Through the lens of horror—from Halloween to Hereditary—queer and trans writers consider the films that deepened, amplified, and illuminated their own experiences. Horror movies hold a complicated space in the hearts of the queer community: historically misogynist, and often homo- and transphobic, the genre has also been inadvertently feminist and open to subversive readings. Common tropes—such as the circumspect and resilient “final girl,” body possession, costumed villains, secret identities, and things that lurk in the closet—spark moments of eerie familiarity and affective connection. Still, viewers often remain tasked with reading themselves into beloved films, seeking out characters and set pieces that speak to, mirror, and parallel the unique ways queerness encounters the world.
IT CAME FROM THE CLOSET is a testament to this, and features twenty-five essays by writers speaking to this relationship, through connections both empowering and oppressive. From Carmen Maria Machado on Jennifer’s Body, Jude Ellison S. Doyle on In My Skin, Addie Tsai on Dead Ringers, and many more, these conversations convey the rich reciprocity between queerness and horror.
Contributors Viet Dinh, Tucker Lieberman, Carrow Narby, and Addie Tsai are joining us on the virtual Busboys stage with editor Joe Vallese to tell us all about this queer love letter to horror. Copies of the book will be available for purchase before and during the event, so make sure to order your copy before we’re out of stock! Your purchase of the book includes shipping anywhere in the United States via USPS.
This event is free and open to all. Our program begins at 6:00 pm, and will be followed by an audience Q&A. Copies of IT CAME FROM THE CLOSET will be available for purchase before and after the event. Please note that this event is VIRTUAL and will be live-streamed here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W19RM1FV68k
We ask that guests RSVP in order to receive direct updates about the event from Busboys and Poets Books
Viet Dinh (he/him) was born in Vietnam and grew up in Colorado. He attended Johns Hopkins University and the University of Houston and currently teaches at the University of Delaware. He has received fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts and the Delaware Division of the Arts, as well as two O. Henry Prizes and the Alice Hoffman Prize for Fiction from Ploughshares. His stories have appeared in Zoetrope: All-Story, Witness, Fence, Five Points, Chicago Review, Threepenny Review, and Best American Non-Required Reading 2017. His debut novel, AFTER DISASTERS, a finalist for the PEN/Faulkner Prize, was released in 2016.
Tucker Lieberman (he/him) is the author of the weird trans metafiction novel MOST FAMOUS SHORT FILM OF ALL TIME. Previously, he worked for a decade for an investment company; this was mostly not scary, but feels scarier in retrospect. He's frightened by pumpkin spice lattes, which is not to say he'd never drink one, since things that are frightening are sometimes good. Originally from Boston, he now haunts Bogotá, Colombia with his husband, the sci-fi writer Arturo Serrano. www.tuckerlieberman.com
Carrow Narby (they/them) is a hobbyist writer based on the north shore of Massachusetts. Their essays have been featured in Bitch, The Toast, and The Establishment, but they are currently focused on writing fiction. You can explore their work at carrownarby.com.
Addie Tsai (any/all) is a queer nonbinary artist and writer of color. They collaborated with Dominic Walsh Dance Theater on Victor Frankenstein and Camille Claudel, among others. Addie has an MFA in Creative Writing from Warren Wilson College and a PhD in Dance from Texas Woman’s University. She is the author of the queer Asian young adult novel DEAR TWIN. UNWIELDLY CREATURES, their adult queer biracial retelling of Frankenstein, is forthcoming from Jaded Ibis Press in August 2022. They are the Fiction Co-Editor and Editor of Features & Reviews at Anomaly, Staff Writer at Spectrum South, and Founding Editor & Editor in Chief at just femme & dandy.
Joe Vallese (he/him) is editor of IT CAME FROM THE CLOSET: QUEER REFLECTIONS ON HORROR and co-editor of the anthology WHAT’S YOUR EXIT? A LITERARY DETOUR THROUGH NEW JERSEY. His creative and pop culture writing appears in BOMB, VICE, Backstage, PopMatters, Southeast Review, North American Review, Narrative Northeast, VIA: Voices in Italian-Americana, among others. He has been a Pushcart Prize nominee and a notable in Best American Essays for his essay “Blood, Brothers.” He is currently clinical associate professor in the Expository Writing Program at New York University, and previously served as site director and faculty for the Bard Prison Initiative. Joe holds an MFA New York University, and MAT and BA degrees from Bard College.
