Arches National Park, Utah Photo: Elliot McGucken

Do you think you have the correct opinion?

I'm currently looking for reviewers for my new transgender novella I just released called The Drunk, The Gambler, and The Lover. It's about how people see you for what you aren't and the life of isolation, loneliness, and addiction that comes with it, a faceless existence. It's about that one day you realize you have been lying to yourself for 20 years and the great unraveling that follows, a conversation about writing, art, and self-acceptance.

(It's in stores, but just DM me or ask me in the comments, and I will give you a free copy. Verified Amazon reviews are the best way to support indie authors.)

goodgoodgood.co

This New Website is Making It Easier To Shop for Plus-Size Clothing

A new website aims to make finding ethical, sustainable plus-size clothes (that actually fit) a whole lot easier.

"Shopping for clothes is already intimidating. There are so many options and styles to consider, as well as factors like sustainability and ethics.

But for people in fat, disabled, or queer and gender-nonconforming bodies, it’s even more arduous.

Nico Herzetty, Emma K. Clark, and Paul Herzetty wondered: What if there was a way people could shop — not necessarily by color or size — but by measurements, materials, and ethics?

So they set off to create their website: Phoria. 

Here, shoppers can set up a free profile, add their body measurements (and “typical fit challenges”) and peruse over 270 brands. Once these data points are entered, users can personalize their pages with “saved,” “recommended,” or “hidden” brands. 

Pages can be totally private, or shared with the community to connect over styles and brands.

Aside from fit, brands in the Phoria database (which claims to be “the largest database of plus-friendly brands”) can also be filtered as “gender-neutral,” “woman-run,” “small business,” or “natural fibers.” Users can also filter for price, preferred styles, and more.

Pictured: A screenshot of the "Fit Challenges" feature on a Phoria user's profile.

Some brands include popular names like Athleta, Levi’s, and Patagonia. Others are small businesses, like Beefcake Swimwear, or Hey Peach.

“For so many people, it feels too damn hard to find and keep clothing that fits in all the ways that really matter. So we’re doing something about it,” the Phoria website reads.

“Unlike most online shopping experiences, we center the needs of plus-size women, nonbinary, and trans people, and prioritize supporting clothing brands focused on sustainability, ethics, and inclusion.” ...

That team — made up of Clark, and Nico and Paul Herzetty — calls themselves “fat, disabled, and very, very queer.” 

“These are some of the main ways we identify, and they’re qualities that have directly impacted our ability to get dressed every day in a way that feels good,” the Phoria team introduces themselves on the website.

Pictured: A screenshot of Phoria's plus-size clothing brand database.

In addition to catering the user experience to women, non-binary, and trans people, Phoria is also a benefit corporation, or a B corp.

“We’ve legally required ourselves to consider the interests of all our stakeholders — customers, employees, the planet, and our shareholders,” the Phoria website explains.

“Our specific public benefit purpose is to reduce people’s dependence on buying mass-produced items made in unsustainable ways and to use human-centered business models to boldly challenge economic systems of inequity.” 

Right now, in the early stages of the company’s business, it doesn’t make any money.

“We’re focused on building something that genuinely solves plus-size people’s challenges around clothes shopping and supports smaller and more sustainable brands,” Phoria’s website states.

So, spreading the word seems to be of utmost importance...

Additionally, TikTok creators @couplagoofs (a queer couple named Morgan and Phoebe), recently shared a video in which they discovered Phoria. They met the website’s creators at a fat liberation event in their city and were introduced to the tool.

Quickly, commenters responded with gratitude and excitement.

“It is so disappointing to sort through pages of plus size clothes that aren’t even plus size,” a TikTok user commented. “This is gonna be such a good tool!” 

Some even shared emotional responses, speaking to the need at the heart of Phoria’s mission. 

“I’m… gonna cry,” another commenter wrote. “I’ve needed this my whole life.”"

-via Goodgoodgood, November 20, 2023

10 books to read in 2025

(tagged by @hunxi-after-hours)

Let's ignore the fact that it's already 1/3 of the way through the year, shall we?

I'm narrowing this down by keeping it to non-webnovel fiction only (I keep separate lists for webnovels and nonfiction, both of which are long enough on their own). I'm also excluding anything I've already started reading (which eliminates another uh... more than I'd like to admit). Anyway, that puts us in the part of my reading list that I vaguely structure by language, so:

The Iliad, trans. Emily Wilson - I found her translation of The Odyssey (and her commentary on it and the translation process) to be an interesting read, so I'm curious to see what she does with The Iliad. Also I just really like the story and will happily take the excuse to 'reread' it.

The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon - I heard such good things about it and then never got around to reading it.

Children of Time by Adrian Tchaikovsky - I went through this phase when I was younger where I thought I hated all scifi, and then I realised I just hated a lot of the 'classics' of the genre written in, like, 1950-1980, and that there's a lot of the genre I do actually quite enjoy. I have read a fair bit of it since, but I still have some catching-up to do.

House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski - I just feel like I should have read this by now. My excuse was that I was waiting until I was in a place to acquire more physical books but really I've just been kind of scared of it.

《长安的荔枝》 (The Litchi Road) by  马伯庸 / Ma Boyong - I recently read another of his novels (《太白金星有点烦》 / The Annoyance of the Gods, about the overworked gods who coordinate the whole Journey to the West behind the scenes) and very much enjoyed it, so went looking for more. I like the premise of this one as another behind-the-scenes take on a well known story, and am looking forward to seeing where he goes with it.

《三国演义》 (Romance of the Three Kingdoms) attributed to 罗贯中 / Luo Guanzhong - I've read abridgments. I've read adaptations. I've read poems and commentaries and inspired-bys and let's not even start on dramas. But I have let the OG unabridged version gather dust on my shelves whilst I stare at it like a coward.

El Problema de los Tres Cuerpos (三体) by 刘慈欣 / Liu Cixin, trans. Javier Altayó Finestres - This is a project of sorts that I kind of stumbled into, where I'm trying to read this novel in every language in which I am literate. I first read it in the original Chinese and then went straight to Ken Liu's English translation (The Three-Body Problem) because I had heard such good things about the translation, and wanted to study it under a microscope. Then I happened across a translation into a different language with an interesting-looking foreword, and picked it up on a whim. And it spiralled from there. I wouldn't call this a favourite novel, yet here I am, reading it for the 5th (and last, unless I learn another language or decide to torture myself with Italian) time. But it's been interesting seeing how the translation differs between target languages, and I will definitely try something like this again with other novels.

Les fiancés de l'hiver (A Winter's Promise) by Christelle Dabos - I'm well-read in the French classics but woefully out of touch with more contemporary novels, and have read almost no original French speculative fiction at all, which felt like an oversight. So I asked for recommendations at a local multilingual bookstore and came away with this one.

La plaça del diamant (The Time of the Doves) by Mercè Rodoreda - for reasons of trying to get a good grade in immigrant.

Permagel (Permafrost) by Eva Baltasar - I was browsing the indie bookstore near me for language reasons and it was featured prominently on the queer lit recs shelf.

Tagging @redbelles, @kelsiers, @veliseraptor, @venndaai, @stripedroseandsketchpads, and anyone else who has a reading list you feel like sharing (if you think 'I want to do this but I wasn't tagged' please do it and say you were tagged by me so I can steal recommendations from your lists)

LINK: tinyurl.com/oldgaySF

I'd like to share with y'all a project I've poured my heart and soul into over the last couple of years: a database cataloguing every single older queer science fiction book I've managed to track down, consisting of just over 200 titles with LGBT characters/themes & by LGBT authors, spanning over a century (1880-2000) 🚀

The database can be filtered by representation, subgenre, whether the book is currently in print, and more; additionally, it includes my own ratings & brief thoughts on the ones i have read, if anyone needs a suggestion on places to start! (or feel free to shoot me an ask for a more personalized recommendation)

SPREAD THE WORD

AUTISM IS NOT A DISEASE.

WE ARE VALID AND WE ARE BORN LIKE THIS FOR THE REST OF OUR LIVES.

THERE IS NO CURE TO AUTISM. WE. ARE. NORMAL.

Reblog this post with the hashtag 'protect autistic people', we need to get this to as many people as possible- this is DISGUSTING. My little brother is fucking beautiful and he does not have a damn disease.

Please reblog this. This cannot happen.

@kage-meows-around, @eclipce-the-cat, @deviatedscientist, @eroswmorals, @twilightowl, @kameonerd566, @greenevilclaws, @theradiodaemon, @worstvillian, @amanda2119, @tankthrust-bored, @xking-george-iiix, @xxxangel-dustxxx, @tumblrnews, @tumblrbot, @pixiestickkk, @helluvamealyah, @helluva-kat, @cipherthewhore, @glitzbot, @godforsakencryptid, @goldsnek, @envy--draws, @eline-131106, @ironperfectionwizard, @itzay0910, @jennsypuff, @jen-derless, @jeniferdavid18, @warblogs17282, @werewolf-transgenderism, @stardatextoday, @sobadbad, @sugwrpwzz, @onthemeander, @oh-no-its-another-alastor-fan, @nettle-milk, @miyakuli, @angel-dust-rp, @ariesnhope, @danielsarmand, @daddyhoothoot, @blitzbittz, @stolitzsings, @onehelluvafan

btw if you're on this site it is your duty to reblog any post that has been prophecied to reach 10k notes. let's all annoy op

real adult™ tip from a real adult™ with executive dysfunction

do stuff while waiting for other stuff

like that sounds intuitive and vague but so much of the day is spent in a period of wait and if you struggle to motivate yourself to do things then this is the best time

waiting for your water to boil? bag up your garbage. waiting for your coffee to drip? wipe down your counters. roommate taking up the bathroom? scoop the cat box. waiting for your food to cook in the microwave? do however many dishes you can while it’s in there. 

waiting is the perfect time to do a limited amount of something for yourself where you would be otherwise just standing around doing fuck-all