We’re now fully ensconced in 2024, so it feels like a good time to look back on the previous year and let you know what I was up to in 2023. It was a great year for my writing work in lots of ways!
I Started Work on a New Book
2023 is the year I started writing Queer Minds!
It’s been a really fun process that I’m excited to take into 2024 with me. A lot of my work on this book, so far, has been in planning, drafting, researching, and conducting interviews with my collaborators. I’ve spoken to some absolutely amazing contributors so far, including big names and friendly faces in therapy work, LGBTQ+ advocacy, radical community activism, and more.
My next steps in 2024 will be transcribing interviews, weaving in my own experiences and expertise, and putting everything together to go to Jessica Kingsley Publishers at the end of the year. It looks like the book will be available to purchase in 2025 but I will, of course, keep you posted.
The potential full title is currently Queer Minds: LGBTQ+ Luninaries on Mental Health, Neurodiversity, and the Things that Help, but I’m still workshopping this as I go. Any ideas for a great title?
I Kept Loving my Old Book
The Trans Guide to Mental Health and Well-Being came out in 2022, but that doesn’t mean I was done with it in 2023!
A particular highlight for me was partnering with the delightful BookWyrm in Durham for the second time. They hosted The Trans Guide’s launch party in 2022 and, this year, the book featured in their Gift-a-Book scheme, a pay-it-forward system where people can access useful books for free. I signed a number of their copies, including some of those that had been paid forward, and I love knowing that my words are out there with people who need them.
Another incredible moment was delivering a speech and reading some of The Trans Guide at Ouseburn Family Pride 2023. This took place at Seven Stories in Newcastle, a wonderful museum and resource for book-loving families. Meeting everyone there filled me with warmth and pride.
I Published some Poetry
While working on everything to do with Queer Minds, I also stretched my writing legs by publishing some poetry. Two of my poems, Fern and Tart, featured in Spacebar magazine, while Autumn (after Spring, by Edna St Vincent Millay) was published in FUCK Plants zine. I’m particularly proud of Tart, and I’m looking forward to writing more poetry this year and hopefully getting more more published. Watch this space!
I Got Married
I ended 2023 by getting married to L, my long-term partner! My wife has been both a rocket ship and a lightning rod through my writing career this year, and I’m excited to keep loving her through 2024 and beyond.
I Looked Forward to 2024
In many ways 2023 was a difficult one, but I am grateful for the writing opportunities I got to have fun with. I’m looking forward to what 2024 brings me, for the writing I’ll do for Queer Minds, and for the revolution we’ll hopefully start along the way.
Katy Lees - LGBTQ+ Mental Health Author 