Hey everybody! (to be said in the voice of that doctor guy from The Simpsons)
Bi+ Lines came to a glorious close last month in Manchester at Europe’s biggest LGBTQ+ bookshop, Queer Lit / Social Refuge. Huge thanks to everyone who came along and who performed at the open mic, and thanks too to our headliners Lenni Sanders, Fee Griffin and Jake Wild Hall, and wonderful BSL interpreter Russell Andrews!
I can hardly believe it’s over. Just to recap, Bi+ Lines saw…
🖊️8 poetry workshops attended by over 300 people
🐛2,800 poems submitted to the anthology from 40 countries
📗45 poets published and 100s of copies sold
🎤10 launches across the UK and online, ft. 35 contributors, 32 open mic-ers and attended by 400 bi+ poetry fans
This project has been a dream to run. I’m so grateful for all the messages about how it has helped people come out, or identify as bi+, or feel more seen. It’s always been about community - so thank you for being part of it.
I want to thank all of you who’ve been involved in any way, shape or form, as well as Arts Council England, the partners, and especially fourteen poems without whom none of this would be possible. I don’t know anything about publishing, but I know I couldn't have asked for a more generous, passionate and supportive partner in Ben, its editor. Go and submit to the mag!
The end of the funded part means that this newsletter, and the @bi_poets Instagram and Twitter accounts, are now no longer dedicated to promoting primarily the Bi+ Lines project. It’s all about the bi+ poetry opportunities and community out there - so if you have anything you want me to share with this 600+ strong mailing list, please get in touch. Obviously I’ll be keeping it relevant to bi+ poetry things only, and if I do any more bi+ poetry events (spoiler - there are a couple in the works!) I’ll obviously let you know too. If you want to book me to run a Bi+ Lines inspired workshop or event get in touch! And if you are a bi+ poet wanting to meet other bi+ poets, a few people have organised some informal workshop meet-up groups online and in London. Check my website for more info and email bipoetsonline [at] gmail [dot] com or bipoetslondon [at] gmail [dot] com. Email me at bipoetsproject [at] gmail [dot] com if you want to start up your own group and I can put you in touch with the bi+ poets near you.
Anyway, all that is to say that I’m here today to share a request from Laura Mendez, who took part in one of the Bi+ Lines workshops last year, and who’s now researching bi+ spaces. She’s looking for people to interview as part of her MSc and she’d be grateful for your help. It’s a unique opportunity to be part of a bi+ led research project - and we need more of those. So, here’s her message, I hope you can take part, and toodle-oo from me for now!
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Hi bi+ poets,
My name is Laura, and I’m a student at the University of Strathclyde in Glasgow. As part of my Applied Gender Studies MSc I’m studying bisexual identity. As many of you might know, bisexuality is an underrepresented identity within the LGBT community and academia is no exception. As a bi+ person, I want to contribute to the demystification of bi identity by focusing my research on it.
I’m looking for participants for my research project, which is why I’m here! If you’ve attended one of the bi+ poets events/workshops, I want to know how you felt in this space. I personally attended an in-person workshop in Glasgow and it was so liberating to be surrounded by bi+ people like me, without ever having to give any explanation. Maybe your experience is different, and I’m equally interested in it if that’s the case! All participants need to do is chat to me for an hour about how they perceive their identity and how they felt in the bi+ poets space. Interviews will take around an hour and will happen on zoom. I’ll send a consent form ahead of time, and all participants will be anonymous.
I would really really appreciate if you had a space hour of your time to help me with my research, and want to thank you all in advance.
Please email me at: laura.menendez.2023@uni.strath.ac.uk
Have a lovely day and hopefully hear from some of you soon.
Laura