredible photos of the performers! Molly’s incredible photos of Reneice! The joy of hearing about what’s possible at a music festival run entirely by women! Treat yourself!

Social Media Spotlight

Our most popular tweet this month (129,000 impressions, 15,000 engagements) was inviting readers to vote in our second annual Gay Emmy. They were an enormous success. And the celebs who won were so excited about it!

https://twitter.com/msjamieclayton/status/1174402812173635584?s=21

Grateful. Thanks @autostraddle and all of queer media for seeing US. Congrats @theebillyporter @MjRodriguez7 @angelicaross and our entire Pose fam. #PoseFX https://t.co/iseika5mMd

— Janet Mock (@janetmock) September 18, 2019

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https://twitter.com/IndyaMoore/status/1174399823337811968

https://twitter.com/angelicaross/status/1174395107518214144?s=21

https://twitter.com/angelicaross/status/1174395586562289664

Thank you for the love and kind words @autostraddle 🙌🏼🎉🏳️‍🌈 (Just a friendly FYI, #JaneTheVirgin wasn’t cancelled, it just ended 😉😘) #autostraddle https://t.co/BQmxUNJRqI pic.twitter.com/MxPeXssvH8

— Jaime Camil (@jaimecamil) September 18, 2019

https://twitter.com/mikeroyce/status/1174531066670903298?s=12

Gazelle Sex, Revisited

Laneia: if the answer is graphic or otherwise bananas please thread it!
Abeni: lol is it this??? the descriptions in this are WILD
“The Gazelle And Stallion” Position, Variant 3 – TantraMag

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First the man kneels in front of the woman, with his buttocks on his shanks. He firmly grasps the woman’s waist and pulls her over in order to insert his virile member inside her hot, wet vagina. After the man enters her slowly and deeply, he raises on his knees, sustaining the woman’s pelvis …

Abeni: “If his thrusts are forceful, they may awaken the woman’s fundamental energy, Kundalini.”
Laneia: OK WOW
Abeni: “She will perceive waves of energy starting from her pelvis and flowing towards the crown of her head.”
she just will. this position guarantees it!! if his thrusts are forceful enough
i dunno this was the first link i saw so
Christina: “Hey babe, I really need some waves of energy starting from my pelvis and flowing towards the crown of my head tonight”
Dani: Holy shit
Abeni: gimme summa that kundalini bae
Stef: are there antlers
Vanessa: what…what. i’m late but. what.