We are developing the social individualist meta-context for the future. From the very serious to the extremely frivolous... lets see what is on the mind of the Samizdata people.

Samizdata, derived from Samizdat /n. - a system of clandestine publication of banned literature in the USSR [Russ.,= self-publishing house]

To get ahead in poetry, feign being fein and a Nwankwo

“Straight white author’s career finally takes off after he tells woke publishers he’s gender queer Nigerian”, reports the Daily Mail.

The artist formerly and now once again known as Aaron Barry is truly a bard for our times:

From 2023 to 2024, Barry had managed to fool 30 respected literary journals around the globe and got about 50 of his ‘nonsensical’ poems published.

He published dozens of pieces as Adele Nwankwo, a ‘gender-fluid member of the Nigerian diaspora,’ including one titled After Coming Out: A Wrestling Promo.’

‘The CisBoys thought they could gang up on me and put an end to my championship pursuit?’ the poem published in 2023 reads. ‘Hah! I’ve got Toni Morrison books that hit harder than those bozos.

‘Oh, and this would set the crowd ablaze, cause them to whisk in rattle homemade signs (“The Nigerian Nightmare,” “Nwankwo 11:16,” Step on My Balls, Kween Adele!)’

‘The first poem to ever get picked up was the “yah jah gah hah” one,’ Barry told The Free Press in an article published on Wednesday.

He was referring to one of Nwankwo’s poems that was published in the Tofu Ink Arts Press, which has a mission of ‘amplifying the voices of the under-represented.’

The poem kicks off with a Toni Morrison quote about ‘navigating a white male world’ and features lines such as ‘voodoo prak tik casta oyal drip drip.’

‘It was very obviously nonsense. Just fake bad Creole,’ Barry explained to the outlet as he chuckled, baffled that the poem was accepted to begin with.

Another one of Barry’s characters, b.h. fein, whose pronouns are ‘its/complicated,’ was actually nominated for a 2025 Best of the Net Award.

The intro of the award-worthy piece, titled Shakespeare’s C*msl*t, reads: ‘To ?️ or not to ?️ William Shakespeare’s ??? little c*msl*t ??? : that is the question.

A 2024 interview with b.h. fein appears in a magazine called “The Cry Lounge” here:

hi there, reader! i’m b. h. fein (they/them or it’s/complicated)~~! i write lots of stuff (mostly in lowercase), but my gluten-free bread and vegan butter is free verse poetry. i haven’t been sending my stuff out for too too long, but i feel like i recently cracked the code as to what i can offer the poetry world

They wasn’t wrong there.

-*-

I was going to add a “Related Post” link to my Samizdata post about Rahila Khan, whose short stories about the lives of Asian girls and women in a depressed English town were much admired in the literary world of the late 1980s until she turned out to be the Rev. Toby Forward, an Anglican vicar. Virago, the publisher, had all its unsold copies of Down the Road, Worlds Away pulped. The post I thought I remembered writing seems to have metaphorically shared their fate.

4 comments to To get ahead in poetry, feign being fein and a Nwankwo

  • NickM

    Alligator Anmè

    Nan dlo a, yon alligator,
    Kote solèy la klere, li toujou kontan,
    Li danse ak kè kontan, san pè,
    Nan zèb vèt, li jwenn yon zanmi, yon nonm.

    Li pa kache, li pa wont,
    Nan lanmou li, li pa gen limit,
    Kè li gwo, li renmen tout,
    Dlo a ap fè bal, tout moun ap ri.

    Bati yon rèv anba solèy la,
    De zanmi ki pataje tout sa,
    Yon alligator ki renmen ak fòs,
    Nan lanmou, li se yon gwo bòs.

    It’s in creole and it’s a about a gay alligator. Poe wrote it for me in a scouple of seconds.

    Let’s try James Joyce…

    Fried Chicken and Baboons

    In the sizzle, oh sweet crunch,
    Golden skin, taste bud’s punch,
    Life’s a feast, each bite a quest,
    In every morsel, we find our rest.

    Baboons, they swing, they leap, they play,
    Under the sun, they find their way,
    In the wild, their truth unfolds,
    In every howl, a story told.

    Transcendence in feathers, in skin so fine,
    Fried chicken whispers, “You’re divine,”
    Existence dances on a plate,
    In every chew, we contemplate.

    From jungle to kitchen, a journey vast,
    In every flavor, shadows cast,
    Baboons and chicken, a curious blend,
    Life’s a banquet, where we transcend.

  • John

    One of the people infuriated by Ceylon’s ‘true’ identity was Chris Talbot, who uses they/them pronouns, a freelance editor and DEI consultant.

    Talbot is the editor of B’K Magazine, which published one of Nwankwo’s poems last year.

    ‘There’s a white cis man, Jasper Ceylon, pretending to be a host of marginalized individuals in order to get published as them,’ B’K Magazine shared on Instagram.

    ‘He thinks it makes him clever and is trying to prove that publications will print anything as long as it comes from a marginalized person.’

    Not trying, succeeding. Bigly.

  • Paul Marks

    It is horribly clear that the study of the humanities (such as English and History) has collapsed into leftist nonsense at most universities – that the culture has been corrupted.

    But it will not “just” stop at the humanities – the study of all subjects, including the physical sciences, will collapse if the intellectual decay is not reversed.

    All subjects, including mathematics and physics, depend on basic principles of philosophy (yes – philosophy) – such as truth being objective and universal. And these principles of philosophy are denied by “Woke” Critical Theory Marxism – which sees everything as “power relations”, to be seen via its racial and sexual obsessions.

    Being “apolitical” will NOT work – “Woke” Critical Theory Marxism must be defeated, driven out, or it will destroy education – and, by destroying education, destroy the culture.

    As John O’Sullivan has pointed out for many years – any organisation or group that does not fight the left, ends up being taken over by the left.

    It does not matter if it is flower arranging, or a board game society, or anything – if you do not fight the left, they will take you over and destroy you.

    The price of liberty is indeed eternal vigilance.

    Freedom that has lasted for centuries can be lost very quickly – very quickly indeed.

  • NickM

    Abstract

    This paper explores the intersection of gender-based hermeneutics and Lorenz invariant quantum gravity, focusing on the concept of “safe spaces” within theoretical physics. By applying a feminist lens to the analysis of Lorentz invariance, we aim to uncover the implicit biases and sociocultural narratives that shape contemporary interpretations of quantum gravity. We argue that traditional frameworks often overlook the significance of gender dynamics in scientific discourse and the implications for creating inclusive research environments. Through a critical examination of existing literature and case studies, this study seeks to propose a reimagined approach that integrates gender consciousness into the foundational principles of quantum gravity. By fostering safe spaces that prioritize diverse perspectives, we envision a more equitable scientific community capable of enriching the discourse around fundamental physical theories.

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