Voices for Resistance: Poetry, Queer Identity, and Changing the World: A Reading by Jendi Reiter and K.G. Keough-Huff
Join poets Jendi Reiter and Karen (Q) Keough-Huff for an afternoon of poetry and resistance. Jendi will read from their newest book of poetry Introvert Pervert that Denise Duhamel calls, “politically personal and personally political, bursting with post-confessional wit and tenderness.” Q will be reading from her newest books of poetry, When I was 8 and QBird Speaks, about life, childhood, and falling in love with her wife.
Jendi Reiter is the author of nine books of poetry and prose, including the poetry collection Introvert Pervert (The Word Works, 2026) and the novels Two Natures and Origin Story, both from Saddle Road Press. Recent awards include two fellowships from the Massachusetts Cultural Council, the Saints & Sinners Literary Festival Award, and the Oscar Wilde Award from Gival Press. Their work explores themes of belonging and becoming, magic, queerness, and family violence. They are the editor of the writing resource site WinningWriters.com. https://www.jendireiter.com/
Karen Keough-Huff, also known as ‘Q’, is a member of Straw Dog Writers Guild and the Writing Sisters, a group of BIPOC and LBGTQ+ women writers in western Massachusetts
Q explains, “Joining the Writing Sisters and participating in the Guerrera writer zoom sessions hosted by Mydalis Vera has been a life-changing experience for me. I had started personal writing many years ago and had stopped for a little while, not really knowing what to do with it. I have been writing poetry for many years, but only recently decided to perform and seek support for my expression. I found the support I needed and have found my writing voice! It has been the most joyous, challenging, and positive experience in my writing life. Participation in both groups has helped me to become a better learner, listener, mentor, and writer.”
Q is the author of the poetry books When I Was 8 , The QBird Speaks, as well as the nonfiction books The Viking and The Mayflower and Four Pawed Angels, and the novel Sarah’s Hope, as well as many journal and anthology pieces.
